Folks Laugh, Roll Their Eyes, or Just Don’t Get It…

[foakes]

A good member wanted a decent "8" or better Penn 550SS spinning reel —- Not a graphite reel, metal —- for fishing Reds down in Louisiana.

Now, this reel is one of Penn's all time best Spinning reels from the Spinfisher line-up.

Trouble is, these reels have been long discontinued, and although about half of the parts are available, about half are discontinued.

But, some years ago, I took the time and effort to properly number organize even the smallest of parts.  There are hundreds of thousands of NOS parts that may or likely may not be available to me otherwise.

Imagine the effort to order each of these parts, pay exorbitant prices, shipping, tax, and then at the end of the giant effort, end up with some wrong parts, missing parts, and non-existent parts.

So I have Penn, DQ, Mitchell, and ABU parts sorted into numbered bins, envelopes, and have a fairly decent chance to locate them when needed quickly.

Just pulled these parts for the Penn 550SS from the bins last night.  It will be assembled with HT-100 CF lightly Cal's greased drags, SS drags, tuned, tested for all functions, rechecked, and shipped off to the member.

People laugh at the fast food trays, the organization, the hanging on to "old parts" —- even the expense of the right type of bins.  But it pays off for a lot of folks who need obscure or discontinued quality new parts for some of the best spinners ever produced, without breaking the bank.

Be a week or so until I can wrap up this little project due to many reels ahead of it on the benches for other folks —- but I'll post some completed photos.  Reel should be a "10" mechanically & cosmetically.

Best, Fred

[Gfish]

It's a thing. And it's not just reels. Some people, especially the older generations, want durability and simplicity. I'm so tired of the "throwaway culture. Automobiles are a good example—something the average Joe can work on. Modern day safety features are great thing to have, but only if they last and are not subject to recalls.
Yesterday I saw a $999 Daiwa spinner that had an "ABS" side-plate and a high-tech main gear with no mention of the type of metal used or how it's formed. And they're still using the "mag seal" bearings.

Amassing and organizing all those parts sounds like alota work Fred. N/C is great, but...

[Woodpuppy]

Fred I don't laugh or ridicule. I'm happy there are foakes like you out there keeping the good ol' stuff going. Almost nothing made today is as good as the old stuff, let alone better. Software included. Don't even get me started on automobiles. Why is there software in automobiles?

[MACflyer]

Fred, my eyes don't roll, but they do get laser focused when I see pics of your shop and the reels you send out: amazing to me. Your precision work and maintenance standards inspire me. Keep on keeping on!

[whalebreath]

Fred you have an admirably organised mind to say the least. 

[jgp12000]

Fred you inspired me to purchase a food tray for reel servicing,your organization skills are unsurpassed.Also,your
work ethic is alien to our- throwaway cell phone obsessed culture.

[Woodpuppy]

Forgot to add, while I don't have food trays for organization, I use cardboard soda flats and a variety of plastic food trays. Better than looking for fun parts and the like under the couch amid drifts of dog hair! Egg grates work well too for safely storing small parts in order of disassembly. Organization is key to success!

[jgp12000]

I use a magnetic parts tray for all the greasy metal parts that are going into lacquer thinner for cleaning.I put all
the painted or plastic parts on a paper towel.I usually have a micro fiber cloth on the tray to keep parts from rolling or bouncing    

[Gfish]

Fred I don't laugh or ridicule. I'm happy there are foakes like you out there keeping the good ol' stuff going. Almost nothing made today is as good as the old stuff, let alone better. Software included. Don't even get me started on automobiles. Why is there software in automobiles?

Well they generally run much better with digitally controlled sensor/software/computer systems, and the engines last longer, but when those systems fail it gets expensive and time consuming and too complicated for me(average Joe)to work on.

[jgp12000]

I have been a ford guy as far as trucks go on my 3rd one,but I have to share this.My friend's daughter has a 2018 ford explorer.The water pump went out,it is inside the motor

$4k for a water pump & its a gamble at that.If the water mixed with the oil you have to spend $9k for a new engine

The engineer that designed that motor should be fired !!!

That is just plain stupid IMO

[MarkT]

My eyes don't roll but they do kinda glaze over when I see all your organized parts!

[foakes]

Finished up this Penn 550SS for a member this morning.

Smooth and quiet as oiled glass.

This is a new build using 100% all new parts.

A beast of all metal, not graphite (another word for plastic).

CF drags lightly greased with Cal's.

Ready for Reds or Drums down in Louisiana.

The trick on these, when building from scratch —- is to ID the version.  There are multiple versions of the same model —- and the part numbers are basically the same.  One spacer, wrong bearing, left out shim, too proud a screw —- and the reel will not function properly.

Best, Fred

[boon]

Man that's too pretty to fish. If it was me, even if I'd bought it to fish with, I'd just put it on a shelf and admire it each time I walked past.

[Gfish]

I have 2-SS 7500's left. IMO, one of the old-school pinnacles of spinning reel quality. Another example for me of plain and simple; weight, age and brand = quality.

Really Fred, N/C is great and convenient(for me) for parts, but everything costs something, even if it ain't money... The next reel I sell that you might want is on me.