Penn Surfmaster 100 Bearings

[Limey]

Hello to all you good folks on the other side of the pond!


I am based in the UK and have for years run a couple of surfmaster 100 multipliers (conventionals) for shore fishing with longbeach handles and rare earth magnets fixed into the left side plate ; they are just the job for what I want. They hold a good amount of #25lb line and the 3:1 retrieve is great for winding in when there is a load of weed about or a large fish is hooked.

Our surfcasting is fairly demanding on the reels as we often cast 140 yards with 6oz leads. Once in a while I would replace the bearings as they became noisy, this was never a problem as they were freely available over here from Penn Servicing. I do have some Newell PTFE bearings but these don't last long and the spool spindle tends to drill its way out of the right side bearing.

I noticed that the spools in the reels are sitting to the right of centre and chattering badly; it seems that the metal bearings are worn. The problem that I have is that the last few sets of Penn bearings that I purchased over here (from two different suppliers in the UK) let the spool run too far to the right when new so I presume they were poorly machined.

I don't want to retire the old surfmasters as I enjoy using them but if I can't replace the bearings, it looks like the end of the road.

I friend had suggested putting a small lead shot is the bearing but I suspect this may roll out and could block the oil port.

Any suggestions / cheats / get out of jail advice greatly appreciated.

Kind regards

Limey



   

[MACflyer]

Hello. Pretty sure Mystic Parts has both bearings available. On the Surfmaster 100, aren't the bearings really a bushing? Been a while since I owned one. I've had some success shimming with small brass or hard plastic washers on other reels, but not casting far or heavy like you are.

[Keta]

The sideplate comes off easy and you can oil it from the inside if you put lead shot in the plain bearing.

Your spool shaft might be worn down causing the misalignment.

Try to get a set of bearings from Mystic and see if they are closer to spec.

[oc1]

Shimming the bearing is the normal way to center the spool in the frame.  Bronze or brass shim stock is the usual material of choice.

[cbar45]

I'll add that if the stand and posts aren't square, this can lead to the spool running untrue—-wearing the bushing/bearing out faster.

When tightening down the frame it may help to do it a criss-cross pattern, from head plate to tail plate, and back again.

Possibly does not apply to your case here, but thought it worth mentioning.

[Limey]

Thanks all,

Much appreciated. I had tried emailing several tackle stores on your side but for some reason they were reluctant to ship anything to the UK even when I offered to pay up front.


A member of the forum has very kindly offered to buy a couple of sets of bearings (hopefully old stock) and ship them to me personally so we'll see how that goes.


Best wishes to all on your side of the pond.


Kind regards

Limey

[JasonGotaProblem]

Ok so dumb question, sliding in after you already solved your problem. Shouldn't the spool be making contact with the pinion, and the bearing is tightened just enough to make loose contact at that spot. So the spool shouldn't be able to sit too far to the right just because of a bearing issue. It shouldn't even be able to sit too far to the right with no bearing installed.

So, how's your pinion looking? How's the yoke? Are either looking worn?

Can't rule out that I'm just missing or misunderstanding something silly, it wouldn't be a first.

[Brewcrafter]

Jason - There are NO dumb questions  .  The way I see it (I don't have an actual Surfmaster in front of me, but similar models work this way and the schematic seems to bear it out) is the spool shaft is actually stepped in diameter on the handle side; the pinion rides/floats on the larger diameter of the shaft, and the narrower tip of the shaft sits in the fixed bearing.  The handle side bearing actually is threaded into the sideplate and sits flush/tight, soooo, the way I see it the spool can be shifted to the handle side if: A - The handle side bearing is not screwed in tight to the plate, B - If the shoulder on the spools shaft/end of bearing/both are worn, and then tightening the adjustable tailplate bearing cup forces the spool to the right to get the proper amount of end play.  Given that Limey reports using new bearings and still having the spool too far to the right leads me to suspect the spool shaft shoulder has some wear (or yes, the new parts may be improperly machined).  Looking forward to seeing how this works out when the new parts arrive (presumably from the US and purchased at Mystic or out of a parts reel). - john