Dumb newb question...

[seriola_killer]

Hey all! Before I get too far let me first say that this site is outstanding. What a wealth of knowledge and innovative thinking!

This is my first post, and it's directed to Alan (or anyone who may happen to subscribe to this opinion).  Is there no real advantage to changing the sideplates when converting? If so, may I ask why?

The reason I ask is that I've blown the stock sideplates out of jigmasters and senators before, and people with more knowledge than me have advised me to "go metal" so that it wouldn't happen again. Last time this happened was last year in Mulege. Fishing straight 40# on a 113HLW a mean mossback just destroyed my freshly overhauled reel.

I've often heard the term "bulletproof" when describing these hotrodded conversions with metal sideplates, but other posts by Alan seem to indicate that he doesn't necessarily subscribe to this way of thinking.

What opinions do you all have in the matter? And thank you all for being selfless in your sharing of knowledge.

[redsetta]

G'day Jerry and welcome aboard.
Can you describe in a little more detail what you mean by a 'blown' side plate?
I'm assuming the post frame torqued/twisted under heavy load and broke/damaged the side plate.
An aftermarket frame like Tiburon or Accurate is far more rigid than a post set-up and effectively removes this likelihood.
Aftermarket side plates will make an incremental difference, but the frame is key.
The ideal for rigidity would be a fully milled frame, such as a Pro Gear, which has a no left side plate.
If you're looking for a 'bulletproof' 113, it's hard to go past Sal's Tank (http://alantani.com/index.php?topic=3083.msg20871#msg20871)...
Hope that's of some assistance.
Cheers, Justin
PS All questions are good ones here...

[alantani]

for many of the penn reels, i like the accurate and tiburon frames.  not a big fan of the side plates. 

[Alto Mare]

I agree with these two gentlemen above. I also believe that the plates get damaged from the reel twisting under pressure, the gears would also get damaged.
Here is an old post just to show what a stock 4/0 can do:
http://alantani.com/index.php?topic=1662.msg7602#msg7602

[kamuwela]

not trying to make trouble sal but do we have to red between the lines? domage? was that directed to someone or a typo?

[Alto Mare]

No one Kamu, just a typo. Thanks!