calculating torque

[Irish Jigger]

Ignore him,he's another one post wonder, wondering if his reel handle is fit for purpose. 

[Robert Janssen]

I give you a lot of credit for trying Robert.
I remember catching fish in the 60's with a branch, string, cork from a wine bottle, a pebble, hook and a worm ....fishing is getting too complicated

To be honest, i still rather prefer it that way sometimes.

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[redsetta]

To be honest, i still rather prefer it that way sometimes.

Good call Robert/Sal.
Tackle's great - clearly we all love it - but there's something pretty special about hand-lining big fish...
Here's a couple of good kiwi blokes on a bit o' string...
A kingie from the beach:
And a marlin from a dingy:
All the best, Justin

[Makule]

Falconer, I'm just curious as to why you are asking the question.

[falconer]

Lemme thank everyone for wading in on this, and Robert for actually taking a crack at it.  I don't wanna over complicate it either, but I am looking for advantage.  I'm not getting any younger and was trying to figure out if I just want to add a T Bar crank and handle to my Penn 16VSX or make my own crank arm from aluminum or stainless and just add the T Bar handle for $19 or so. 

[Makule]

Lemme thank everyone for wading in on this, and Robert for actually taking a crack at it.  I don't wanna over complicate it either, but I am looking for advantage.  I'm not getting any younger and was trying to figure out if I just want to add a T Bar crank and handle to my Penn 16VSX or make my own crank arm from aluminum or stainless and just add the T Bar handle for $19 or so. 

Understood.

There is also (at least) one more thing to consider:  The longer the arm is, the greater the circumference.  You can substantially reduce the amount of force it takes to crank, but with each increase in length comes an increase in the amount of time it takes to make one turn.  I did go to extremes on some experiments and did find that there are definitely practical limits to handle arm length.  Unfortunately, there is no easy way of determining what is comfortable and "reasonable" except by trial and error.  The best case, if you are contemplating making your own handle, is to make one that has either several mounting holes, or a continuous slot, so that the handle length can be adjusted until you find what works best.  One company (don't recall which one, but might have been Everol) did have that kind of slotted handle.

[falconer]

Naw, I'm just going to get one of the Kolekar or T Bar handle/crank combos.  There's a sweet spot in there for every reel and every angler  where cranking effort is a good compromise with retrieval speed for different types of fishing.  Many, many variables.  All I was looking for was a little de-cluttering on calculating the relative force required to turn the handle under load (drag setting).  It's fun to make your own stuff, but I have to balance this against my billable hours.  Another half-inch or so of extra length significantly increases the angler's torque, without being an ergonomic mistep on cranking radius.  Sure appreciate everyone's thoughts.  I may run the risk of being a one-post wonder, but there is an actual life to be lived off-line.  Alan knows I may possibly have a low-key modest surprise to float later this summer.  Thanks, guys!   

[michaelc]

Daiwa has/had a slotted handle on the Saltiga Z series.  A friend has one although it did break beside the slot when it was accidently stepped on.

[Robert Janssen]

All I was looking for was a little de-cluttering on calculating the relative force required to turn the handle under load (drag setting).  

Spool radius = 1.5" with 20 lbs on it (= how many in/lbs?) and btw YES spool radius matters
Gears 1.7:1
Handle arm (=radius) = 3.3"   (= how many in/lbs?)

It's fun to make your own stuff, but I have to balance this against my billable hours.

Then stop now. Trust me.    

Also, btw, folks often talk of how hard it is to hold so-and-so many pounds of drag. Thats nothing compared to CRANKING that much. Try it. Trust me. I have. Really, i would venture so far as to say that it cannot practically be performed under real-life circumstances.

So really, the practical application of this question and subsequent answer is largely for naught.

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[Makule]

folks often talk of how hard it is to hold so-and-so many pounds of drag. Thats nothing compared to CRANKING that much.

Actually, I have extended handles so long that I can easily crank what I cannot hold (with a 14/0 for a type of fishing that we literally "winch" the fish in).