Spinner maintenance

[Clem]

Justin,

This is the the line roller in question...(part of a post I did for the guys on GTP)


I have a few photos below of a Stella and a Dogfight to show some of these issues and just what saltwater can do..

The first one below is of the Line roller assembly on the Stella, in this case the reel has been wet on a few occasions and not cleaned - the saltwater has dried and salt crystals have built up. If left long enough it will destroy anything. I was able to remove the lock screw but only 50% of the retainer was left and will need to be replaced.



The next 2 photos are of the the roller (external corrosion). I have seen this on a number of occasions and is generally caused by storing the rod/reel with wet line (on the roller) for an extended period.





Washer



Inside the roller assembly




All of the above is avoidable through regular maintenance you can do yourself. There is a lot of debate regarding how to maintain your reel and everyone has there own way - in short, as long as you do the basics you should be fine.

It is reasonable to expect a "new" reel to fish well straight from the box and in most cases this stands to be true. The problem is that we all place different demands on our our gear and in different environments...some reels are fished 3 times a year and some are fished 300 days a year, this ultimately dictates the type of maintenance required to keep your reel in top condition.


The Dogfight below has a great sealing system surrounding the gear case which is "arguably" better than the Stella... however if you look closely at the photos below you will see there are cavities outside of the sealing where salt is staring to build up...this will eventually cause problems if left...





Corrosion staring to get a hold on the rotor...





For those with Stella's, don't be afraid to use the service port...as per the photo below this one was starting to get a bit dry (which you could actually feel through the reel)



Reassembly...

Stella





Dogfight

[coastalobsession]

Nice write up. What grease are u using in the stella?

[Clem]

Nice write up. What grease are u using in the stella?

Have tried a few, this is Boca Lightning lube... found it to be the right mix of protection and viscosity.

[Irish Jigger]

Great post and pics Clem,thank you. Even the Rolls Royce of reels need preventative maintenance for flawless performance.
Interesting to see the  roller damage when in contact with wet line during storage.