Penn Peer 209, Made in USA

[Mandelstam]

I got a present (from myself) in the mail today. I picked up this old and a bit sad looking Penn Peer 209 quite cheap and was hoping that I could spend some quality time with miss Penn and get her top shape. This reel repair madness is a nasty affliction. And I hope it's incurable. 

I'm almost totally new at this. The other week i dismantled my Ambassadeur 5500C into atoms basically and was able to fit everything back together after a good cleaning, greasing and oiling. So not totally new, just almost.

I've tried attaching some pictures of the reel and I hope they show up. As you can see one of the worm bearings is missing and replaced with a small wooden dowel, very ingenious. Also one of the posts looks a bit bent. The handle turns but I can feel there's a lot of old grease and dirt in there. The handle also looks to be slightly bent, you can feel it when you unscrew the star drag, it sort of gets hooked a bit on the handle.

I haven't opened her up yet, so this is just external observations.

But all of you Penn gurus out there, do you have any advice? Anything I should be on the look out for? Any particular parts that you should give an extra inspection?

I plan to make a fuller diagnosis and order all the needed parts when I know exactly what's needed. I know ABU is the general agent for Penn here in Sweden and I will check if you can order parts from there, otherwise I probably have to get them from the US.

I don't want to make it (I have to stop calling it "her") look like a totally new reel, I like having it show a bit about it's history, but I want to be able to fish with it with confidence without any worries.

Any advice is more than welcome!

Cheers!

/Karl

[redsetta]

G'day Karl,
This'll help: http://alantani.com/index.php?topic=659.0
Let us know how you get on.
Good luck, Justin

[alantani]

very resourceful.  it should clean up nicely.

[Irish Jigger]

Welcome to the Forum Mandelstam.
Great little reel you have there.
You will need 1x item 43, (r.s.worm bearing 44N-109) and 1x item 44A( worm bearing spring 57-109) to replace the wooden dowel.
These parts are available from Mick Simmons in the UK, phone 01386552949.

[Mandelstam]

Thanks guys!

I'll start working on it tonight when I get home. I've read the tutorial on the 209 and it's going to be a lot of help!

And thanks for the number to UK parts shop! Then I don't have to worry about taxes and customs and all of that bs. The VAT in Sweden is 25% and customs is another 3-4% I think, so you understand why I'm reluctant to order anything from outside the EU if it's not absolutely necessary... I know you can sometimes ask the shop to mark it as a gift but I don't feel comfortable asking someone to basically break the law for your sake.

I'll keep you posted!

/K

[Dave Bentley]

Thanks guys!

I'll start working on it tonight when I get home. I've read the tutorial on the 209 and it's going to be a lot of help!

And thanks for the number to UK parts shop! Then I don't have to worry about taxes and customs and all of that bs. The VAT in Sweden is 25% and customs is another 3-4% I think, so you understand why I'm reluctant to order anything from outside the EU if it's not absolutely necessary... I know you can sometimes ask the shop to mark it as a gift but I don't feel comfortable asking someone to basically break the law for your sake.

I'll keep you posted!

/K

Welcome Karl, I've around here for a while and only recently became active. If you need parts and Alan and co can supply them you won't find a better price and more importantly better service that these guys. I'm in Western Australia.

What they don't know hasn't been built into a reel yet.

Good luck and looking forward to more pics and posts

[Mandelstam]

So, managed to get an hour of reel stripping done tonight between helping my son with his homework and his bedtime. It came apart nicely. And nothing looks too corroded, but I'll guess we don't have the salinity in the water to be a real major problem as it is in other parts of the world..

I sorted everything in a few different plastic containers, dumped some hot water and green dishwashing liquid in there, and closed the lids. I'll let them soak there til tomorrow when I have some time to really start cleaning the parts.

/Karl

[Mandelstam]

Forgot to ask you guys one thing.. There is quite a bit of play between the brass gear sleeve and the handle. You can move the handle maybe half a centimeter (1/4 inch) measured from the end of the handle. I've never handled a brand new one so I'm not sure if there is any sort of play to begin with or not. I think the corners on the sleeve looked a little rounded off. Time to change it maybe?

Cheers!

[Irish Jigger]

 Looks like a new Gear Sleeve 98-155 required.

[Mandelstam]

Yea thought so too.. I guess when I read my own description of it, it seems pretty obvious. But when you sit there with it in front of you for the first time you don't feel as sure about anything anymore..

Thanks! *adding to my shopping list*

/K

[Mandelstam]

When you sit and work infront of a computer all day it's very satisfying to come home and start cleaning a reel. Instant satisfaction!

But I have a couple of questions.

First off, the main gear seamed two have two small cracks or bits missing. And i was a bit surprised when I saw that it wasn't brass. I couldn't quite identify the material but it was a lot lighter than brass. When I look at MysticParts.com the main gear is made from brass, even the discontinued version. Can somebody shed some light on this maybe?

Secondly, I can't get the click tongue loose. According to the schematic there's supposed to be a small e-clip but I can't see any on my reel. I've tried with mild force using a screwdriver but it wouldn't budge.

Thanks for any insights into this!

/Karl

"Edited as per Moderators to correct Scott's Bait & Tackle over to their new store name Mystic Reel Parts / www.mysticparts.com"

[George4741]

Hi Karl,
That is the way Penn made those old gears.  I have the same gears in a 155 and 350.  They'll be fine with 8 pounds drag or less, which is about all you want to push the 209.     

You must drill out the old click tongue to replace it.

Enjoy your reel,
George

[Irish Jigger]

I agree with George re the main gear.Keyed drag washer slots sometimes break through into gearing,not a problem.
The click tongue is damaged and will need replacing.
Grind off the click button end adjacent to the click tongue and gently punch out while supporting the end plate.
Replace with the following parts.
Click Button it 36  36N-209,
Click Tongue it 35  35-155 and
Click Button Retaining Spring it 69  69B-600.

Check that the white nylon Idler Gear it 64 is not stripped as sometimes happens if the worm drive gets locked.

Welcome to the sellers world of "I don't know anything about reels but it seems to be working ok."
I bought an eBay Penn 99 for a friends collection last week only to find the reel stand to be in two parts and other parts missing,depends on your luck.

[Mandelstam]

Thanks a lot guys! What would I do without you?

I checked with ABU yesterday and they do stock Penn parts, but I'll have to check what they have in stock. If they have to send for them from the US I will order them myself from the UK.