'70s Model Abu 6000

[steelheadman]

I posted this in the Gen'l Maintenance forum earlier....I have an Abu 6000 I bought in 1971 that I would like to upgrade/rebuild with new bearings rather than the bushings it came with....who has the bearings, and what else do I need to do for the upgrade??

[Ken_D]

Hello. The folks that sell the bb's that ~~advertise~~ that fact are: Boca in Florida, and Rocket Fuel in the UK.
They run around 20-25.00 a pair, and are only good for those older type.  Regular 3 mm bb's start at about 2.00 a pair, and go up from there.  

If your reels are not to be pristine collector's type, and you can find a retired machinist, or do the lathe/filework yourself, you can bring down the diameter to 3 mm for about 10.00 a spool, letting you use standard bb's.

Hookless in Florida uses his drill press, and a file, to bring them down.   The rest of the post in the general forum works.  You can open various schematics and see the parts you need. They will still fit your reel. Ergo:  
Schematics for the 6600 MagX, 6500C4, Record 60/61, and any of the 6500C3's from 99-03 on up.  

Good fixing and fishing, and spending cash !!    While _Abu_ parts may `seem` spendy, other than Penn and possibly Daiwa, it's doubtful other makers keep parts for the popular models for 30+ years !!!
Shimano holds for 5 years. Zebco holds for no years on some models. Bass Pro keeps changing contractors for theirs.