problem with spheros 14000 and saragosa 18000 eggbeater reels

Lurcher · January 10, 2013, 09:45:16 AM

I have just been servicing a couple of these and struck a nasty problem. The nut that screws onto the pinion gear and secures the rotor onto the reel has a nasty habit of stripping when you try to remove it. I assumed it was righty tighty (clockwise) lefty loosey (counter clockwise) when looking down onto the nuts, as the rotor spins clockwise and I just used an ordinary open ended spanner to try and loosen the nuts. they were incredibly tight. I am guessing the thread on these runs the other way? not sure where I went wrong? I have dismantled plenty of other eggbeater reels without issue.

Interestingly in the case of the saragosa which has paladium gears, the thread on the pinion looked like new once it was cleaned up and checked with a magnifying glass. On the other hand the spheros which has standard brass gears had some damage to the threads so will need to be replaced. Those paladium gears must be tough!!

Kyle K · January 10, 2013, 09:12:45 PM

You know, I think a couple of the Spheros and Saragosa models did have the pinions threaded the opposite way from normal.

As for the Paladin gear enhancement, didn't that just refer to the main gear (cold forged aluminum versus cast aluminum)?

johndtuttle · January 11, 2013, 12:22:52 AM

I remember the first time I took apart a Saragosa and um, didn't really understand what the keeper ring was and totally stripped the nut.

The rule of thumb is that if they are left loose, righty tight they have to have some kind of "keeper" ring or screw to prevent loosening. If nothing is keeping the nut from loosening then it is reverse threaded. I think they are going away from reverse threading as the DIY crowd easily comes to grief that way.

Lurcher · January 13, 2013, 09:27:38 PM

There must be a difference in the pinions for the 14000FB versus the saragosa as the part numbers are different and the saragosa 18000F pinion is far more expensive than the 14000FB pinion

johndtuttle · January 14, 2013, 01:42:02 AM

Quote from: Lurcher on January 13, 2013, 09:27:38 PM
There must be a difference in the pinions for the 14000FB versus the saragosa as the part numbers are different and the saragosa 18000F pinion is far more expensive than the 14000FB pinion

They use different materials in many areas. Including the Pinion and Drive Gear. As you have found, you can look at a schematic and think they are the same part, but unless the part numbers are the same you can assume different (and more expensive materials).

What I have been finding is that many companies take a basic design and simply upgrade parts to make them better.

Capt. ahab · February 19, 2014, 02:55:43 AM

Just ran into this problem on a Spheros 14000FB I picked up on eBay. Initially assumed the rotor nut was threaded normally, twisted to the left, didn't move. Found some various internet chatter regarding reverse threading, and tried removing it the other way (to the right). No success here either. The nut will spin freely on the threaded end of the pinion gear (think I got that right). What to do? Can't really get this nut off at the moment. Are the threads stripped? I assume this means replace the pinion gear (probably with a better material so that I don't have this happen again). However, if I can't proceed beyond this step, how do I even take the reel apart?

Help please!

johndtuttle · February 19, 2014, 03:42:01 AM

Quote from: Capt. ahab on February 19, 2014, 02:55:43 AM
Just ran into this problem on a Spheros 14000FB I picked up on eBay. Initially assumed the rotor nut was threaded normally, twisted to the left, didn't move. Found some various internet chatter regarding reverse threading, and tried removing it the other way (to the right). No success here either. The nut will spin freely on the threaded end of the pinion gear (think I got that right). What to do? Can't really get this nut off at the moment. Are the threads stripped? I assume this means replace the pinion gear (probably with a better material so that I don't have this happen again). However, if I can't proceed beyond this step, how do I even take the reel apart?

Help please!

Not to worry matey. I may not be able to answer definitively but I am sure Shimano can. If you are in the USA just call their customer service and they will put you in touch with a tech who will know. If have no access to them just post and I'll give them a call in the morning my time.

best

philaroman · February 19, 2014, 03:45:14 AM

Quote from: johndtuttle on January 11, 2013, 12:22:52 AM
The rule of thumb is that if they are left loose, righty tight they have to have some kind of "keeper" ring or screw to prevent loosening. If nothing is keeping the nut from loosening then it is reverse threaded. I think they are going away from reverse threading as the DIY crowd easily comes to grief that way.

that's pretty much it: if there's no screwed-down cover or screw beside the nut to keep rotor rotation from loosening the nut, then it's reverse-threaded (the old Japanese models had a nice, friendly arrow on the rotor to tell you that)

if you cannot budge the nut in the appropriate direction, cut into the nut w/ a Dremel cutting wheel -- AS CLOSE AS YOU CAN GET TO THE PINION WITHOUT TOUCHING IT!!! then, it will come off without damage to the pinion & nuts are cheap to replace

Capt. ahab · February 19, 2014, 11:46:22 AM

The nut had a silver "collar" held down by two small screws that prevented it from moving, so I'm guessing it's not reverse threaded. The strange thing is, I can move the nut all I want. It spins freely on the pinion gear with standard effort from a 15 mm wrench, but it won't go anywhere. Can't tighten or loosen it.