Help with Penn 209

[Delcampo]

Hello All,
I recently got an old Penn 209.  It's an older one with the burgandy side plates and a beige plastic handle.  When I turned the handle the spool seemed to scrape the inside chrome rings.  I tried replacing the bridge and sleeve thinking it was bent, but the problem persists.  I tried another spool...no help.  It seem like something's bent, but I cant figure it out....yoke? eccentric? side plate?  Any help would be appreciated.  Thanks. I hope I put this in the right section.

[akfish]

If you are sure your spool is good -- and many, many older spools got warped by mono -- then odds are that your bearings are bad. Those reels had to be fished with a tiny bit of side to side play in the spool. If the bearings were too tight, they'd go bad.

[Delcampo]

Thanks, I'll try replacing the bearings

[alantani]

also, check the reel seat.  pull it out and set down on a flat surface, upside down.  let's make sure it's square.  alan

[Delcampo]

Thanks Alan,  I'll do that