Greetings All,
Could one of you reel wizards could zero me in on a clear schematic of the Garcia Mitchell 330 Otomatic? I am servicing mine and want to be sure of shim placement during reassembly.
I located several schematics, but all are old and the detailed drawings aren't clear. My search continues.
Also, I'm trying to determine what year my reel is. It appears to have no discernible serial number, and through my research I read that some did not. It became clear to me that if this is indeed the case, I won't be able to determine what year my reel was made. I know the 330 was manufactured from 1959 and 1979, and that over 771,000 were made. That's about all I can find. How to answer the question?
Are there any "go-to" sites or manuals that can give me the information I need? Seems searching the web is a futile needle in a haystack.
Any insight would be much appreciated. Thanks!
Hi RH —-
Welcome!
Hopefully this will be clear enough on parts, positioning, and part numbers.
This is one of my old Dealer Shop Service manuals from the late 60's or early 70's.
Some of the parts on the 330/440's are specific to that reel due to the automatic, one-handed bail feature.
Most of the parts are the same as a typical 300/400 type reel.
I used one nearly exclusively for about 3 years when I was younger.
I do have a couple of bins of these complete reels —- along with parts, if you need some, or get stuck on something.
The Mitchell Reel Museum has a lot of this information also —- however, they have been going through some issues over the past 8 years —- and may or may not be a vibrant website. It comes and goes —- but they have a lot of info when they are active.
I am not sure that knowing the year your reel was made —- would be useful to someone like me —- but it may be to you.
Most of the parts over the years will work —- and interchange.
Best, Fred
Here's the reel insert.
Shims should be located in 4 different places.
If you can enlarge the 2nd picture, you might be able to see the rotor to body shims.
Fred, Sandbar and Gfish,
THANKS! Exactly what I needed. Awesome pictures of the manual and shims. I might be missing a shim, but I need to take a look at the screenshot to be sure. Aside from that, this reel will be used shortly.
You guys are wizards. Many thanks!
Quote from: Redhook06 on September 11, 2023, 04:40:15 PMFred, Sandbar and Gfish,
THANKS! Exactly what I needed. Awesome pictures of the manual and shims. I might be missing a shim, but I need to take a look at the screenshot to be sure. Aside from that, this reel will be used shortly.
You guys are wizards. Many thanks!
If you need a shim, or two —- just let me know. N/C.
The only tricky shims to figure out on these egg-shaped 300 sized Mitchells —- are the skinny ones under the rotor. The rest are a given.
On the rotor shims —- it generally takes (2), sometimes (3), rarely (4), rarely (1). It is just a matter of getting it right to accommodate for the reel wear over the years. Not an exact science —- but really pretty simple.
Best, Fred