I am wondering if there would be an advantage in fitting a fully sealed bearing in place of the steel sheilded version or open bearings. At least contaminants cant get into the bearing
As a trained car mechanic only a fully sealed bearing will do unless its inside the gearbox. Wheel bearings need to be fully sealed. As for a reel the only place they wont work is on spool bearings of a baitcaster as it will slow the reel down big time but they should be fine on the spool of a large boat rod
I prefer unshielded spool bearings. Non-spool bearings greased and sealed.
Not a fan myself.
Bearing "seals" are more likely to keep a little water trapped inside than to keep all the water on the outside. And it is tougher to flush out with a rinse or soak.
Regular metal shields are a better compromise IMHO. The removable shields with the ring clip are nice.
-J
Rubber sealed bearings create slight resistance. I used them on my handle/drive shaft where it did not effect freespool and believed it kept water out. I even used mild steel ones with success, but not on a small boat where they get in to direct contact with sea water.
i've been removing one shield of the spool bearings, keeping the outside shielded and the inside open. non-spool bearings stay shielded and are packed with grease.