Reel Repair by Alan Tani

Conventional and Bait Casting Reel Rebuild Tutorials and Questions => Penn International Tutorials and Questions => Topic started by: RGL on July 22, 2013, 04:20:01 PM

Title: Intl 80 VSW froze after long marlin run
Post by: RGL on July 22, 2013, 04:20:01 PM
hello ...looking for advice  ..a new 80 VSW froze after marlin strike and long first run . when angler got to the chair he was unable to get line back , handle turned but no recovery even when boat put in reverse .
reel felt hot on drag side and was condemned for rest of tournament although when test winding later it worked seemingly fine .
sent to shop and they stripped and saw nothing amiss .  i now keep bottle cold water in cockpit for the Penns as i have 4 new ones ...is this a recurring trait ? any suggestions welcome . thks
RGL
Title: Re: Intl 80 VSW froze after long marlin run
Post by: alantani on July 22, 2013, 04:42:33 PM
my first guess would have been that the spool cap came loose and jammed.  but a shop found nothing?  very strange.  it should have been able to handle the heat with no problem.  all you can do is strip it down and lube everything again, or just fish it again and see it if locks up again.  very strange.   :-\
Title: Re: Intl 80 VSW froze after long marlin run
Post by: RGL on July 22, 2013, 04:53:45 PM
thanks the reply , it's weird and adding that fish would have won us a tournament so i'm ultra leery of this one . will use again in non tournaments and see  if any repetition .
Title: Re: Intl 80 VSW froze after long marlin run
Post by: Dominick on July 22, 2013, 05:29:08 PM
RGL:  I am surprised that something like that happened.  When you said you sent it to a shop what kind of shop are you talking about?  I would open it up and check the drag material.  Look for glazing or loosening of the impregnated fiber in the carbon.  I would also contact Penn and tell them about the problem, perhaps there was a run of defective drag material.  The other expert is Mo at MysticParts maybe she will weigh in on this.  The International 80 is really bullet proof and I would like this mystery cleared up.  Dominick

"Edited as per Moderators to correct Scott's Bait & Tackle over to their new store name Mystic Reel Parts / www.mysticparts.com"
Title: Re: Intl 80 VSW froze after long marlin run
Post by: RGL on July 22, 2013, 08:38:02 PM
I'm glad to learn they're usually bulletproof , was worried that i'd need a water cooler in the cockpit for reels ...my other Penns ,12/0 with monel for wahoo , have worked tirelessly . For marlin until recently i used all Tiagras ( 50 test ) ...i decided to buy 5 Internationals as our minimum weights and conscience levels increased it's rare to boat a marlin nowadays so the Penn 80s would enable shorter fights ...the reel was opened by dealer/vendor in Miami and evidently nothing immediately amiss but i note your comments and will have greater scrutiny of the drag area .
thanks