I did a complete teardown and cleaning of my ssv 4500 after over a year of hard use. Everything, but the main gear that is. There is a ball bearing on each side, but the problem lies on the handle side. I can't seem to remove the darn thing, and I don't understand why. I checked the schematics repeatedly just in case I missed something, but there's nothing to suggest otherwise. There are two washers underneath the bearing and the bearing spins freely for 8 seconds, so I don't get it. It won't budge and it's driving me insane. Heck, I even played tug of war by holding onto the gear while having someone else grip it with pliers and not even close to coming off. Am I being an idiot?
get two flat screwdrivers, slide them under the bearing at opposite sides and turn both handles clockwise and it will lift up the bearing evenly. someone may have to hold the gear for you.
Do that and metal polish the brass center on the main gear and it will slide on and off easily. I have to pry them off all the time.
Hey, thanks for the quick response. I was a little doubtful about the two flat heads method, but it worked out quite easily. A lot easier than I expected, actually.
Handi2, thanks for the tip, but I already assembled the whole reel by the time I got your reply, but will keep that in mind for next time.