Alan, I had lost your step by step on how to replace the drag washer on this reel, but managed to accomplish the task with no worries. After finding this site and reading it again, it seems as if I did everything that you mention except the realignment of washers and spacers???? What will this do for me and do you have these extra items to add onto my TLD 25's? Thanks again for your detailed, play by play on all of your articles...
getting the new carbontex drag washer in will totally fix the drag "smoothness" issue. the next issue is the drag range before losing freespool. if you are already getting enough range, leave it be. if you are not getting enough range, shim the drag pressure plate and change the belleville configuration from "()()" to "((())". that should give you enough drag pressure to crack the frame. um, so be carefull not to exceed 18 pounds at strike. the third issue is general service for the bearings. spool bearings are recommended open and lubed. other bearings should be packed with grease. and lastly, the spool bearings can be sleeved for maximum freespool time.
i have lots of these washers. send me a pm and i'll shoot them out to you. alan
next issue is the drag range before losing freespool
Not sure exactly what you mean by this statement? Can you ellaborate..
can you get 12 pounds of drag at the strike setting, then push the lever to free and still have good freespool? if so, and if that is the most you can get, that 12 pounds is your maximum drag at strike before losing freespool. alan
Ok I understand....
I have two of these reels..
First one: 12.4 lbs of strike drag and good free spool
Second one: 19.5 lbs of strike drag and good free spool (this is the brand new reel never used)
With those numbers is that good. I recall you saying not to go any higher then 18 lbs of strike drag? So does all this mean my reels are in good shape? Why is one almost 7 lbs. more then the other,,, just because it new???
that's very odd. the single speed tld 20/25 reels had always been set up for about 12 pounds of drag at strike before losing freespool. i have never heard of one that actually hit 19 pounds!!!!! very odd. but if all you need is 12 pounds, you're all set! alan
Just in case I'm doing something wrong,,, this is what I did.
I turned the drag knob all the way tight
Then set the drag LEVER to STRIKE
Measured the lbs. of drag
Then put the LEVER back to free spool to check for free spool
All was well
Is that how I'm suppose to do it?
put the lever in free and turn the preset knob down until the drag pressure plate comes in contact with the drag washers. when there is no contact the spool will spin freely. when the pressure plate is in contact, the spool will not spin.
ok, we've made contact! back off the preset knob just a smidge until the spool spins freely. ok, now push the lever to strike and measure the drag pressure. this is your maximum drag at strike before losing freespool.
OK, I'll do this when I get home today from work... I'll let you know how it goes and if you think I need to shim the plate or not??
Alan this was the outcome.
Old reel was 3.5 lb of drag. I used one of your old methods and added tape to shim it. After that I got 12.8 lbs. of drag
New reel was 19.8 lbs of drag. Took it apart to make sure I did everything properly when I added the carbontex drag washers in both of them and yes everything was good. Looked like I didn't add very much grease to the new washer so I applied a little more. Tried it again,,,,,, I got 19.3 lbs of drag?????? To be honest with you I have no idea what this means other then the fact the new reel will deff. give me more drag then the old one.... Should I be concerned here? By the way the old reel was one I got from a friend,, the new one I used 1 time trolling for stripers this past winter.
did you change the belleville configuration?
No I didn't
Standing by for more guidance???
Guess not? :-\
oops, sorry. missed this. there are only a few options. the first is the pressure plate (done), the second is the belleville configuration from "()()" to "(())" and the third is a new lever. call shimano at 877-577-0600 and order up a new lever. alan