Reel Repair by Alan Tani

If you do ebay you will eventually get a reel that you can be sure the previous owner has heard of proper reel maintenance methods.

I'm not saying they know the proper methods, just that they've 'heard' the right methods.

I didn't take a pic but a Surfmaster came to me with so much grease I took a paper towel to wipe it out, then threw the glob away.  The drags were of some oiled down, unidentifiable, soggy discs. The oil literally ran down my hand when I squeezed.

Obviously the masses are getting the 'message' but not the method.

More is better right?   

Could be worse!

Sometimes you open 'em up and find hermit crabs and barnacles

it's been slow, but we are winning! 

Quote from: johndtuttle on August 01, 2015, 05:52:50 PM
Could be worse!

Sometimes you open 'em up and find hermit crabs and barnacles

And different colored grease's that has been pumped in over the years....

Quote from: johndtuttle on August 01, 2015, 05:52:50 PM
Could be worse!

Sometimes you open 'em up and find hermit crabs and barnacles

No hermit crabs so far 

I do believe the saying goes. "Less is more"

Quote from: Reel 224 on August 02, 2015, 05:35:38 PM
I do believe the saying goes. "Less is more"

More or less...

Quote from: Alto Mare on August 02, 2015, 06:49:24 PM

Quote from: Reel 224 on August 02, 2015, 05:35:38 PM
I do believe the saying goes. "Less is more"

More or less...

or vise verse 

I've open up a few reels that I bought online that had some strange stuff in them. One guy packed his reel full of some kind of engine grease but let it sit for years. It turned into a thick molasses like compound. It took me hours to get off. The reel wouldn't even turn.

I've seen other guys just put a handful of grease into it and call it done. There is actually a local tackle store that did some work for me before I started working on reels. My reel was dunked and I asked him to please clean it. He let it sit for three weeks and was ignoring my phone calls. Before bringing in the reel, it looked new, after getting it back, the reel was corroded to hell. All the guy did was pack the whole housing with Penn blue. He charged me $25 and told me that I shouldn't dunk my reels anymore. That's when I first decided that I would never have anyone ever work on my stuff again. It cost me $80, I had to replace all the gears, bearings, sideplate, antireverse, drag washers, etc. Luckily I found this website. I wish there was an alantani.com for vehicles.

The worst is when people grease the drag washers with regular grease.

Quote from: fatstriper on August 03, 2015, 03:54:41 PM
I've open up a few reels that I bought online that had some strange stuff in them. One guy packed his reel full of some kind of engine grease but let it sit for years. It turned into a thick molasses like compound. It took me hours to get off. The reel wouldn't even turn.

But I bet the parts underneath were in good shape!

Quote from: johndtuttle on August 03, 2015, 04:16:34 PM

Quote from: fatstriper on August 03, 2015, 03:54:41 PM
I've open up a few reels that I bought online that had some strange stuff in them. One guy packed his reel full of some kind of engine grease but let it sit for years. It turned into a thick molasses like compound. It took me hours to get off. The reel wouldn't even turn.

But I bet the parts underneath were in good shape!

I saw Sal's thread about using Eagle One brass cleaner and the brass inside that reel polished right up. It went from a spotted brown to a shiny brass finish. The guy who sold it to me said he was a boat mechanic, so I assume is was some kind of engine grease. He claimed that he bought it, greased it, and never used it. I believe him because the reel felt perfect after I cleaned the junk out.

The strangest thing I ever found in a reel was in a Saragosa that I bought directly from Shimano. It was a reel they used for trade shows and had been traveling with the sales reps. It was never used but had been handled. I opened up the sideplate and there was a very large dead beetle. It was probably about 2.5" with long antennas. Really random.

It's a shame that there are so many so call mechanics out there doing work on other peoples Reels,Cars,Guns....etc.etc. that really don't know there butt from there elbow about what they are doing, and the other side of the spectrum is those that do, a decent job want to charge the heck out of you or just make you wait forever. That is why it is nice to have the mechanical ability to repair your own equipment in most cases. Also it's great to have a place to go to for good information on how to repair, like this site for instance.

The statement I'm about to make is not about me or my wife however it is an example of what makes us good at what we are involved in.

My wife was a Competitor in western riding,dressage and jumping. Her knowledge in horsemanship was and still is exceptional, meaning she knows Horses from nose to tail, because of the competition she was involved in for years, In later years Ruth and her late husband Got involved in Hunting and training Bird dogs (Brittanies). They showed them, hunted them, and Ruth went to school in NY to learn grooming as well.....They were very successful, because it just wasn't a hobby. I'm not going to go into my life's history, but just to say everything I learned about guns and shooting came from competing for many years. Point is, It's your responsibility to learn everything you can about your sport so as to be knowledgeable enough to do it yourself....saves a lot of grief in the long run you will be the winner. Lots of people here already know that and we are taking advantage of it by experiencing there knowledge.

For those of us that take Reel repair seriously we owe Alan Tani and others here a debt of gratitude for all they are doing to educate us.

Joe   

I totally agree with you Joe.  Dominick

Best site on the web Thanks Alan.