Reel Repair by Alan Tani

Quote from: ExcessiveAngler on May 11, 2026, 02:16:11 AMTook a craftsman adjustable wrench to this lol! Took at least, 10 good heavy hits to get the ring to come out. Enjoy.

I'd say those guides are good under real conditions, just fish it!

There is a lot of research and technology behind Fuji guides.  But, with all that development, they seem to have ignored the weight of their guides.  By and large, they are just plain heavy.  Guide weight is an important consideration with long light casting rods.  That extra guide weight results in a noticeable increase in swing weight making it tip heavy and moves the balance point. Pac Bay and Alps can offer lighter guides.

That was a stainless KWAG 25. Thought for sure on the first hit the ring would pop right out! But nope lol. Ring didn't even crack until the third hit. Normally, if you just bump your guide into something, you get a small crack when you're out fishing darn it. Was curious if anyone else noticed the clear liner or adhesive that was used to hold the insert in?

Quote from: ExcessiveAngler on May 11, 2026, 01:59:10 PMWas curious if anyone else noticed the clear liner or adhesive that was used to hold the insert in?

I expected that there would have to be something for the ring to seat into once we figured out that the frame was crimped around it.

1. If saltwater gets in between the the ceramic ring and the frame, you end up with an oxygen depleted environment that prevents the stainless from oxidizing and self healing to prevent the spread of corrosion.  Look up crevice corrosion for more details.  It is nasty.   This clear stuff seals the gap, preventing moisture intrusion.

2.  It helps keep the ring positioned properly for the crimping process.

3.  It provides some elasticity.  The crimp has to squeeze against something so that the ring doesn't rattle around, but we don't want to put stress on the ceramic, which is not compressible.  The clear stuff allows there to be a small gap between the frame and the ring, but once hardened, the ring is secure.

4.  The clear stuff might assist a bit with shock absorption.  When you whack the frame, it might compress a little.  Rather than transfer the force to the ring which is not elastic, the clear layer might be able to compress a little, helping to absorb the impact.

It was interesting that it took a lot of whacking on the frame to break the ring.  I wonder if the ring cracks more easily if something impacts it directly.  Or if the adhesive/sealant layer degrades or otherwise fails first.  Thee are enough broken rings out there that it seems unlikely that they all failed from the kind of impact that it took for you to break your sample.


Interesting stuff!!!


-J

I have a sneaking suspicion that Fuji guides that fail while fishing had previously been subjected to ALMOST ENOUGH force to make them fail prior to that trip or on the way there.

I have to say the SiC guides seem remarkably robust. Touch wood but I'm yet to crack one and in the occasional scramble of landing larger fish rods are often bounced around the boat.

Hopefully, in a little while, I'll get the time to remove more of the insert and then apply heat/flame to that clear material and see what happens to it. Or maybe I'll heat up the guide and see if the broken insert just falls out? I'll take a look around for a camera stand and try to take a video.