Mitchell 300

[basenjib123]

Been working on a couple of old Mitchell 300's ...got them all together but they seem be growling and rough feeling on retrieve  .. anyhow its been many years since I handled one ...are they usually that way?  Thanks, Joe.

[festus]

Yes they do, leastways when I get through with one of them. 

[Midway Tommy]

If you thoroughly cleaned all the innards, including the bearing, work it and give the lubricants a chance to work themselves into the metal, gear teeth and bearings. Noise is common after a thorough cleaning and it takes a little use and time for them to quiet back down.

[happyhooker]

Yes they do, leastways when I get through with one of them. 

Yep, all those gear teeth meshing; I guess you could say they buzz a bit (it's music to my ears).

Frank

[foakes]

Softer gears on Mitchell 300's do that as they wear — add a good service to that, and they growl even more.

Oftentimes shims will help a little, so will changing the position of the gears in relation to each other, also as will extra grease help somewhat.

But they are so finicky — as well as variable — and I don't have the patience to take them apart and put them back together 6 or 8 times — especially if there is no guarantee they will be any quieter.

Occasionally, I will add grease — then mount them on one of my line winders with a brick on the foot pedal — and let it run at 2/3 speed for 15 minutes.  That generally is good for growling gears.

Otherwise, I just live with the noise — it doesn't hurt anything — it is just the nature of soft alloy gears.

Best,

Fred

[basenjib123]

Great replies as usual...thank you.

[mo65]

Another thing that makes the Mitchells so "vocal" is the cut of the gearing, they are straight cut gears, not helical cut.

[oc1]

One thing about a reel that talks to you is that you know instantly when something changes or more lube is needed.
-steve