Collecting B-Grade Spinning Reels

[mo65]

These are very decent reels, Mike —

Parts are the only issue.

   I agree...info is scarce too. Kind of like that Daiwa 7250, this one is a B+. I was hoping you had a line roller!

[basto]

Another good feature on the DAM 111 series is the sprung ribbed collar to fold the handle arm.
Greg

[philaroman]

My opinion is that the worst DAM Quick reels (and there are no bad Quicks — just that some are better than others, just like anything else) — can barely see all of the "B" grade reels in their rear view mirrors.

what about Quick SLS?  ...seems like an older, more basic version, minus some features

if these are B+, can't imagine SLS rating above a solid B

wonder if any of the spools from Asian DAMs
(better yet, complete rotor/spool/knob assemblies)
are compatible w/ the good German 00/01/02 models?

[mo65]

I must recond that I also have my set of B-grade spinning reels that I take when fishing from the shore on sand or rocky pier for small sandbass, etc. a bunch of shakespeares, old daiwas, some chinese penn reels, etc that get the work done
mostly are the reels I keep for my kids to use or as loaners for friends with no fishing gear.

Exactly...this is all I'm trying to say. These aren't worthless junk reels, just not your first choice. Even though they are on second string, they still get in the game now and then!

[The Fishing Hobby]

One of these days I may break down and buy a Greenie, but I'll have to see it in the flesh and give it a good inspection before pulling the trigger.  They're scarce in this part of the country.

Those Penn reels are very nice, but pick you up a maroon Shakespeare 2062 (or one of the larger ones) maroon colored reels. They are very similar and cheap! Silky smooth reels too! Use your leftover money to buy some more old reels  

[The Fishing Hobby]

That surflite looks like a tank! Very interesting design too.

[mo65]

  In keeping with a theme, here is another nice reel only relegated to second string by it's softer gearing. Average fishing would probably never hurt the alloy main, but to purists it's still a bad mark. My example of this reel is a little rough, but hey, watcha expect for 5 bucks? There is considerable paint loss, but she should clean up alright.



  The first thing that I noticed was this mess on the spool. What is it? Looks like melted mono.



  It's masking tape! Who does something like this?? Worst mess I ever had to clean from a spool...just wow...



  Inside the reel was the common collection of poor greases and bad smells. I see this one has the nylon main bushings. I'm not convinced they're a bad thing. They seem very smooth and solid feeling to me. Tommy's fine tutorial in the Zebco section will get you through this reel painlessly.



  The oscillation block on this reel is held by two tiny c-clips. Of course I sent one into low earth orbit. The photo below shows a c-clip I made on the left. The tiny washer in the center is a shim that was on the front of the block.



  The drag stack was clean but I disassembled it anyway...just for practice.



  Now there is some serious chrome loss. I think we can fix it though.



  Brasso and elbow grease works wonders.



  I think she cleaned up nice, but the feel is even more impressive, very solid feel. I don't care for the AR system though. It's that top dead center set up, all the backplay irritates me. All in all, it's a great reel, probably one of Zebco's finer moments.



  That beer koozie came with the reel. It says "Holy Grail" on it...the price of these reels just spiked!

[festus]

That's not a bad looking Zebco, Mike.  I have this one getting ready to tear apart, will post it in another thread.

[Midway Tommy]

Well done, Mike! Doesn't even look like the same reel you started with. They're actually not bad reels. A little cumbersome feeling, IMHO, but a decent attempt by Zebco to replace the Cardinal line after ABU changed directions on them. Nice to see you got a good off side handle knob, too.   

[mo65]

They're actually not bad reels. A little cumbersome feeling, IMHO, but a decent attempt by Zebco to replace the Cardinal line after ABU changed directions on them. Nice to see you got a good off side handle knob, too.   

   That's a good description Tommy...cumbersome. It's a heavy reel. Solid...but heavy. I wondered if you'd notice it had the off side knob!

[The Fishing Hobby]

Good looking tank of a reel (other than gear material). I'm going to have to get in on this act!

[happyhooker]

Nice clean-up work.  End result looks good.  Looks like someone tried to build a spool arbor with that masking tape (not recommended).

Frank

[mo65]

  I've always wondered why Heddon's lures became collectors' gold while their reels became bargain bin fare. True...most of the Heddon reels weren't as robust as Penns and Quicks from the era...but some models were very well designed and built. I've been inside enough of these reels to know they are fine second string players...a "poor man's greenie" if ever there was one!
  The particular model I'll be covering, the 282, was part of the Top-Of-Line series.



  Looking inside, we see a few cool features right away. The red arrow points to the AR dog placed ahead of the gears. The blue arrow shows the oscillation cam is all one piece. No pin or screws to get lost, pops right out, allowing the spool shaft to be removed easily.



  The next photo demostrates how gunked up these old spinners can get when users have over-oiled the bail for years. This one was very slow...barely moved...a quick soak in WD-40 and a thorough soap and water wash will restore function.



  This reel was one of the early models to use a ball bearing on both the pinion gear and the main gear. Inspecting these bearings doesn't reveal the tight specs of a top quality bearing. They feel very smooth after cleaning though, and when assembled into the reel the tolerances aren't even noticed. The pinion and AR ratchet are a nice quality stainless steel.



  There it is again...the deal breaker...that die cast main gear. I'll say it again, I'm not completely convinced these are the devil. Especially with the forward mounted anti-reverse and a properly set drag. Sure, it ain't idiot proof, but neither is good bourbon!



  The spool is metal and has a nice little drag stack. The cork washers were in excellent shape. I buffed the metal washers and smeared a little grease on them. The drag is smooth and strong.



  I think this is one of the nicest looking reels of the era. Maybe they were over priced? Maybe Heddon just didn't have huge distribution like Garcia? I don't remember, I was still playing hop scotch and riding the merry-go-round when these reels were made!

[Midway Tommy]

Nice look inside, Mike. Thanks!

I think one of Heddon's reel problems might have been people's perception at the time of the Euro watchmaker turned to reelmaker quality and the fact that Heddon used their name to then over priced their reels, especially those that were made in Japan. The Japanese made market was tough price competition. Heddon up priced their Shakespeare made auto fly reels and did the same thing with their Swedish made Heritage line.

[The Fishing Hobby]

I finally am joining the B grade reel party 
I've owned (and still do) plenty that qualify, just late joining in but I have enjoyed this thread a lot. Reels that are in most everyone's price range that are fun to look into. I'm going to go with the recent Heddon theme and add in this little rascal. Not an A quality reel...not even sure it would qualify as a B level reel but I like the size, shape and weight of this little ultralight so much I'm keeping it anyway. I've had it for a while and just recently got around to servicing it. Anyway, here is my 1st contribution to the thread: