Teach me about drag stacks always with odd numbers of washers

[steelfish]

so, guys, I have the basic idea but need help to understand why most of the drag stacks on reels are with an odd number, like  1 drag washer, 3 drag stack or 5 drag stack.

I know 3 drag stack have a keyed+CF+ eared+CF+ keyed  to make it 5 stack just add CF +Keyed CF+ eared and you can make it 7-stack

so, what the reason of not 4 or 6 drag stacks inside the main gear ?

[gstours]

Good question Alax,  as you mentioned in the main gear you need a eared, fiber,and keyed washer.  To keep the stack going you need the ditto as many times as you have rood in the gear.  sometimes you can if the washers are in the correct order add a fiber and a keyed above the main gear to get one more set (3) of working surfaces.   You cannot have an eared washer above the main gear as it has to lock into the slots/grooves in the gear.   I hope this makes sence?   Its kinda a room (height) thing.   Using thinner washers (aftermarket) can buy you some more room generally.   If you save .010 om each steel washer you have added 50 thousandths or so and that might buy you several more washers to your stack.   Thats my impression.   

[Keta]

The eared washers have to engage the gear and have a keyed washer engaging the gear sleeve next or it will not work.  You can put a extra keyed and CF washer on top of the stack and out of the gear if the last metal washer in the gear is eared.

[steelfish]

....  You can put a extra keyed and CF washer on top of the stack and out of the gear if the last metal washer in the gear is eared.

hmm that helps, so, most of the drag stacks end with a keyed washer.

so, If you add another CF+keyed washer wont add any friction surface and increase the drag since both keyed washers spin witht the drag but if you can fit an eared washer which is locked to the main gear, the CF between both keyed and eared is what make the drag force, is that correct?

[Keta]

Yes.

[Maxed Out]

 The first metal washer is always keyed, and the last metal washer is always keyed. Thus the odd number of cf washers.

[steelfish]

The first metal washer is always keyed, and the last metal washer is always keyed. Thus the odd number of cf washers.

whats the reason for that?

[Brewcrafter]

Steelfish - If the first washer was eared, when drag is being taken (main gear spinning against the sleeve) then the drag washer between the main gear would just spin along with the eared washer and there would be no drag contribution.  Another way to think about it is:
Keyed Washer = Sleeve.  Whatever the sleeve (and handle) does, that is what happens with those washers.  Handle not turning, they are fixed.
Eared Washer = Gear.  Whatever the gear does, that washer does.
Since in a drag situation the gear is slipping against the sleeve, and you always want opposing surfaces.  Simply put, if you had a drag with only one washer set, and it went Gear/Fiber Washer/Eared Washer, no matter how much pressure you screwed on the sleeve the gear, fiber washer (friction surface) and metal eared washer would all spin together in unison - and hence no friction or drag.  But the keyed washers (fixed to the sleeve) don't move when the gear slips and provide friction. - john

[JoseCuervo]

The first metal washer is always keyed, and the last metal washer is always keyed. Thus the odd number of cf washers.

whats the reason for that?

An eared metal washer first won't slip against a CF drag washer under it in the bottom of the main gear. The rest is just math.

The keyed washers turn forward as you crank the reel (creating drag), then the eared washers slip in reverse [like a fish taking out line] (creating the "real" drag), basically.

[steelfish]

whats the reason for that?

An eared metal washer first won't slip against a CF drag washer under it in the bottom of the main gear. The rest is just math.

put it that way sounds logic haha, this hits right in the nail to understand a bit more the way a drag system works.


thanks a lot guys.

[JasonGotaProblem]

Steelfish thank you for asking this, and everyone else for answering. There's stuff i use every day that I don't fully understand. This was one of them. Now i can check that off the list.

[steelfish]

Another way to think about it is:
Keyed Washer = Sleeve.  Whatever the sleeve (and handle) does, that is what happens with those washers.  Handle not turning, they are fixed.
Eared Washer = Gear.  Whatever the gear does, that washer does.


Since in a drag situation the gear is slipping against the sleeve, and you always want opposing surfaces.  Simply put, if you had a drag with only one washer set, and it went Gear/Fiber Washer/Eared Washer, no matter how much pressure you screwed on the sleeve the gear, fiber washer (friction surface) and metal eared washer would all spin together in unison - and hence no friction or drag.  But the keyed washers (fixed to the sleeve) don't move when the gear slips and provide friction. - john

somehow I missed this post, but it really puts everything even more clear, with that said, I recall adding one more CF+keyed washer on the top of the drag stack (reel that had 3 stack drags) thinking that I added 5# of drag  so, the last CF + Keyed didnt increased any drag at all, danm it!!

ooh well, thanks guys again, I learned something new today.