What would you do?

[joesquid]

I'm trying to figure out what I should do.  I got 2 reels I bought in lots that have issues.  The first one is a Delmar that is about perfect except the broken tail plate.....  The second is a Long Beach 68 that has a lot of chrome loss and I'm feeling and hearing the gears mesh when I crank.  It gets louder but does not skip.  I went through the reel and cleaned and lubed but no improvement.  I suppose the pinion and main gear are wore out.

So my question is what would you do with these 2?  Parts bin? Not attached to either but don't like giving up on them....

[Wompus Cat]

If you are asking then subconsciously you want and NEED to Fix em.

[thorhammer]

Yep. If you want to waste money, you fish. If you want to waste lots of money, you fish and collect tackle. I have a bunch of delmar headplates, not sure about about tailplate, will check.

[Wompus Cat]

I have fixed worse.

[joesquid]

LOL....you're probably right.  I was thinking of holding the Delmar to see if a tail plate becomes available. Checked ebay....nothing right now.  What do y'all think about the 68?  Is my thinking right about the pinion and main right?

[thorhammer]

Possibly, but could also be misalignment from bent jack / yoke, or pinion not seating properly due to be corroded ontp spool shaft (very possible if the reel has enough exposure to remove chrome). Both more palatable issues. I wouldn't crank on it anymore until I cracked it open tho.

[Swami805]

Might check the frame on that 68, sometimes that will cause some noise if it's tweaked.

[joesquid]

I've had it open and didn't notice any problem.  Reckon I wasn't looking hard enough.  The inside looked MUCH better than the outside.  Old grease but not too bad.  I'll pull it back apart and take a look again.  I'll get some pictures.  

[Brewcrafter]

Tough dilemma.  BUT...since these were just reels that you scored in a deal (presumably at a fair price) that don't have any provenance or personal history - I wouldn't get too hung up on them.  Now if they were "family reels" or had a history - then I would be the first guy to waste $tupid amount$ of money to restore them when instead you could just cruise the sales and get ones in better condition for cheap...   Do you really need one of these reels for a gap in your arsenal that you will need to be using soon?  If not, tear em apart, experiment, learn.  And keep them around for parts.  Never know when one of the Ohana might have a need, and that is the gift that keeps giving.  Now keep in mind, this is coming from a guy who's first "AT Forum" rebuild was a Long Beach 68 that is my "goto" for SoCal halibut and I have invested more into the reel (drags, sleeve, handle, etc) than what the reel was worth but again it was a "family reel" with personal history.  Thorhammer pretty much hit the nail on the head!

Yep. If you want to waste money, you fish. If you want to waste lots of money, you fish and collect tackle. I have a bunch of delmar headplates, not sure about about tailplate, will check.

- john

[thorhammer]

I think all mine had steel gears, so with a SS sleeve like John and carbon drags you've got yourself a pretty good 4/0 wide size winch. I'd spool with 60 mono, should hold about 350 yards, and bottom bounce it hard. With six cross bars you'd have to lean on it pretty hard to twist anything.

[Gfish]

I recently bought a LB 68. It stays empty of line and I'll use it to temporarly store line for for spool cleaning and as a donner/pressure-for-braid--- reel. I like the spool capacity. I've noticed that you may have'ta pay more  for a used reel that's fully functional and in good condition from "da Bay". Maybe best to advertise your need here, to get an honest deal and know what problems it already has...

Yours sounds like it has gear lash. Either wear on the gears and(or) misalingment due to; the yolk/eccentric jack/pinion complex tweaking, or frame torque, or both. How's the free spool spin time? Any rubbing sounds? Are the spool bushings real loose on the shafts? Is there any sewlling of the side-plates(ring won't fully go into the plate groove)?

Like the Brewcrafter & the Thorhammer alluded to, it's fun and educational to diagnose these issues and an ego stroke when you solve the problem. May cost some $ for parts, though.

The DelMar is pretty common, and a donner/parts reel might be cheap.

[Decker]

Fix them if you are so inclined.  Don't be shy about asking if anyone has parts to share.  Lots of guys will help out.   

[foakes]

Hey, JSquid —

As to whether or not to restore this reel to functionality — that is a choice only each of us can make.

And, it depends on which yardstick we use to measure the completed project —

* Is it worth it (financial)?
* Will it be a capable fisher when completed?
* Will I gain a little knowledge and experience in the process?
* Will it serve a new angler with no issues that could use it for years to come?
* Will a sense of accomplishment and satisfaction in a "job well done" be worthwhile to me?

These are all valid reasonings.  You are the PIC (Pilot in Command) — you will make the right call for yourself.

Finished up 5 Quicks for complete restores over the weekend, and 6 Penn Conventionals.  None too bad — all turned out well.  DQ's got paint and restores.  Penn's got full service, cleanings, new drag stacks, and Cal's.

Then broke into another box of reels today — an old Mitchell 300, an old Mitchell 410, and a Penn 4300SS for the same guy.  

The Mitchell's were both very rough.  Gear center pins that are supposed to stay in place with a knurled shaft were loose or missing, the dried up grease was so hard it took the ultrasonic cleaner with Dawn, a pick, a screwdriver, and a wire wheel to remove the Jurassic Crud (you guys know the type), rust, and other issues from the decades of never being serviced.  I will spend as much time on these (2) as I did on the (11) reels completed over the last 2 days — and just charge the same service fee.  But, it is not about the money — it is about using my time to make sure whatever comes off the bench is as good as possible — and that I would be confident and proud to fish it myself.

For me, that would be my yardstick.

Best of Luck on your project,

Fred

[joesquid]

Thanks for all the advice fellas.  I think I like gfish idea of using the 68 as a spooler.  I just rigged up a empty 1000yrd spool from some mono and some all-thread to take the wireline off the 68.  Still am curious what the problem is.  Free spool is excellent.  You don't hear or feel anything until you put pressure on the spool. There are no rubbing sounds and the spool bushings are good.

  The 285 is in excellent shape except the tail plate.  I was hoping to give it to one of the kids in the family. Think I'll keep it around a bit and see if I can't come up with a black tail plate.  No problem finding head plates.  I reckon they are prone to sacrificing the tail plate when dropped. 

[Wompus Cat]

Don't limit your search on just a 285 Tail plate as I am PRETTY SURE  the  60,65,80 ,85,185,and prob some others will work .

As for the Gear mesh on the 68  you can have worn end bearings and it will free spool fine as in Free Spool the gears are not engaged .
Plus all it takes is a  small burr on any of the gears or dirt stuck in there to cause mesh probs.
Take the Gears out and carefully examine them for wear,crud or corrosion , etc.
An emory board or nail file comes in Reel Handy on these to clean as well as remove rough edges and slight corrosion.