Starting Out with DAM

[Wompus Cat]

Thanks
Wompus!
I got them both and the 247 was missing. Is that by chance because they were identical to the 248?

I believe the 247 uses a different Spool assy.
I have the Schematic here in my book and will scan it in a bit and upload it for everyone .

[2Boston]

Thanks!
Not in a hurry.

[2Boston]

Midway Tommy, While I get my feet wet with this brand and learn the models better let me say that I'm looking for the size between ultra lite and my 285's. You mentioned the 110 as being a UL size. Would a 220 be a bit bigger? 

[Wompus Cat]

Here it is and note the 248 has the spool Assy as part number 248SK and this 247 is 247SK and quite different
in its make up .

Left click once to enlarge a bit . Left Click once more to super size it .
Or copy it to your own photo editor to size it the way you want .

[2Boston]

Yes indeed. Different enough that whomever owned this before was never likely to succeed with these parts. Thanks so much.

[oldmanjoe]

OldmanJoe that was mean of you.....not a good way to treat a new member. Now that I've completed your assignment I'm doomed. Swept away. I'll never recover...might as well become a collector.
Gosh, What cool reels. I went back to spincast this year after a 50 yr hiatus. I use spincast for bass size on down. I really liked the DAM spincast reels but I was clobbered by their fly reels, golly, Theyre awesome.
Thanks for the link!

OOOOOOOOOhhhhhhh    Your goner fit rite in here ........   We don`t collect , we adopt the orphans and give them a little love and new clothes when needed .

[2Boston]

Well said!

[foakes]

I will put your parts request together for you today, Don —

And mail it this afternoon — since we will be gone for 5 or 6 days — leaving tomorrow morning.

The only difference between a DQ 247 & 248 —

The 248 has the push button quick change spool release — the 247 has a screw on drag knob similar to the smaller 218, 228, and 238.

These reels require different spool shafts also to accommodate the two types of spools.

Best, Fred

[2Boston]

That sets the record straight then. I have the right knob but the wrong spool. And that explains why the Drag gear doesn't engage the axle pin. Thanks Fred!

[Midway Tommy]

        OOOOOOOOOhhhhhhh    Your goner fit rite in here ........   We don`t collect , we adopt the orphans and give them a little love and new clothes when needed .

Not all of us.....I'm a traditionalist and originalist at heart, as most who collect are. Modifying a user reel is fine but from the collecting stand point original is where the value is. There's something to be said about rescuing a spinner from the parts bin, graveyard or dump, but I prefer any reels I purchase to be as close to original as possible. Repaints are collectors' nightmares.

The 220 size is in between the 110 and 330/280/285. The 220 would be light size, not ultra light, but a nice size reel to fish with.

[2Boston]

Tommy the way you word your viewpoint is well appreciated and accurate. I have some newer looking older reels but I fish all of them except a Johnson 160 Guide and a 150 Commander. They're almost perfect and until I get a better set of rod holders for the boat they're staying on the shelf. I like things to stay original. That said I saw some red ones that are sharp and a bunch of guys I know have switched Mitchell 308 gears out for 408's...I don't blame them. True and authentic restoration can cost hundreds per reel and I'm simply not there. 
I was really poor during the 60's, 70's, 80's and early 90'. I'm catching up on all I missed back then. The heyday of metal reels....very sentimental using these old reels. The tic tic tic of their metallic parts are very warm and nostalgic sounding. The new stuff is great but the old is heartwarming.
Thanks for the help. Once I get these two fixed up I'll look for a 220.

[foakes]

       OOOOOOOOOhhhhhhh    Your goner fit rite in here ........   We don`t collect , we adopt the orphans and give them a little love and new clothes when needed .

Not all of us.....I'm a traditionalist and originalist at heart, as most who collect are. Modifying a user reel is fine but from the collecting stand point original is where the value is. There's something to be said about rescuing a spinner from the parts bin, graveyard or dump, but I prefer any reels I purchase to be as close to original as possible. Repaints are collectors' nightmares.

Each of us are different in our approach to reel restoration repair, service, and collecting, Don —

An experienced and knowledgeable collector like Tommy — wants the reels he collects to be as original as possible, hopefully with boxes, and also ready to fish — if desired.  Repainted reels for a collector are like the Anti-Christ.  I understand that.

For others — they just want a well prepped and serviced reel to catch fish — it doesn't matter if the reel is a little rough on the outside — as long as it is serviced, lubed, and all functions work well.

My approach is to restore the reel to factory fresh — with no mods or upgrades — and make it ready to fish for whoever wants to use/own it.  For me, this generally includes new factory paint, a full strip down — much like restoring a 60's muscle car.  Original paint only lasts so long — and I love the nostalgia of fishing with a reel that is 60 years old — will out-perform the newer Tupperware reels from Asia — and not break the bank.

After collecting for 25+ years — what got me to change my mind about purist collecting, was:

When we needed to move our Aunt Barbara up in Bremerton, WA to an advanced assisted living situation 13 years ago — due to age and Alzheimer's.  The monthly rate years ago was $5,500.  I realized that all of my collecting — if sold by myself, or my wife — might pay for one or two months of care in a home like this.  So I made the decision to stop collecting — and start getting these reels out into the world for Anglers to use.

I take as much pride in a reel for a client — as a collector does in their collection of displayed reels.

But I am just a reel mechanic who likes the quality reels I service and restore to be both ready to fish, a reel to be proud of, and also as attractive as when they were new.

It is really just what we like and enjoy.  It all works — whether a reel is original, repainted, or just serviced with chips.  No big deal.  

However, one should NEVER represent a reel as original — if it has been repainted.  Always disclose.

It will be up to the purist collector sometime down the road to determine if the reel is repainted or not.

Best, Fred

[2Boston]

Accurate!

No sense wrecking equipment that is perfect but I want to fish. That is my focus and collecting falls back behind equipping my grandchildren.


Collectors provide the Oooh's and AAAhs for the rest of us and that is impressive on its own merit.

We're all needed!

[TJAndrews]

Accurate!

No sense wrecking equipment that is perfect but I want to fish. That is my focus and collecting falls back behind equipping my grandchildren.


Collectors provide the Oooh's and AAAhs for the rest of us and that is impressive on its own merit.

We're all needed!

I only have three DQ reels. That doesn't make me a "collector," does it?

I'm a farm boy too. Still am, in fact, as my brother and I now own and operate the farm where we grew up. Back in the 50's my parents had some pretty hard times, and the lessons learned didn't leave them when times got better. My mother was always on the hunt for a good bargain, and she found it in the reel on the left, my original 331. She spotted it while Christmas shopping, last one in stock, marked down to $5 because it was the display model. It is, and always has been my favorite reel, and it still works as well today as it did when I first fished with it. Currently, it's on a rod I built myself years ago, using an Ugly Stik blank.

I use it on the St. Lawrence River to fish for smallmouths and walleyes, and the occasional northern pike. The fish in the photo are only average-size for up there, and as you can imagine if you tie into a big one now and then you need a reel with some gumption to handle them. The 331 has it in spades.

The other two reels are another 331 and a 330. I bought them on eBay a few years ago, just because I wanted some spares. Both needed some work, but mostly just cleaning and lubing. The 331 is on an Ugly Stik that I bought for it on Amazon, and the 330 is on another rod I built myself some years back. I've caught bass and walleyes with both of them, too.

All three reels have seen some hard use in their time, have chipped paint, and the first lost the little fish from the body a while back, so for a collector they may have little value. But for me, they are beyond price.   

[2Boston]

Great reel testimonial! Our farm is now a famous wedding venue and my brother and his wife are doing a great job with it. So the 331 is about the same size as the 285, just newer?