Sometimes, They Just Take All Day

Started by foakes, March 29, 2022, 02:40:58 AM

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foakes

Restoring an old DAM Quick 270 Line Counter Super from 1954.

This was an eBay special —- and needed considerable help.

So much rust that even after 3 soaks in the US cleaner with lacquer thinner —- it still took an hour of wire-wheeling almost every interior part.

Some parts were too far gone to save.

Plus, this is a line counter reel that reads in yards.  The entire mechanism was missing and epoxied over.  Got that all straitened out with some new parts and a ton of scraping, re-cleaning , and adjusting surfaces.

These particular earliest Supers need careful care when restoring —- since a fair number of the parts are not the same as the later Supers —- and will not fit the older ones.

But, 7 straight hours later —- it is 100%.  All interior parts are polished and brought back to original.  The line counter watch mechanism works perfectly and the reel feels good and right.

The reel is as smooth and quiet as oiled glass.

It needed a bearing, along with the line-counter, and drags, screws, washers, springs, and a few other things.

These reels could not be restored like this —- unless they were made well from the start.

Couldn't do this with a graphite Asian marvel.  The screws only go into and out of a graphite reel about 3 or 4 times, if you are lucky.  Then it's in the trash can because the tolerances are no longer tight.

Feels pretty good to take on a challenge like this on a 68 year old reel —- and make it whole, at least to me.

Best, Fred
The Official, Un-Authorized Service and Restoration Center for quality vintage spinning reels.

D-A-M Quick, Penn, Mitchell, and ABU/Zebco Cardinals

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The first rule of fishing is to fish where the fish are. The second rule of fishing is to never forget the first rule.

"Enjoy the little things in Life — For someday, you may look back — and realize that they were the big things"
                                                     Fred O.

oldmanjoe

 :D   Did some one try to cover /"water proof " the slot and window with epoxy  ? "The entire mechanism was missing and epoxied over " 
  Did the clear plastic slip or is there a corner missing ?
Grandpa`s words of wisdom......Joey that thing between your shoulders is not a hat rack.....    use it.....
A mind is like a parachute, it only work`s  when it is open.......
The power of Observation   , It`s all about the Details ..
 Forget about all the reasons why something may not work. You only need to find one good reason why it will.   Alto Mare

foakes

Sharp eye, Joe!

Right, I noticed that the new clear window slipped a bit —- after I took the photos —- so then I applied a little Gorilla Glue to the inside edges.

I guess the line counter watch mechanism was removed at some point probably because it failed or got rusted up.  Then they cut a couple of pieces of plastic to cover the dial hole and the wheel slot —- then epoxied over all of that.

Best, Fred
The Official, Un-Authorized Service and Restoration Center for quality vintage spinning reels.

D-A-M Quick, Penn, Mitchell, and ABU/Zebco Cardinals

--------

The first rule of fishing is to fish where the fish are. The second rule of fishing is to never forget the first rule.

"Enjoy the little things in Life — For someday, you may look back — and realize that they were the big things"
                                                     Fred O.

mo65

~YOU CAN TUNA GEETAR...BUT YOU CAN'T TUNA FEESH~


JasonGotaProblem

How does a line counter work on a spinner anyway?

...graphite doesnt rust
Any machine is a smoke machine if you use it wrong enough.

Wompus Cat

I consider a Work like this as Therapy at a very Reasonable Cost ...lol
If we did not do these Reels we would all probably be in a Nut House dribbling slobber  ::)   
Great Save as Always by a True Pro and don't think anyone else would have the Spares to attempt such a restore except you Fred
Some addictions are Gute!
If a Grass Hopper Carried a Shotgun then the Birds wouldn't MESS with Him

oldmanjoe

Did they actually make different gearing in the clock for yards and meters , or is it a disk change ?
   
 
Grandpa`s words of wisdom......Joey that thing between your shoulders is not a hat rack.....    use it.....
A mind is like a parachute, it only work`s  when it is open.......
The power of Observation   , It`s all about the Details ..
 Forget about all the reasons why something may not work. You only need to find one good reason why it will.   Alto Mare

Gfish

Cool. I was envisioning a clunky little box somewheres on the reel, like on conventional's, before I started reading the post text.

A yard is~3" shorter than a meter. Wouldn't matter to me, maybe saying 100 yd reading = approx. 95 meters, but to German engineer/designers, hmmm. Maybe you can flip the wheel around for meters?

Plastic/graphite/composites have there use advantages, but definitely get over-used in high stress places and can deform over time. My nightmare is male/female screw threads made a that stuff.
Fishing tackle is an art form and all fish caught on the right tackle are"Gfish"!

foakes

#8
Staying with and knowing the practical to-the-point mindset of the German engineers —- the only difference in the clocking mechanism was a different calibrated thumb wheel.  Meters for most of the world and Europe —- Yards for the US.

The line Counter —- also called a Quick-O-Mat in the Standard smaller reels (S.W. 68 & 250) basically works by setting the thumb wheel to "0" —- casting out or dropping down for depth —- then retrieving the line —- and reading the measurement.

I guess the theory is that if you were successful or got bit —- you could guess about where to put your bait again based on your past presentation.

Really, just a gimmick —- not very useful to an experienced angler.  And for a novice —- just an option to show off to your friends.

However, the mechanism is extremely well made —- strong —- and doesn't need to be used.

These earlier Supers had many parts that were unique —- to the point where about 1/3 of the parts are not the same as the later 270C or 275 2-Speed.

Got 4 more Supers to do today.  (3) 270's and a 275.  Be interesting to see if I can get them all done in the time it took to do this one yesterday.  We'll see...

Supers are generally dirt cheap to buy —- and one of the toughest reels you will ever use.

However, with 90% of the Supers out there —- it will take an average of 12-14 small parts to bring them back to fighting form.  This is due to the saltwater angling that these old soldiers went through.

I have a tremendous amount of parts for these, plus (4) crates of complete reels.  So, it is much easier for me (possible) to restore them for others and myself.

Or to offer parts to those who want to attempt a Lazarus resurrection themselves.

BTW —- take a quick look at the last photo on this post.  It is hard to imagine a stronger or tougher frame than this one.  Look at the reinforced screw holes built into the frame.  The more you work on these —- the more you start to appreciate the engineering that last for a lifetime, or more. 

And the difference between this and a Taiwan Tupperware is not even a comparison.

Best, Fred
The Official, Un-Authorized Service and Restoration Center for quality vintage spinning reels.

D-A-M Quick, Penn, Mitchell, and ABU/Zebco Cardinals

--------

The first rule of fishing is to fish where the fish are. The second rule of fishing is to never forget the first rule.

"Enjoy the little things in Life — For someday, you may look back — and realize that they were the big things"
                                                     Fred O.

oldmanjoe

 :)     YA had to go and push my start button .....
   I have a line counter all apart in a baggie for about 4 years now .    I know it needed the vertical drive gear on the clock itself .   And over the years i would steal a part here and there .
         
     So i started removing the broken ball lever screw in the anti reverse shaft today . Got lucky and it rolled out when i put the drill bit to it .       I will make up a grocery list soon .
          IMG_0830.jpg
 
  That 275 takes time to reassemble , lots of little parts to clean and refit !!!
Grandpa`s words of wisdom......Joey that thing between your shoulders is not a hat rack.....    use it.....
A mind is like a parachute, it only work`s  when it is open.......
The power of Observation   , It`s all about the Details ..
 Forget about all the reasons why something may not work. You only need to find one good reason why it will.   Alto Mare

foakes

Glad to help out, Joe —-

You did a good job on that A/R lever weird keeper screw.

Not easy.

Best, Fred
The Official, Un-Authorized Service and Restoration Center for quality vintage spinning reels.

D-A-M Quick, Penn, Mitchell, and ABU/Zebco Cardinals

--------

The first rule of fishing is to fish where the fish are. The second rule of fishing is to never forget the first rule.

"Enjoy the little things in Life — For someday, you may look back — and realize that they were the big things"
                                                     Fred O.

oldmanjoe

  OPPPSSS  Double pictured
Grandpa`s words of wisdom......Joey that thing between your shoulders is not a hat rack.....    use it.....
A mind is like a parachute, it only work`s  when it is open.......
The power of Observation   , It`s all about the Details ..
 Forget about all the reasons why something may not work. You only need to find one good reason why it will.   Alto Mare

Gfish

I use spinners for baitfish. If I mark 'em at 50' on the fish-finder, in maybe a 100'+, it seems I never get bit as I search down for' em. Then it'ed be math; 50 divided by 3 = 18yds? Could be I'm just marking plankton anyway, HA! If the counter don't work for back-reeling, I don't see how to do it?
Fishing tackle is an art form and all fish caught on the right tackle are"Gfish"!

oldmanjoe

#13
IT`s easy , just put the anti reverse in neutral.  The clock will run backwards to your number ,keep the bail closed
      Say you want 60 feet down ,before you drop put 60 yards on the dial , keep the bail closed ,
anti reverse neutral pull line or work the stick   until you hit zero ...  Ballpark .
Grandpa`s words of wisdom......Joey that thing between your shoulders is not a hat rack.....    use it.....
A mind is like a parachute, it only work`s  when it is open.......
The power of Observation   , It`s all about the Details ..
 Forget about all the reasons why something may not work. You only need to find one good reason why it will.   Alto Mare

Gfish

Cool! Thanks. A Quick Super eh? That's a 270 Linecounter model, hmmmm...
Fishing tackle is an art form and all fish caught on the right tackle are"Gfish"!