Drag curve Okuma Cavalla 12 II

[MexicanGulf]

Hi crew, is it possible to change the drag curve of my reels? I would like to set the drag for fishing focused on the 40 lbs line class.I don't need to have a lot of drag because I don't do long range fishing. For me 12 lbs on the strike is the norm, and only exceptionally during the fight with some bftuna (60 Pound) I push the drag value to 18 lbs So I really don't need all the power of the Cavalla 12, I prefer a more linear curve with a slower and longer drag progression.Can anyone help me improve my reel to suit my needs?

[oldmanjoe]

 I believe this is what you are look for .
https://alantani.com/index.php/topic,34556.msg408249.html#msg408249

[jurelometer]

[update- improved the explanation of belleville orientation - changes in blue]

The progression is affected by both the cam ramp and the belleville washer set  strength and orientation.

If you want a more linear progression, the bellevilles should all be the same strength and orientation, with the ideal orientation being all opposed(vs nested) if you want to have the same effect as lowering the cam ramp angle compared to a set of all cupped bellevilles (and vice versa).  Having different strength or mixed orientation bellevilles in the  stack will tend to make the ramp up more uneven.  The ratio of travel to clamping load will be more linear when the bellevilles are not compressed too much, so as strange as it sounds, stronger Bellevilles may also be the answer.

Playing with some different strength bellevilles might get you close enough to what you want that grinding down the cam may not be necessary.

The nice thing about cam grinding is that if you are lucky, you can just swap cams to get a different drag curve if you need a  change for a different situation. But be prepared to ruin a couple cams before you get it right.

It should also be noted that whatever you set the drag at is not going to be what the load is on the fish taking line, which will be constantly changing. Getting to precise about the settings is something that I don't worry about.  Here's why:

As the fish takes more line, the friction from  water along and across the line increases the drag at the fish's end of the  line on top of the drag setting.

This is a big part of the reason why the rule of thumb for setting maximum  drag is 1/3 of the line rating, and why big game fishers have specific strategies for avoiding line breakage with fast moving fish and hundreds of yards of line out. A fish can break the line at a very low drag setting if there is a decent amount of line out being pulled sideways by the fish and/or boat moving.

Getting a more linear drag ramp up  and/or being able to move to a specific drag setting can be useful.  I just think that it doesn't need to be too exact. In real life, the actual drag at the fish is going to be varying dramatically in situations where it matters most.

-J

[MexicanGulf]

Unfortunately I am not and will not be able to make this modification on the Okuma Cavalla.