JamesD Posted June 22, 2012 Posted June 22, 2012 Okay folks, this is a long awaited series of questions I have in regards to my baitcasting reel.... First & foremost, it's either an '81 or '84 Abu Garcia 5500C baitcaster. And like most everything I own, It's been well used. It was in the attic for god knows how long, possibly since the mid 90's ('95-'97) until sometime last year when I tore it completely down, cleaned it, and re-lubricated every single moving part of this puppy. It's fully functional and does a GREAT job.... but! It won't cast worth a darn! Somewhere, I read it's considered a trolling reel for off-shore fishing? That's entirely possible, but I'm not for sure. Anyway, I lined it with Academy's house brand line, H20 Express, in the 12lb variety and used it for quite a while. At that time, it was on an old 6' Berkley Scout two piece BC rod. I could get a good 35-45' cast with it using both hands, but I really had to swing that sucker! It's been kind of 'retired' lately, as I used half the line on it's spool for another reel and I filled the void with some rather old spider line braid, probably 40lb test... I use it for top water when I'm out hunting that BIG bass... They seem to hit those top water's pretty hard and I've had two lures stolen off 8lb line... Anyway, that Berkley Scout rod ended with a snapped tip one morning out on the lake and I had to dig up another rod, so I'm running it on a Zebco Red Rhino 6' rod. I'd like to know what's keeping me from being able to cast this puppy over 40'? Is it my line? Is it my rod? I'm looking at Berkley fireline right now, and I've been considering buying either a 7' or 7'6" BC Ugly Stick to use with it. It may also need new bearings, as even when I went through the reel, I did not replace them. Any help in trouble shooting this issue would greatly appreciated. Here's some data on the reel in question: http://www.abugarcia.com/sites/default/files/schematics/5500C%2084-2.PDF http://www.abugarcia.com/sites/default/files/schematics/5500C%2081-08-00.PDF And some pictures! (everybody loves pictures, right??) Quote
Delaware Valley Tackle Posted June 22, 2012 Posted June 22, 2012 James that is a work horse of a reel capable of much better casting. First thing is to make sure the weight of the bait you are casting falls within the ratings of the rod. A longer rod will aid in casting distance but a six footer of the proper power should be doing better. When re-lubricating you may have gone too far. Grease should be applied to gear teeth and oil to sliding parts and bearings. The spool shaft and spool lip should not be oiled. If none of this gives you any clues, I'd have to see the reel to diagnose. Quote
JamesD Posted June 22, 2012 Author Posted June 22, 2012 James that is a work horse of a reel capable of much better casting. First thing is to make sure the weight of the bait you are casting falls within the ratings of the rod. A longer rod will aid in casting distance but a six footer of the proper power should be doing better. When re-lubricating you may have gone too far. Grease should be applied to gear teeth and oil to sliding parts and bearings. The spool shaft and spool lip should not be oiled. If none of this gives you any clues, I'd have to see the reel to diagnose. Those were my thoughts, I use a home-made combination of lubricant that I developed for sharpening and honing the blades that I forged. it's a combination of light machine oils. There is a minor amount of 500° axle grease on either side of the spool's axle to reduce wear and friction. I went back through the reel about 6 months ago, cleaned it all over again and re-lubricated it. I doubt that my oiling job is what's impeding the cast. I'd lean more towards the bearings. Although, all of my lures are between 1/8 and 1/2 ounce. Most of what I cast out is 1/4 and 3/8 ounce. The red rhino is a nice flexible rod. I saw a LOT of improvement when I went from a 6'0 ugly stick to the 7'0 for my spinning rod. I could disassemble it and take pictures if that would help? Quote
Delaware Valley Tackle Posted June 22, 2012 Posted June 22, 2012 Remove the grease from the spool axle. The mating parts are machined to minimize wear. Friction can be further reduced by polishing the spool shaft, inside of pinion gear and spool ends. This is the process referred to a Super Tuning. 1/4 and 1/8 oz baits are better thrown with spinning tackle or at least finesse baitcasters. Baitcasters are better suited to 1/2> The 3/8 should be ok. The 1/4 might be stretch for this particular setup. Flushing the bearings in an acetone bath and lightly oiling will help maximize free spool. Quote
JamesD Posted June 22, 2012 Author Posted June 22, 2012 I'm sure glad I decided to ponder this today.... What you said got me thinking, and I began to recall the night I tore this reel down. I failed to tear it down completely and missed a few things apparently... have a look for yourself! My HTC doesn't take the 'best' pictures in the world, but with a jeweler's loop as focusing assistance, I get some pretty high-detail shots. Take a look at how bad off the actual mechanism was! Quote
JamesD Posted June 22, 2012 Author Posted June 22, 2012 You can see the pitting on the stainless wheel and damage done to the organic washers, I cleaned them off with a knife blade, then a tooth brush, and soaked them in very fine/thin machine oil. I ground, and polished that stainless wheel down. Don't be fooled by the photograph, you can see my finger prints, that's extremely high detail that in NO way effects it negatively. At least not compared to how bad it was! After re-assembly, and tying on a top water frog, I was able to cast out at least 10-15' further with half the effort as before, AND NO BACKLASH! A lot of the 'whining,' 'whirring', and 'zipping' sounds the reel made on casting are gone, it makes a faint sound of the line traveling and the spool spinning as the line goes out. Man, I sure am glad I pondered this, and thank you for your input DVT!!! Quote
JamesD Posted June 22, 2012 Author Posted June 22, 2012 Okay guys.... As a secondary Question. Now that I have this reel working as it SHOULD, I still need to re-line it. As I mentioned earlier, I had it lined with 12 or 14lb mono from Academy, their H20 Express brand. The line isn't huge or anything and it cast out decently well without issue. The Zebco Red Rhino Rod that I have this reel mounted on is a 6'0 Medium Heavy. What brand, type, and lb test line would you recommend? Bare in mind that I mainly fish from the banks/shore of the Ross Barnett Reservoir and other small ponds and lakes in Central MS and Madison County. I am considering buying a 7' Ugly Stick for this reel in the near future unless I can find a better rod for less than $50 from either Walmart, Academy, or Bass Pro (I don't buy rods I can't test out in person). Anyway, with all of that said, what do you guys recommend? Quote
Michael DiNardo Posted June 23, 2012 Posted June 23, 2012 No offense, but I believe there are better choices than an Ugly Stik. For a few dollars more, I would go with a Tech Spec from Dick's. Get a medium power fast action. There are many other choices, just one that comes to mind. Mike Quote
JamesD Posted June 23, 2012 Author Posted June 23, 2012 No offense, but I believe there are better choices than an Ugly Stik. For a few dollars more, I would go with a Tech Spec from Dick's. Get a medium power fast action. There are many other choices, just one that comes to mind. Mike As a 2nd Amendment activist, I refuse to shop at Dick's Sporting goods due to their stance on the sale of hand guns for self & home defence. Thanks, but I'll pass. I have a 7' ugly stik for my spinning rod and absolutely love the cast & action from it. Call me simple-minded if you may, I think it does fine. Quote
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