BaconStealer303 Posted January 23, 2013 Posted January 23, 2013 I'm going to buy new bearings for my Bass Pro Shops Bionic Plus reel. It's old and not the best, but works as a okay crankbait reel for me. I heard the orange boca bearing would whip it back into shape. The Product #BNP10SC yet mine looks different than the one currently on the website. Well I'm having trouble finding which bearing size to get because it's listed no where. So any help would be great! Also, kind of a sub question, when I buy the Lew's tourney pro or the shimano chronarch, will the orange boca bearings be a good addition to them? Quote
Super User LgMouthGambler Posted January 24, 2013 Super User Posted January 24, 2013 I cant speak for the other reels as have never upgraded bearings in them, but the Shimano bearings are good stock. They are an ABEC 3 rating. I have just ordered some ABEC 5s for my Curado50E because I have a bad one. The Bionic might not be listed as it is not a very popular reel to upgrade. You may have to just find out what the dimensions are using Google or if someone on here knows. Quote
BaconStealer303 Posted January 24, 2013 Author Posted January 24, 2013 I tried looking it up, but couldn't find anything. i'll try again, thanks Quote
BaconStealer303 Posted January 24, 2013 Author Posted January 24, 2013 I just shot bocabearing an email to see if they had any idea. I'm starting to question the idea of upgrading bearings on such a cheap reel though. Does anyone have an opinion? Quote
upnorthbassin Posted January 24, 2013 Posted January 24, 2013 You can buy the reel from bp on clearance for $50 now and the average price of a set of those bearings is going to be about the same. Obviously it's your reel and you can do what you want with it...but I don't know that I would put $50 into a $50 reel myself (although it would improve it of course). You could probably get a little nicer used reel or one on clearance for around the same price or a little bit more. Quote
BaconStealer303 Posted January 24, 2013 Author Posted January 24, 2013 You can buy the reel from bp on clearance for $50 now and the average price of a set of those bearings is going to be about the same. Obviously it's your reel and you can do what you want with it...but I don't know that I would put $50 into a $50 reel myself (although it would improve it of course). You could probably get a little nicer used reel or one on clearance for around the same price or a little bit more. The reel was a gift from a long time ago and i i really didnt realize it was as cheap as it is! Your exactly right though, that would be a pointless purchase. Thankyou! I'll just put that 50$ towards that new setup im getting Quote
Super User LgMouthGambler Posted January 24, 2013 Super User Posted January 24, 2013 The reel was a gift from a long time ago and i i really didnt realize it was as cheap as it is! Your exactly right though, that would be a pointless purchase. Thankyou! I'll just put that 50$ towards that new setup im getting Good choice. Get a Shimano, lol. Quote
BaconStealer303 Posted January 24, 2013 Author Posted January 24, 2013 Good choice. Get a Shimano, lol. Haha, planning on a chronarch or lews! 1 Quote
Super User Felix77 Posted January 24, 2013 Super User Posted January 24, 2013 I just shot bocabearing an email to see if they had any idea. I'm starting to question the idea of upgrading bearings on such a cheap reel though. Does anyone have an opinion? My friend gave me his reel because he couldn't cast it. I upgraded the bearings in them and it's now way better than it's ever been. The casting alone was night and day difference from stock. Don't worry about finding the size. Boca will send you a size chart. It explains how to measure your bearings. Their customer service is phenomenal. Call them and they will get you what you need. You will not be disappointed. By the way ... you may not want to go all the way to ceramic bearings. I went one price point below and it was still an amazing upgrade. Quote
BaconStealer303 Posted January 24, 2013 Author Posted January 24, 2013 My friend gave me his reel because he couldn't cast it. I upgraded the bearings in them and it's now way better than it's ever been. The casting alone was night and day difference from stock.Don't worry about finding the size. Boca will send you a size chart. It explains how to measure your bearings. Their customer service is phenomenal. Call them and they will get you what you need. You will not be disappointed. By the way ... you may not want to go all the way to ceramic bearings. I went one price point below and it was still an amazing upgrade. Thanks! I knew there had to be someone who has used the reel Quote
BobP Posted January 24, 2013 Posted January 24, 2013 Measuring spool bearings is easy. Using a millimeter ruler, measure the hole size, the whole bearing diameter, and the bearing thickness. You get something like 3x10x4 which is how bearings are sized. There may be a few bearings whose measurements are not whole millimeter numbers, but that's pretty rare. I never change anything but spool bearings to upgrade reels, unless a bearing has actually failed and will not turn. Cleaning and relubing a bearing often does wonders for performance. Quote
Super User QUAKEnSHAKE Posted January 24, 2013 Super User Posted January 24, 2013 You might give one of the hobbyshops in your area a try like Leisure Hour Hobbies they are big with RC vehicles that use bearings. I got 50E handle bearings at my HobbyTown there one near you about 1/2hr away. http://leisurehours.com/ Quote
BaconStealer303 Posted January 24, 2013 Author Posted January 24, 2013 Sweet thanks a lot! Ill have to check that out. And thanks BobP! I didnt know that! And adressing the 2nd question a little.... i've heard new bearings do wonders, so if a lews tournament is 150$ and a chronarch is 200$. Would orange bearings for the lews top its performance? Because it matches the price then. Quote
Super User kickerfish1 Posted January 24, 2013 Super User Posted January 24, 2013 I doubt upgraded bearings will make enough difference to justify it for a brand new reel. I have nice Shimano and Daiwa reels with upgraded abec7 OS bearings and get a few extra yards over properly cleaned, flushed and lubed stock bearings. Before buying any bearings I would suggest taking your new reel and putting it up against another reel you own. Go to your backyard or neighborhood park and dial them in. Try to keep as many things constant while having the reel be the variable. Analize the distance of each then ask yourself if there is a need to cast further. Once the reel has been used for a while and you notice the bearings going bad then replace them. Quote
Super User Jrob78 Posted January 24, 2013 Super User Posted January 24, 2013 Often times a good thorough cleaning and relubing is all that is needed to get stock bearings humming again. I do upgrade a lot of my reel bearings but it isn't always necessary for a noticable performance increase. If you have access to an ultra sonic cleaner, that's the way to go. Quote
Super User LgMouthGambler Posted January 24, 2013 Super User Posted January 24, 2013 Sweet thanks a lot! Ill have to check that out. And thanks BobP! I didnt know that!And adressing the 2nd question a little.... i've heard new bearings do wonders, so if a lews tournament is 150$ and a chronarch is 200$. Would orange bearings for the lews top its performance? Because it matches the price then. The problem with upgrading spool bearings on Lews/Abu products, and others that have a million bearings in them, is that they usually have 3 spool bearings. There is one that is on the spool shaft that is held on be a pin. So, to replace the two end ones with better bearings, and leave the one thats on the shaft stock, to me defeats the purpose. Now if you just buy yourself a Shimano and flush the stock bearings, you will be good to go for a LONG time. Quote
Super User *Hootie Posted January 24, 2013 Super User Posted January 24, 2013 Haha, planning on a chronarch or lews! Both excellent choices. I have both. But then, I am a tackle junkie. Hootie Quote
BaconStealer303 Posted January 24, 2013 Author Posted January 24, 2013 The problem with upgrading spool bearings on Lews/Abu products, and others that have a million bearings in them, is that they usually have 3 spool bearings. There is one that is on the spool shaft that is held on be a pin. So, to replace the two end ones with better bearings, and leave the one thats on the shaft stock, to me defeats the purpose. Now if you just buy yourself a Shimano and flush the stock bearings, you will be good to go for a LONG time. ^^^. Im leaning towards the shimano, everyone on here seems to love them. Quote
BaconStealer303 Posted January 24, 2013 Author Posted January 24, 2013 Thanks guys! I'll make sure to keep it very well cleaned at all times Quote
jhoffman Posted January 24, 2013 Posted January 24, 2013 Print this off, lay the stock bearings on top and youll know what size they are http://www.bocabearings.com/pdfs/Fishing-Bearing-Size-Chart.pdf You can buy a new cheap bearing for that reel on ebay for under $5. You would then have a functioning reel thats not total scrap. Quote
BradH Posted January 24, 2013 Posted January 24, 2013 I have an older BPS Bionic reel that I forgot I had. I found it about six months ago and was surprised to discover it had a metal frame, four bearings in the right places and one IAR bearing. I see the new ones have a metal frame as well but the previous edition was a plastic frame. I cleaned it up and took it for a test drive. Actually, it's not too bad. The drag isn't the best and there are no bearings in the handle so if I get bored I may change that. If you have one of those it might be worth messing with just for fun and to learn something. Quote
papajoe222 Posted January 25, 2013 Posted January 25, 2013 Sweet thanks a lot! Ill have to check that out. And thanks BobP! I didnt know that!And adressing the 2nd question a little.... i've heard new bearings do wonders, so if a lews tournament is 150$ and a chronarch is 200$. Would orange bearings for the lews top its performance? Because it matches the price then. I've upgraded the spool bearings on four of my Daiwas. Two to ABEC 5 ceramic and two to ABEC 7 and I did notice a difference two of the reels, but not on the other two. The two that I didn't notice any difference were on the two that, pricewise, are in the same ballpark as the chronarch. New bearings on a used reel will likely improve it's performance. New bearings on a new reel???? How would you compare any difference? Decide which reel you like and use it for a while, like a full season. Once you get a good feel for it and the bearings are broken in, you can always upgrade. BTW, the spool bearings are the only ones I'd consider upgrading. None of the other bearings spin fast enough or have a heavy enough load on them to make it cost effective to upgrade. Quote
Capt.Bob Posted January 25, 2013 Posted January 25, 2013 I install abec,5's. 7's and 9's which are the orange seals. I tell my customers to save the expense as the orange seals are more money and most will agree don't outperform the 7's in reel applications. I prefer a top quality abec 5 for performance in reel fishing situations. Very few would ever tell the difference in real world use! With that being said, add a few bucks to it and but a Lews or Shimano, and SMILE,,,,,you will be happy!!! Quote
BaconStealer303 Posted January 25, 2013 Author Posted January 25, 2013 I've upgraded the spool bearings on four of my Daiwas. Two to ABEC 5 ceramic and two to ABEC 7 and I did notice a difference two of the reels, but not on the other two. The two that I didn't notice any difference were on the two that, pricewise, are in the same ballpark as the chronarch.New bearings on a used reel will likely improve it's performance. New bearings on a new reel???? How would you compare any difference? Decide which reel you like and use it for a while, like a full season. Once you get a good feel for it and the bearings are broken in, you can always upgrade. BTW, the spool bearings are the only ones I'd consider upgrading. None of the other bearings spin fast enough or have a heavy enough load on them to make it cost effective to upgrade. Yeah its definitely a good idea to break it in and get a feel for it first. Thats what i'll do. Quote
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