New Spinning Reel

[bigbill]

I just opened up one of my new spinning reels. Although it has neat little ball bearings I found only the gears to have light grease on them. I took out my moly and lubed everything the either turns or slides. Even the bail hinge points were dry. I did notice it had a lazy bail before I lubed it. Now it snaps shut. But I close all my spinning reel bails by hand anyway.

My question is does anyone lube there new reels before using them?

[derekxec]

i dont even clean my reels let alone lube them before or after i use them....i buy reels that can hold up to my abuse right out of the box no maint needed and if it cant hold up to my abuse then i move on to a diff reel

[Marty]

I'm also careless about maintenance and generally oil and lube when it starts to squeak and get annoying. I also buy fairly inexpensive equipment so maintenance seems less critical.

[gravestone]

I always open up a new reel to see if it's properly lubed. If needed I lubed it, if not I don't touch it until it gives me a reason.

My surf reels when I was surfcasting got cleaned and re-lubed twice a month, unless I was using my VanStaal. That reel was waterproof and got service by the factory once a year.

[bigbill]

I'm looking at all the ball bearings with no lube on them. The gears were lubed but not to my standards.

I lube even my cheapest reels so I get the most out of my investment. I'd rather save the money on replacing them to invest in more lures. Plus I like to test the different reels and give them every chance for survival. Plus I like inspecting the insides for craftsmanship and quality materials.

Plus the average fisherman like I once was with trout fishing in the spring and maybe one or two outings for bass my equipment never wore out. I just didn't use it enough. But now with bass fishing more and more a borderline product won't last.

Even from shore I'm good for 500 to 1000 casts by the end of my outing. Somedays my arms feel like they were going to fall off. I wonder what the tornie guys feel like by the end of the day. Fishing in competition isn't like fishing for fun. We don't hear about the aches and pain side.

[Fishwhittler]

i dont even clean my reels let alone lube them before or after i use them....i buy reels that can hold up to my abuse right out of the box no maint needed and if it cant hold up to my abuse then i move on to a diff reel

 

I hope you don't treat your cars the same way.  Cleaning a reel is roughly equivalent to changing oil in your car—it's not rocket science, and it will extend the life of your reel/car.  Just because a reel costs "only" $100 or $200 doesn't mean it never needs to be cleaned.  Even the Abu Garcia C3 will benefit from timely cleaning, and the C3 is as tough a reel as there is.

 

Reels do wear out over time.  Not cleaning them will accelerate that process, but it's unfair to blame the reel when it wears out due to lack of care.

 

I don't usually buy new reels, and when I've done so I'll usually fish the reel as-is for a while.  Then I'll strip it all the way down, deep-clean it, and polish all metal-on-metal surfaces before lubricating and putting it back together.  With used reels it depends on how the reel feels when I get it.

[derekxec]

nah i do all my routine maint for my car but that is more important because that gets me to work to make money pay bills and get me to my fishing spots but my reels i have found that some reels will hold up to that abuse so i save myself the trouble and go for those...my reels generally last about 4 years before they need to be replaced but i do have reels that are older than 10 years and have seen hell in saltwater sand dirt mud etc and the only time they even get rinsed off is if im fishing in the rain and have no problems with them....ive even dunked them in salt water to rinse them off while using them cause they got dirty(and still never even rinsed them off with fresh water)

 

you can clean and lube your reels all you want mine take the abuse and keep going strong without it so im good to go lol (other than they look like hell scratches all over and such but i dont care about that as long as they function good)

[bigbill]

The best reels I own so far is the Finor spinning reels #200S & #400S and the Okuma spinning reels the exiptor with the ten ball bearings I own the model 20, 25, 30, 40 & 55.

The Finor reels are those big gold saltwater reels. They also make spinning reels. They have 4 or 5 ball bearings and there very smooth.

I have some older Quantum spinning reels too,these were Wal-Mart bubble Pac reels don't let the lower price fool you besides some Viva's which seem to be better quality spinning reels too.

I don't see the viva spinning reels anymore. But the smaller viva spinning reel is an exact same reel as a smaller okuma reel that I have the parts look to be interchangeable. It makes me think there the same company. Who knows.

I know what I'm using probably isn't top shelf spinning reels but they seem to work great so far.

[SirSnookalot]

When I buy a reel at a store I select the one that feels the best to me, if it's a mail order purchase I accept it the way it comes.  Fishing both fresh and saltwater daily 12 months of the year, if there is going to be a problem it's going to happen to me.  My freshwater reels have never been touched, a drop of oil in the handle bearings and on the spindle about 2 times a year, they work like new.

My saltwater reels get put thru their paces pretty hard, some of them have been professional serviced when it's needed, not until then.  Most of my reels are 3-7 years old, I've replaced the drag in only 1 of them, put a new handle knob and a line roller bearing, all in the same reel, the rest perform as new.  Not that aren't some out here that don't put time and effort into maintenance, I'm just not one of them.

 

 

 

Even from shore I'm good for 500 to 1000 casts by the end of my outing. Somedays my arms feel like they were going to fall off. I wonder what the tornie guys feel like by the end of the day. Fishing in competition isn't like fishing for fun. We don't hear about the aches and pain side. 

I doubt those guys get sore or tired, they have been casting since before they could walk and do it everyday, there fishing muscles are conditioned and they know how to pace themselves.  I fish 7 days, even at 68 years old I don't get sore or tired, I might get bored if I'm not catching much, lol, but not sore.  It's the weekend warrior that is not in fishing shape that gets tired and sore.  I'm a believer in any activity you have to be fit to do it.

I suggest letting the rod do the work and not cast for the fences every time.

[bigbill]

Fishing from shore the distance in casting farther matters. I'm fishing one dog leg where I can almost hit the shore on the other side at the widest part at the top of the dog leg. I do drop my largest amount of scent at that distance then I leave a scent trail back to me.

In the past years before my illness I would fish for bass right after trout season. As soon as the bass start biting I fish everyday 24/7 for about three months "estimate" but I fish up at 3:30am everyday till I burn out. I hope to start fall fishing soon as the side effects from the radiation slowdown a tad. I have never fished in the fall 24/7.

This year I hope to do it. I will stay fishing either way till the ice is on.

Like I said on somedays my arms feel like there going to fall off. But I'll be back pushing the next day anyway.

[Diablos]

I generally buy $75-$150 reels and get about 3-5 years out of them.

 

I would rather buy a new reel than invest $30-$50 maintaining them. 

 

The only reel I maintain is my Stradic CI4

[bigbill]

My first decent spinning reels were Wal-Mart quantum like I said before for the low cost these are really decent reels.

[derekxec]

some walmart cheapos are pretty good like the shakespear platinum...we drop them in salt water and all no rinse no clean no nothing and they still go strong...its just heavy as hellllllll

[SirSnookalot]

bigbill you're doing fine, just fish at your own pace.  Up until I was diagnosed with diabetes I had lost about 30 pounds, weak with a lack of stamina.  Even though I've been bouncing around with various medications I've gained weight and my strength and stamina are pretty good now, I also do most of my fishing from shore.  Being active IMO is more beneficial than being sedentary, keep up the good work.

 

Posted Yesterday, 09:52 PM

I generally buy $75-$150 reels and get about 3-5 years out of them.

 

I would rather buy a new reel than invest $30-$50 maintaining them. 

 

The only reel I maintain is my Stradic CI4

I recently put $45 into a reel that I may have gotten a free exchange for by sending it back to the mfg.  I did it for 2 reasons, 1 day turn around time and I use this reel a lot this time of year and secondly I wanted to see if Boca bearings were worth the expense for a spinning reel, this is a $150 saltwater reel.  Under normal circumstances, especially for my freshwater spinning reels I don't think going new rather than repair is a bad idea.  My sub $100 freshwater reels have served me perfectly for over 3 years with but a drop of oil every now and then, when and if they die, I go new and get another few problem free years.  I just love reading these reviews of a NIB reel where 1 or 2 3# fish being caught over a span of week or so and it's greatest reel there is.