Spool Weight

[cddan]

Wandering if anyone drills there own holes in baitcasting spools or opened up the holes aready in spool to lower weight.I took a bps Rick Clunn reel without holes that casted so so and drilled the heck out of it it now cast better than my more expensive reels.Wanted to get some opinions on it , thinking about hitting the other reels.And if anyone is familiar with any other reel modifications or cleaning and lubing practices that will enhance the ease of casting, please post.

[Jrob78]

If you really drilled holes in a spool and didn't screw anything up, I'd say you got very lucky.  It would be easy to throw your spool out of balance or bend it, making it useless.  If you want added performance, send your reels to DVT for a cleaning and supertuning.  This service is cheaper than buying a new spool.

[cddan]

Yes i was wondering about that.Yes I really did and I am lucky it worked out.Would like to be able to get reels super tuned at DVT. Kinda part of the enjoyment is experimenting.It worked out well for me but Im not recommending it.The reel now casts with the  tension break at its minimum and practically never backlashes.

[Jrob78]

If you enjoy stuff like that you can do it yourself.  Get an ultrasonic cleaner and read up on supertuning.  There is a learning curve though and you might screw some stuff up before you perfect it.  

[cddan]

Yes , I have been reading about it. I appreciate all the info i can get.Thank you.I polished my drag washers.Never thought of it before reading it here.Havent gone as far as a full supertuning though.

[John G]

I agree, you got lucky if you didn't screw up your spool if you drilled it yourself. That is unless you are a Tool&Die guy that knows what he is doing. You are definitely on the right track about the lighter spool weight being a factor in casting. This is a link from the Japan Tackle webisite and Jun talks about spool weight. I have thought about buying a lighter spool for my Curado 50E for better casting the lightweight stuff. You know, it's not just holes in the spool that make a difference, line capacity makes a difference too. A spool that holds more line, which you really do not need in a lot of bass fishing scenarios, is heavier empty than a spool that holds less line. Just something else to think about.

 

http://www.japantackle.com/Tuning_parts/Spool_tuneup.htm

[cddan]

Im not a tool and die guy.As a matter a fact I held the spool in one hand and drilled with the other. A couple of times I lost hold and it went spinning.I did followed the pre drilled partial holes that were in the spool.Then I just added my own in between.The spool I used does not have holes drilled through but has perforations of where holes would be.I drilled these through, added holes in between, as evenly as I could.The holes were not all that pretty but as similar as possible.The spool and the reel have shown no adverse effects from the drilling.The reel cast better with less force needed.Also seems to resist backlashing with the tension break just tight enough so there is no play in spool.(using two centrifugal break shoes)(no magnetics)

                   As for line capacity I agree more line, more weight.And the larger capacity spool I  have does seem heavier without line than the lower capacity spools.I will check out the site you posted thank ya.