Why Does Everyone Hate Graphite Side Plates?

[The Rooster]

First we must understand how force is transmitted through the reel from pressure on the line. Line is putting pressure on the spool from the fish hooked to the other end. This causes the spool shaft to push against the bearings seated in each sideplate. It also pushes the pinion gear into the main drive gear a little harder. This puts force on the main crank shaft running through the roller bearing which is also seated in a sideplate. So both side plates see pressure, as do the gears and bearings and crank shaft. The crank shaft is also seated in the frame, so the frame sees pressure from this as well, and also at the point where the reel foot seats into the reel seat on the rod. Still further, the frame sees pressure from the points of contact between it and the sideplates also. Pressure is dispersed pretty widely in a reel when under load. The harder the fish, or you, pull, the greater the forces are.

Now, remember when we were kids and we'd find a stick on the ground and break it up into progressively smaller pieces, and the smaller it got, the harder it was to break again? Sooner or later you'd reach a point where equal pressure each time is no longer enough to break it, and more is now needed. Same with side plates, they're pretty small, relatively speaking. So how much pressure does it take to flex one? I'd say quite a lot, especially if the reel's frame is aluminum, but much less if the frame is graphite since it will also flex with less pressure as well. I believe that's where most gear misalignment comes from. Reels under heavy load and not rigid enough to take it.

This is also why all graphite reels will sometimes last a long time for some guys who don't catch very large fish very often, or guys who are light on their equipment in terms of use and abuse, and even guys who use better fish landing techniques. It's why one guy will tear up a reel and say it's junk where another will use it indefinitely with no problems (aluminum frame or not). It all breaks down to various pressures applied over a reel's lifetime in how long it will last and whether it flexes, or even fails, or not. For most people, an aluminum frame with graphite sideplates is enough for about any fish they'll catch.

I think the lion's share of the market is basically established by price, and various priced reels give you varying degrees of quality. People usually choose a reel based on price, but I think it should be chosen based on how hard you fish, how often, the type of fish you persue, and how abusive you are to your gear. This should all play into decisions on whether to buy all graphite or all aluminum, or somewhere in between. I think for the most part, an aluminum frame with graphite sides is strong enough to hold up for most people. That's about as simple as I can explain it.

[*Hootie]

If I had to think about all this stuff while I was fishing, I think I would just stay home.

Hootie

[BobP]

To me it boils down to whether you trust the engineering a company puts into its reel.  Would I bypass a reel from a company I trust and buy a reel from an unknown just because the unknown had metal side plates versus a composite graphite side plate?  No.  That would be stupid, IMO.

[SirSnookalot]

Snookalot....0119 you are right...

Mitch.... You are right

Fishing for small fish as in LMB,as in money on the line, getting the bass in quickly, is very important . I learned very long ago to pump and reel down.... I then learned how to water ski a bigmouth in.. I only fish for joy and I apply my way of doing it when I need or want to. Big fish ? It's just my instinct to pump and reel.. Smaller species is most often quickly cranked in for me.

I just don't see a point in pump and reel on a 2 pound largemouth... But I choose how I fight the fish !

To be honest there isn't much point to it, any fish that can be landed within a very short period of time is not what I would call formidable.  Not intending to insult anyone's fish landing ability but it doesn't really take a high level of expertise to land most of these fish.  Be proud to catch a 10# bass or 6# small mouth or even a 6# peacock, nice fish for their species, but battles of epic proportions, I hardly think so.  What 0119 is referring to proper landing technique is 5# fish (we catch them a whole lot bigger than that) that won't be landed in a few minutes without knowing what you are doing, you just ain't going to arm drag these fish in.  The last thing I'm concerned about fishing for bass is stressing the reel.

[Deleted account]

I curious about a couple of things:

 

1. are the graphite components of reels really a slab of graphite, or are they graphite fiber reinforced plastic?

 

2. If the frame of a reel is flexing, wouldn't that cause the gearing to become out of alignment and loose efficiency?  It would be harder to turn the handle when reeling a heavy thing in or the spool tension is so great that is distorts the frame.

I'm changing my screen name to SLAB OF GRAPHITE.

[.RM.]

Graphite and plastic are kind of dirty words when we talk about reels but truth is both have advanced with technology. Graphite is a form of carbon fiber so the Ci4 material has to be a composite of some type. Some really cheap reels boast of aluminum frames but they are cast, as opposed to machined and are brittle junk. I look at the complete package and reputation and try not to get hung up on any one feature.  

X2...

The base thinking for every service tech that is worth a d@mn..

 

Tight Lines!

[smalljaw67]

Side plates aren't a seal breaker but a frame is. I have 2 Smoke reels, I also have a Lews Tournament pro, I got the Lews after both Smoke reels because I was really worried about the both side plates on the Lews being graphite but it hasn't been a problem. Frames are out, I was in the same boat as a friend of my while he was using his Shimano Caenan, he had 30# braid on and we were jig fishing and all was well when he reared back on a big hook set straight into a log and the reel let out this noise that I thought was the drag, it turns out it was something else. We go over and manage to get the jig loose and move up the bank to the next point and he makes a bad cast and then when he tries to reel it back you could actually hear the grinding and he said it was so rough it was toast, after we were done he went and had a guy we know that fixes reel on the side look at it and he told him the frame probably flexed enough that everything was out of alignment. I found out that it will flex but the tolerances are poor in reels like that to compensate for the added flex of the frame, the problem is under a heavy load it can flex to a point it doesn't flex back, now the force to do that is not normally going to happen but I saw it happen and I know graphite frames for me are a no no but not so much side plates any more.

[Rangerjoe]

Remember it it doesn't wiggle its not a fish.

[Diggy]

Everyone catches sharks on this site

[Tywithay]

I curious about a couple of things:

1. are the graphite components of reels really a slab of graphite, or are they graphite fiber reinforced plastic?

2. If the frame of a reel is flexing, wouldn't that cause the gearing to become out of alignment and loose efficiency? It would be harder to turn the handle when reeling a heavy thing in or the spool tension is so great that is distorts the frame.

All graphite is some form of resin and graphite, whether it be fiber, powder, prepreg, etc. Even aircraft parts made from carbon fiber are "carbon reinforced plastic." Most cheap graphite on reels is powdered graphite and polyurethane resin. The more powder and higher quality of resin determine the strength. Design will also play into strength.