Ambassadeur 5000 Upgrades?

[Josh Smith]

Hi Folks,

 

I love the Ambassadeur series, and the 5000 is my favorite all-time reel. 

 

I do have some questions, though, for those of you who may be a bit older than I.  (I'm 36).

 

First, I have two standard Ambassadeur 5000 reels.  One has high-speed gears Dad got in the '70s.  They were in his, which from what I can tell, was built in '75.

 

I want to upgrade the other.  Is ther any place to get them?  I found a source that advertises that they're for "Ultracast" Ambassadeur reels, but I have no idea what an Ultracast is.

 

Second, I've alwasy believed in ball bearings over bushings, and the standard 5000 has bronze bushings.  Can bearings from a 5000C fit a standard 5000?

 

I don't hotrod cars or anything else these days, but I'm not against a bit of modernizing.  Bearings, in my experience, don't wear as fast as static bushings, for example.

 

Thanks for any help you can provide.

 

Josh

[0119]

Ambassadeurs marked High Speed are not high gear ratio to todays standard.  But thats all the better as they have plenty of smooth power.   Im all for bearings too and have 6 in my Ambassadeurs but dont discount brass bushings.  The farthest casting Ambassadeurs Ive used had camphered bushings.  Ultra Cast has meant 2 different things to Abu at 2 different times in their history.  One referred to now discontinued models with super sized bearings that the spool rode on.  My Ambassadeurs have a bearing in the idler gear, 2 supporting the levelwind and one replacing the plastic bushing around the gear shaft where it comes thru the side plate(a must for genuine smoothness).  Bearings in the handle knobs are nice too.  I use Abec 7 ceramic hybrids in the spool, the levelwind bearings are also ceramic to avoid corrosion.  I like to play with "Rocket Fuel Oil" and Rocket Fuel Liquid Grease" for the reel and I get all my reels custom built by Jerry Foran at hookless.  Many are also getting bent drag stars and carbon handles at the Revo Pro Shop.  You can also find many custom bits from UT Technology in Sweden and through many Ambassadeur fanatics who socialize on the We who love Abu page on facebook.  The sky is the limit.

[Josh Smith]

Thank you 0119!

 

Found this:

 

http://www.castawaytackleshop.com/Abu-Garcia-Brass-Gear-Parts-s/1853.htm

 

and this

 

http://www.castawaytackleshop.com/Reel-Upgrades-s/1893.htm

 

I was looking under bass fishing and not catfish fishing, so that may have been part of the problem with the searches before

 

It appears they have bent drag stars, too.

 

Methinks I'll call and talk to them on Monday.

 

Regards,

 

Josh

[oldschoolbasser]

The 5000 Series reel from the "70's" are not high speed reels. Their gear ratios are 3.8:1. The 5500 Series are the the high speed models with the 4.7:1 gear ratios. The spools from the 5000 and 500C are not adaptable as the spool shafts are different in size. You can convert the 5000 to a 5000C by changing the, pinion gear, spool and adding bearings. To make it a high speed model,you need to change the pinion and drive gears.The easiest way to do that would be to find an high speed conversion kit that has both gears, or hope to find the parts on the web. The other way would involve changing the pinion yoke to accept the high speed gears with the plastic collar,get a new spool,pinion gear, and add bearings. Some of my current Ambassadeurs have 12 bearings which is all you can put on a "70's" Ambassadeur. Ultracast models have a spool that rides on an axle, older models have a fixed axle spool. There are all kinds of upgrades you can give your reel,it just depend how far you want to take it. BTW I checked the links to Castaways,and those gears will not fit on the 70's style reels,nor will the bearings.

[sparky241]

Can you change one to a left hand retrieve, by any chance?

[0119]

Google castawaylakes or search the name at catfish1 and other forums.  Lots of complaints.   Call Jerry, he can answer any Ambassadeur question and he sends the parts you need very fast.  You'll end up talking about reels for an hour....

 

 

Sparky241,  no you can't

[BigMoneyGrip]

Those reels are like a small block Chevy, you can do anything and everything to them. There are all kinds of aftermarket parts for them. How deep is your wallet?!?!?!

[WRB]

Contact Don Iovino about legacy Ambassadeur 5000 reel upgrades, see Don Iovino products or call 818/848.6180.

Tom

[Josh Smith]

The 5000 Series reel from the "70's" are not high speed reels. Their gear ratios are 3.8:1. The 5500 Series are the the high speed models with the 4.7:1 gear ratios. The spools from the 5000 and 500C are not adaptable as the spool shafts are different in size. You can convert the 5000 to a 5000C by changing the, pinion gear, spool and adding bearings. To make it a high speed model,you need to change the pinion and drive gears.The easiest way to do that would be to find an high speed conversion kit that has both gears, or hope to find the parts on the web. The other way would involve changing the pinion yoke to accept the high speed gears with the plastic collar,get a new spool,pinion gear, and add bearings. Some of my current Ambassadeurs have 12 bearings which is all you can put on a "70's" Ambassadeur. Ultracast models have a spool that rides on an axle, older models have a fixed axle spool. There are all kinds of upgrades you can give your reel,it just depend how far you want to take it. BTW I checked the links to Castaways,and those gears will not fit on the 70's style reels,nor will the bearings.

 

The gears that Dad put in this '75 back before I was born are 6.2:1 or 6.3:1.  It was an aftermarket kit that came from Japan if I recall.  I'll have to ask again.  I know for a fact it's as fast as the Black Max I have and bloody well outperforms that Black Max in about every area. 

 

The other 5000 I have is ineed 3.8:1.  This is the one I need to upgrade.

 

That first one, though, I was out tearing up the water with spinnerbaits this evening trying to get a reaction bite.  Overfished lake, about 1" of rainfall the a couple nights ago, murky water, and post-spawn got bass fry hitting the spinners, but I couldn't find the big bass.  It was mostly a spinnerbait test, though.

 

I pretty much want to build the other 5000 into what the first one was modified to be, and I'd like to play with the envelope.  We shall see.

 

Josh

[Josh Smith]

Those reels are like a small block Chevy, you can do anything and everything to them. There are all kinds of aftermarket parts for them. How deep is your wallet?!?!?!

 

Not deep.  I keep prices down to pre-panic prices, and so my income is not what it could be.  I just don't think it's fair to gouge folks, though.  There are some I'll no longer do business with even after gunstuff prices returns to normal.

 

Josh

[Josh Smith]

Contact Don Iovino about legacy Ambassadeur 5000 reel upgrades, see Don Iovino products or call 818/848.6180.

Tom

 

Google castawaylakes or search the name at catfish1 and other forums.  Lots of complaints.   Call Jerry, he can answer any Ambassadeur question and he sends the parts you need very fast.  You'll end up talking about reels for an hour....

 

 

Sparky241,  no you can't

 

Yes, I think I'll use your guys. 

 

0119, I'll call him,  I'm a gunsmith and these reels appeal to me in the mechanical aspects.  The problem is I need to talk to other folks with regard to parts, and parts names.  I catalog in my mind what each thing is and does, but I don't necessarily know the names of each.

 

Probably will by the time I'm done.

 

I don't know about googling this Catfish1 or Castawaylakes.  I myself am very busy, and have a backorder running.  I've had my share of bad threads just because folks don't think I'm fast enough. 

 

I don't know if this is the case with this feller, but I will reserve judgement simply because there may be circumstances I wouldn't know about.  Most folks don't know what's involved in my business and what goes on behind the scenes.  There may be something going on with Ol' Catfish.

 

Now, that said, I'm going to try your guy first because you're recommending him.  A good recommendation will most likely get me to try a place.  A bad thread may or may not keep me away from the target of the thread. 

 

So, your guy first because he sounds like he really knows what he's doing, then Don Lovino.

 

Do you have Jerry's number?

 

Thank you,

 

Josh

[oldschoolbasser]

Hey Josh,I don't think that those gears were ever made in the ratios you quoted. Noboby I know has heard about those gears,and we are all Ambassadeur fanatics.The fastest gears you can get for a "70's model Ambassadeur is 4.7:1.unless it's a 2500C. 5.3:1 and 6.0 gears are available for that model. The cheapest way to go is find a high speed conversion kit. You can find them on Ebay for under $20,if you want to add bearings, then you'll need a different spool, and conversion kit for a 5000C.

[Josh Smith]

It may have been 5.3, but man, I know how fast it retrieves.  Could be the spool diameter that makes up for it.

 

I'll count the teeth next time I'm in it.

 

Thank you,

 

Josh

[Delaware Valley Tackle]

Or just mark the spool and count the revolutions as you crank the handle one time. Seems like some deep cranking or big swimbait guy would pay well for that winch type Ambassadeur. Selling it and picking one up in the gear configuration you'd like may pit you ahead of the game. Just a thought. Good luck with the project.

[Josh Smith]

Hey Josh,I don't think that those gears were ever made in the ratios you quoted. Noboby I know has heard about those gears,and we are all Ambassadeur fanatics.The fastest gears you can get for a "70's model Ambassadeur is 4.7:1.unless it's a 2500C. 5.3:1 and 6.0 gears are available for that model. The cheapest way to go is find a high speed conversion kit. You can find them on Ebay for under $20,if you want to add bearings, then you'll need a different spool, and conversion kit for a 5000C.

 

You're right; it's 4.7:1.  Dad may have misremembered or I may have misheard.  The other one I bought from eBay looks like it may have been upgraded too, so that's a good thing.

 

I'm off to try to find faster gears, though!

 

Regards,

 

Josh

[oldschoolbasser]

Hey Josh,the Ultracast models have up to a 6.3:1 gear ratio,but the "70's" models,no such luck.Also the Royal Express models have 6.3:1 gears, and those are the earliest model with those gears. Unfortunately they won't fit your reel.