oldschoolbasser Posted June 20, 2014 Posted June 20, 2014 I don't think so Jason. You have to remember that Abu's evolutionary design has made it easier to upgrade reels, where as other manufacturers completely redesign their reels every few years and older reels become obsolete, and parts are no longer available. I just purchased side plates,spools, and other parts for reels made in the "70's" and "80's". Try that with Shimano, or Daiwa! Another thing you have to remember is that these reels have bee in production since the 50's, and many fisherman started off using these reels as their 1st bait caster. Add that to the fact that their collectibility, and popularity continues to drive the prices up on hard to find models. Abuholics are a tight knit group who have a passion for these reels, and continue to push the envelope of performance, and customizing. Until other manufacturers produce parts for older reels, and fisherman continue to use older reels, they will never have the following that AbuGarcia enjoys. 1 Quote
0119 Posted June 20, 2014 Posted June 20, 2014 question, is it possible for me to strip these side plates down to bare metal, strip off the annodizing and do a completely custom refinishing job?.. maybe even a powder coated design? Call Jerry at hookless, he can get you replacement sideplates and all the upgrade parts you could need. He will talk you through the whole thing or can build you up a work of art. 1 Quote
jason41987 Posted June 21, 2014 Author Posted June 21, 2014 i must say though i was actually surprised to know i could just pop my new 5600 side plates onto this 1977 frame.. granted this wouldnt work as a fishing reel because the spool would be too short but i was kind of surprised to know the screw patterns and even the thread patterns were all identicle.. kind of reminds me of volkswagens and how they really didnt change in 50 years either.. so im a fan, ill be restoring this reel at least to like-new condition, i do not think i will be adding more than the stock number of bearings though and will wait till later to upgrade the drag.. reason is i dont really have any main purpose for the larger 6600s, i fish in lakes where the lighter, more compact 5600 size works better and feels more comfortable in my hand so i dont think this old 6600C will have the opportunity to replace my smaller reel unless there was a significant reason and advantage to the older design which as i can gather doesnt have a brake to it at all and im not comfortable enough using my thumb for that role yet Quote
Super User Maxximus Redneckus Posted June 21, 2014 Super User Posted June 21, 2014 Lol i can put my side plate from a 6500 onto my 4600 and have a thumbbar and a push button with a clicker ..i love me some abus..and oldschool makes me drool .show these dudes what your working with oldschool 1 Quote
oldschoolbasser Posted June 21, 2014 Posted June 21, 2014 Jason,putting 5600C side plates on your 6600C will not change the size of your reel. You can put any model side plates on the frame as the hole patterns are universal on all Ambassadeurs. Jerry Foran is a great guy to go to for your reel parts,and he may have a set of side plates for your reel. Maximus has seen my work, as have a few of the other Abuholics. They are fun to build,and a blast to fish with. Like Maximus said,he can have a 4500 size reel with a clicker on it,try swapping Daiwa,or Shimano reel parts,doesn't work.Restore your reel,and put it on the shelf. If you're not going to fish with it,at least you can enjoy looking at it. Quote
jason41987 Posted June 21, 2014 Author Posted June 21, 2014 i went with the 5600 over the 4600 because i questioned whether or not i could comfortably fit my thumb onto the spool (large hands).. on my 5600 there isnt much space on either side of my thumb when its on the line.. however, i think now i can imagine myself getting these reels in different configurations and in different sizes.. now that i have a 5600, and a 6600, my next step would be a 4600 size.. would it be somehow possible to use a newer spool on an older side plate? one that has the centrifugal brake as i havent really yet weened myself off of using it?.. i know old spools had a fixed spindle, and in the new ones thats opposite, but hmm, is it possible to convert from using one type of spool to another? Quote
0119 Posted June 21, 2014 Posted June 21, 2014 The older thru spindle spools also have centrifugal brakes. Quote
jason41987 Posted June 21, 2014 Author Posted June 21, 2014 mine doesnt seem to have one also, since im also beginning to start building my own rods, im going to refinish both my ambassadeurs to have a common color scheme, sounds lame, sure.. what i will probably do is have two sets of side plates.. old school, modern, then have a set of frames complete with the levelwind system, thumb bar, spool, and the plastic thumb rest on top.. then i can place whichever side plate i want on whichever size frame i want for whichever style fishing i intend to do, this just means i only need to find a 4600 size frame now and itll be complete .. may add spare left side plates though, one with and one without the bait clicker (i mostly do lure fishing so not much NEED for the clicker) Quote
oldschoolbasser Posted June 21, 2014 Posted June 21, 2014 Jason, you can't put modern side plates on your "70's style reel as they are not interchangeable. 80's style reel have the brake adjustment on the right side of the reel,and the spools are completely different. You can have 3 sizes of frames,and spools (46,56,&6600) but they all have to be from the same style of reel to be interchangeable. Quote
jason41987 Posted June 21, 2014 Author Posted June 21, 2014 ive already mentioned above that my side plates do fit on the old frame but would need a different spool.. would the 80s style spool with the brake fit the 77 side plate though? both having the spindle fixed to the spool or would i need the 80s style side plate as well? which actually brings me to another question.. if i decide to collect a few different size frames and spools i can interchange with one set of side plates, so i go old school or do i go with the more modern design?.. the older design looks more robust, stronger, but the newer design seems to be a bit lighter, and fits my left hand a bit more without the extra spool tension knob on the left side i may just reserve this 6600c to a heavy duty only role when im specifically targeting catfish or muskie and use my newer ones for everything else and collect frames with spools to fit the newer style another question kind of unrelated to the old 6600c, but has anyone ever converted a 4600 size into something capable of catching crappie?.. in order to cast lighter lures you need to both reduce the mass and the parasitic drag on the spool.. so i thought about getting a 4600 size reel, fabricating a very light weight carbon fiber spool, use a very thin maybe 10-12lb braided line, and remove anything that could result in parasitic drag on the spool including the level-wind system Quote
Super User Maxximus Redneckus Posted June 21, 2014 Super User Posted June 21, 2014 Your on the right path when you do the spool make a few and send me one for testing..and yes tinker all u can keep us informed Quote
oldschoolbasser Posted June 21, 2014 Posted June 21, 2014 Lightweight spools are already available from Japan, and I'm sure they are more cost effective than trying to make one yourself. Removing the line guide might add a few feet to your cast, but you'll spen a lot of time manually laying the line back in the spool because without the line guide, your line will bunch up in one spot Quote
jason41987 Posted June 21, 2014 Author Posted June 21, 2014 yeah, i know about the line bunching up which is why i was considering doing something like that to a much narrower 4600 size reel.. it wouldnt bunch up as bad, and the narrower width would make it much easier to manually guide the line as im reeling in, using my fingers to move it back and forth.. removing that added drag on the spool would allow casting even lighter lures Quote
jason41987 Posted June 22, 2014 Author Posted June 22, 2014 i believe this reel has the original fishing line on it.. it would appear to be some kind of braided twine, nothing like todays super braids and surely isnt any sort of a monofilament.. its a jet black colored smooth feeling, thick diameter type of line.. any idea what this stuff is and what kind of line this reel was shipped with in 1977?.. im wondering what its diameter and breaking strength is and what the line capacity on a 6600 size reel was for this line? my guess is its dacron Quote
oldschoolbasser Posted June 23, 2014 Posted June 23, 2014 It's probably Dacron. Your reel didn't come with any line on it,but the Garcia line was Royal Bonnyl,and was brown in color. Quote
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