Drag slipping - C0ncept A

[beardown34]

Hey guys, what do you think of this drag slipping issue?

 

 

 

 

I was certainly intrigued by the idea of the bulldog drag. well lo and behold, the drag slips even when it is tightened down as much as possible. I have never opened up the reel. I always loosen the drag when I'm done fishing. 

 

1) Is there 1 single obvious explanation?

  - I ask this because I am not really inclined/mentally equipped to open the thing up and troubleshoot it myself

 

2) Would I be better served sending this back to the original company? Or DVT?

 

Thanks in advance.

 

 

[Damn Yankee]

Probably the braid slipping on the spool.

[georgeyew]

I agree with Yankee. Take the braid off and make sure that you have tape on the spool before tying on the braid.

[Raul]

Did you use backing before spooling that braided line ? 

[beardown34]

Great question. I thought I did but it will just take a blink to double check. Thanks!

 

 

[CTBassin860]

Another vote for no backing on the spool.

[beardown34]

I hope so. Will check tonight. 

[MassYak85]

That would be my guess too. I have the reel and the drag is more than adequate unless you got a dud.  

[Glenn]

 

[beardown34]

Thanks Glenn and others. 

 

Bad news I think. There IS mono backing!

 

Furthermore, I actually ran the mono through the holes in the spool, which I would think is even more secure than applying a piece of tape. 

 

Now what?

 

 

 

 

[Delaware Valley Tackle]

The drag may not be designed to lock down but it seems a little weak in the vid. Hard to say from a distance. If you want to send it in I'll be happy to take a look. Fwiw I recently tried to contact them about another customers reel and 8 messages over two weeks went unanswered. 

[beardown34]

Thanks DVT (Mike right?)

 

That C0ncept A is supposed to have 22lbs drag, and while I'm willing to accept that maybe that's a little bit of fancy marketing in terms of absolute numbers, my reel's drag is actually underperforming my abu silver max (18# drag) and my BPS PQ (Ver 1 -- 10# drag).

 

Here's a little slightly scientific and wildly imprecise experiment. I poured water in a bucket -- the weight is just under 16 pounds. I tied all three reels to the bucket -- (1) C0ncept A    (2) Abu Silver Max    (3) BPS PQ (Ver 1).

 

I tightened the drag down on all 3 reels. 

 

I took the rods out of the equation by just pointing the rod directly at the bucket. 

 

My C0ncept A is unable to pull the bucket at all. You can see I am turning the reel handle but the spool is not moving.

 

Both my Abu silver max and my BPS PQ are able to pull the bucket across the floor. 

 

 

 

 

Again, I'm not looking to confirm exactly how many pounds of drag my c0ncept A is mustering. Just proving the fact that whatever it's able to generate is less than the other 2 reels. And to recap my above post -- the c0ncept A does have mono backing, and the mono backing is looped through the holes in the spool before tying an arbor knot. There is a piece of tape over the knot. I respooled the c0ncept A super tight prior to this little experiment. 

 

So ... the drag on my c0ncept A has to be malfunctioning right? 

 

 

[Delaware Valley Tackle]

My guess is that oil or grease has migrated into the drag. Upgrade to carbontex is only $8-10

[Tim Kelly]

There are two reel brands. The *** is neither of them. Stick with the two reel brands in future.

[J Francho]

Send it back under warranty.

[beardown34]

Thank you for your input Tim. 

 

I have no problem with the company, nor do I have any desire to make this thread about X is better than Y. Just trying to diagnose my problem and maybe learn a little bit while doing so.

 

I'll send you a PM DVT.

[MickD]

It looks on the video that the drag is higher as it is tightened down than at first.  If the line were slipping, the drag setting would not change anything.  I think you have reached the drag capacity and you don't think it is high enough.  What force are you really pulling, in pounds?  What is the drag capacity as specified by the maker, in pounds?  Most people are surprised by how low drag capacities are on most freshwater reels.  For most fishing you don't really need high drag settings, and with the use of braid, often the line is much stronger than the drag.

[MassYak85]

Did you buy it new or used? If it was new I'd call them and see if you can get it exchanged because the 22lbs they advertise is fairly accurate. 

[CroakHunter]

Im amazed at the 22 lbs of drag! Lol. I thought 13.2 in my tatula was a good amount. 

[MickD]

12 hours ago, MickD said:

It looks on the video that the drag is higher as it is tightened down than at first.  If the line were slipping, the drag setting would not change anything.  I think you have reached the drag capacity and you don't think it is high enough.  What force are you really pulling, in pounds?  What is the drag capacity as specified by the maker, in pounds?  Most people are surprised by how low drag capacities are on most freshwater reels.  For most fishing you don't really need high drag settings, and with the use of braid, often the line is much stronger than the drag.

 

Sorry, missed your post where you did just about what I recommended.  I expect it will be fixed under warranty.  Good luck with it.  I've never had that happen with my "name brand" reels.  Or even a couple off brand reels.

[beardown34]

So I sent the reel in for clean, lube, and drag washer upgrade to Carbontex (not from the original company). Spooled it up today and the drag still slips like crazy. With the drag locked down I can still pull line off the reel with my hand.

 

Does this give anyone any useful clues,  if the problem still happens even with a clean, lube, and drag washer upgrade? I peeled the line off the spool and the arbor knot was still tightly tied through the holes in the spool, and secured with tape. 

 

I think my only choices are send it to the original company and pay for repairs, or give up on the reel. I was gifted the reel and doubt I will be able to produce a receipt to prove it was purchased less than 1 year ago. 

[hunterPRO1]

is it possible part 81 is put in the wrong way ? those spring washers have a curve to them and should be put in like this ()

 

 

(i think, might want to ask a professional)  just a thought.

[Delaware Valley Tackle]

PM sent. I've been unsuccessful contacting that company on an unrelated matter. Hopefully you'll have better luck. You're sure when you pull line the spool is turning correct?

[beardown34]

4 hours ago, hunterPRO1 said:

is it possible part 81 is put in the wrong way ? those spring washers have a curve to them and should be put in like this ()

 

 

(i think, might want to ask a professional)  just a thought.

 

 

Thanks hunterPRO1. I personally have no idea -- Mike @ DVT checked it out so I'm sure he put things in the correct orientation.

 

2 hours ago, Delaware Valley Tackle said:

PM sent. I've been unsuccessful contacting that company on an unrelated matter. Hopefully you'll have better luck. You're sure when you pull line the spool is turning correct?

 

Thanks for helping me work it out Mike. Yes the spool is turning as the line is being pulled off. Thankfully I bought an "extra" BPS PQ1 when they blew them out for $50 earlier this year so I'll just use that for now.

[hunterPRO1]

ok if it was him then im sure that it was put together correctly