Cleaning reels

[gim]

How often to you complete disassemble your reels for cleaning?

 

I'm pretty comfortable taking apart a spinning reel but a BC is more complicated.  I've decided to take a bunch of them in to be done by an expert and wondering if this is something that I should be doing more regularly.

[padon]

some will say once a year. that can get expensive. i rotate mine, half of them go one year half the other.I had the thought that i was gonna take mine apart and do them myself. i watched a youtube video and realized the reel would never work again .lol. my friend is a BMW mechanic even he wont do his own casting reels.

[A-Jay]

Usually every couple of years sometime three for a complete casting reel cleaning & service. I use @Delaware Valley Tackle

Superior results. 

It's an event packing , shipping, and insuring the whole arsenal but it's an investment and certainly cheaper than buying new reels.

 

A-Jay

 

 

[gim]

Well that's good at least I know I'm not the only one who is intimidated by taking apart a BC.

[J Francho]

29 minutes ago, gimruis said:

How often to you complete disassemble your reels for cleaning?

 

I'm pretty comfortable taking apart a spinning reel but a BC is more complicated.  I've decided to take a bunch of them in to be done by an expert and wondering if this is something that I should be doing more regularly.

Yearly for me.  Completely tearing down a spinning reel is much more complicated than any baitcasting reel, save for a couple that have complicated or hidden frame screws, like some real high end Shimano.

 

As long as you have an exploded parts diagram, a camera, and a reasonable bit of dexterity, you can probably do it yourself.  If it seems too deep, then @Delaware Valley Tackle is your best bet.  

[gim]

13 minutes ago, J Francho said:

If it seems too deep, then @Delaware Valley Tackle is your best bet.  

It seems too deep.  No doubt about it.  I have the same issue with completely disassembling my firearms for cleaning.  I just don't trust myself to take something apart, clean it, and put it all back to together properly.

 

Luckily there is a tackle shop relatively close that will do it.  I've taken reels there before that I thought were completely shot and when I got them back they were working properly again.  I was wondering more so how often I should do it.  Which is probably dependent on how much use they get, how dirty they get, etc.  Annually seems like over kill but as @A-Jay indicated its certainly better than buying a new reel.

[PressuredFishing]

How often depends on what I have put the reel through, my frog/flipping and pond reels I do a light cleaning 3-4 times a year and a deep cleaning every year. The light cleaning is basically getting all the vegetation and crap out of the line guide worm gear, and line guide itself, plus cleaning it off the bearings so the spool spins like normal. For spinning reels I do light cleanings and hesitate to completely take them apart. I will take apart the bail to put oil on the line guilde  to reduce line twist. I have successfully taken apart spinning reels but they are MUCH more persnickity and if you tighten a screw or nut down to hard the thing won't work or feel goofy, to light and it will fall apart, so it's a fine fine line

[OkobojiEagle]

Complete cleaning... 1 time each year.  

Clean & re-lube the spool bearings... several times each season.

 

oe

[Bankc]

I do mine once a year, or if one gets dunked in the dirty lake.  That's probably overkill, but I enjoy doing that kind of work.  

 

My grandfather never took his reels apart.  I inherited a few that had 30+ years of wear on them, and were never cleaned.  Occasionally, he'd drop some oil in there, but that was it.  And most of them still worked when I got them.  Though they did make more reliable reels back then.  

 

How often you want to clean them is entirely up to you.  

[Smalliefan2]

I tear down my baitcasters every year.These are the ones I use constantly. The ones I throw occasionally, I oil bearings, and tear down every few years. The level wind worm shaft gets pretty well gunked up on the ones I use frequently. Spinning reels, same maintenance schedule.

I always have a schematic when cleaning, and make notes on things that look challenging when disassembling. I also have all the tools I need before I start and a tray for parts.  

[JustJames]

I deep clean mine probably once every two years or even longer or some reels. I do minor cleaning once or twice a year or as needed. 
I agreed with Spinning is more complicated when taking apart compare to baitcaster. Too many tiny parts involved and each brand need diaphragm . Baitcaster is very straightforward and basically the same all across different manufacturers.

Minor cleaning for me is oil spool bearing, cleaning drag stacks, spray clean and Lube worm gear, add grease to main gear if needed, clean spool shaft and inside pinion hole. 
Deep cleaning, take apart most things down and degrease, flooded spool and frame bearing.

BTW my reels don’t get use too hard probably 3-4 time a year
 

[Mobasser]

On my spinning reels, I don't always open them each season. If they feel smooth, I clean the outside good, and lightly oil any moving parts, and oil the line roller. Casting reels, I take them to a guy who cleans and lubes them for me.

[redmeansdistortion]

Full teardown, clean, and lube yearly for me, but it depends on how much use the reel sees.  Reels used infrequently get that treatment every two years.

[Delaware Valley Tackle]

Annual deep cleaning and lubrication is a good starting point. You can adjust accordingly for level of use, conditions and interim care. 

[swhit140]

I usually do mine each year in the winter. I will say that sometimes if my frogging reel gets slimed up throughout the season I'll do a quick exterior/worm gear cleaning and apply a light coat of grease.

[MidwestBassAttack]

Twice a year for me since I do on my own.

 

That’s full tear down, clean all individual parts, flush, re-oil and re-grease.

 

I do a light cleaning between sessions which involves just a wipe down or quick shower.

 

I also oil throughout the season.

[Phil77]

If you're not mechanically inclined pay someone who is to service your reels. I do a complete teardown and clean all the internals with an ultrasonic cleaner once a year. I clean and lube my centrifugal brakes each week, takes about five minutes to clean the brake ring and a light coat of oil. 

[Bird]

I do a partial tear down, clean re-lube once per year. 

Attempted once to do a complete disassembly on a high end Shimano casting reel.....it didn't go well. 

[GReb]

I started disassembling and lubing mine a year or two ago. It was intimidating at first but I practiced on a couple old reels that were expendable if things went wrong. Now it’s an enjoyable task that I look forward to. Most all baitcasters are very similar internally which makes learning a little easier. 

[The Maestro]

I do it once a year. Just a minimal disassembly with my main focus being cleaning out any old grease and cleaning the drive and pinion gears with a toothbrush and isopropyl alcohol and re-greasing the drive gear. Maybe a drop of bearing oil where needed as well.

[Bankbeater]

My dad used to clean my reels.  After he passed I started taking them to a guy for cleaning.  Now I do them myself.  

It helps to break down the reel in front of the computer so you can follow as the guy on YouTube as he breaks down his reel. 

[newapti5]

I do my own cleaning and maintenance, and I start to think it's similar to oil change in cars - 3K miles or 3 months, whichever reaches first. If you've left your reel unused for a long time, the grease would be dried up and you'll need to re-lubricate as well. 

[FishTank]

Once a year but some that get heavy use will get taken apart twice. 

 

13 hours ago, gimruis said:

I'm pretty comfortable taking apart a spinning reel but a BC is more complicated.  I've decided to take a bunch of them in to be done by an expert and wondering if this is something that I should be doing more regularly.

 

I actually think just the opposite.  Taking a spinning reel apart can be very complicated as models and designs are different between manufactures and they have also evolved over the years.   Most bait casters are pretty much the same.  Here would be an extreme example of the point I am trying to make. 

 

[RDB]

On 1/6/2022 at 9:23 AM, A-Jay said:

Usually every couple of years sometime three for a complete casting reel cleaning & service.

It somewhat depends on how you fish and the care you take of your tackle between trips.  I usually do a full tear down every 2 years but I fish from a boat and am anal about rod and reel care.  I never leave rods & reels in the boat, reels have covers on at all times (I hate boat rash), I won’t hook my lures to the reels, and I do a quick cleaning/inspection after most trips.