Do you service your reels?

[Jigfishn10]

26 minutes ago, bulldog1935 said:

Silly me. 

Truth be told bulldog, I couldn't tell you the last time I bought a reel  

[redmeansdistortion]

A little bit of service this morning.  I got some Shimano ACE-0, many of the Japanese swear by it with their small Ambassadeurs so I had to see what the hype was all about.  I'll say, pretty impressive!  The gearbox is now exceptionally quiet and the cranking action is super smooth.  I emailed Shimano this morning to see if I can get it in a one pound tub, thinking this will be my go-to for the foreseeable future.

 

[redmeansdistortion]

21 hours ago, QUAKEnSHAKE said:

Always serviced my own. Decided to test the water and sent one reel out for service and it came back in worse shape. Plus the issue I sent it for didn't get fixed. Never again.

Some guys don't actually clean anything, but instead add more lubricant on top of the old stuff, then charge $20+ for a 10 minute hack job and claim they did a full service.  It's quick and easy money, but it isn't going to build up the customer base.  There are a lot, and I mean a lot of those guys out there.  

[MN Fisher]

44 minutes ago, redmeansdistortion said:

I got some Shimano ACE-0,

I'm still sold on Cals - a little applied with a brush to the gears and my reels are super-smooth and quiet....even my 'cheap' Daiwa Bass-X and Pflueger President XT reels work great after a clean and re-lube.

 

22 minutes ago, redmeansdistortion said:

but instead add more lubricant on top of the old stuff, then charge $20+ for a 10 minute hack job and claim they did a full service.

"Run away - run away bravely"

 

A good yearly service should take at least 1/2 an hour...least that's about what it takes me per reel.

[redmeansdistortion]

13 minutes ago, MN Fisher said:

I'm still sold on Cals - a little applied with a brush to the gears and my reels are super-smooth and quiet....even my 'cheap' Daiwa Bass-X and Pflueger President XT reels work great after a clean and re-lube.

I used Cal's for some years but I'm not totally sold on it.  I much prefer the way ACE-0 sticks to the gears, great stuff.  Cal's is better for saltwater due to it's higher temp capability, perfect for fish that run hard and long distance.  ACE-0 is good to about 200° less, but in freshwater it that isn't going to matter.

[bulldog1935]

Cal's is just right for it's purpose - drag grease.  

 

Don't run out and buy it, but I use MTCW-B on freshwater gears, all LW worm gears.  

I use MTCW-SW on salt gears.  

[redmeansdistortion]

4 hours ago, Catt said:

Once a year?

 

I bank fish quite often & I ain't talking pond with well manicured lawns. I'm walking through chest high vegetation, up under cypress trees, knee deep marsh mud. I pay special attention to the worm gear area after each trip, making sure its free of any dust & dirt. I'll give the thumb bar area a little love.

 

 

Me in my natural environment. 

 

It's much more fun upstream of there though 😃

[Dan N]

Beyond a couple drops of oil, no. 
I don’t buy expensive reels. If there is an issue, I just buy a new one.

[Delaware Valley Tackle]

On 12/21/2024 at 10:55 AM, redmeansdistortion said:

Some guys don't actually clean anything, but instead add more lubricant on top of the old stuff, then charge $20+ for a 10 minute hack job and claim they did a full service.  It's quick and easy money, but it isn't going to build up the customer base.  There are a lot, and I mean a lot of those guys out there.  

Thanks for shining this light. I see posts all the time bragging about doing 20+ reels a day claiming they do full tear down service. Same goes for those that charge $15 a reel and claim to do a full cleaning. I sure as heck ain’t getting rich but not working for $10/hr either. 

[little giant]

I take care of all my reels, casting & spinning, fresh & salt. I have some reels 20+ years old and still use them. The innards of the baitcasters hasn't changed much over the years, the materials are better now. Have to wait and see about the durability of shimano's micro module. The ones I have are really smooth and quiet. I only use reel x grease and oil

(Past10 years) no issues. Cal's on the drags.

[redmeansdistortion]

3 hours ago, Delaware Valley Tackle said:

Thanks for shining this light. I see posts all the time bragging about doing 20+ reels a day claiming they do full tear down service. Same goes for those that charge $15 a reel and claim to do a full cleaning. I sure as heck ain’t getting rich but not working for $10/hr either. 

I hear you.  I have a guy local to me that makes dubious claims about doing 20 reels per day.  I let him bask in his self perceived glory and go through reels he supposedly did a full service on.  He was bragging about getting a booth at the fishing expo here next month.  He was turned away because he isn't a registered business or doesn't have a DBA.  

[GRiver]

https://deuthlon.com/collections/sports-fishing-reel-maintenance
 
Hey does anybody know anything about this product, they have a reel maintenance starter kit. I’m happy with what I’m useing but like to keep an open mind, might be better.

    @redmeansdistortion my ABC Hobby tool ( bearing cleaner/ grease repacked)  came in. I tried it out on some spare bearings I had. I really works good, no removing dust shields, cleans fast. A bit messy at first but getting better. 

 

[bulldog1935]

@GRiver - it looks like a good product, likely using high-grade synthetics.  Don't know anything about the company

The prices add up in a hurry, and about the same as my go-to's:  ZPI (spool) bearing oil, MTWC gear grease - with Cal's the reliably inexpensive drag grease.  

I've learned to trust MTCW from the quality of their aftermarket upgrades.  

 

 

Japan reel racers all began as a sideline to their bread-and-butter motorcycle racing - ZPI Racing, Livre, MTCW.  

 

adding a ps - a few quotes on the product from TT forum:  

Quote

Re: Lightest and least viscous bearing oil for BFS reels?
Just got my hands on some Deuthlon Cast Lube. This stuff seems lighter than most lube I've tried. Going to try this out over the next couple of days...

Thanks again for the reference!

Quote

Re: Deuthlon Anyone?
It's a little Malaysian company just trying to crack the market with advertising and wording.

Quote

It's a company, a lot of their history is in RC and biking. Believe their reel specific stuff is more recent

Quote

Re: Gear grease opinions
Deuthlon hands down, their full range of products is what I have switched to for a few years now and dont see a need for anything else

[Gera]

Not much besides a little bit of oil.. unless it going be donated then I do open it up and service them, I do not want to give some kid a junk reel that will give them trouble. 

 

 

 

[WRB]

5 hours ago, Gera said:

Not much besides a little bit of oil.. unless it going be donated then I do open it up and service them, I do not want to give some kid a junk reel that will give them trouble. 

 

 

 

Try Break Free CLP for a light oil for level wind worm gear and spool shaft bearings without tearing down the reel.

Works good for me for over 3 decades.

Tom

[Gera]

1 hour ago, WRB said:

Try Break Free CLP for a light oil for level wind worm gear and spool shaft bearings without tearing down the reel.

Works good for me for over 3 decades.

Tom

Thanks!! I'll give it a try!

 

I have been using TSI 321 Synthetic lubricant.. So far it has done its job. Also, I use the bottles on Shimano reels, they do last for a long time. 

[bulldog1935]

55 minutes ago, Gera said:

... Also, I use the bottles on Shimano reels, they do last for a long time. 

This has been my experience with all spendy lubes.  

Using small quantities of spendy high-grade lubes, one purchase lasts indefinitely.  

 

For people like @Delaware Valley Tackle and @redmeansdistortion, who work on OP's reels as a business, the cost of small-packaged lubes doesn't make sense.   I know Robert searches out high-grade lubes in larger packaging, evaluating active ingredients in the composition data sheets.  

[GRiver]

@bulldog1935 ok I just serviced one of my ABU Ambassadors…. WOW! …. They are a lot different than my low profiles. It took me a while and I did it it back together, it’s working.  It is a lot quieter than before but, I still hear a slight gear sound.  Anything tips on what to check, or are they slightly noisy.

[bulldog1935]

@GRiver  I have one brass 6.3-geared C3 drive, and it's totally quiet.  My (UK) aftermarket stainless drives are buttery quiet with ball-bearing main shafts.  

Pinion gears work 5.3- (or 6.3-) times harder than main gear, so that's always the first part to replace - cheap and available.  

It gets trickier to find gears if you have an earlier -C, -B, or -A model

This '77 4500C, I had to pick my best (of 2) steel main gears, because I couldn't find a later NOS brass replacement.  But I did find a NOS pinion for it.  (Dad's Ol Tackle)

Spool centering on the end caps can also be important, since it affects where the pinion rides on the main gear

 

Another place to look for wear is the LW pawl.  Worm gear groove should need very little grease, and then primarily at each end, where the pawl is forced to turn.  One of the nicest things you can do for these reels is install Mike's Reel Repair zirconia pawl, which has a built-in oil reservoir, and the MOC is a slick bearing material.  

If you go to this trouble, consider a ball-bearing worm-gear upgrade kit.  

[volzfan59]

I always tear my reels down, clean and lube them in January. Depending on how much I’ve fished, I’ll do it again in July. Do to my house remodel I didn’t go fishing at all in 2024 so they’re all ready to go for ’25. Always store my reel’s with the drags backed off.

[GRiver]

@bulldog1935

Didn’t you mention that you have and ultrasonic cleaner and you use simple green in it?

Is it big enough to put this whole part in intact?

and is it heated.

anybody else that uses one please chime in with which one you use.  Do they clean bearings without removing the dust shields. 

[bulldog1935]

@GRiver

I never use simple green for anything, especially not brass or aluminum.  TX PE No. 75665.  

I have an ultrasonic cleaner, and I clean parts in glass beakers (watch glass on top keeps the smells down).  Water in the tank, parts and sol'n in beaker - dilute vinegar (never magnesium), mild soap, denatured alcohol, mineral spirits when it's tenacious.   

Too bad, my $10 beaker set is no longer on Amazon.  

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07BBK51BL/?th=1

 

But you don't even need this much ultrasonic cleaner - basic jewelry cleaner works for parts.  

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CNRXTRYW?th=1

 

all ultrasonic cleaners heat because of the energy you're putting into the liquids.  

 

bearings - watch the solution change color when the ultrasonic is turned on.  

Check it again in a fresh sol'n.  If you're using 20 ml at a time, you can cycle fresh sol'n many times.  

 

dipping a drive plate assy - what happens to everything in the stack, drag washers - no, never - the whole point to cleaning an assy is to take it apart.    The parts you want to remove get cleaned.  What portion of the assy you leave together, swab-clean with q-tip and alcohol.  

As you're taking it apart, take photos that will mean something to you later - bread crumbs.