cleaning a spinning reel on my own, advice

[crankbait2009]

hey all

im sure this has been covered a lot of times on this forum but if someone can guide me in the right direction the that link, id appreciate it.

i am not mechanically inclined at all.  so i decided to do a quick you tube search to find a video on how to take a part a spinning reel, clean it and put back together.  i found this one (see link below).  ist seems rather easy and not to many parts.

is there anything in this video that isnt shown that i need to do?  i notice that guy only greased the reel.  never talked about where to place "oil" and never talked about what parts to clean with alcohol and what not.

do you use alcohol to clean parts?  what needs cleaned.  the greasing part he made seem pretty easy.  before i attempt this task, any advice would be appreciated.

im not even going to attempt my baitcaster, i'll send that in 

thank you.

[maineman]

Find an old reel you now longer use and practise on that. Take the reel apart in small steps and put it back together, still works good. Then dig deeper into it and put it back together. Still works great. Its not hard to do.

[Delaware Valley Tackle]

To some, spinning reels are more of a challenge than bait casters. If you take the bail apart take notice of the springs and how they are assembled. Use a schematic and follow the standard advice of using a mild detergent, oil bearings and grease gears. Good luck.

Mike

[.RM.]

I disagree with what the young man is doing in the vid not all spinning reels are the same, spinning models change more than baitcasters do.

The reel should never be disassembled without the schematic being available, used, and, understood.

You DO NOT put new oil or grease over the old.

The reels parts should be deep cleaned with a degreaser NOT ALCOHOL.

Then as it is reassembled it is re-lubricated.

i am not mechanically inclined at all.

If you don't feel comfortable deep servicing a baitcaster, then I would recommend that you do not attempt a spinning reel.

Send it in.............

Just my .02 ¢

Good Luck & Tight Lines!

[Chris W.]

I find spinning reels extremely simpl.e I've disassembled quantum, shimano, shakespeare, mitchell, spidercast & daiwa and they're all relatively the same. Even salt water reels are mainly the same, I've done abu garcia and shimano in those. Just do certain parts at a time. For example, remove the bail as one part then reassemble. Move down and disassemble the spool area, then remove the sideplate and work on the gears &  ottom I grease emy bearings because unlike a baitcaster a spinning reel doesn't use bearings to cast, just to reel in, I feel it saves wear and tear. I even go as far as removing/disassembling the drag top to the spool.

[Dave T.]

The reel should never be disassembled without the schematic being available, used, and, understood.

You DO NOT put new oil or grease over the old.

The reels parts should be deep cleaned with a degreaser NOT ALCOHOL.

Then as it is reassembled it is re-lubricated.

i am not mechanically inclined at all.

I agree 100%. If your going to take it apart, do it right... clean everything thoroughly before re-greasing/re-oiling.

Also, call me "finicky", but I like to make a small scratch mark on the main pinion gear and another scratch mark on the top of the ring gear and line them up when I put the reel back together.

[crankbait2009]

The reels parts should be deep cleaned with a degreaser NOT ALCOHOL.

when you say use a degreaser, would that be the same as using an engine degreaser type spray?

now, i have the schematics of both spinning reels that i have. there sure are a lot of parts......

now, if i am reeling in and i feel grinding, is there a specific point that i could go to and clean? or is it safer to clean the whole thing? id like to do a "fix the problem" cleaning now and as soon as my fishing season is over, dissasemble and do a complete clean. figured id have a lot of time on my hands come winter

[Chris W.]

grinding i'd guess would be a bearing or gear issue. Just clean the entire thing, you'll appreciate it. It may be slow in the beginning until everything breaks in. Also, if the reel has bushings, you can replace them with a good bearing and increase the value/smoothness of the reel. I've done this with cheap shakespeares/mitchell's and they're amazing now.

[crankbait2009]

now just to give you the make/model of the reel in question.  it is an Abu Garcia Cardinal 100ui.  it has 5 bearings, if that means anything............

[Chris W.]

Probably two on either side of the handle, one in the shaft gear, one under the worm gear and one in the line roller lol. I guess you pretty much have it covered! I doubt theres any bushings that will make the reel feel cheap, all those areas are the important areas. More bearings on the handle shaft just create a better load bearing surface. Get some confidence and tear into that thing! If you need help feel free to PM or email me, or if you have AIM i can help you on there too.

[SirSnookalot]

For $15 have a professional clean a spinning reel, a few days down time, recourse if that job isn't done properly ( you have none if you do it yourself) and helps the local economy. I have yet to be let down from a reputable local tackle repair.

[bilgerat]

hey all

im sure this has been covered a lot of times on this forum but if someone can guide me in the right direction the that link, id appreciate it.

i am not mechanically inclined at all. so i decided to do a quick you tube search to find a video on how to take a part a spinning reel, clean it and put back together. i found this one (see link below). ist seems rather easy and not to many parts.

is there anything in this video that isnt shown that i need to do? i notice that guy only greased the reel. never talked about where to place "oil" and never talked about what parts to clean with alcohol and what not.

do you use alcohol to clean parts? what needs cleaned. the greasing part he made seem pretty easy. before i attempt this task, any advice would be appreciated.

im not even going to attempt my baitcaster, i'll send that in

thank you.

Send it out. Bails themselves can be frustrating for those of us who have done them. Often they are the part of a spinning reel that needs the most attention.

[Lucky Craft Man]

I disagree with what the young man is doing in the vid not all spinning reels are the same, spinning models change more than baitcasters do.

The reel should never be disassembled without the schematic being available, used, and, understood.

You DO NOT put new oil or grease over the old.

The reels parts should be deep cleaned with a degreaser NOT ALCOHOL.

Then as it is reassembled it is re-lubricated.

i am not mechanically inclined at all.

If you don't feel comfortable deep servicing a baitcaster, then I would recommend that you do not attempt a spinning reel.

Send it in.............

Just my .02 ¢

Good Luck & Tight Lines!

I would listen to the Reel Mech.  This guy know his stuff when it comes to reels.

On a side note, I find far more difficult servicing a Spinning Reel than a Baitcasting Reel.