Citica 200E Issue?

[Wilddiver3]

Hi guys...I have a question. I have searched and searched everywhere and haven't found an answer so I thought I would ask. I have 5 citica 200E's and 3 Curado 200E7s. When using the citica's to fight bigger fish, the handle will turn but no line is being retrieved unless I really crank down the drag to almost the max. I know you are supposed to pump them and that is what I do, but I tell you, the curado's do not have this problem. For whatever reason, they just don't ever have this issue come up and I fish them side by side. What would cause this? With the reels being so close, I would think I could change something on the citica's and remedy the issue. I don't use braid so that is not the problem. The reels are still great, but this gets annoying.

I am very handy with these reels so would replacing the drag fix the issue? I think they use the same drags so I wouldn't think it would matter. I could replace the bushing if you think that is the problem? I wonder also if it is the lighter spool that helps on the curado? It seems these citica's have a very short drag range compared to the curado...wonder why that would be?

Anyway, any ideas or thoughts would be helpful as I think there is something different between the two reels that is causing this.

Thanks guys!

[Raul]

Got braid on that reel ?

Braid when spooled needs to be spooled on a backing of nylon or it slips and creates the "ghost" drag effect.

If you don´t have braid on that reel change the drag pads, change the washers ( the ones that look like this "(" ). It´s not a good idea to lock the drag all the way down.

[Wilddiver3]

Got braid on that reel ?

Braid when spooled needs to be spooled on a backing of nylon or it slips and creates the "ghost" drag effect.

If you don´t have braid on that reel change the drag pads, change the washers ( the ones that look like this "(" ). It´s not a good idea to lock the drag all the way down.

No braid on any of my reels...I'm definitely familar with that effect and this is similar but since I'm not using braid, gotta look elsewhere. I opened it up and looked at the drag pressure washers since I thought they would be like )) instead of like this (). Unfortunately, they were like this () and installed correctly from the factory. I didn't go all the way to the dartanium washers but I will probably do that soon. I wonder if they have excess grease or something but I don't think that is the case seeing how all 5 of my citica's do this. There is something different between the 2 that is always left out of a discussion. I'm thinking about upgrading a citica to the curado 7.0 gears...I'm wondering if that will help.

I read where someone installed carbontex drags in hopes of fixing the issue but it didn't which leads me to believe it isn't the drag washers but something else.

[Delaware Valley Tackle]

If you've rulled out line slippage and spring washer orientation, the next thing I'd look at is the drag washers to be sure graese or oil has not migrated onto them. The spring wahsers may be weak. The gearing should have no affect on the drag.

The Carbontex drag is the real deal and an affordable upgrade. Also check the reast of the gear shaft parts against a schematic to be sure nothing is missing or out of place.

[webertime]

I have the same issue with my Curado 51E. Shimano said to send it back.

[Wilddiver3]

If you've rulled out line slippage and spring washer orientation, the next thing I'd look at is the drag washers to be sure graese or oil has not migrated onto them. The spring wahsers may be weak. The gearing should have no affect on the drag.

The Carbontex drag is the real deal and an affordable upgrade. Also check the reast of the gear shaft parts against a schematic to be sure nothing is missing or out of place.

Thanks DVT...I'll pull it apart and see what's going on in there. I put carbontex drags in my 2 50MG's and love them...I agree they are the real deal and will probably upgrade all of them at some point. With that said, I'll review each part in the system and make sure all is well. If that doesn't work, I'm not above swapping parts from the curado to the citica one at a time to see if there is a difference.

Like I said earlier, these are great reels, I'm just curious more than anything at this point.

[Wilddiver3]

I have the same issue with my Curado 51E. Shimano said to send it back.

Webertime, that is interesting. Are you going to send it to them? Let me know if you hear something.

I'm thinking this could be weak spring washers the more I think about it. I will swap them from the curado to the citica and see if that makes a difference. I wonder if it could also be tolerences that are out of spec...maybe the key washer isn't as flat as it should be in some of these?

[Stasher1]

I had drag issues with a brand new Citica 200e a couple years ago, but my problem was just the opposite of yours. On mine, the drag wouldn't back off fully. It was very difficult to strip off line, even at the lightest drag setting. I bought it from a dealer on Ebay, so Shimano wouldn't warranty it.

I wound up selling it to a local guy, and yes, I told him about the issue.

[Delaware Valley Tackle]

Except for gearing options and a bearing on the drive shaft these two reels are nearly identical. I doubt swapping anything between the two will solve the problem. Let us know how you make out.

[.RM.]

If you've rulled out line slippage and spring washer orientation, the next thing I'd look at is the drag washers to be sure graese or oil has not migrated onto them. The spring wahsers may be weak. The gearing should have no affect on the drag.

The Carbontex drag is the real deal and an affordable upgrade. Also check the reast of the gear shaft parts against a schematic to be sure nothing is missing or out of place.

I agree with Mike, both reels are using the same drag pads so there must be some lubrication (oil/grease) getting down into the pads.

Good Luck & Tight Lines!

[Wilddiver3]

I agree with Mike, both reels are using the same drag pads so there must be some lubrication (oil/grease) getting down into the pads.

Good Luck & Tight Lines!

Just put one back together from tearing it apart. I found a couple of things/observations:

*When removing the handle side plate, don't forget the 4th screw that originates from under the opposite(VBS) side plate.

1. It seemed there was a fair amount of grease in the drag system. I bought it brand new and it has never been opened so I can only imagine it was there from the factory...the drag washers seem to hold grease, so I cleaned it up and installed it without adding additional grease. Once put back together, it seemed to improve the condition I was experiencing...which is good. My plan is to add Carbontex drag washers soon and see what that does.

2. I expected the drive gear to slide off the driveshaft with little effort after removing the pinion gear. This was not the case. There were visible notches in the driveshaft that seemed to bind the gear as I was removing it. It would slide/spin very freely for about 1/8 inch and then bind. I had to apply a large amount of force and spin the drive gear many times to get it off. When installing I had to press hard to get it to seat and it snapped on once clearing the notches. I don't think this is normal but can compare to my other reels another day. Anyone else experience this before? Could it affect performance somehow?

3. The driveshaft has play in it once removing the roller clutch inner tube and gears...I'm assuming this is normal though. Would adding the curado bearing and replacing the bushing help minimize this?

Thanks any insight you might have.

[Delaware Valley Tackle]

The free play you see in the drive shaft is normal. A bearing will make retrieve somewhat smoother but the tolerances are'nt that different. Both designs have some play there.

Some times the fit is a little tight or the shaft has a slight burr that makes sliding the main gear off harder. As long as the gear seats well it won't affect performance.

[TrippyJai]

I had the same issue on my Citica and managed to fix this problem.

The Curado and Citica are very similar, but they do have minor differences. The size of the Roller Clutch Inner Tube and Star Drag Nut are not the same size. For the Citica, the Roller Clutch Inner Tube is smaller than the Curado and the Star Drag Nut is bigger. Why the difference? I no idea.

I tried to install the Curado parts into the Citica, but it didn't fix the problem. While in the process of swapping the gears, I decided to put the larger Roller Clutch Inner Tube to see if it would work and it did. I am guessing it adds more pressure there, but I don't know how to explain it.

Call Shimano and order the part BNT3909. They'll probably send it to you free of charge. Let me know how it works out.

[Wilddiver3]

I had the same issue on my Citica and managed to fix this problem.

The Curado and Citica are very similar, but they do have minor differences. The size of the Roller Clutch Inner Tube and Star Drag Nut are not the same size. For the Citica, the Roller Clutch Inner Tube is smaller than the Curado and the Star Drag Nut is bigger. Why the difference? I no idea.

I tried to install the Curado parts into the Citica, but it didn't fix the problem. While in the process of swapping the gears, I decided to put the larger Roller Clutch Inner Tube to see if it would work and it did. I am guessing it adds more pressure there, but I don't know how to explain it.

Call Shimano and order the part BNT3909. They'll probably send it to you free of charge. Let me know how it works out.

TrippyJai,

That is very interesting and something I had not noticed. I knew the curado had a different drag star and different drag star nut compared to the citica and just figured it was due to the two having different drag stars...but didn't compare the Inner tubes...I won't have time tonight to do the swap, but I will try and do it by the end of the week. If this works on mine, I owe you a package of your favorite soft plastics.

DVT,

Thanks for addressing some of my observations. Good to confirm what I was seeing is normal.

[TrippyJai]

Hope everything works out

[Delaware Valley Tackle]

You should also make sure the roller clutch is seated properly. If the roller sleeve does not protrude from the top of the roller the drag star can't put enough pressure on it when tightened.