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Reel Questions

1K views 8 replies 5 participants last post by  Bob Triggs 
G
#1 ·
My post-salt fishing routine has been to soak my reel in a bucket overnight, dry it the next day, then add a touch of WD-40, at the previous advice of someone on the site. However, I am a little concerned that the WD is going to hurt my line. Do you pull all the line from your reel before lubing up?

Also, any special care that backing needs? I pulled all my line off today, and saw that the backing is remaining moist.

Finally, is there a trick to preventing your line from getting sucked down the side of the reel and snarling up, buried under all the line? This usually happens after I have stowed my reel. It has jostled around in my pack, and when I get it out, I find my leader, gingerly start to pull it from the now-loose coils, and before I know it, the end of the leader is in my hand, the end of my line is visible, but the middle of the leader is fused to the center of my arbor.(This is a poor description of the condition, but I bet somebody knows what I'm talking about).

Reel-ey have a lot to learn,

Teeg.
 
G
#2 ·
Teeg -
As far as the leader finding its way to the innards of the fly reel... just make sure when you wind your fly line that you do so evenly and under enough tension not to have a single loose wrap. Feel your leader as it slides through your fingers wrap after wrap until it starts to get into the tippet. Grap ahold of the tippet just more-tightly enough to get about the last foot or so buried down into your tight wraps of line. This will keep it on your spool and not in your back-plate of your reel frame.
As for the ol' post-salt exposure treatment for the fly reel... just blast it with freshwater from a faucet, spigot or hose. Or, take it in the shower with you and share some soap with the reel. And, for lubing... WD40 will work. I like more of a grease on pawls, teeth, spindle, drag adjusting mechanisms. There is also a product called Boeshield engineered by Boeing (Kmann's?)
which will leave a protective light coat on the inside which is pretty tough to get off even with "blasting action"
Tight Lines
:smokin
 
#3 ·
Hey Teeg, Don't soak your reel! Just rinse it off well with tap water for a few seconds and wipe dry with a clean dry cloth.As for the line; I spool that off into the sink or into a dishtub,( I use a Rubbermaid dishpan as a stripping basket), and swish that flyline aound in clean fresh water.Then strip the now rinsed fly line through a clean dry cloth to wipe it dry and clean. If you use a cleaner it should not be a solvent base. I think that most detrgents will ruin a fly line. Just plain water and a wipe with a cloth is fine. Most newer lines have treatments that float to the surface or are impregnated in the line. Cleaners will ruin this.

Don't let wd40 anywhere near your reel or line. It is a combination of silicone, herring oil and kerosene, and it will ruin backing and line and knots and offers little real protection.It will attack modern line coatings.

Try "Superlube" in it's greasy form, as it comes from the tube, and use it sparingly, just on the friction areas, and a small amount on the drag plate or cork is fine too. Some of the best reelmakers use Superlube in the factory.

For wet backing, strip it off after the line, rinse in freshwater as well, and drape it across some pegs or coat hooks or on a sofa overnight to dry.This is a good way to dry your fly line too. Then spool it all back on evenly the next day. If you let backing stay wet and salty long enough it will fail, or the knots will fail, someday on a big fish. Even stacking of line on the spool, with a little bit of tension, very little, will prevent the tangle problem you are having. If you just pull the end of the tippett to get it started each time, you will probably cinch the whole deal down again. Try to pick the tippet and leader out gently,with fingertips, then spool it out to get going.
 
#5 ·
WD40???! Bad, very bad! It will wash the lubricants out of your reel. However, if you install the little red tube in the nozzle, then flick your Bic, it's a great source of amusement chasing roaches & other unwanteds away from the patio & Bar-B-Q area as your minature flame thrower. It's also handy for repelling nosy neighbors away from from the privacy fence. P.S. Don't let the "better half" see you! Bad, very bad!

Jeff :p
 
G
#6 ·
Thanks, guys!

This info is different than some that I picked up from the site a while back, very useful indeed.

I got my reels salty again today, and as they were soaking just now, I quickly grabbed them out and took them through Little Stone's regime, minus the lubricant. Where can I pick that stuff up? Is it a fly shop item or a hardware store item?

Gracias,

Teeg.
 
#7 ·
The producers of WD40 should label it correctly as a solvent not as a lubricant, go to the bike shop and pick up a small bottle of chain lube...I find this stuff work great for everything! However, the old saying still holds true:

IF IT STICKS AND IT SHOULDN'T...WD40
IF IT IS LOOSE AND IT SHOULD BE STUCK...DUCT TAPE
 
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