Drag replacement...what do you use?

[BrokeLoser]

I need to replace the drag system in a Daiwa Sealine 30. I've never done this before but I'm eager to learn how to service my own reels...plus it looks like Alan Tani's website makes 'do it yourself' a no-brainer...we'll see.
Who's washers and what grease are you using?
It seems the Smooth Drag carbontex washers are the ones to go with from what I've been reading?
Do some really use automotive gear oil in their reels?

Thanks!

[buttchaser]

Any type of grease will work for the side plates , sleeve and nuts. As for the drag nothing but Cals, or shimano grease. If you use regular grease on the drags you will have problems with your drags slipping.

[-scallywag-]

For drags there really arn't many options....smoothdrag being what most people use. And like buttchaser said, use only cals, or shimano grease on the drags.

As for the sealine 30 rebuild, Alans site is a great resource. Once you are comfortable rebuilding that reel, all the other star drag reels will be VERY similar. The lever drags are even easier IMO.

One helpful hint I can give you to supplement all the info on Alans site has to do with the bearing and whether to grease or oil.


On alan's site he recommends pulling all the shields on all the bearings and either packing them with grease, on the geartrain bearings, or oil, for the spool shaft bearings to maximize freespool.

While I agree with packing all the geartrain brearings with grease and leaving them open, I havn't had much luck leaving the spool bearing open with oil (they corrode quickly). I think a big part has to do with the wetter kayak environment.

So here is what I do...on my reels which freespool is not a huge deal (all my bait rods, and yoyo) I open and grease ALL the bearings. It really doesn't affect the freespool that much, and makes the service intervals much longer, and usually the bearing are reusable.

For the jigsticks, where obviously freespool is an issue..... I leave the spool bearing factory sealed and just replace them when they start go bad. Bearing are fairly cheap, and the shielded bearing last much longer for me on the yak.

Also remember to grease all the screws when you re-assemble.


Locally, Squidco stocks tons of spare parts, bearing and drags. They generally have any bearing, or drag washer you need in stock.

Have fun!!

[StinkyMatt]

Just serviced most of my reels. Waaay easy. I did not remove any bearing shields at this time, still alitlle nervous about that part. Just work slowly in a nice well lit place and have a towel to work over, so that parts don't roll anywhere on you. Most fishing stores have some type of oil and reel grease, I am unable to recommend any particular brand. Alan will sell you parts too, I think/ or he'll steer you to the proper source.

Sealine the easiest reel I have, it took me longer to do a Penn 113.

Have fun!

[bus kid]

Cals and carbontex, Yamaha grease for the bearings if you repack them, just like allan says.

[Billy V]

I use Cal's Grease on the drag washers.
-You only need a little, wipe off any excess with your finger. The Sealine X has a well sealed drag system, and rarely (if ever) does it ever see water intrusion.

On the Sealine X its good practice to pack the handle bearing (inside and outside) with Cal's grease, and the threads on the handle shaft.

Use Reel X on the Spool Bearings - You want them to spin free and smoothly.
----------------------------
One more thing...

These reels have metal shields of their bearings. If a bearing feels a little rough try soaking it in kerosene, then blowing it out with compressed air. If it spins well after that lube it with Reel X and reassemble.

If the bearing is toast, buy a new 3 piece set from Smooth Drag. They have very good quality replacement bearings at a fair price.
Squidco and Charkbait carries everything you need.

[bmercury]

Originally Posted by StinkyMatt

Just serviced most of my reels. Waaay easy. I did not remove any bearing shields at this time, still alitlle nervous about that part. Just work slowly in a nice well lit place and have a towel to work over, so that parts don't roll anywhere on you. Most fishing stores have some type of oil and reel grease, I am unable to recommend any particular brand. Alan will sell you parts too, I think/ or he'll steer you to the proper source.

Sealine the easiest reel I have, it took me longer to do a Penn 113.

Have fun!

removing the shields is actually one of the easier things I have learned to do in servicing reels.

Use a very small sized hook. smallest you have is best. Something like a size 8 mosquito is what I like to use. maybe cut one off a sabiki in a pinch? You will see a small little metal clip around the edges of the bearing that holds the shield in place.

get the point of the hook up against the edge of the clip and just get it slightly underneath and apply gentle upward pressure. Might want to keep your finger on the other side of the clip or do this some place where you will not lose small parts.

Once the clip is free just turn the bearing upside down and shake it gently and the shield should fall out.

If that doesn't work use the point of the hook and be very gentle and use that to free the shield.

Do the same for the other side. Be careful with the shields and little retaining clips don't lose or bend them(have never had a problem).

It's easy to put them back in after you flush the bearing and then pack with grease or apply light oil- whatever.

Just put the shield back in, then the clip. As long as you have fine motor control and don't apply wildly more pressure than is required to do the job then it will be fine.


also cals grease is great. I use it for drags. Also pack non-spool bearings with it. Will use it for gears or whatever else sometimes as well. One thing worth mentioning is that the stuff is probably NOT a consumer-grade product(in terms of safety) so use some gloves if it doesn't interfere with the job too much.

[robmandel]

don't get the smoothies, make sure they're the carbon fiber, aka, carbontex, drags. grease thoroughly with cal's. penn grease or shimano drag grease work fine too.

I've done all dozen of my sealines, plus a couple of my dad's, our calcutta 400's, his saltists, and our abu C3's and C4's. oh, and my luna and coastal inshore. ok, I'm a little overboard on the greased carbon fiber!!

the sealine is about as easy a star drag to work on. I think by now I can do it blindfolded!! spread out a large towel. as you work, take off the pieces in order and lay them out, in order. of special note is pay particular attention to the belvilles, those sorta bent washers. they apply the drag pressure. make sure they are in the same orientation.

see alan tani's site for pics and detail. all seaines are pretty much the same. and very easy to do. they make a world of difference. seriously. it's like a brand new reel, and in fact, it's way more. you get more drag, but more importantly, very smooth and consistent drag. that reel with those drags makes it comparable to reels 2-3 times it's price.

[The Kid]

Pennzoil Marine Grade grease #2 and Speed X oil. I clean everything first with Corrosion X to remove and prevent rust and corrosion. Then when reassembling I grease everything especially the main bearings and roller bearings that the crank shaft is dependent on. Then I oil the spool bearing liberally with Speed X and the spool flies. If you soak old bearings with Corrosion X for an hour and work the bearings for about 5 minutes they work a little better than new bearings in my opinion because the surface of the balls have been worn a bit from wear and leaves a space in the bearing trough. However, if they are to old and they collect rust or corrosion they are done for and usually can tell if they aren't any good if your free spool is jerky and jumpy. I use a lot more grease than most other businesses on my customer's reels and know that their reels come back to me in flawless condition on the inside. Hell I even tested my product out to see if my work was fruitful, and sure enough I purposely dunked my reels in the water to get some sand out of my reels from a gusty beach launch. Those reels didn't get taken apart for two weeks, just a simple soak in fresh water after the trip and they were pristine. I will say to all that it is vital to rinse you gear throughly after every trip. Especially you guys who own Sealines those reels have notoriously corrosive crank shafts and handles target that area along with the spool and screws when rinsing.

[swank]

I think Everyone has everything pretty much covered. I wanted to chime in and point out that there is a huge debate over wether or not using compressed air to dry out bearings is beneficial, the general consensus is don't do it. Brakekleen has worked the best for me, If not that, then acetone but it takes a bit longer to dry.
Smoothdrags Carbontex is the go to, or Penn ht100's depending on what reel you might be working on at the time. Dry vs greased is another debate but most go greased with cals or shimano. For spool bearings I tend to go with corrosion-x (I spray it into a small lid then use my worm blower to siphon it up) and lube moving parts with reel-x or Ardent. You can give the reel a nice coat of Corrosion-x by spraying it onto a rag and wiping it on, don't spray it directly on or it'll make the grease run (learned the hard way). This goes a long way to prevent corrosion for those days you forget to rinse your gear off. I dunked a reel and forgot about it for 3 days, no rust (Do not try this lol!!!).

[BrokeLoser]

Ok guys thanks for all the info...
Now, where should I order all the stuff from?
SmoothDrag carbontex washers
ReelX
CorrosionX
SpeedX
marine grease

I'd like to get it all from one place if possible....

EDIT:
I just realized someone said Charkbait and Squidco

[swank]

Bass pro has the Corrosion x and Reel x in stock. I've never had much luck finding the drags I want at a local shop, but then again I'm in the I.E. Just give Dawn a call at smoothdrag and she'll take care of you, cals grease as well. For bearings you can order direct from Boca, or through smoothdrags, ceramic hybrid bearings will change your life lol