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Basic Reel Maintenance

Alex Warren

Alex Warren

Senior Member & Supporter
Any tips for general reel cleaning and maintenance? I find my reels need a good clean every 2-3 sessions give or take, especially if I’ve been using maggots.

I know there are a few on here that take reels apart and put them back together with ease. That’s definitely not me. Some of the threads on here about the internals of reels are awe inspiring, but (for me) might as well be written in Chinese, as far as some of the technical bits go. So, go easy with the engineering jargon...

What (if any) cleaning materials should I be using/avoiding? I assume anything too detergent/degreaser-ish isn’t ideal...

Should I be oiling and/or greasing anywhere, and if so, where and how often? Any are there specific products more suitable for reels?

Anything else or any little tips welcomed!

Thanks in advance!
 
I clean mine with soapy water (washing up liquid). I use it on a wet, soft cloth for the body of the reel, and with an old toothbrush on hard to reach points. One spot of reel oil in the port on the body before the river season starts.
Note, I always back off the clutches after every outing, this is particularly important with rear drag reels. If you don't you will get a sticking drag which doesn't feel good.
 
Keeping a reel externally clean shows care for your equipment but doesn’t really do much in the way of preventative maintenance and unfortunately to have any positive effect on the upkeep of your reels performance the covers need to come off. Shimano are pretty appalling nowadays for sending out new dry reels and don’t even get me started on that Ridiculous service port they give us to fill it full of junk. Carrying out a very simple worm and gear lubrication service is really the minimum we as anglers should be able to perform in much the same way as a driver should be able to change a car wheel.
mike makes an excellent point about the clutch. It will absolutely prolong its performance by simply releasing the carbon washers from compression between sessions and back your clutches right off. As he pointed out it’s even more so important for rear adjustable reels.
Your reels do not need stripping right down to clean and lubricate the very basic Parts and just a ten minute job of doing the main worm and gear will be ten minutes well spent.
Feel free to talk to me before you decide to have a go at anything and we can keep it as simple as possible.
 
Alex Warren said:
What (if any) cleaning materials should I be using/avoiding? I assume anything too detergent/degreaser-ish isn’t ideal...
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Missed this sorry mate.
I just clean the exterior with a wet wipe. Doesn’t need special chemicals or anything to wipe off a bit of mud and groundbait etc.
 
Stephen Crowhurst said:
Are the drag washers model specific on Shimano’s? Or just rear, front etc?
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A lot of them share the same parts and combinations but some do differ. Same with the bearings. The sizes are often the same in many models. Depends on the reel models. The older stuff was quite good for being able to transfer parts even from 2 totally different models.
 
Yeah I’ve never had my mittens on one of those so wouldn’t like to hazard a guess of what parts are compatible for it. You’ll probably find a good service would revive it if nothing is noticeably damaged
 
Thanks for the replies, guys. I might brave a very basic service every closed season then, I’ll definitely be in touch before I do anything though, Richard. I’m sure I’m capable, just worried about my lack of patience as apposed to lack of dexterity...

I always slacken off clutches and Baitrunner tension when I pack down at the end of a session. Learnt that the hard way when I knackered one of my old man’s Shimmy Aeros in my youth. He still reminds me of that from time to time, like Fathers do...

The toothbrush idea is a winner! Modern reels have so many nooks and crannies.
Richard Isaacs said:
I just clean the exterior with a wet wipe. Doesn’t need special chemicals or anything to wipe off a bit of mud and groundbait etc.
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Was more thinking of things I shouldn’t use, I looked at the Wonder Wipes in the fishing den the other day, but they’ve got some serious degreasing power, probably doesn’t matter for externals, but I didn’t risk it. Obviously, between session cleaning is done with the line in situ, so always weary of anything harsh/chemical-y, in case it causes any damage. I’ll stick with warm soapy water and a microfibre, it does the job...
 
Alex Warren said:
just worried about my lack of patience as apposed to lack of dexterity...
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for a basic W & G service as I mentioned before you probably wouldn’t need to worry about either.

Alex Warren said:
Was more thinking of things I shouldn’t use, I looked at the Wonder Wipes in the fishing den the other day,
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If your reel has nice etched on decals, then something strong could potentially take them off.
imo cheap supermarket wet wipes are perfect for the job.
I don’t really see how trying to list things not to use is of much use. At the end of the day we are talking about mud, groundbait, maggot maize. Etc. a tea towel soaked in cold water is probably gonna do the job tbh. I could list a number of chemicals that you shouldn’t use but it wouldn’t help you as it would be obvious not to use the ones I’d list out.
 
Hi Alex,
As most responses to your question about reel maintenance have suggested on here are fine, if you want to keep it simple then i find a soft lint free cloth, as it does not leave any fluff, it is great for wiping the dirt off use slightly dampened to get any grit etc from inside when you remove the spool and then dry with a another one, you can also get them in wipes form. If the reel has an oil port then Shimano bantam oil is great for all freshwater reels it is readily available from most online tackle shops at about £3.99 a bottle, this will keep your reels in tip top condition without much effort. Hope this helps and Tight Lines.
Dennis
 
Dennis Keith said:
Hi Alex,
As most responses to your question about reel maintenance have suggested on here are fine, if you want to keep it simple then i find a soft lint free cloth, as it does not leave any fluff, it is great for wiping the dirt off use slightly dampened to get any grit etc from inside when you remove the spool and then dry with a another one, you can also get them in wipes form. If the reel has an oil port then Shimano bantam oil is great for all freshwater reels it is readily available from most online tackle shops at about £3.99 a bottle, this will keep your reels in tip top condition without much effort. Hope this helps and Tight Lines.
Dennis
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Didn’t know you were on BFW Den, good to see you on here.
 
The paint on reels will be 2-pack, or possibly UV cured, so it will be a convertible coating. That is, you won't be able to dissolve it ...not with anything you can find in your home anyway. It will be, by definition, 'non-dissoluble'. Any liquid that could soften the coating would have a skull & crossbones on ☠ ...e.g. drain cleaner or paint stripper.
If your reel has bits of plastic on, then those bits could be effected by organic solvents (e.g. ketones : acetone etc), but even pure alcohol won't touch plastic. You're only problem could be with reels that cost less than, say, £10 ... those that are bright orange, emerald green etc. They might have polythene type decals on (glorified sellotape basically), which use an adhesive that could be weakened by, say, soaking reel in meths etc.
If your reel cost more than £25 you can be sure that it was built to withstand the elements, wind, rain, snow, frost and the odd full immersion in water. They're made for the great outdoors, the bank, and that's why we never hear horror stories about paint coming off them (other than by hard impacts)
Get a household spray bottle, put some washing up liquid and warm water in, spray the reel liberally and leave it a while. Run hot water only it later and dry it off with a soft cloth.
VIOLA!!
 
I pop mine into the washing up bowl with warm water and some fairy liquid..

Leave for 30 mins then scrub and wipe clean.

When dry a dab of oil under the spool holder and upturned to run in the gap.

I found out a few years ago copious amounts of oil can ruin your reels.
 
Yes Richard.
Never had a problem. All the bits work well.

Only problem few years ago when over oiled.

All shimanos. In fact when often using bread mash they need a good soak and sometimes dab of oil on ends of bail arm links
 
Graham Elliott said:
Yes Richard.
Never had a problem. All the bits work well.

Only problem few years ago when over oiled.

All shimanos. In fact when often using bread mash they need a good soak and sometimes dab of oil on ends of bail arm links
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Entirely up to you graham but it’s really not a good idea.
Those bearings will take oil through the seal and they’ll take water even easier. The fairy liquid is probably prolonging the effects but bearing corrosion is absolutely possible trust me.
 
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