Reel Rehab

It’s been a minute since the last post, when I started the search for a Hardy reel clone. Since then I found a Berkley 530 (a Featherweight knock-off) in pretty nice condition on eBay, ordered it, and now have it in hand

I found it to be in really good shape. No corrosion, limited scratches, and fairly glossy paint. It was just pretty grimy.

What stood out most was that “click” part of the click & pawl sounded a little gooey. When I opened it up, I immediately saw why… congealed and in some cases caked on and hardened reel grease everywhere.

I don’t fancy myself particularly handy, but in a former life I was a school janitor (seriously) so I know deep cleaning isn’t hard, it just requires a little elbow grease and attention to detail.

So, after Googling “how to clean a old fly reel” I broke out some household cleaning supplies and went to work.

Some reel cleaning recipes that I found called for a vinegar solution, but that was mainly to address corrosion. Since my reel wasn’t in bad shape I opted for a soak in hot water and dishwashing soap to loosen up the grime.

Then I used a leftover head of an electric toothbrush that I don’t have the handle for anymore to get in the nooks and crannies, and ample Q-Tips and paper towels for detail work and drying.

I found the inside face of the spool to be pretty marred, but other than that cosmetic imperfection, the spool and the frame was in great shape and cleaned up well.

I even removed the springs and pawls to degunk and make them pretty & sparkly.

It took almost two hours, but ended up turning out way better than I thought.

Now clean and goop & grit free, I did want to add a little lubrication, so some Quantum Hot Sauce was the perfect way to finish this makeover. A little grease around the central gear and some oil on the spindle and adjustment screw topped off the project.

And well, the Berkley’s”click” went from gooey to crispy just like that. Sound on!

I love it. ❤️

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