Cleaning up that old, filthy Berkley click & pawl reel was a pretty fun project. Not only do I now have a functional reel that performs like it’s new, but there’s just something satisfying about D.I.Y. projects where there’s a clear “before & after”. It also gave me confidence to mess around with some other reels.
Right about the time I wrote about Hardy clones and acquired the Berkley, my friend Joe, who is divesting of some of his fly fishing gear, contacted me about his Scientific Anglers System 4 click & pawl reel. Now, I didn’t really need another reel, but he made me an offer I just couldn’t refuse.
A Quick History Lesson
For those not familiar, in the 1970s through the early 1980s, Scientific Anglers (a US-based company) created a partnership with renowned reel manufacturer Hardy of England to produce “System” reels for them. In fact, Scientific Anglers System reels of this era are very closely related to the Hardy Marquis reels of the same era.
It was called the “System” because Scientific Anglers tried to make picking out a rod, reel, and line easy on fly fishers. A Scientific Anglers System 4 reel would match with a System 4 rod and a System 4 line. And so on, and so on…
So, what we have is a re-branded click & pawl reel mostly made from high-quality bar-stock aluminum, following Hardy’s precision machining process. These Hardy produced reels are gems and fetch a nice price on today’s vintage tackle market.
But I’m not looking to sell this reel, rather I want to fish it, and I thought it would make for a perfect compliment to my Orvis Superfine Carbon fly rod.
Let the Restoration Begin!
This reel was in no way in as bad a shape internally or externally as the Berkley. But it did have decades worth of dirt and grime on the outside, as well as some pretty crusty old grease on the inside. The click tension knob also wouldn’t turn, it was gunked stuck. The “before” pictures (below) actually make the reel look a bit cleaner than it actually was.
A Little Bit of Dawn Powerwash
Breaking out a toothbrush, some Q-tips, and Dawn Powerwash (the stuff is excellent at removing the old grease) all this reel really needed was a good surface scrub and some minor detailing in and around the inside moving parts before it got minty fresh.
After filling in some of the chips in the finish with automotive touch up paint, I topped it off with some synthetic reel oil, fresh dacron backing, and a new Scientific Anglers Amplitude Smooth Creek Trout line (gotta keep it in the family) and we’ve got a click & pawl reel that looks almost as good as it sounds.
The Final Results
