Saturday, January 21, 2012

Real Reel Maintenance - Part II (01/21/12)

Hello Folks,

John Williams has been working away at cleaning and servicing my reels over the past week. It usually takes him about one full day to service one reel. He is gracious for the write ups here at "Fishing With Dad" and says that he is currently "swamped" with not only my reels, but those of his local bass fishing club members.

My spinning reels are now completely cleaned and serviced. Check out how nice they all look on the pic below... Great job, John! I'm drooling at the thought of casting these "puppies" once again.

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The first baitcaster reel that John has tackled is my Curado Bantam. This is one of my older baitcasters and can probably be picked up on "ebay" at a reasonable price ($60-70). It's kind of a straight forward baitcaster and has been the workhorse of all my baitcasters... along with my Pfluegers, of course.

Check out this site where Alan Tani breaks down a Curado Bantam on "TackleTour.com"...

Alan Tani Breaks Down A Curado Bantam

My Curado had one problem... " It has one bad bearing in the shaft for winding. This one was never removed to oil. As a matter of fact, all the bearings had grease on them. It is a wonder you could get any distance at all. They are to be oiled for smooth casting."

I certainly appreciate how John stays in touch with me as he continues to work on my reels. It has been a learning experience.

Money is always tight around my home since my early retirement due to disability and he understands that and will not spend my money without first informing me. "That's what friends are for!"


Here are a few shots of the Curado broken down...

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Disassembled Dirty Parts...

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Cleaned and Ready Parts for Reassemble

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If one closely examines these photos, they can tell just how much TLC John puts into his maintenance work.

I will continue to post any photos and enlightening comments that John shares with me.

We had about 3-5" of snow last time. It's the first snow since October 2011. Seeing the snow outside should be a strong reminder for us all to clean those rods and reels. It is also a good reminder to service your boat and motor.

The past week, I helped my buddy and fellow basketball coach, Dell Jackson, take his jet rig up to Lakeside Marine in Harrisburg for a once over before Spring arrives.

I was with Dell for his first fishing trip last season and his boat motor turned over on the first try. It was the perfect way to start out a great fishing trip. This is exactly the way we want it to happen. In fact, on our trip to Harrisburg, Pa. this past week, Dell mentioned that first fishing trip of 2011 because it had stuck in his mind just how pleasant it was to have a perfectly functioning motor on the turn of the key.

Next month, "The Eastern Sports and Outdoor Show" will be coming to the Farm Show Arena in Harrisburg, Pa. The dates run from February 4 (Saturday) through February 12 (Sunday). I will, once again, be helping JC and Barb Nuss at the Lakeside Marine Boat Display (Booth 648). If you are in the Fishing Hall, stop by and say hello to all of us and sign my "autograph book". I'll have a new Shutterfly Photo Book of my fishing adventures from 2011 along for you all to look through.

The Eastern Sports and Outdoor Show

Take Care and Be Safe!
Dad

p.s. My wife, Julie, celebrated her birthday this past week (January 17, 2012). Her birthday fell on a Tuesday this year. So, we headed out to a celebration breakfast and then to a 10:00 a.m. movie at Penn Cinema (Lititz, Pa.). Penn Cinema has 10:00 a.m. movies every Tuesday... We just love it! The theater isn't too busy at 10:00 a.m. and they serve free coffee on a cold winter morning. 

Julie and I saw the new Mark Wahlberg movie "Contraband". It was full of action with a pretty good story line. We both enjoyed it and our time together.


Happy Birthday, Sweetheart! - Tom