# cleaning and preventative maintenance rituals



## showtimesharkhunting (Jul 31, 2013)

I ask this question to saltwater anglers all of the time and always get different answers. I am curious as to what you do when you get back to the house after a day of fishing especially in the surf. It seems as though you either have to buy an extremely expensive reel or a cheapo that you are ok parting with. I break down and clean my wifes spinning reel after everytime we fish the surf and i spray it down with the hd corrosion prevention spray academy sells. however she has eaten through 3 reels in 2 months. I also have a Penn senator 6/0 that is only a month old and hasn't ever been broken down and sprayed with any protectant. however anytime I reel in a good fish and hand my rod over to my wife she takes and drops it in the sand and on a number of occasions this past month i've looked over and found my new reel buried in sand at the water line. I am scared this reel will begin to fail on me due to this.


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## cva34 (Dec 22, 2008)

showtimesharkhunting said:


> I ask this question to saltwater anglers all of the time and always get different answers. I am curious as to what you do when you get back to the house after a day of fishing especially in the surf. It seems as though you either have to buy an extremely expensive reel or a cheapo that you are ok parting with. I break down and clean my wifes spinning reel after everytime we fish the surf and i spray it down with the hd corrosion prevention spray academy sells. however she has eaten through 3 reels in 2 months. I also have a Penn senator 6/0 that is only a month old and hasn't ever been broken down and sprayed with any protectant. however anytime I reel in a good fish and hand my rod over to my wife she takes and drops it in the sand and on a number of occasions this past month i've looked over and found my new reel buried in sand at the water line. I am scared this reel will begin to fail on me due to this.


Can't treat them like a ROCK and expect them to work or last...


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## showtimesharkhunting (Jul 31, 2013)

yeah I have tried to explain the importance to her about after I hand the rod and reel to her that mean put it in the holder not set it in the sand. I think I have that problem solved but now its a matter of figuring out how to break the big reel down and clean it and put it back together. ive only broken down spinning reels


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## captMike (Jan 30, 2006)

*reel maintance*

I haven't surf fished in 20+ years, but when offshore fishing and all the reels got wet, I had Salt Away in a 6 gal bucket, and would put rod and reel in bucket and with another can pour mix of water and salt a way over combo. It does not break down the grease but removes salt and sand. Only had reels cleaned 1 time a year and no problems. Most tap water on the coast is so hard it will leave particles behind that is as bad as salt and sand. If you are using mono spray your reels with walmart off brand wd 40(super tech), it does not hurt mono but will make braid brittle, it will displace and leave a non greasy coating. Good luck and tight lines.


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## Drundel (Feb 6, 2006)

I've been wondering for people who don't/can't break them down after a trip, maybe try dipping them in warm/hot distilled water until you flush the salt water out of there then coat it with oil.


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## showtimesharkhunting (Jul 31, 2013)

When i first started fishing in the salt a buddy of mine who fishes salt weekly and he recommended puting the combo in the shower and run hot water on it and close the doors to lock the humidity in the room and let them sit in there for an hour or so. tried that and 2 days later bought a new spinning reel lol


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## trout250 (Aug 24, 2005)

we use a mixture of saltaway in large spray bottle, spray rods and reels down, wipe off with a damp cloth let dry. drop of oil on bearings and pawl/track.
spraying off with water hose is a curse, unless wiped off and brokewn down, the spray usually pushes salt in 

good luck


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## FISHP (Jul 23, 2013)

My experience with spinning reels in the surf was that the drag washers corroded pretty quickly. You need to remove the drag washers every trip and clean them its a pain but necessary if you want to have a reliable reel. Try some white lithium grease in the gear case it is pretty water proof, wash all the grease out with mineral spirits if it gets in the sand and re grease. If the surf is real churned up you are going to get sand in the reel. You need to get the grease out because tiny sand particles will get in it.

I use baitcasters these days and I will breake it down and degrease it every time I fish the surf. I have had to replace the bearings a few times. I now use Shimmano AR Bearings and they are open so you can clean them out. Shielded bearings seem like a good idea but not on the upper texas coast. 

I think surf fishing the upper Texas coast is about as harsh as any environment you could find in the world on a reel. The main problem is the suspended sand particles in the water it gets right into bushings and bearings you need a magnifying glass to see some of them. I put my bearings in solvent in a little white bowl and it is amaizing how much junk comes out of them after one trip in the surf.


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## Lone-Star (Dec 19, 2009)

showtimesharkhunting said:


> however she has eaten through 3 reels in 2 months...she takes and drops it in the sand and on a number of occasions this past month i've looked over and found my new reel buried in sand at the water line.


If you don't fix this no reel you buy is going to last. When I was growing up setting a reel in the sand was a capital offense.


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## Smackdaddy53 (Nov 4, 2011)

If you dunk em, they have to be broken down and cleaned. If you get salt spray on them you have to break them down and clean them. If you just wade the flats or even fish only off a boat you will have to break them down and clean them. Saltwater and other crud stick to your line and transfer to the reel when you reel in and then cast. I don't care for stories of people claiming their superior reels don't get rinsed or cleaned and they last. Its nonsense! The only way that works is if you are one of these lazy moochers that let their gear get crapped up and return them to Academy for an exchange and the cycle continues. People that don't clean their gear don't need to own a boat, reel, anything because nothing lasts in saltwater without routine maintenance. 
I have a buddy that always gets to the fishing and his reel sounds like it has never been even rinsed and he gets upset because he can't cast ten feet. People have given me **** for making statements like this but clean your gear and it will be fine.

http://www.fishingscout.com/scouts/SmackDaddy


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## stdreb27 (Aug 15, 2011)

I am a weekend warrior. So I fish all weekend, then Monday night is surgery night. All the reels get broken down cleaned them oiled and put back together. 
Lid opened everything that isn't screwed down is cleaned.

IF I dunk a reel. I take it all the way apart. Minus removing the bearings.


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## SaltwaterTom (Jun 23, 2013)

I don't mean to step on anybody's toes, but if I had to break down my reels after every trip, I'd get different reels. I bought an Avet MXJ and a Penn Squall 15 at the start of the year, fished a couple of dry times in January/ March (too cold to wade), then took them to PINS for Spring Break where they spent a lot of time in my hands as waves crashed over my shoulders and head in the surf. At the end of the day, I would do what I read on Charkbait.com's website when I bought the Avet; tighten down the drag, repeatedly dunk them in a bucket of tepid fresh water, towel them dry and wipe them with a lightly oiled rag, oil moving parts, and loosen the drag to dry. When I took those reels apart after 4 days of PINS surf, the insides were clean, the actions smooth, no sand. My son's 5500C3 needed a minimal cleaning after 3 days because the slot for the spool release lets in a little sandy water and gums up the action and the worm gear gets a little gummy. I broke down the Avet and Squall last weekend after multiple Galveston trips and again was pleased to find no sand and little evidence of water in the Squall, none in the Avet. The C3 had a little bit of sand on the larger workings and the worm gear was gunky, but the oil on the bearings was pristine. Don't get me wrong, I agree that equipment requires maintenance. I have just experienced that a ritual of rinsing, wipedowns, and light oiling after every use is sufficient for the gear I use.


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