By Ben Young
Posted Friday, September 23, 2005
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There is no worse feeling than to have a big fish hooked, to be enjoying the fight of reeling it in, then having your equipment fail and the fish getting away.
Sometimes equipment failure cannot be helped, but with good maintenance you'll be confident that any failure it may have could not have been prevented.
By keeping your fishing reel clean, it will work smoother and last longer. This is a basic how to on cleaning and maintaining fishing reels.
Find a clean flat hard surface such as a bench top to clean your reel on. Laying down a clean white sheet over the bench can make finding small parts easier.
Begin by wiping the outside of the reel over with a moist soapy rag, this will remove any of the contaminants such as oils and salts (particularly if it is used in salt water). Remove the spool and wash it and underneath with mild soapy water.
Carefully remove the winding handle; this is usually done by unscrewing the nut on the opposite side of the reel. Take the handle out and carefully remove the side plate with a small screw driver. You will be able to inspect all of the gears inside and add special fishing reel grease onto the gears. Each year you should clean out the old grease and lubricate the internals with fresh grease.
Using fishing reel oil, lubricate any external moving parts such as the bail and anti reverse lever.
Remember that fishing in salt water requires more maintenance than fresh water fishing. Make sure you clean your gear after each trip to keep it in perfect working order and extend its life for many more fishing trips.
Ben Young is a recreational fisherman with over 25 years experience in fresh water, surf, estuary and lake fishing and more great tips can be found at: http://www.fishinglinks.com.au
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