Reel Soak Solution

MarshRat

MarshRat

Life of the Party
Due to my current living situation and available resources, it is much more convenient for me to soak my reel than it is to spray it off with a hose after saltwater use. I currently loosen my disc drag completely then submerge the reel in a bucket of warm tapwater. I leave the reel soaking until the next use (2-3 days). Is there a solution that would do more to fight corrosion than just water? Should I add some white vinegar or something?
 
MarshRat said:
Due to my current living situation and available resources, it is much more convenient for me to soak my reel than it is to spray it off with a hose after saltwater use. I currently loosen my disc drag completely then submerge the reel in a bucket of warm tapwater. I leave the reel soaking until the next use (2-3 days). Is there a solution that would do more to fight corrosion than just water? Should I add some white vinegar or something?
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Soaking most sealed drag reels is a real bad idea. Remove the spool and soak that for as long as you want. Reassemble the housing and run some cool water over it, then take a tooth brush and give it a quick once over, rinse one more time and paper towel dry. It doesn’t take much water to eat a carbon drag, fresh or salt.
 
Would never soak a reel. All that is going to do is get water into places it will never come out of. Like the inside of sealed bearings.

Whenever I rinse a reel I tighten the drag, so that water can’t get between the plates and washers etc. Water would not normally get there in use, cork or fiber drag washers are destroyed by moisture and any corrosion on a drag plate makes it useless.. That may be outdated advice, given changes in materials used for drag systems, but I still wouldn’t do it.

If I was you I would completely strip down those reels, clean and reassemble them and come up with a new approach.
 
I take my outfit in the shower with me after I get home.
I strip the line off and give both the spool and reel a good rinse.
Put the spool back on, reel up the line, pop the spool back off for one more rinse and let them air dry.
My girlfriend has become quite fond of drying reels on the bathroom counter….. ;)
SF
 
I keep a 5 gal bucket full of fresh water. I strip the line off down to the backing, slosh the rod/reel up and down in the bucket a dozen or so times, hose the line off as it lays on the driveway, grip it with a dry cloth as I wind it back on, then let it all air dry....never had a problem with corrosion.
 
Stonedfish said:
I take my outfit in the shower with me after I get home.
I strip the line off and give both the spool and reel a good rinse.
Put the spool back on, reel up the line, pop the spool back off for one more rinse and let them air dry.
My girlfriend has become quite fond of drying reels on the bathroom counter….. ;)
SF
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Didn't think of the shower, duh. Thanks!!
 
MarshRat said:
Didn't think of the shower, duh. Thanks!!
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That’s where I clean my rods an old toothbrush and some soap make sure you get the the reel seat and move the lock rings and clean under both. Allow to dry before replacing them in tube or sock. I don’t strip off all my since I change from Dacron to gelspun. Gel spun does not soak up water like Dacron and also does not rot because of that. Gel spun also cost a lot more then Dacron, but also last longer.
 
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All excellent ideas for rinsing reels. I wash mine down with a hose after using. I wouldn't use vinegar at all. That is acidic.
 
Sam Roffe said:
All excellent ideas for rinsing reels. I wash mine down with a hose after using. I wouldn't use vinegar at all. That is acidic.
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If you happen to own a Abel reel, Steve Abel told me to just spray it down with WD-40, then hit all the joints with a toothbrush and wipe off excess with a soft towel.
 
Ok, this is a serious question for you salt water fishermen. What about buying the cheapest graphite reel you can find on Amazon and using that for the salt? Do graphite reels have enough metal buried in their innards that they could get corroded, also? Could you use them without fear of rusting out your reel? You wouldn't have a nice drag system, but fishermen got along fine for decades with crappy drags like in the old Medalists, etc.
 
Cliff said:
Ok, this is a serious question for you salt water fishermen. What about buying the cheapest graphite reel you can find on Amazon and using that for the salt? Do graphite reels have enough metal buried in their innards that they could get corroded, also? Could you use them without fear of rusting out your reel? You wouldn't have a nice drag system, but fishermen got along fine for decades with crappy drags like in the old Medalists, etc.
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For cutthroat you don't need a drag so I think that would be fine. If it gets too corroded to spin chuck it and get a new one.
 
Scudley Do Right said:
For cutthroat you don't need a drag so I think that would be fine. If it gets too corroded to spin chuck it and get a new one.
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What if that SRC turns out to be a Chinook? ;-)

My friend Herb uses cheap plastic (graphite?) reels, he’s convinced lines are more important. Ask him now about 6# trout and plastic reels on which spools wobble.
 
Cliff said:
Ok, this is a serious question for you salt water fishermen. What about buying the cheapest graphite reel you can find on Amazon and using that for the salt? Do graphite reels have enough metal buried in their innards that they could get corroded, also? Could you use them without fear of rusting out your reel? You wouldn't have a nice drag system, but fishermen got along fine for decades with crappy drags like in the old Medalists, etc.
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Tried this more than 20 years ago with a first generation graphite reel (a Shakespeare graphlite). As you suspected it turned out to have too much cheap metal in it, which corroded. I did, however land bonefish up to 5 pounds or so on it, and a couple of jacks and barracudas around the same size. For SRC I would have no problem with doing it again.

I have also tried using low end modern reels. Cast, coated aluminum alloy rather than machined and anodized. They don’t hold up too well cosmetically, but the corrosion is all on the exposed surfaces, and the mechanical function is still fine after 10 years of hard abuse. A little bit of grease on the innards is enough to protect them.
 
Chucker said:
Tried this more than 20 years ago with a first generation graphite reel (a Shakespeare graphlite). As you suspected it turned out to have too much cheap metal in it, which corroded. I did, however land bonefish up to 5 pounds or so on it, and a couple of jacks and barracudas around the same size. For SRC I would have no problem with doing it again.

I have also tried using low end modern reels. Cast, coated aluminum alloy rather than machined and anodized. They don’t hold up too well cosmetically, but the corrosion is all on the exposed surfaces, and the mechanical function is still fine after 10 years of hard abuse. A little bit of grease on the innards is enough to protect them.
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Thank you.
 
I think I have 2 reels I bought new, the rest are used, the worsted ended up being one I bought on the big auction from a guy sell new in box reels for half price. I bought one and when I pulled it out of its box it had a piece of running line on it. Once I saw that I started looking real close, the C/N on the reel was different then on the box, now I did a real close look ot it and found a gall spot on the housing where the spool would run. The guy excepted returns so I sent it back signature receipt. I got the return from the postoffice saying Bill had excepted the box. He never gave me my money back. Filed a complaint and they said he never got the reel back so I had no foot to stand on. So I had to seen a copy of the paperwork from the post office. I also had seen on this guys sight that he was reselling this same reel as new inbox. This guy is no longer selling on that sight. Other then that I’ve been fairly lucky. I ended up buying a lot of gear used from a guy that sells used stuff for the factory, if it isn’t right they make it right. All the way to giving me a brand new newer model then the one that was not right.
 
When fishing the beach there is usually a creek near by and when I finish for the day or take a am break, sit on a drift log for a bit and just watch the water I will dunk my set up in that local creek, far above salt water line. Submerge it for a few seconds then pull out and switch angle of the gear and do it again. Never had a problem. But I usually fish the salt with a Galvan Torque, which I believe is a very tolerant reel to salt conditions. I also usually do a quick hose rinse off when I return home too…. I just place my rod broken down in the shooting basket grooves and the reel on top or angled in the basket (leaning on cone or on one) and do a garden hose soft rinse set on a type of spray mode. I do it to my waders and boots too. And very important also …I do it with my flies or you’ll soon notice with many flies your hooks are pitted and easily breakable.
 
It's not so much the drag to worry about but the bearing. An exposed roller bearing will rust out pretty quick even if you do rinse religiously. Saltaway draws salt from surfaces contaminated by salt. It's not perfect but better than water alone.

I also carry a garden tank sprayer that has never seen pesticide. I lopped off the wand and attached a kitchen sprayer. I use it to rinse salt off gear and also fill it with hot water for an outdoor shower when camping.
 
ABITNF said:
It's not so much the drag to worry about but the bearing. An exposed roller bearing will rust out pretty quick even if you do rinse religiously. Saltaway draws salt from surfaces contaminated by salt. It's not perfect but better than water alone.

I also carry a garden tank sprayer that has never seen pesticide. I lopped off the wand and attached a kitchen sprayer. I use it to rinse salt off gear and also fill it with hot water for an outdoor shower when camping.
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I’m sorry i thoughts it was about sealed drag reels? If the bearings are exposed then there is no sealed drag.
 
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