How To Clean Drag Washers

Quote:

Originally Posted by mbrupb
View Post

I have a penn 850ssm and a penn 650ssm that I regularly open up and lubricate and oil. The one thing I have never cleaned out is the drag. I am not even sure if you are supposed to open it up. If so what does drag cleaning require and how often? My reels have been in use maybe 30 times since I got them do I even need to worry at this point? Thanks for any advice.

If you do regular maintanence in the reel body, I'd highly recommend especially penns to clean out and maintain the drags absolutely. A fishing reel is like anything else, a daily cleaning and servicing is never a bad thing IMO especially if you have the knowledge and time. Some people are not techincal enough to want to tinker with their reels, that's fine too, but they usually have someone else do it in the "off season." The one thing you don't want to do is ignore your drag because it feels "fine" today then hook a big one and have your drag stick or just fail completely then it's too late. Again, I enjoy servicing my reels so I take pleasure out of it. I can tell you after I do service the inside and drag they feel brand new for a while I like knowing they are in good shape.
Also, like the person who previously posted mentioned I want my drag washers completely bone dry, there are some ppl. who lubricate the washers I personally think it's an absolute no-no and I learned the hard way on that. Just use a mild dish soap, carefully clean any residue by hand and let them completely dry by air, then re-install. I'd lubricate any moving parts like the shaft, bearings but not the washers. If the washers look in bad shape you can buy replacements from penn, not too expesive either. Good luck.