If you are a professional angler, you will know that many fishing reels on the market today were manufactured to serve you for a long time. And the beauty about these fishing reels are, they still maintain their functionality. Hence, if you strive to maintain your fishing reel properly, you can be sure its quality will be preserved, and you will save cash instead of making repairs.
If you don’t know how to clean a fishing reel, this guide contains some essential reel cleaning tips to keep your fishing tool in great shape. Some simple and basic cleaning protocols allow you to prevent corrosion and other factors that plague your fishing reel.
And there are some cleaning methods that, when applied, make your fishing reel shining new. If you ask questions like “what is the best way to clean a fishing reel?”, this guide provides all you need to know.
Table of Contents
Why Clean Your Fishing Reel
To a professional angler who knows how to clean a fishing reel easily, one of the most essential items used in fishing is the reel. If the reel were absent, it would be almost impossible to capture a strong fish because you need to muster great strength.
This means that your entire fishing expedition would be fruitless because an essential fishing item was absent. You must pay adequate attention to your fishing reel by cleaning it regularly. When it is dirty, it is best not to overlook or postpone. Instead, it would be best if you took action by eliminating dirt and impurities.
If there are parts that need greasing, it is necessary to take the required steps. Doing all these will ensure that your fishing reel remains durable for as long as possible. If you are fishing in saltwater regularly, you need to pay increased attention to your fishing reel.
The reason for this is, salt minerals are known to damage fishing reels faster than any known factor. If you want to use your fishing reel for a long time, you need to properly take care of it. Even though you won’t be using your fishing reel often, you need to keep it safe from any factor that might harm it.
Tools and Cleaning Items
If you want to clean a fishing reel easily, it is important to know that you need to disassemble the item. There are many products you need to disassemble and clean your fishing reel to restore its efficiency. Below are the tools needed to put your fishing reel in great shape:
- Toothbrush
- Tweezers
- Wrench
- Screwdrivers
- Notepad and Sticky notes
- All the reel parts
- User’s instructional manual
The tools listed are particularly for assembling and disassembling, and they make it easy for those who don’t know how to clean a fishing reel and rod. You can also use some of the tools to pick various parts during the cleaning action. Before you get any of these tools, you need to ensure that they fit your fishing reel’s size.
If you use either smaller or bigger tools, you would not be able to perform the needed actions properly. In addition to assembling, disassembling, and picking, some tools are primarily for maintenance and cleaning. With these tools, it is effortless to keep the reel in a great state. You can use any of these tools to maintain and clean your reel:
- Reel oil (Synthetic)
- Soft fabric material
- Reel Grease (Synthetic)
- Reel cleaner and rod
Also Read: Best Baitcasting Reel Under 100 – Expert Reviews to Buy
Things to Do When Cleaning Your Reels
It is not bad to watch some videos or read some articles on how to clean your reels. However, to further strengthen your cleaning skills, there are some rules you need to know. Below are some points you need to note when cleaning your reels:
1. Have Everything Ready
Before you clean your reels, you need to disassemble it. And all the cleaning products and tools must be available close to you. It is also vital that you get a table where you can place all the parts so as not to lose any of them. Also, ensure you position your table in a well-lighted place so that you can see properly and perform any action you need to take.
2. Note Down the Order of Assembling
Due to a fishing reel’s slightly complicated nature, you need to be very calculative when you are disassembling. To avoid any form of mistake, it would be best to number each component when you take them out. With this, it would be impossible to forget when you are assembling. You can use sticky notes or your notepad for this purpose so that you can construct the reel effortlessly
3. Use Both Hands Skillfully
When you are cleaning your fishing reel, you need to put both hands to work skillfully. It is best to use the non-leading hand to grip the reel firmly. Then, use the leading hand to disassemble and assemble the reel. You will gain more control during the process because the non-leading one supports your leading hand. More so, it makes the process easy and fast.
4. Work With Your Tweezers
Your best item to handle small parts of your reel is your tweezers. For your springs, screws, and wire clips, it is best to use Tweezers to handle them properly. With this, it becomes almost impossible to misplace or damage them. Furthermore, some of these small items can get damaged by your hand’s sweat or oil. However, with your tweezers, the items cannot come in contact with these substances.
5. Exercise Care With the Spool
Before you take out the spool, you need to exercise care by firmly holding the fishing line with a clip or tape. When you do this, it would be seamless to take out the part without a wiring issue. If the line is not secured, you will have to deal with an unpleasant knot. Also, the line might enter the mechanism, which will make disassembling challenging. You can prevent this by holding the line first before handling the spool.
6. Clean the Excess Liquid
When you are cleaning your fishing reel, fluids are essential to facilitate the entire process. However, when you are done cleaning the reel, it is best to eliminate the excess liquid after cleaning the dirt, materials, and dust.
7. Apply Grease and Oil for Lubrication
When you are done cleaning, it is best to apply grease and oil to the parts in need. Always remember to purchase safe products that would not hamper the maintenance of your fishing reel. This would also come in handy in preventing components’ damage.
Things to Avoid When Cleaning Your Reels
If you don’t know how to clean a fly fishing reel, you need to know that there are some things to avoid to increase your reels’ lifespan. Below are some things to avoid when cleaning your fishing reel.
1. Avoid Harmful Cleaners
There are some cleaners and solvents that take their origin from petroleum-related products. Some cleaners like diesel and gasoline clean properly; however, they are not safe. Diesel and gasoline are corrosive, and they adversely affect some parts of your reel. When you are searching for cleaners, it is important to use products manufactured with biodegradable formulas.
2. Avoid TFE Lubricants
If you want your fishing reel to last long, avoid using TFE grease and oils. Even though lubrication is great for your fishing reel, you must avoid using TFE-products. When they are used, TFE-products solidify after a while. This implies that when your fishing reel is lubricated with TFE-products, it creates a buildup that affects your reel.
3. Avoid Using Grease in the Wrong Places
Applying grease to the wrong places on your fishing reels could spell doom for you. It is vital to apply grease to the gears’ bottom part. When you do this, you will be preventing spreading lubricant on the reel, which could affect the general performance. It could also induce damage to some parts, and you would have to spend money on repairs.
4. Prevent Metal-Metal Contact
When you are assembling the product, be careful not to place one metal on another. Reels are structured to work on fiber or plastic so that they are not damaged during operation. To prevent any harm, it is best to place the disassembled parts on a mat.
Also Read: Baitcaster VS Spinning Reel – Best for Your Need
Conclusion
If you did not know how to clean and lubricate a fishing reel, reading this guide provides all the details you need to know. It is crucial to know that you don’t have to be a professional before cleaning a fishing reel. All you need to know how to clean a fishing reel, are the necessary steps and cleaning materials, and you’re good to go.
One of the important reel cleaning tips you need to bear in mind is being thorough and detailed. There are tiny parts of your reel that you need to keep properly not to misplace them. If you are not sure of your reel cleaning abilities, it is best to contact a professional adept at cleaning fishing reels.
