[Sea Critter]

I have a baitrunner 6500 B which is fairly new. The pole (15 footer) fell in the salt water (the rod holder couldn't handle the weight after a few waves softened the sand).

I pulled my pole up, and poured some freshwater on the reel to wash off any salt. It cast fine the rest of the day as well as yesterday.

Question: Do I have to worry about saltwater having seeped into the reel. There isn't any water dripping from it, but I'm worried about rust. I should add I'm not very comfortable disassembling it to look inside at the mechanism.

I was only in shallow water for about a minute.

Thoughts? advice?

 

[Joe S]

Sea critter, By all means the reel should be stripped down as necessary to rinse thoroughly and lubricate. If you are uncomfortable doing it yourself, have a qualified technician service the reel for you. This should be done to ANY reel that has been submerged in saltwater. Good luck.

 

[Kozlow]

I might get it cleaned up . If your not comfortable doing it local repair shop may be in order. I hate equipment failure especially when it can be avoided. No grinding noises A maybe not yet.
You may have cleaned it out good enough you could wait and see.
I take mine apart and clean them well after something like that happens.
Just my .02

 

[Sea Critter]

Ok thanks.

How do I clean it myself. When I took it to be re-spooled at Galyans, the guy simply unscrewed the drag wheel at the top until the reel came off...

If I open it up to take a cursory look, what should I do to clean it...
Simply wash it in water? How about lubricating it?

I don't think Galyan's does maintenance so I have no idea where I would take it to be cleaned.

 

[TopSnipe]

Critter,
Here is a link to the part breakdown for your reel:
http://fish.shimano.com/us/en/fishi...b.SchematicPar.Single.File.tmp/02BTR6500B.pdf

Take off the handle, remove the side cover and take a look. If needed, spray liberally with wd-40 and wipe clean. Set aside to dry. Grease the gears and you should be okay. I believe this reel has sealed bearings so I doubt any water was able to get into the bearings in such a short period of time. YMMV.

Hope this helps.....Kurt

 

[TopSnipe]

I knew I forgot something. Remove the spool by unscrewing the drag knob. Remove the drag washers. Make certain you know the exact order in which they go together. Clean the drag washers in water and dry. I don't know if shimano recommends lubricating these. Anybody out there have an answer?


.....Kurt

 

[HR]

Another question to go with repair... Is car bearing grease too stiff for reel bearings?

 

[TopSnipe]

Industrial bearing grease is waaaay to high a viscosity. Many use something on the order of a 50wt or 90wt automotive oil or either red or yellow rocket fuel (a specialty oil for reel bearings) available at full service tackle shops.

hope this helps.....Kurt

 

[HR]

Didn't somebody mention you could get enough 50 weight oil from empty containers at auto shops? How much do you need to do 4-5 reels? The stuff I've seen comes in 2 quart bottles. That seems like a lifetime supply.

 

[Smoothbore54]

Aerosol chain lube works very well. Use the "needle" tube to put it right where it's needed. It's very tacky, and stays right where you put it, so you don't have to use much.

#90 automotive gear oil will seep out of the housing if it gets too hot. Like in the car on a hot day.

The waterproof, synthetic gear lube used in outboard motor and sterndrive lower units is also a good choice.

Rubbing alcohol from the drug store, works good to wash out old lube that's contaminated with sand or water. Use it liberally, it's cheap and dries quickly.

 

[TopSnipe]

Smoothbore, ever encounter any problems with alcohol drying out any o-rings or seals?

 

[Smoothbore54]

Not with "Rubbing" alcohol. I don't use "solvent alcohol" or "denatured alcohol".

I do occasionally use some "Southern Comfort" or "Dram Buie" but only medicinally. The same liberal applicatipn is recommended.

Unlike other "lubricants" in this case, more is better.