New drags! Run them Dry or with drag grease?

[buckboardjr]

I'm going to put some Tuna Tom drags in my Daiwa Great Lakes 47LC reels and looking for opinions on weather to run them dry or with Drag grease. Instructions say both ways are acceptable!

[Sk8man]

I'd do them dry.  I made the mistake sometime back greasing and I never could then get the full strength out of them....slippage

[LongLine]

The grease allows the drag washers to slip when a fish first hits & takes line.  i.e. prevents sticking.  Alan Tani recommends greasing. so I've done that for many years & never had an issue with my penns.  http://alantani.com/index.php?PHPSESSID=lv09hvob4dl8u9r2qq3vb5qrh5&board=2.0

 

Tom B.

(LongLine)

[Art Benham]

Hey Bucky fill me in on those drags. What are tuna toms drags ? never heard of them. Last year I dumped 6 new 47LC's because the drags where all crap. They were not the same reels I got in 2011!

Chinese crap...

 

Is there a fix for them as that was my only complaint was the drags? Tough to find a good reel for up here that isn't a fortune. I just sent back some AbuGarcia Ambassodor reels that cost $119 for the same thing , crap drags.

 

 

[Sk8man]

Art - They are carbon fiber drags to replace the standard ones and they are much more durable and inexpensive. Tuna Tom's website is where you can get them. He is great for reel repair as well and very reliable and fair priced Here is his site: http://www.tunasreeltroubles.com/

 

and this is where the drag washers are located for daiwas http://stores.tunasreeltroubles.com/daiwa/

 

 

P.S. I ordered a couple sets of the carbon washers late last night for a couple reels while I was thinking of it and this morning I was informed that it had shipped by priority mail....this is typical service for Tuna Tom's ...they are exceptional so don't hesitate to order from them.

Edited August 15, 2014 by Sk8man

[Thun]

Alan Tani prefers greased drags because of the work Cal Sheets has done on the wet versus dry issue. These experts claim more big fish are lost because of sticky drags at start up. In this 2008 post (he's been greasing drags for a long time as do most of the professional reel repairmen on his site), he discusses the wet vs dry thing and also explains how to test your drag for start up.

 

http://alantani.com/index.php?topic=47.0

[buckboardjr]

Art! Sk8man squared you away and thanks Thun, Longline, and Sk8man for the extra imput! I will have to check my aviation greases for melt temps and choose one. I think I'll do 1 dipsey dry, one wet and same for dwnrig rods just to experiment

[Thun]

I use Cal's lighter grade grease for colder climates. Dawn at smoothdrag.com is very helpful

 

http://smoothdrag.com/

[Thun]

I'll be interested in your thoughts after trying your reels both ways. This wet vs dry debate has been going on for a long time and I'm not trying to change anyone's mind, I'm just trying to shed a little light as to why those who do grease their drags do so. Some might recognize the name Jack Erskine, an Australian fisherman recently inducted into the IGFA Hall of Fame. Here's what he has to say about Cal's and greased drags.. And there's a pretty good vid on the profile page for those interested. Being a Penn guy at heart, I've always admired Jack Eskine

 

http://jackerskine.com/cals_universal.html

[landingzone]

Hey Bucky fill me in on those drags. What are tuna toms drags ? never heard of them. Last year I dumped 6 new 47LC's because the drags where all crap. They were not the same reels I got in 2011!

Chinese crap...

 

Is there a fix for them as that was my only complaint was the drags? Tough to find a good reel for up here that isn't a fortune. I just sent back some AbuGarcia Ambassodor reels that cost $119 for the same thing , crap drags.

I have 10 of the newer 47LC's and have noticed that the drags on some are real "lumpy" ie. pulsating when a fish is pulling drag.  I had the drag on one upgraded at Tuna Tom's and it feels very smooth.  I haven't put it in use yet so I don't know how it works with a fish.  It has no lube.  FWIW, I asked them about lube, and they said either way but they doubted I would need it in fresh water.

[buckboardjr]

2 done. 1 greased 1 dry. 3 more to do. They are easy once you figure out how to hold all together. A 3 minute video during the tricky part would speak volumes.

[Thun]

I couldn't find a tutorial for your reel but when I did my Penns, I had a heck of a time getting the dog and spring to stay on the threaded screw that holds the springs, yoke and bridgeplate together. There are 4 screws on the handle side plate and it wasn't until someone suggested taping them from the outside, did I find it easy. Look around Tani's site for Daiwa tutorials, there are some for different reels, maybe one of them is similar?

 

Nessie Hunter claims the Daiwa SG47LCA is basically a Sealine 50 and provides a link for that tutorial. The 12th picture down in the tutorial shows the repairman covering those screws I was referring too with his fingers. Tape frees up your hands. Hope it helps

 

http://alantani.com/index.php?topic=5589.0

Edited August 17, 2014 by Thun

[buckboardjr]

Thun, I got all 5 done. The Great lakes 47LC has those screws face the other way and go in to blind holes from the inside. Like I said earlier, once you know the best position for lever, and how to hold it they are easy. I even left each reel on the rods and never untied. It will be interesting to see wheather I like the dry or greased better.

[buckboardjr]

These Great Lakes 47LC reels I tore apart were  excellent to brand new looking inside. I have 9 of them and bought them all for $25 -$41 ea. tops, to my door used, from my cousin, Ebay, Craigslist. Some I have had for 15 years. I have never had a failure. The bodys fade bad and they look ugly so I buffed one out with tooth paste and it looked almost new. That can be a winter project. I think the new drags will really show thier value when running 12lb. leaders in the spring as I have lost a few stickbaits in the past to sticky drags then.

[Thun]

Awesome buckboard, I'll be curious to hear your results. I have 10 EBay Penns myself and really enjoy servicing them in the off season. After I took them apart, I threw the brass parts in a tumbler and with a suggestion my brother in law gave me, I bought a bottle of Wipe New as seen on TV. I never would have bought something so gimmicky but I trust my B-i-L's opinion. This is what it did to my graphite reels, before and after.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[buckboardjr]

Cool Thun! Will have to get some Wipe New!

[Sk8man]

They look great Thun I'll have to give it a try thanks for sharing that tip.

[Thun]

Thanks for the kind words guys and whether you grease your drags or not, may they always scream loudly for you guys.

[Sk8man]

Hey buckboard...those original drag washers were pretty crappy weren't they? Mine were totally smooth so no wonder they slipped and you can break them between your finger and thumb....pretty bad....

[Thun]

For those using Penn's, here's an awesome store that has almost every part you'll need. I was ordering drag washers, dogs and various other parts my reels needed right after Hurricane Sandy hit and they were hit hard. Great people and great service. Penn only though. Check out the Self Repair Tips link for some tutorials also.

 

http://store.scottsbt.com/PennParts/Conventional.aspx

Edited August 19, 2014 by Thun

[buckboardjr]

SK8man, Yes 3 of the reels the washers were trashed, 2 not so much.  

Thun good to know on the Penns. When I set myself up with coppers I bought 6 Penns but they are brand new. Probably won't need antthing for 20 years.

[buckboardjr]

]The new drags worked great after 7 days of fishing. I ended up liking the Dry non greased drags best

but both were smooth. The dry required less tension dialed in to gain the same amount of resistance.

Here is a video of a 29.10oz salmon screaming drag on a dry set up. Notice the "D" written on the reel.

This was so I could easily compare them.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wzsg6bLgZmw

 

[Sk8man]

I just replaced two of my reels with the carbon fiber tournament drags one greased and one dry and I totally agree with buckboards post. The dry one has a little more "tension" to it and that is what I was trying to achieve. They both run very smoothly and are well worth the price and I'll probably put them in dry in another dozen or so reels during the winter.