ABU drag ???

Started by Russ199A, August 12, 2009, 08:15:57 AM

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Russ199A

I'm working on my neighbors reel due to his drag will not tighten up enough. You can pull line out even with the drag completely tightened down.
I took it all apart and looked at the drag brake disks. They are very flat and smooth. I cleaned them and rotated their position as how they came off. (bottom disk is now the top disk) This gave the reel a little bit more drag but still not what it should be.
Should they have grease on them?
I figured that a person would want them dry or just a very lite film of grease.
Without putting more money into the reel, it there anything that can be done to make the drag tighter?
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Aaron Z

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Gangly

Aaron Z

To get a fish, take your rod, to get a memory, take your child

"Whose your favorite Little Rascal......Spanky?"

bigjim5589

Russ,  Depending on the reel, the washers do have to be in the correct order to work properly. Check them against a schematic to make sure they were installed properly to begin with. I think some of the ABU drags get grease, and some don't. I have several ABU reels and have never had any issue with the drags, but I've also upgraded most of them too.

The only way I know to make them better is to upgrade with the carbon fiber drag washers, they cost about $6 for a set.

Mike's Reel Repair in Canada does a lot of work on ABU reels, and they have a forum for questions. They also have the schematics online if you need them. You might ask your questions there also and get some useful info. www.mikesreelrepair.com
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Pablo4x4

I clean my SX and STX revos and one time that same thing happened to me. I misplaced one of the parts in the drag system. I followed the schematics and problem solved. On these two reels the drag discs are dry, they don't use grease in them. They are made from carbon fiber.
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Pro Reel

several posibilities. Did the disks or plates get oil on them? Sometimes, oil can gravitate to places it shouldn't be. If so, clean and dry them. Has the reel always had a weak drag? If so, it could be that a spacer shim is missing under the star drag. I have seen some from the factory where they forgot to put a spacer / washer in the area of the drag springs, under the star. You should also check for any missing drag components and proper placement. Lastly, if it was good in the beginning, and it was never taken apart, and it's clean and dry, then maybe he has a habit of cranking it down real tight and leaving it stored that way. Examine the 2 drag spring washers. Do they still have a pronounced curve to them, or are they almost flat. Make sure the curves are in opisite direction and not spooned together.  ( ) ok   ) (  ok   (( wrong

Russ199A

Since it's not my reel, I don't know the history of it. It is fairly old. I'm thinking 80's. It's not a newer reel.
I'll check the schematic and alighnment of parts. I don't think it has ever been apart an I'm sure that the drag has been kept tight. I'll try what was mentioned here and see if I can make it work again.
Thank you for the reply gents.
2014, 2016 & 2017 TCTC AOY - With a little help from the man upstairs!