I have a Shimano Chronarch 201e6 that I've been fishing for a year and a half now on my spoon rod. The reel has been dunked quite a few times while landing fish and taking pics. I did a 95% tear down last night to remove all the old grease and grime. I re-oiled, re-greased and reassembled. The reel works fine just like it did before the tear down but it still has a gritty feel when reeling in. I suspect the pinion gear bearing is fouled up from silt.

I removed the bearings and cleaned them in warm, soapy water with a tooth brush and oiled them before reassembly.

So, I'm thinking I should replace all the bearings in the reel. Please recommend a good place to order them from and if upgraded bearings are available?

thank you.

I called them but they don't have stock on what I need right now.

+1 John's
The only problem I have with them is they won't move their shop closer to me.
Also, I use ebay.

Can you see pitting or scoring on the bearings or races? It would be nice to know if the damage is to the bearings, inner race or side plate outer race before purchasing.


Shimano link to reel schematics:

http://fish.shimano.com/media/fishing/SA...69830775351.pdf

you can try calling Mikes, Drew...


http://www.mikesreelrepair.com/

The Bearings look great on the outside. I spun a couple of them between my thumb and index finger though and they feel gritty.

check ebay..or go straight to shimano

You can take a shields off and soak the bearing in wd40. It may help. It has helped in the past on gritty bearings

I may give that a shot.

This ^^^
I take the shields off and use WD40 (with the tube) to flush (blast) the bearings.
There is a thin snap ring that holds the shields in place. I use a hook point to grab one end of the snap ring and work it out.
The shield comes out easily after that.
In the pic below the snap ring end gap is at 11:00..



When you think think bearing is clean, put it on a sharpened pencil and spin it.
Listen to it...you will know when it's clean.

You are not supposed to expose bearings to compressed air, but I hit them with canned air sometimes.
Just don't spin them up to 25,000 RPM and you'll be OK.

So, pull the shields, do a thorough cleaning and I'll bet that the gritty sounds go away.

Edit:
I do like to soak them in Coleman fuel or similar.
I'll swish them around in it.
Wash the all WD off or Brewer will nag on you.

should I re-pack them with grease when complete? I have some Penn grease that I used to grease the parts that had grease on them before cleaning. For oiling I just used the oil that came in the box with the reel.

Fuk no !
They ain't wheel bearings, Drew.



The spool bearings need to spin up fast, so you always want to use a light oil on these and all the bearings in your Shimano.
Shimano oil is an excellent light oil.

Use grease on slides, friction points, etc.

I highly doudt it's the bearings drew.

personally I would never use wd40 period on any reel service. it will come back to haunt you.

Brewer,

When I spun one of the bearings between my thumb and index finger it felt gritty which is why the bearings are suspect at this point. The reel works just fine but I just want it to feel like a $200 reel again. Haha

It's fine to use as a flushing agent for bearings.
Just wash it off with white gas or similar and then oil the bearing with a quality, light oil.
I wouldn't rely on WD as a lubricant for a reel.

1. No WD 40

2. No to Grease

3. I like the soap and water bit........then let dry!!!!

4. Use a good oil......

Should be good to go......

Good luck......I know that "grit" feeling.....tough to get rid of...

I clean bearings one of two ways.

1. Soak in lighter fluid for 5 min.
Or
2. Brake cleaner.

I haven't had the time to bust the reel open again yet but now that I'm thinking about it...I can't remember whether or not the bearings were sealed or if they had C-clips. So, if they are sealed bearings I'm guessing I'll just wanna give them about a day soak followed by a day drying session before oil? Also, I think my wife has an ultrasonic jewlery cleaner that she doesn't use I could toss em in with soapy water if that would work?

Hey SD,
So you feel the grit when you open the bale and spin the spool with your finger? If not, I wouldn't think it's the sealed spool bearing. I was thinking you were feeling the grit when retrieving the line. If that's the case I would look at bearing and races on the roller clutch bearing (parts # BNT 4224, BNT 4225, BNT4313.) This is just a suggestion from an ignorant fool looking at a reel schematic.

You can use carb cleaner, just make sure there isn't any rubber seals or plastic involved. & don't get it on the rest of your reel parts. Learned the hard way, melted the body of my curado once. You can also try hobby shops that sell RC cars. Sometimes they have a bin of various bearings. Most will probably be too large for a Chronarch though...

Can Angry Man bier be ordered as well ?