Fishing Frenzy

Cleaning your reel is important I'm afraid, if you want it to last, and to continue to perform. And nothing is worse than hooking that big one, only to have problems with your rod or reel. Not to mention it'll last a lot longer if you clean it once in a while!

I'll start there--how often to clean... you really only need to clean your real once, preferably twice a year. When fishing in salt water, twice would be better. And like anything else, it's easy when you know how. First, here are the tools you'll need:

* one clean towel

* a small screw driver (usually Phillips head)

* one small bottle of grease. Do not use WD-40; WD-40 often leaves residue which can attract dirt. Instead, use a high quality grease meant for reels)

* a couple of Q-tips

* some paper towels

First, remove the reel from the rod. Use a couple of paper towels to wipe it off completely.

Next you'll need to remove the handle of your reel. It is generally removed one of two possible ways. There will either be some sort of screw in the handle, or you simply hold the reel in one hand and turn the handle backwards with your other hand. Set the handle down on a clean towel.

Lie the reel down so as to expose the (typically) 3 to 5 screws that hold the reel together. Remove these screws and set them beside the handle. You should now have exposed a small plate--remove it too, and set it down with the screws.

You should now see inside the reel. Clean any dirt you see in the reel with one of the Q-tips. Next, put a few drops of your reel grease on each of the gears.

One caution here: a lot of grease is not necessarily a good thing. You can clog things with too much grease--a few drops is usually all that's needed.

Now we reassemble the reel by reversing the process above. Screw the plate back into place. Then, before you put your handle back in place, put a few drops of grease on it as well. Now reattach the handle.