Reel Maintenance question

[hooknose]

So I'm in the process of giving my reels a clean and lube service and I have a question for you guys.

I know that carb cleaner is a typical solvent used for the cleaning part, I was wondering if there was anything wrong with using electronics cleaner?  I have a can of it that I bought to clean some sensors on my car "CRC Electronics cleaner" or somesuch, and I thought this would be a good way to use it up rather than go buy a new can of carb cleaner.  Any input?
Thanks

[Bank Bum]

Carb cleaner & reels dont mix,I tried this a few 10+yrs ago & tossed the reels,(Corrosion problems),maybe the newer carb cleaners are more mild,iam not sure of them,BUT,maybe you should contact the brewer & ask him his input on it & see what he  says on that cleaner (carb).
I just sent a reel to him,which I thought was un-fixable,he returned it & it works as if it were new, so my OLD Curado CU 200 is ALIVE AGAIN Thanks to the brewer 

[Chum Man]

it'll probably work just fine.  i normally use brake cleaner.

just don't get it on painted or anodized parts if you're really concerned about keeping the finish looking good.  i've used hot soapy water with fairly good results on less gunked-up reels too.

[wild rivers]

jason give me a call and ill tell you what to do ask ed what i did for his reel ill be happy to help you out correctly

[LL]

Why not help us all out right here Dan?

[Fast- eddy]

I agree with L L......Spill the beans Dan!

[Finfollower]

I agree with L L......Spill the beans Dan!

Will this be throw it in the river for a soak, or is that for rod conditioning?

[brewer]

solvents can be tricky. i don't use any spray can stuff.  for brass and gear parts i use a paint thinner called naptha.

simple green on the frame parts. becarefull with aluminum parts like the abu side plates. it does a great job! but it has a caustic solvent in the simple green. caustic will eat aluminum over time.  several minutes in a soak and a old tooth brush will do wonders at loosening the egggoo. 

just a heads up, i don't recommend spraying wd40 in reels either. the long term effects are a bugger to clean out later.

[wild rivers]

well ok than what i learned was to strip yer reel and wash the parts through with rubbing alcohol and a q tip it takes some time but gets that reel god and clean. for the deposit of grease and oil after i have cleaned my reel with the alcohol i make sure to dry all the parts through i use air cans or my compressor with the air out put turned way down after soaking parts this step is very important so GET THOSE PARTS DRY the next thing i do is i begin to add the proper lubricants to the proper parts i use three different lubes abu reel oil and abu reel grease than break free gun cleaner that's the big one that will give you the max performance in yer reel so put you're grease on the binding parts oil on rubbing parts 1 drop works fine DO NOT OVER OIL OR GREASE it will hinder yer reels performance after oil and grease are applied get the break free and spray on a q tip ind rub on all bearings and shafts (be generous) after that take a dry q tip and wipe off all parts that received break free there will be a thin bit left on yer parts you wont see it but it is there go for it and experiment with this and you will get it rite where you want it

so i cant give every detail but i thing this will get you there just fine and i hope i shared enough info

do not use break cleaners it will eat the plastic parts on yer reels if you do strip the reel and keep away from plastic parts

[hooknose]

Thanks Dan, Brewer, and all!  I like the rubbing alcohol idea, as the fumes are probably much more tolerable and healthy than some of the harsher solvents.

I'm guilty of using WD40 on reels and have recently heard that it is probably not the best choice out there.  I've done a little research and "Corrosion X" and "Reel X" have a pretty good reputation for a lubricant.  I think I'll try a hybrid from my research and the advice given here.   I'll be swapping out stock drags on two Revo reels for smoooth drags and giving the reels a thorough cleaning and relube in the process.

For those of you not familiar with smooth drags here's their website, check it out:
http://www.smoothdrag.com/index.html
Replace your stock drag washers once and your done.

Another great resource for schematics, tutorials and more about reel maintenance:
http://alantani.com/

[brewer]

the alan tani site is pretty cool. he actually opens bearings!

i thought that the revos' came stock with carbontex washers already? 

i use the hot sauce oil. i've read where the yellow rocket fuel is very popular too.  i'm thinking of trying that next.

[rvrfshr]

Use denatured alcohol, not rubbing...

What does cleaning a reel mean anyways?

[Todd]

I prefer the Quantam Hot Sauce, as well...

Fish on...

Todd

[Fast- eddy]

Hot sauce nothing.......Nice avatar Brewer.

[Chrome Ghost]

I was going to post something but then I seen brewers avatar...
















...ah yes the hot sauce, its the best Ive used yet and does make a difference in bearing and even bushing performance I have found.