Tips and tricks?

[Reel Newbie]

Sorta like the thread on alantani, let’s combine our knowledge and start a thread on all the cheap tricks that we use to improve quality of life when fishing. Sharing the common sense and knowledge that we’ve gained through years of fishing can really help the newer members of the pier fishing community and bring up ideas that we may have never thought of.

My trick: swap the snap on sabikis for a heavier brass safety snap and wrap around a pool noodle after rinsing and drying them to get the most out of your $2 investment. Also, heavier line on your sabikis lead to more manageable tangles when you have 5 fish on.

 

[Reel Newbie]

No responses to this thread, so might as well add some more tricks of my own. I saw this on YouTube a long time ago, forgot the guy’s channel, but use rubber furniture leg tips to protect the butt end of your cork or foam rod handle when fishing a pier.

 

[Reel Newbie]

A can of scrubbing bubbles will usually get most stains and smell out of a fish cooler.

 

[Reel Newbie]

Any new input would be nice, running out of knowledge right about now...

Freeze water in water bottles or 1 liter soda bottles and use that instead of ice. Keeps longer and is reusable, and no melted ice water in your cooler.

 

[mav]

No responses to this thread, so might as well add some more tricks of my own. I saw this on YouTube a long time ago, forgot the guy’s channel, but use rubber furniture leg tips to protect the butt end of your cork or foam rod handle when fishing a pier. View attachment 496

I do that on my custom rods. Never really thought about it.

I like the one on freezing bottles too.

Well, I noticed that if you leave sea water in a bucket or cooler long enough, it makes the old fishy smell go away.

 

[Reel Newbie]

Drill holes in a small pill bottle or similar sized container and put your aerator stone inside it. This prevents crabs from pinching the air stone in half.

 

[Reel Newbie]

Any new input is welcome.

Don’t spool on braid loose and with electrical tape on the arbor of your reels. Had one of my reels grow some corrosion on the spool arbor where the old tape was, now coated it with marine grease. Instead, make a few loops around the arbor of the spool with the braid and then tie the knot. To spool braid on tight without a line winder, remove the braid first and spool that on any conventional reel. Set the drag on the conventional with the braid to around your drag pressure and reel the braid onto your reel.

 

[Reel Newbie]

How to keep abu levelwinds in sync:

 

[mav]

I like that. What’s that little ball?

I usually just tie the line to the reel seat but I’d like to do that while the rod is in use for the day.

 

[Reel Newbie]

That little ball is some bead I had lying around. I tie do tie the line to the reel seat on some reels, but then I’d have to untie the knot afterwards, so I tried this way.

 

[Reel Newbie]

My mind’s running low on ideas, can I have some of yours?

Can’t cast a conventional without backlash because your thumb isn’t trained enough yet? This is a problem, especially with older OG penn tanks. One way to help this problem is with a static mag. Through the magic of science(lenzs law for the science majors here), small high power magnets near the spinning metal spool can slow it down. More alternating magnets = more proportional braking power = less likely to backlash.
Here’s an example on my 140 squidder, the top of the line made in USA bearing reel 60 years “obsolete”:

Hot glue 3 small metal nuts to the non-handle side of the reel, just high enough to clear the clicker.(forgot to put in the third one)

Hot glue on top of it a steel cookie tin cut out to hold the magnets in place, make sure the spool does not catch to it.

Install neodymium magnets alternating the poles, so north, south, north, etc. I get my tiniest magnets from dead earphones and you can get bigger ones from toys, hard drives or wherever. Add or take out magnets based on skill and the weight of the lead/ lure. I recommend filling the plate with magnets for beginners casting just to figure out your level with the reel. I currently use 3, but magnets are in all different sizes, so your results may vary.

Make sure that this mod clears the spool and allows the clicker to still function. Also check for spool binding and adjust as needed. Lightly grease the magnets so that they have some protection against corrosion. Another side note, this is easiest to adjust on the jig master, surf master and squidder because of the one screw take apart feature. Good luck with your modifications and tight lines.

 

[mav]

Oooo! Penn 140'squidder. One of my favorites! None of mine are magged because they were the first reels I learned to cast on. Trial by fire on old Penns and Shimano low pros. I can pick a backlash out in very low light. Lol

I've seen many mag jobs though. They sell small magnets at home depot and what I've seen people do is to find washers that are a close diameter. Then glue the washers to the side plate and apply the magnets, alternating polarities. Add a coat of Reel X or Speed X to prevent rust.

Never thought about pulling magnets out of broken headphones. I'm always breaking small headphones too.

I do a lot of things without really thinking about them. I use a short piece of cotton rope or leather strip to wrap around and hold my rods together when on the move. I use those little plastic non reactive crayon holders from walmart to hold my plastics. I carry a lighter around to fix my plastics when fish tear them up. I leave cards from sabikis and jigs over my clear jig tackle boxes to discourage attention.

 

[Reel Newbie]

I was raised on spinners man, first reel I had was a locked up uncle’s rockfish special. Dad cleaned it up for me back then and 10 years later and I still fish it. Just started trying conventionals not too long ago, with a squidder and an abu. I’m not that good yet...

Speaking of rod ties, I saw on YouTube that inner tube rubber is good for a general purpose rubber band. Another trick with inner tubes is to hook a small piece over your bait to hold it in place. Learned that one on Pacifica.

 

[Red Fish]

My mind’s running low on ideas, can I have some of yours?

Can’t cast a conventional without backlash because your thumb isn’t trained enough yet? This is a problem, especially with older OG penn tanks. One way to help this problem is with a static mag. Through the magic of science(lenzs law for the science majors here), small high power magnets near the spinning metal spool can slow it down. More alternating magnets = more proportional braking power = less likely to backlash.
Here’s an example on my 140 squidder, the top of the line made in USA bearing reel 60 years “obsolete”:
View attachment 582
Hot glue 3 small metal nuts to the non-handle side of the reel, just high enough to clear the clicker.(forgot to put in the third one)
View attachment 583
Hot glue on top of it a steel cookie tin cut out to hold the magnets in place, make sure the spool does not catch to it.
View attachment 585
Install neodymium magnets alternating the poles, so north, south, north, etc. I get my tiniest magnets from dead earphones and you can get bigger ones from toys, hard drives or wherever. Add or take out magnets based on skill and the weight of the lead/ lure. I recommend filling the plate with magnets for beginners casting just to figure out your level with the reel. I currently use 3, but magnets are in all different sizes, so your results may vary.
View attachment 584
Make sure that this mod clears the spool and allows the clicker to still function. Also check for spool binding and adjust as needed. Lightly grease the magnets so that they have some protection against corrosion. Another side note, this is easiest to adjust on the jig master, surf master and squidder because of the one screw take apart feature. Good luck with your modifications and tight lines.

Here is the 1st cousin to your reel.
I had mags and took them out. The little rare earth magnets (cup washers with magnets) that I superglued to the sides. Yeah, you should coat with some sort of gease or you could introduce a little rust.
I wouldn’t say obsolete as the HuliCat (charter) still had some obsolete 113’s, Long Beaches on their rental Ugly Sticks/Cousins rods filled with like 30# monofilament. So, they still catch fish.
I use them in the last (5) years mainly to put line on and pull like off other reels.
Bonus round-Jigmaster
I would love to find the red side plates for the Squidder. Jiggy is clean with original sides and original red anodized aluminum spool.

 

[mav]

I was raised on spinners man, first reel I had was a locked up uncle’s rockfish special. Dad cleaned it up for me back then and 10 years later and I still fish it. Just started trying conventionals not too long ago, with a squidder and an abu. I’m not that good yet...

Speaking of rod ties, I saw on YouTube that inner tube rubber is good for a general purpose rubber band. Another trick with inner tubes is to hook a small piece over your bait to hold it in place. Learned that one on Pacifica.

No problem. There are situations where a spinner is a better tool for the job than a conventional. What I meant by casting was distance casting. I first learned to fish on spinners too.

Velcro tape stuck together can be used to hold your individual tackle boxes together or closed. Good for holding rods together too. I only went to the rope/leather thing with the rods because I kept losing the smaller strips of Velcro.

Oh, Sometimes I use dental floss to hold on large pieces of mussels or clams to the hook. Also works for large ghost shrimp.

The Happy Wanderer - Thanks for the link. I’ve also seen a large thin washer glued to plastic spools, since plastic isn’t magnetic.

Red Fish - Those are some nice reels. Looks like a Jigmaster 500s and a Squidder 140 on Accurate frames? I built a “99s” on Newell bars and I have a couple of 140s. I found out the hard way. You don’t know you need it until you need it. So I still keep my old Penns around.

 

[Reel Newbie]

Oooooh nice reels... if only I could shell out the 60 bucks for a frame. They just aren’t like the new reels, with instant ar and high gear ratios.

 

[Reel Newbie]

These reels are truly tanks, being able to last this long being fished. Easy to maintain too, and easy to upgrade. I am trying to find some cheap Newell parts though, trying to upgrade the reels if just a little, while keeping that retro look to it.

 

[Red Fish]

Oooooh nice reels... if only I could shell out the 60 bucks for a frame. They just aren’t like the new reels, with instant ar and high gear ratios.

At the time, I think it was early 2000’s, I wanted the frame and the body. The frame was $50, they wanted $90 for the sides. So, for basically a $50.00 reel, you’d be better off buying like an Avet Mx on sale for the same price. And, the frames pit where they touch metal with the slightest corrosion.
I have still gotten some of my best longcasts and catches on that squidder and Penn 525GS. Mostly sturgeon, angel shark.

 

[Reel Newbie]

Marine grease is your best friend on any unexposed metal, and it is still a good find for a 20$ yard sale reel. I swapped some steel gears, longer handle and ht100s into it from a couple of my parts reels. Also swapped the old plastic spool for a slightly scratched Newell spool and spooled it with some 20lb~ish hi vis mono. Now I need to rebuild a rod for it... can’t just keep using it on my ambassador rod.

 

[Reel Newbie]

Another tip for the really, really new guys: rinse your reels with freshwater after every trip and dry them with a towel. Tighten drags down on spinners and rinse with low pressure. This prevents corrosion, a green crust from forming on your metal parts. Afterwards, wipe down the metal parts of the reel with some oil or wd40. This gives some protection from corrosion on the next trip. Pay special attention to bail rollers, as some have bearings inside that will rust and seize up. Oil when necessary or they will become crunchy bushings.