By Chris Beardsley
My first saltwater rod and reel was a budget Okuma Metallix, complete with a 7-foot medium-action rod and a Metallix MT 40 spinning reel. It was a vacation purchase meant to get me by while sitting on the beach in Florida. After nearly 20 years, it’s been dropped, dunked and dragged through the sand. It’s caught bull reds, puppy drum, whiting, trout and quite a few sharks up to 40 inches.
Annual maintenance kept it squeak, sand and salt free, but… oh that drag. The best words to describe it are jerky, sticky and unpredictable. While fighting fish, I often had to dial it way back because it would refuse to release except only under maximum pressure. I cleaned the felt washers, removing all dirt, grease, etc. and reassembled it with virtually no improvement.
I learned to live with it, but it was soon relegated to the back of the closet. Why bother keeping it? Just throw it away, right? I considered that, but if you’re like me you want to drive it until the wheels fall off. Fix it until it can’t be fixed. Since the drag was the offending component I started there.
Theoretically, the drag on a spinning reel is really very simple. It’s very much like the clutch or brakes on a car; apply pressure to discs of various materials and let friction do the rest. As the pressure increases, friction also increases generating heat. Like all reels, over time the wear and tear from pressure and heat cause the drag material (i.e. felt, leather, etc.) to become less effective and very much a liability. Eventually the felt is virtually useless, leaving only metal-on-metal braking.
Replacing your drag washers with something more reliable and stable is a great way to breathe new life into an old or cheap reel. I knew that replacing old felt washers with new felt wasn’t an option, but what then? After a bit of research, carbon fiber seemed the clear leader. For me it wasn’t about increased drag pressure, which is a primary reason to switch to carbon replacements. Instead, I was looking for smooth, controlled drag that released evenly.
You can purchase ready-made washers from companies such as Smoooth Drag or purchase a sheet of carbon fiber and make your own. Regardless, don’t forget to replace the small, often neglected drag washer located between the main gear and shaft carrier base plate. When you remove the spool, it will be the small washer sitting on top of the gear.
New carbon washers were installed in the old Metallix last year, and it’s now better than new. It’s smooth and releases evenly. No more tense moments as I dial it back. Since then I’ve replaced the washers on another favorite with excellent results.
Regardless of whether you decide to make your own or order a set, replacing your tired, worn washer stack will be a significant improvement and just might breathe new life into an old favorite.