icefisherman

I think the OP has had this reel apart and then not loaded the bearings correctly. What ever tightens the spool against the bearings might need the smallest adjustment. Giver a spin and tighten/loosen.

 

This is also why going from 3's to 7's doesn't work most of the time. All the tolerances are for abec3 of this brand and maybe the 7's are slightly wider/narrow you can never get the bearings loaded correctly.

Bought the reel new from Angling Outfitters one year ago and have never touched the bearings. In fact I haven never even opened it until last weekend and didn't know what is inside.

Cheers,

Ice Fisherman

Thanks Brian. You've said better than I ever could...

Now...just spoke to Islander (Heather is the lady Josh told me to speak with). Very nice lady...she wasn't too surprised with my problem...let her hear the spin on the phone (the "draft") and she said right away she knew about this issue and can and will fix it. Problem is I have to send it to them...(not unexpected of course)...I'll have to pay shipping to them...they'll cover the return...they'll void the $20 processing and handling fee they usually charge since it is under warranty, about 10 days for the whole process to complete...she said they are busy but will put my reel to the front of the line and prioritize it...so I am shipping it out today and hope no rain in the next 10 days so I don't fee too bad not having it and not be able to fish

She said she doesn't see the benefit in upgrading the bearings to ABEC7...not worth the money for the slight improvement....

I've asked about the BOCA bearings...she said if I decide to put those on, I am on my own as they don't put other bearing but their own...and she said it could be tricky removing the old bearings and if I screw up something I'll have to send the reel to them to fix it and then put the BOCA bearings myself...anyhow...I think I'll just stick with them replacing the current bearing with the same grade ones (ABEC3) unless someone can convince me in the next day or two why it is worth paying $70 extra for the upgrade to ABEC7 while the reel is in Vancouver.

So far good service on the Islander side....hope I can say the same when I get my reel back....will post.

Cheers,

Ice Fisherman

quite certain if you called AO, they would order the bearings and swap it out for you in a couple days or less. Provided that is the problem. When c-pins start to get loud or grindy, it is usually that the bearing race are cracked. Doesn't take much since they are highly hardened carbon steel.

I've done my own on several Ravens without issue but is good to let the pro's do it and hopefully show you the first time around.

I called Josh and went to see him at AO on Saturday. I am quite a distance away from him and can't be there in person too often. Specifically requested bearing replacement and he told me he cannot do it as he doesn't have them. According to him it has to be done by Islander. He recommended calling them directly which I'll be doing today. Knowing Josh I was hoping he can do more than that, even replace the reel with a new one, as he has done in the past on similar occasions...but he didn't offer. Anyhow...will know more later today after speaking with Islander and will post here. I also think it is most likely the bearings...

Cheers,

Ice Fisherman

Im fishing the wrong spots.

That's why I've been telling you to come this way

I really had a very good last season...considering it was my firs one with the float rod, weather and fish sure cooperated big time.

Cheers,

Ice Fisherman

With so few parts this thing is really so simple...it can't be anything but the bearing or the shaft...in both cases it doesn't speak well for manufacturer's quality....Reel looks like new...no dents of any kind...barely even any scratches...I do babysit it a lot...so I am sure I have not landed on it or caused the shaft to bent...Actually I have never felt while fishing rivers, it has been used for lets say...maybe 20-30 trips or so....

Just removed all the line to see what happens...the spin time (as insignificant as many here may say it is) went down from 3 min to 2.5 min and the rod is still vibrating while the reel is spinning...so yes...no need to be a rocket (or reel) scientist here to determine something is wrong with it....

Something else I observed...while spinning it as fast as I can, I gently put my finger so it touches the moving and not moving part of the reel at the same time. I can clearly feel the wobbling on my skin as it touches the spinning part at each revolution...If I then spin it slowly I can actually see from the side, the inside of the moving spool kind of coming in and out against the static frame next to it...

The distance or gap, periphery wise though looks to be OK and not changing while spinning.... this is the difference in the diameter between the spinning spool and static frame...with my naked eye it seems to be OK there....

So based on those simple observations and experiments it seems the inside of the spinning spool is the one that is doing the wobbling, not the outside diameter...this leads me to think that it has to be the bearings allowing microscopical movements along/parallel to the shaft (not perpendicular to it)....or the spool itself has not been machined well and the inside of it is uneven creating vibrations when spinning....can't prove it without specialized measuring tools but this is what it seems to me so far....

It would have been nice if I had another reel available to temporary swap spools and see what happens...but no such luck...

Cheers,

Ice Fisherman

Nope, never had any incident with the reel...always been very careful with it, backing still in place as put there by Josh a year ago...even avoid dipping it in the water as I've seen many others do....if Islander covers shipping charges both ways for reels under warranty I agree sending it to them for servicing is a better option. Does anyone have experience with using their warranty...do they cover shipping both ways?

Hope the turn around time is within a week.

Cheers,

Ice Fisherman

Good point Wayne. I am hoping they'll agree to cover all shipping charges and repairs/replacements, considering reel is under warranty.

Some one mentioned Boca ceramic bearing...according to this:

http://www.bocabearings.com/productdetail.aspx?ItemID=16985&ProductGroupID=0&ProductSubGroupID=152&MFGSYSID=0&MODSYSID=4414&ApplicationID=0&ProductGroupName=&ProductSubGroupName=Ceramic%20Orange%20Seal%20ABEC%207&ApplicationName=CENTER%20PIN%20REEL&ManufacturerName=&ModelName=STEELHEAD&Feature=CENTER%20PIN%20REEL

It'll cost me $29.95 for a pair of Ceramic Orange Seal ABEC 7 bearings for my Islander, with free shipping...based on what Islander says on the phone on Monday I'll either send it to them for (hopefully) quick repair and return...or take care of it myself by replacing the bearings. If so, I will try the trick with the hair drier. I assume I'll need to put the new or cleaned up baring back in place again using loctite, right?

Cheers,

Ice Fisherman

Been playing with it all night...here is what I've noticed...in addition to been noisy and slow spinning it also wobbles badly ....I have the bottom end of my float rod on the carpet and the rod laying under 45 degrees angle against my desk and spin the reel...only use the bottom portion of the rod for this experiment...so when I spin the reel fast the section of the rod that extends above the desk vibrates really badly...has to be something wrong either with the bearing or with the shaft....in order for such a violent shaking of the rod.

Josh tried convincing me today there is nothing wrong with the reel but the more i play with it the more I feel it is in need of repair.

Cheers,

Ice Fisherman

Well taking pictures of steelhead lying beside your reel on the river bank/dirt/mud doesn't do anything good for the bearings. You may not want to do that in the future.

 

Send it back to islander and they will take care of it for you. They are very reputable and have excellent customer service.

I hope they fix this problem for me. Will call them on Monday and see what they say...what bother me is it'll likely leave with no reel for some time. Considering Islander is on the West Coast it'll probably take a week or two turn around time...not ideal right in the middle of the float season.

Thanks for your input.

So I'll ask them and see if they can guide me how to do the repair myself if at all possible.

Cheers,

Ice Fisherman

Forget how many minutes it spins for because that means nothing on the river, how does it fish?

 

If it really bugs you, pull the bearings and degrease them then put a tiny amount of sewing machine oil on each. Problem most likely solved.

Kemper,

It got me lot of fish since I owe it...probably over 250 bows over the last year. It bothers me not because it is not getting me fish but because it is spinning worse than it was a year ago. I tried removing the bearings but couldn't do it...they seem to be pressed in the housing...is there any trick for removing them?

Cheers,

Ice Fisherman

Bought one of the so very highly recommended Islander center pin reels a year ago from Josh in Woodstock. It did cost me good money more than some less expensive reels but I was told it is one of the better reels out there. Reel worked fine last year but I am noticing much slower spinning and humming noise when spinning it. The most it spins for is about 3 min and this is after quite the work out on my side. Pretty sure something is wrong with the bearings. Not that many parts inside anyways so it can't be anything else...not sure why those things cost so much...it seems the simplest piece of machinery....

I remember it been much quieter and faster spinning when it was new. Islander has 2 years warranty, so it is still covered...did major cleaning yesterday...oiled it...no improvement...took it to Josh today...he did the e same...no improvement...not sure what to do with it, but not impressed for sure with its reliability...I see on You Tube people spinning it for 10 min and mine can't do 1/3 of that...what this amount to is often when fishing the river I need to help it start releasing line by pulling my line by hand or by jerking the float...not ideal...Will probably try calling Islander on Monday to see what they say, but this whole thing is not making me very happy to say the least...also not thrilled with having to send it across the country and be with out reel for who knows how long in the middle of the float season.

Hope some one has an idea/advise how to improve spinning time and decrease the humming noise that comes out of it.

Thanks.

Cheers,

Ice Fisherman

Thanks guys. Will wait till next weekend to take the kids out. Hope the bigger ones start schooling in their usual areas. If the little ones are there the big ones should be following them soon.

Did Caseys have shiners?

Cheers,

Ice Fisherman

Haven't read many recent reports on Lake Simcoe perching this fall. Has the bite in the usual spots started? Barrie? Pefferlaw? May take the kids for half a day of fun as we usually do this time of the year but before burning all the gas better ask if they are biting. Also who has minnows? Caseys?

The only person fishing is the driver...the rest of the people on the boat are just waiting to reel in your hook ups...sounds like a good year...cheers!

Definitely the best year I've ever had on lake O.

Especially with the Coho's earlier in the season...have never seen so many Cohos along the North Shore...all good signs for the Lake O. fishery for sure.

Cheers,

Ice Fisherman

Hehehe, that's not him!

Emil hasn't brought a fish in himself all year... he finds them and makes his guests do all the work. Probably over 300 this year!

I still think he should give up his day job, put a set of Walker downriggers on the boat and start a charter business.

Well...the thing is...Brian is right...and this is not counting over 600 perch and bunch of lake Erie eyes...

5-6 trips of over 30 salmon in the boat...many more between 15-30...and season is not over yet...plenty more to be caught from the boat and bows in the river ;-)

And yes I am mostly ...just the driver

Cheers,

Ice Fisherman

Took one more shot at the Blue Zone today with a friend of mine. Took a while to find them but then it was non stop action for the last hour or so.

Ended up 12/17 for the day. Most fish on Black/Purple NK28....Mostly bows with some big clean silver Kings on flies....biggest was 18.5 lbs and we lost even bigger one at the boat after tangling into another line...nice weather...lots of boats out...fish was cooperating...can't ask for much more. Few shots from the day...

Cheers,

Ice Fisherman

Outstanding read Mike. Thanks for the pleasure. It was almost as if I was there

Maybe one day I will....

Cheers,

Ice Fisherman

Took few good friends and my kids out today to take advantage of the nice weather. Took us a while to find them...started with few nice silver kings and followed up with bunch of bows later on. Spoons(watermelon NK Mag, Monkey Puke Mag, Michael Jackson) and flies (green, blue and white) all worked...200-300 fow, 55'-65' down. 2.5-2.7 mph at the ball.

Ended up 12/15 with last two lost fish been the biggest...last one broke my 50 lbs fluoro line between the treble and single hook on the A-Tom-Mik fly.

Few shots from the day:

Cheers,

Ice Fisherman

Got tired of all this weekend wind last few weeks so took the kids and a friend's of mine dad who is visiting him from overseas and launched at Bronte at 6pm (ouchh again for the $17 parking fee, last time I am paying it this year)....lots of boats in shallow...60-90 fow...some marks but no bites so we kept heading deeper...nothing happening until we reached the 200' fow...then the show started...double and triple header...lots of lively clean silver fish biting crazy...kings, coho and bows....had a busy hour before getting dark...lots of boats were still trolling for the old boots in tight...I guess they stay there all night...not a big fan of those half dead fish...much prefer to let them go do their thing and make babies...

Flies and spoons all fired....55-65 feet down....2.5-2.7 mph at the ball....down temp was about 60 degrees

8/12 for the 1.5 hrs of fishing wasn't bad

No pictures this time as it was busy when the bite was hot and then it got too dark for the blackberry....

Nice even though short evening trip...Will do some more later in the month, plenty of fish still around...

Cheers,

Ice Fisherman

Outstanding as always Simon

Cheers,

Ice Fisherman

Do most nurseries carry the liquid fish with kelp? I have just been using Miracle grow every two weeks to fertilize but would rather use a organic product.

I found it here:

http://www.damseeds.ca/productcart/pc/viewcategories.asp?idCategory=2607

Haven't seen in in any other nurseries...but you maybe able to order it on line.

Cheers,

Ice Fisherman

Well actually I am growing Ghost pepper plants right now...have 6 pots of them in different stages also have tons of habanero, jalapeno, scorpion etc. ...first year doing the ghost pepper...done all the "regular" (jalapeno, habanero etc.) many times, but wanted to try what is rated the hottest pepper out there...I've read Indian army is using them to make bombs for dispersing demonstrators...Anyhow...ghost pepper plants love hot weather and lots of humidity...good rich compost soil and that is pretty much all...I also give them half a hand full of bone meal and Drammatic "K" Liquid Fish with Kelp every 2 weeks. Mine are loaded with peppers and keep blooming and getting more and more pods...see the picture bellow...can't wait to see them fully ripen by end of season...I am going to be keeping them all indoors in winter and bringing them back out next spring. Peppers are perennial plants. Friend of mine gave me couple small jars of hot pepper oil...consisting of mixture of ghost pepper seeds and regular chilly pepper...this thing rocks...love the taste of it...so I've decided next year to make my own sauce...can't wait to see how it turns out.

Cheers,

Ice Fisherman

When I picked up mine yesterday the CT store in Milton had 2 more left.

Cheers,

Ice Fisherman

No you don't. It has 9 as you stated.

 

Well actually it says on their web site that reel has a total of 19 bearings:

http://www.pfluegerfishing.com/products/products.php?p=12

9 stainless steel ball bearings AND One Instant anti-reverse one-way clutch bearing

If you look right under the picture it says "10 bearing system" Not that it makes that much of a difference...

Anyhow it is a very good reel....having a second one should last me for a while...

Cheers,

Ice Fisherman

So Brian, how much was the hat itself?

I've been thinking of getting one of those from their Toronto store for quite some time...

And yes you haven't been picky enough.,...if you were...you would have gotten a free new hat

Cheers,

Ice Fisherman