shimano tld star 15/30 rebuild

go to the shimano website and pull up the schematics.

http://fish.shimano.com/media/fishing/SAC/techdocs/en/Conventional/90TLD15_30S-ARB_v1_m56577569830570229.pdf

http://fish.shimano.com/media/fishing/SAC/techdocs/en/Conventional/90TLD20_40S-ARB_v1_m56577569830570230.pdf

here's your reel.  looks vaguely familiar, doesn't it.





let's start with the left side.  remove the four left side plate screws (key #114).



inside the left side plate assembly (key #211) is a click spring (key #67) that needs a light coat of grease.  you will also find a spool shaft bushing "b" (key #57).



the bushing is 4x11x4 mm. 





we're going to upgrade this to a bearing and lube it with corrosion x. 



remove the spool (key #110) and find the right spool bearing (key #482).



this bearing is 6x12x4 mm.  we'll clean it with carb cleaner and compressed air, then lube it with corrosion x.



a light coat of grease goes on the ends of the spool.



remove the rod clamp assembly and grease the bolts. 





install the spool (key #110).



install the left side plate assembly (key #211) and left side plate screws (key #114).  these few steps are all that are required for routine maintenance of this reel. 



now for the right side.  remove the handle nut plate screw (key #128) and handle nut plate (key #2).



remove the handle nut (key #129) with a 10mm wrench.



remove the handle (key #414).



remove the handle washer (key #78) and star (key #79).



remove the two right side plate screws "b" (key #109).



remove the four right side plate screws "a" (key #81).



remove the right side plate assembly (key #209).



here's a close up of the gear assembly.  take particular note of the size and strength of this stainless steel main gear and pinion gear.  these are much more heavy duty than the gear sets found in equivalent size trinidads and toriums.



the washer stack is oriented "()()|B|", with four drag spring washers (key #92), a bearing thrust washer (key #91), an 8x16x5 mm bearing (key #483) and a star drag washer (key #80).  remove and set them aside.



now carefully remove the stainless steel and canvas drag washers, one at a time.  i've cleaned them and lined them up for the photo.  from left to right is the drive shaft washer (key #100), the drive gear (key #133), the eared washer "b" (key #98), key washer "c" (key #97), drag washer "i" (key #96), eared washer "e" (key #95), drag washer "d" (key #94), and key washer "f" (key #93).   



carbontex drag washers from smoothdrag.com are not available as of 1/2008.  if there is sufficient demand, that may change.  here are the approximate dimensions of the drag washers. 



and here is a set of penn ht-100 drag washers pulled from my inventory that offer the best fit.  from  left to right, they are the #6-309, #6-116. #56-440 and #6-440.



apply a coat of cal's drag grease to all four of the carbon fiber drag washers.



use an old toothbrush to apply a light coat of grease to the carbon fiber baseplate.  install the #6-309 drag washer and the drive gear (key #133).



install the remaining metal and carbon fiber drag washers.



install the drag spring washers (key #92) oriented "()()".



install the bearing thrust washer (key #91).



grease and install the drive shaft bearing (key #483).



install the star drag washer (key #80).



apply a light coat of grease to the inside of the right side plate assembly (key #209).



install the right side plate, noting the "up"  position of the yoke plate (key #259) and "forward" position of the clutch lever (key #132).



wiggle the clutch lever back a little and the right side plate should seat properly with a snap!



install the four right side plate screws "a" (key #81).



install the two right side plate screws "b" (key #109).



paint a little grease on the drive shaft (key #102).  this is a common area for corrosion.



now, decision time.  you have the stock handle (key #414) on the left and two handles that have stock arms and custom grips.  these custom grips are made for me by a local machine shop.  the tapered grip (key #414M) in the center is prefered by most people.  the larger grip (key #414L) is my favorite.  since it's my reel, we'll go with the larger grip.



install the star drag (key #79), the handle washer (key #78), and the new handle (key #414L).  put a little grease on the handle arm around the drive shaft.



install and properly align the 10mm handle nut (key #129).



install the handle nut plate (key #2) and screw (key #128).



done!





now for a few comments.  for purposes of checking the drag only, i loaded this reel up with straight 40# mono.  i kept on cranking down on the star and got an easy 20#'s of drag.  just looking at the frame, i'm guessing that the graphite frame could handle that much pressure with no problem at all.  and unlike the shimano trinidad and torium, i see no anti-reverse problems with 20#'s of drag.  i think this reel could easily handle 300-350 yards of 60# hollowcore spectra, a short 40-50# topshot, and up to 20#'s of drag. 

with greased carbon fiber, the drag washers should last forever.  with the bearings cleaned out, it should cast just fine.  the graphite frame is nice because it is non-corrosive.  and this reel is going to be one of the easiest to service.  simply remove the left side plate and you have easy access to both bearings. 

there you have it.  high speed, easy to upgrade, easy to maintain, spectra worthy with 20#'s of drag, handle upgrade options, and a small well balanced frame.  for a graphite star drag, this reel gets my vote for best in it's class

Boy, that almost makes it look easy. Very nice tutorial.

great post alan.

now, you went out on a limb with that best in class comment,  .

hmmm, and what's this? a handsaw,  .

looks like they sell them for about $100:

http://www.islanddiscounttackle.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=TLD1530S&Category_Code=TLD_Star

I could see best in class perhaps after your upgrade...

but maybe not before?

how do you compare it to the penn mag 525 or 535 or daiwa sealine SL-X20SHA?

http://www.shootnhunt.com/catalog/JM/reels/daiwa/sealine/0001-2111.html
http://www.eangler.com/product/477673131.htm

http://www.eangler.com/product/477832539.htm
http://www.eangler.com/product/477836571.htm

too bad neither of these reels come in left handed versions either...

J

well, yes, of course, after an upgrade.  it's the cheapest of the lot.  and did you notice the HUGE stainless steel main gear?  that really makes the reel.  the thing i like best is that this reel is the easiest to work on.  it's a great reel in that regard.  alan

I did notice that. Newell reels have those nice stainless gears, I don't know how they match up, but I guess the drag washer size limits the drag to less than the tld.

btw, I always tought tld meant "t-something Lever Drag", so the star TLD's seem like an oxymoron to me.

also, where was the "titanium" in the drag? looked like canvas to me. 'cept maybe for that middle washer.

Also, having a bearing in the gear mechanism and then only one on the spool looks strange, but that is also how their old baitcasters like the BTX-100 series work too. same sticky canvas drags to boot.  But the gears, tho brass, are big, and there is a dog, not an IAR bearing, so I guess those little old shimano reels are probably pretty strong too. seems like their newer offerings are weaker! bring back those 80's shimano engineers!

John

john, when you go to the ise next week, be sure to ask all of those questions.