hotrodding the ambassaduer 5 and 6 series

when i first started doing reel seminars 5 years ago, one fourth of the reels brought in were ambassaduers.  initially, they took up a third of the time.  it took quite a while, but i figured out the right combination of penn ht-100 drag washers and metal washers.  my problem was always a space issue.  the penn washers i had were always too thick.  recently, dawn at http://www.smoothdrag.com/ came out with a line of carbontex drag washers that fit perfectly.  just slap on a coat of cal or shimano drag grease, switch out the drags and witness the miracle!

many of you have these old ambassaduers.  it had been a love/hate relationship.  



good looks and cheap, but unreliable.  well, i want all of you to pull out those old seized up ambassaduers, and get ready to fall in love all over again.  this is one reel that anyone can fix at home.  here's how....

first, check out the smoothdrag website at  http://www.smoothdrag.com/ and check out the carbontex drag washers.  DO NOT get the old green or black smoothies.  then call the smoothdrag lady.  her name is dawn and her phone number is (760) 949-0271.  order up a set of drag washers and some of cal's drag washer grease.  she is absolutely one of the nicest people in the world.  and tell her alan said hi!

next, go the the ambassaduer website  at http://www.abugarcia.com/schematics/index.cfm  and find the schematic for your reel.  just as an example, i'm going to pick ambassaduer -> c3 -> 5500 -> 9909.pdf.  let's start....

start with the left side plate.  back off one screw (key #199)  ONLY.  squirt a small amount of grease into the screw hole and put the screw back!!!!  do not remove the side plate.  remove the next two screws, one at a time, and grease them as well.  



remove the handle nut  cap and screw (key #'s 14868, 96274 and 15359)



remove the c-clip (key #4490)



remove the handle nut (key #15359), the handle (key # 24500), the stainless steel spring (key # 5115), the star (key # 24502) and the cast control knob (key #'s 21717, 20917, and 20090)



remove the right side plate assembly (note that this photo shows the cast control knob still in place.  it must be removed first).



separate the reel as shown below.



lube the level wind assembly.



lube the left spool bearing (key #13472) by popping out the nylon sprocket gear (key #23403).  don't forget to pop it back in!



lube the right spool bearing (key #13472)



replace the spool assembly (key #970823) back into the frame and insert the spool shaft (key #802630)




now, for the right side plate.  remove the two right side plate bridge screws (key # 5229)



NOTE THIS IMPORTANT DIFFERENCE:  older reels have a more reliable anti-reverse dog (key #20671).  note that the dog has to "grab" the ratchet gear at base of the gear sleeve (key #22079), as shown in the schematic that i've chosen to work with.  newer reels have a less reliable anti-reverse roller bearing, as shown in the photo below

if you have a dog, note the proper position of the dog now, and make sure it is reassembled in the same way.  

remove the right side plate cover (key #24511).   note that the anti-reverse roller bearing sleeve and the two cupped pressure washers (key #5131) stayed with the side plate cover.



grease the screw holes



separate the drag/gear cluster as shown.  note left to right, the ....

thrust washer (key #5189)
gear sleeve (key # 22079)
fiber washer (key # 13169)
main gear (key #21200)
3 alternating drag washers (key #20907)
flat slotted metal washer (key #20906)
flat keyed metal washer (key #20905)
cupped slotted metal washer (key #20960)

also shown in the photo are four new carbon fiber drag washers and a second flat slotted metal washer.  ignore the second flat slotted metal washer.  



apply a generous coat of cal or shimano drag grease to the new carbontex drag washers, rebuild the gear drag/gear cluster and discard the orginal ambassaduer drag washers.  


if your reel has a dog (key # 20671), put the dog back onto the ratchet gear (key # 22079), install the spacer (key #22001)  and then drop the drag/gear cluster back onto the right side plate base (key #24508) .

if your reel has an anti-reverse roller bearing, replace the roller bearing sleeve as shown in the photo below.



replace the right side plate bridge screws (key # 13369) and install the cupped pressure washers in a "()" orientation as shown below.



find the small white plastic brakes on the spool (key #20211) and press them in.  failure to do this and the right side plate assembly may not seat properly.



install the right side plate assembly back onto the frame.  make sure that the brakes are pressed "in" and that the anti-reverse dog is also "in."  the right side plate assembly should seat cleanly, flush and with a "snap."  tighten down the three right side plate screws. now check to make sure that the gear sleeve (key # 22079) turns freely and that the anti-reverse mechanism functions properly.  



install the cast control cap assembly.





install the star and spring.



grease and install the handle.



install the handle nut and c-clip



install the handle nut cap and retaining screw.



pat yourself on the back and have a beer.  well done!

Alan... that type of information is great.  

I've been breaking down my Ambassadeurs myself for a couple years now and the first time was not smooth.  

I'll also attest to the fact that this "wet-drag" upgrade makes these reels a whole different animal.  I do the same type of upgrade on my Shimano TR-100's and 200's (with your help with parts).  It's a great way to make an inexpensive but durable reel function like a not-so-inexpensive reel.

Erik

All this for free Thanks Alan. May you Catch Many Big Fish  

Alan... thank you so much!  

That is awesome!  Thanks!  I have an ABU that can be hotrodded up!

I wish someone would post a "how to" like that for a jig master, I took completely apart, and now cant back together...      

Chris

cool! I ordered 4 sets of washers and some grease.

I haven't been able to bear using my non-alan-tani modified reels.

I forgot to tell dawn my phone call was all alan's fault.
alan you can claim 4 sales.

the washers are also for sale @
http://www.mikesreelrepair.com/product_info.php?cPath=47_66&products_id=47732
but it looks like they are cheaper direct.

Alan,

That was a great tutorial on the Ambassador drag up grade! Have to order me a few sets of those carbons........

Awesome Allen.

Now I wish I kept my broken down Abu reel.

That is awesome!  Thanks!  I have an ABU that can be hotrodded up! I wish someone would post a "how to" like that for a jig master, I took completely apart, and now cant back together...       Chris

chris, keep an eye on the boards.  i'll put one together for you.

Alan did this to all of my Abus and what a difference.  Nice how-to Alan, thanks!

alantani wrote:

chris, keep an eye on the boards. i'll put one together for you.

Sweet!  My Jigmaster is completely taken apart, every screw, washer, cogswell cog, everything.  It looked easy enough to put back together.    Look forward to your thorough tutorial!   Chris

okay, one 5500 down, a 4600 and a 6501 SSC4 to go, thanks!

I have a penn GTI 330. How hard is it to lube the drags on that?
will it go 'boing' if I open it up?

here's an abbreviated penn 113h rebuild.  note that the 330 gti is very similar.  if you can do a 113h, you can do anything. 

i will go through the full tutorial later.  here's the short version.....

1. first, assemble the bridge, main gear, drag washers and all metal washers up to and including the tension spring (#8A) and set this aside. if you grease the drag washers, it will not fall apart.





2. start with a bare side plate. install the eccentric, the eccentric spring and the eccentric lever (freespool lever). no problem here, right?













3. there are four bridge screws. two are threaded at just the tip. the clutch springs ride up and down on these. two are threaded the entire length. don't mix them up.



insert the four bridge screws.



cover two screws with your left index finger, cover two with your left middle finger. the side plate should be oriented so that the free spool lever is closest to the palm of your hand.



note that you can now flip over the site plate and play with the guts of the reel without the screws falling out. you do not need to use masking tape anymore.



4. flip the side plate over and look at the empty guts. install the clutch springs.



install the pinion gear and yoke as a unit.



install the eccentric jack.



install the bridge/main gear/drag assembly. orient the bridge plate to it's final position just to get your bearings. now rotate the bridge plate 90 degrees counter-clockwise.



install the dog.



 rotate the bridge plate clockwise until it covers three of the bridge screws. now continue to rotate the bridge plate until it covers just half of the last and final bridge screw.



see the small gap??????? this is where the dog spring goes. take a deep breath. hold it. now insert the dog spring in through the gap and gently push it down into position with your index finger. be careful not to let it fly off into neverland. ok, it's in. breathe.



6. rotate the bridge plate clockwise until it lines up with the bride screws. hear the click?



cinch down each screw. check to see that the freespool lever works. check the anti-reverse mechanism. when the reel is finally assembled



you need to make sure you can get 20#'s of drag.   if not,one of the keyed metal washers is probably not seated properly. you have to do this all over again.

hmm, the penn looks like extra for experts. looks like 3 hands and special
tools required. I'll save that for last. it has
carbon drag washers in there already, plus I almost never use it, all I'm
trying to do is grease them, I wonder if it is worth it.

alan, your tutorials with pics are excellent, you should start videotaping
your work, we'll make a cable show out of it,  . I mean they
made a show out of 'monster garage' didn't they?

I did a second abu just now, the 4600, it had frozen bearings. pretty
sure I did that this year, a few times I'd be untangling something at
the pointy end of the rod, only to look back and see the rest of the
rod including reel underwater. I don't think bearings were made
to take that, which is a shame as the rest of the reel doesn't seem
to suffer too badly.  it's cool that the reel is still usable with seized bearings.
as far as I can tell, the bearings make casting smoother, but everything
still works with seized bearings. I'm sure that's not the case with all reels.

There were some ceramic bearings on mike's reel repair website so I ordered
10 bearings for $50. I'm for cheap, but I'll spend the big bucks for wacky
entertainment like reel repair. I actually know a bit about ceramic bearings. there are the
ceramic coated ones, not so good, then there are at least two types of 'ceramic' used
for the ball, one is cheaper and still quite good, one is a killer material, the so
called ceramic silicon nitride balls. no idea what these are I'm buyin.
the races and shields will still rust but the balls won't.
These are only shielded on one side, so I'll pack em full
of grease which will be slower, but more durable. I would have been happiest
with sealed not shielded (yes there's a difference), and sealed on both sides.
I hope I don't get ripped off, that site is
a little funky. A lot cheaper than cabelas tho. $35 for 2 bearings there.
It looks like removing the bearings from the side with the brakes is not so easy there is a clip of some sort
over the break assembly which in turn holds in the second bearing.

speaking of clips, my c-clip flew across the garage and landed in a small
waste paper basket lined with distinctive sounding plastic, so I recovered it.
I don't know what the trick to taking those c-clips off is. that's the
hardest part!

interestingly the 5501 you did at coast side #2 actually had working
bearings. That is the cheapest oldest most banged up reel of the lot and it
continues to work the best and catch the biggest fish.

Alan:

In your tutorial sometimes you say "lube" other times "grease"...are you using two different products for different applications?  If so, what specifically are you using?  Thanks again for the great article.