Bearing reels are much less maintenance than most west coasters seem to think. I have had 6 bearing reels, some for as long as 8 years that have never been cleaned or oiled. I have friends back in Ontario who have had reels for over 20 years with literally no maintenance. Bearings are meant to spin at HIGH speeds for LONG periods of time. What we put them thru in fishing is nothing. Its the equivalent of having a 10 year old car with 35,000km on it. In ten years you could have driven 300,000km and it would still me running fine. The bearings used in CP's aren't designed specifically for CP's and can handle WAY more than we put them thru. That being said a bushing reel will cast nicer with the swing style of casting that is most common out west but will get "sloppy" over time as it wears. Ever hear someone take a cast with an old bushing reel and hear it rattling? Thats the play in the spool from years of fishing. A bearing reel has more of a tendency to over run during the cast, but an experienced angler should have no trouble at all. I have gotten dirt in all of my bearing reels at one time or another and all were cleaned by swishing them in the river as easily as any bushing reel. The bearings in any reel I have seen are SEALED, dirt can't get in. It can only get in around the spool, just the same as it can in a bushing reel. One pro of a bearing reel is there in no real break in time required, and it will have better start up inertia than a bushing but that is irrelevant on the faster flows of the west coast IMO. Another pro is that when a bushing wears out it requires being sent in for a major over haul and replacement of the bushing, a bearing reel you just need to buy new bearings (when and if that occurs) for $20-60 and pop them in, in most cases. In any case, either should do you just fine as both are fantastic designs and have stood the test of time.
Poll
9 (24.3%)
Author
Topic: Milner cp reel (Read 8883 times)