Thoughts on my new reel

[adams54]

So I've always been a penn guy.  Very reliable , easy to work on, good parts availability,  3rd party bearings that are easy to find and inexpensive compared to oem. I've fished the slammer for 3 or 4 years now several times a week from March to January each year as a primary reel. For all inshore species, from back bay to rivers, beach, inlets, jetties. I take care of my gear and service often. I've changed bearings numerous times and a pinion gear and seals. Make no mistake that the slammer does let water in. Lately I've noticed the slammer is getting worn down mainly with the rotor and bail areas and I need more parts which will have to wait till off season. I spoke to a few guys that I respect and they highly recommend shimano. So I looked into it and bought the shimano spheros 5k. Also in the running was the gosa.  I did my hw and discovered that the gosa and the spheros are 80% identical. I did a side by side comparison and didnt feel the gosa was worth the extra money...IMO.

 

I did what I do to all my new purchases and that means completely stripping it down and inspecting. First impressions of this reel is that it is extremely refined. It is so smooth its almost unbelievable.  This has to be due to the coated main gear. Other observations are that it is much more difficult to service then the penn. I already knew this was the case but it was great to see it first hand. Another thing I noticed is that the slammer has better quality hardware. More use of stainless fasteners.

 

 

More to come....

Edited November 11, 2022 by adams54

[adams54]

Some of the differences I've noticed between the Saragosa and spheros is that the Saragosa has a BB in the line roller vs bushing. I prefer simplicity and serviceability of bushings.  Saragosa has a one piece bail wire, a more advanced drag system, and a one piece handle. Both share the same gears, seals, body. They both are rated at IPx8 which means it can handle subermersion in water without intrusion. More on that later....

[FishingmaniYaks]

If you like the slammer the new 4 is pretty good for the price . I have three of them now. The DX gets stainless gears and an extra spool bearing. Not needed but you can compare the price on the two versions. The Spheros is a decent reel for the $$ 

[adams54]

Ok so back to sealing. Gosa, spheros, and slammer are all fully sealed. Which means you can dunk them in theory. Not turn the handle but dunking. Slammer has failed in this regard. I service my reels 3x per year and each time I open there's water. Keep in mind I do my best to avoid dunking.  I was hoping for an improvement with the Shimano as it too is also rated for dunking however upon inspection on my teardown I noticed VERY sloppy tolerances in the seal that seals water out of the AR clutch. There's no way that seal will keep water out in a dunk. I'm kinda bummed out that and feel a little ripped off. 

Edited November 11, 2022 by adams54

[adams54]

5 mins ago, FishingmaniYaks said:

If you like the slammer the new 4 is pretty good for the price . I have three of them now. The DX gets stainless gears and an extra spool bearing. Not needed but you can compare the price on the two versions. The Spheros is a decent reel for the $$ 

New slammers got pricey didn't they? 

[EricDice]

44 mins ago, adams54 said:

Ok so back to sealing. Gosa, spheros, and slammer are all fully sealed. Which means you can dunk them in theory. Not turn the handle but dunking. Slammer has failed in this regard. I service my reels 3x per year and each time I open there's water. Keep in mind I do my best to avoid dunking.  I was hoping for an improvement with the Shimano as it too is also rated for dunking however upon inspection on my teardown I noticed VERY sloppy tolerances in the seal that seals water out of the AR clutch. There's no way that seal will keep water out in a dunk. I'm kinda bummed out that and feel a little ripped off. 

On my Spheros, I pulled the rotor and found more gap than I expected. (But otherwise it’s a fine design.) So, I put grease around that rubber area and up to the hydrophobic rotor cup in the middle. Once it spins that separates but remember that the bottom of the rotor itself is part of the seal. Look underneath next time you get it off. Anyway, I dunked that Spheros a bunch before losing it. Bone dry inside AR & body. 
 

And my Gosa I treated like a VR until I got the VR - which I only bought because my neck & shoulder are so bad now that I needed the 7 ounce savings. No water in that AR or the body itself when I opened it up last winter. 

[adams54]

8 mins ago, EricDice said:

On my Spheros, I pulled the rotor and found more gap than I expected. (But otherwise it’s a fine design.) So, I put grease around that rubber area and up to the hydrophobic rotor cup in the middle. Once it spins that separates but remember that the bottom of the rotor itself is part of the seal. Look underneath next time you get it off. Anyway, I dunked that Spheros a bunch before losing it. Bone dry inside AR & body. 
 

And my Gosa I treated like a VR until I got the VR - which I only bought because my neck & shoulder are so bad now that I needed the 7 ounce savings. No water in that AR or the body itself when I opened it up last winter. 

Yeah I put extra grease there myself. I'm not sold on its dunkability. 

[Mr. Bigdeal]

so what's you routine reel cleaning procedure after a trip......

[adams54]

@Mr. Bigdeal I lightly spray with freshwater to rinse.  Every other trip or so I'll back the screw out on the line roller and bail arms, knob and add some drops of oil, take spool off and lightly grease the main shaft.

Edited November 11, 2022 by adams54

[Mr. Bigdeal]

I was told by a tech to wipe the reel down with a damp terry cloth towel with a bit of Dawn on it, then wipe all parts clean with a damp towel, let Dry ....then wipe with paper towel with a light spray of WD on it...never rinse with water....guess a spray is OK...SOoooo.

Edited November 11, 2022 by Mr. Bigdeal

[adams54]

33 mins ago, Mr. Bigdeal said:

I was told by a tech to wipe the reel down with a damp terry cloth towel with a bit of Dawn on it, then wipe all parts clean with a damp towel, let Dry ....then wipe with paper towel with a light spray of WD on it...never rinse with water....guess a spray is OK...SOoooo.

Not bad.  I like the idea of using some wd on a paper towel.  Just read the instructions on the shimano and they recommend rinsing it under a shower head after each use.  I always used a spray bottle. 

Edited November 11, 2022 by adams54

[Mr. Bigdeal]

A shower head.................really.

[adams54]

9 mins ago, Mr. Bigdeal said:

A shower head.................really.

Yessir

 

 

[SurfCaster01289]

I’ve been using a saragosa 6k in place of a Zeebaas (which was a complete headache of issues), and absolutely love it. No issues, has been dunked and buried in sand. Many large bass on it. It’s light and so smooth - the drag is also refined and feels very intentional, which allows you to fight fish strategically. I also think that my casts are longer due to the proper line lay. 
 

it’s hard to go back to a VS now, and only do so when I have to (nor’easters, big surf, wading out). 

[sbcbmx112]

I love my 5k spheros and my 6k 'gosa.  I more or less follow alan hawk's reel maintenance guide- rinse after each use, oil/grease periodically, tear down once a year.  In lieu of a shower head I use a garden hose set to the shower setting.  One thing I've noticed about my spheros, like you mentioned about the slammer, is that minor water intrusion will occur (once had major intrusion after abusive dunking).  I haven't used/abused the 'gosa extensively enough to know if the performs any better.