Shimano Bantam Black Magnum II BKM-1000II -- FAIL -- Young Martin's Reels

[@lmcollins_54]

I put the flipping cam spring back where it belongs, and now the reel is functional, just like it was. I only used the high gear selection for fishing, so even if the other gear selection isn’t operating properly, I can still use the reel. It is functional to me!My lower gear selection is very tight also, and it takes a bit of extra power to turn the reel handle. I honestly believe that all of these same model of reels, were manufactured by Shimano engineers, with a defective mechanism and or parts. I don’t believe that the tight gear problem can be fixed, we will just have to wait and see if Dan can fix it!

[@lmcollins_54]

After many sleepless nights trying to get that flipping cam spring back in, I honestly believe that I could disassemble and reassemble this reel blindfolded, ha, ha. Just like I used to be able to do with my US Marine Corps government issued 45 caliber pistol and M16A1 rifle.

[@warpedweirdo]

4:59 - That's a LOT of play in that shaft! 6:43 - If the gear can rotate around the shift on which the washer sits, I don't see a need for that gap to be shimmed. Shimming it would increase drive friction when the upper main gear is engaged, because the lower gear would be rubbing against the washer instead of rotating freely. 14:23 - The main gears shouldn't lock together; at either end of the shift lever's throw, one gear must spin freely while the other is engaged. 36:53 - Skipping implies the selector teeth aren't seated in a main gear, or maybe are only partially seated and are jumping out of engagement under tension. I'll bet there are two problems: 1) There's something not rotating freely in the shift system. Maybe the bearing underneath the shift lever is fubar? Or maybe components are out of order, or installed in the wrong orientation, leading to rubbing? Whatever it is makes things generally stiff. 2) The selector isn't able to move into engagement with the gears with sufficient ease. Maybe the plastic teeth have expanded, or are a little mangled, or ? I'll bet failure to engage exacerbates problem #1, increasing stiffness and causing stuff to bind. It may be that #2 isn't actually a problem with the reel. Before you ship the reel off, try this: Pull the shift lever back. Hold the spool stationary while you turn the handle. This should prevent the gear from moving while the selector rotates. The selector should pop into engagement when it's teeth align with the plastic teeth in the gear. Once engagement is achieved, try reeling as normal, see if the skipping and binding are gone. I hope Dan reports back soon!

[@youngmartinsreels5314]

I agree that adding shims under that shaft would simply exacerbate the problem. That’s why I moved on. If I tighten down the drag with the gear set in high speed, and the spool held in place, the handle will not rotate. However, in low speed under the same circumstances, the handle skips intermittently forward. I have lost enough sleep on this reel and it is definitely going to Dan. It’s 4 AM and I’m going back to bed.

[@ddselvig]

Challenge accepted!

[@warpedweirdo]

Good luck!

[@lmcollins_54]

Please let all of the interested viewers know if you have any success in trying to figure out the gear selection process, because my exact same reel cranks very rough or hard also in one of the gear selections. And so did my Marine friend’s reel, we purchased them together while stationed in Japan. We honestly only used one of the selections anyway, we never used the other one! We always just used the gear selection that was smooth and caught many large bass with no problems or issues. Please try to keep us updated on your progress and repair!

[@lmcollins_54]

Created a monster, sorry!

[@youngmartinsreels5314]

Larry, it was time for something to happen with the reel. When I was repairing aircraft, our policy was, if you could couldn’t repair something in an hour, that should have only taken 15 minutes, it was time to let someone else try. Right now Dan is the someone else. If he can’t fix it, maybe we will try someone else. It’s time for the reel to move on. Who knows, maybe it will be repaired soon.