Abu 6500GR

13 08 2009

Won my second reel on Ebay today – an Abu Garcia 6500GR. This is a magnetically braked reel, released in 1985 and on sale for only a short time, apparently. Like my Abu CS Rocket, this one has been CT converted. This was a penny more than the Rocket, at £31.02 including P+P.

Abu Garcia 6500GR

Abu Garcia 6500GR

I got my Rocket home last night (couldn’t resist taking it to work to have a look), and gave it a partial strip down, oil, greased the gears up and also fitted one of my spare centrifugal brake pads, because it didn’t have any.

Looking forward to taking it on a fishing trip to see how it casts. It polished up quite well, but I still had problems retrieving the bearings from the spool – any ideas on how to do this would be gratefully received. I’ve tried inserting pins at an angle, to try to get purchase on one side of the bearing, but this hasn’t worked. I think the pressure needs to be equally spread around the bearing. It has been oiled with 3-in-1, and then Abu Rocket oil last night; hopefully that, in conjunction with a few casts, will loosen them up a bit.

Will be interested to see what the GR looks like inside; the Abu’s I’ve dismantled in the past have all been of the same basic configuration, and none of them have been Mag braked.


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Abu 6500CS Rocket Arrives

12 08 2009

Took delivery of my 6500CS Rocket, bought from Ebay, this morning. Initial impressions are that the reel is pretty much as described, so not in perfect condition, but I was glad to see that the CT conversion used a proper replacement bar, rather than the other method I’ve often seen, where the level wind bar is removed and the holes sealed, but the top bar is left in place. That negates one of the benefits of a CT cage, which is to be able to get a better grip on the spool for casting, due to the open cage.

Partially dismantled the reel, and realised that the bearings are stuck in the spool, so popped out to buy some 3-in-1, and applied it, to make them easier to remove once I get home. also bought some lighter fluid to soak the bearings from all my reels after the next fishing trip.

Also noticed that the instant anti-reverse is not instant any more, and when you spin the handle fast and hold on to it, the gears slip round inside the side plate. So will have a look inside and see what needs to be replaced.


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Servicing Abu Garcia 6500C3CT Elite Multiplier

12 08 2009

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Servicing an Abu Garcia 6500C3CT Elite Multiplier 

1. Reel before dismantling

Servicing an Abu Garcia 6500 C3 CT Elite


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First Ebay-bought Abu!

7 08 2009

I bought my first reel from Ebay today, an Abu 6500CS Rocket, converted to CT cage. Buying price was £31 including postage. A combination of the description, and the buying price, show that the reel is not exactly going to be a masterpiece when it gets here! The description mentions chafage on the side plates etc but states “good working order” so I’m expecting a functional, if not pretty, reel. Hope the seller doesn’t mind me putting up a picture of the Ebay listing!

Abu 6500 Rocket

Abu 6500 Rocket

I still have my eyes on two other reels, which pretty much look like bargains (will disclose the model once I decide whether to buy or not), but was gutted to miss out on an auction for two CT-converted Abu’s, one a 6000 and the other a 6500. Again, not great condition, but working and potential for fixing up.

Apart from that, the 650+ I talked about in my previous post has been re-listed. This is, however, a similar price to the above mentioned reels which are more desirable, so I’m holding off for a while to think it over properly. Considering visiting some car boots again tomorrow, and will hopefully have a mid-day fishing session Sunday (although Saturday night will be my first clubbing session in 6 weeks – I’m envisioning a cheap night out, but a *slight* hangover on Sunday ;-)). We’ll see!


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Abu Garcia Reels

6 08 2009

Have been a bit obsessed with Abu Garcia reels lately – went to the lengths of resurrecting my Ebay account, first used in 2003, last used in 2005, and “Watching” up to 35 reels of various descriptions, to see what kind of prices they’re going for.

First off, I noticed that it’s not necessarily particularly cheap to buy on Ebay! Even a pack of 100 Kamasan hooks I found was no cheaper than a mail order catalogue I’d got with Sea Angler Magazine. Also, reels rarely include a year of manufacture on the chassis, so it’s almost impossible to tell how old they are. However, I’m sure there are some features on each model that the trained eye knows to look for (for instance, I saw two vintage Abu 6000s, both red, but one with the same ratchet button position on the left hand side plate as an Elite, and one without. I’m sure that has some significance; just not sure what yet!).

I’ve mainly been looking at Abu Rockets and Elites, and the original Mag Elites. One of those went for under £50, which I guess is pretty good. I’ve seen a number of Abu Ambassadeur 6000s from the 70s on there, with cases and even oil bottles, for just under £50 too. Rockets seem to go for around £75.

One reel that I was also quite keen on, and went to the lengths of making several offers on (the auction had “Best Offer” enabled), was an Abu Ambassadeur 650+. This was identical to the first multiplier I ever bought, which I unfortunately lost when I left all of my fishing gear down at the beach after a night fishing session, and it was stolen.

It was a cheaper model than the 6500C3, and had a brass bushing in place of one of the 3 bearings designated in the “C3” part of the model name of that reel. But I was just proud to have a multiplier, and that reel actually meant the world to me! I’d bought it with almost every penny of my birthday money one year, and it cost £69.99, quite a lot for me before full time employment kicked in. So to say I was ultra tempted would be an understatement. In the end, the auction finished while I was at work, so didn’t have time to get a last offer in.. just under £50 would have secured it.

Am currently watching a few models, and am waiting to see how much the service that my mountain bike is in for at the moment costs, before deciding whether to purchase or not. Fingers crossed! Good night 😉


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