Fly Fishing Reel

myminifactory

This is a simple fly fishing reel I created several years ago at someone else's request. I've used various versions of it to catch everything from bass to panfish, and even caught my first trout on a fly with it. (see picture) The reel does incorporate some non-printed hardware components. Hardware Required (1) 10-32 x 1" Socket Head Screw and Nut (1) 4-40 x 1/2" Flat Head Screw (3) 1/4" X 1" Fender Washers (Lowes - Item # 136616 Model # 880342) (1) Spring & Ball (optional) See exploded diagrams for assembly... I don't have time to provide a detailed write-up right now, but here's some miscellaneous information I remember. The spool halves get super glued together. The fender washers act as bearings and make the reel spin more freely. (I tried using a thrust bearing, but it wasn't worth it.) This is a Click and Pawl design reel - The spring and ball for the clicker can be a Pen Spring and a BB, but they will rust over time. I used a .186" chrome ball (Honda Motorcycle Part# 96211-06000) and a cut-down stainless steel spring that I found locally. Use a small Allen wrench to press the spring and ball into the hole while pressing the spool down. It's a bit tricky, but not impossible. You can use the printed clicker (not shown in the pictures), which clips right into the bottom cut-out of the spool post on the reel frame. I don't remember which STL version I used or what printer settings I used, so I included several different versions with varying-sized nubs for you to experiment with. The hole for the spool bolt was left small and tapped with a 10-32 tap, but you can probably just force the screw in. The nut for the spool is embedded into the actual thumb knob during printing and requires a thin nut (I used an 18-8 Stainless Steel Thin Nylon-Insert Locknut from McMaster-Carr Item# 90101A225). You could probably use a regular nut and washer, but seeing as it's used to set the drag of the reel (so to speak), it might be hard to adjust in the field without a tool if you went that route. Fly_Reel_Thumb_Knob_Final.STL uses a Thin Nylon-Insert Locknut with these specs. Fly Reel Thumb Knob Full Size Nut.STL uses a full-sized Nylon-Insert Locknut with these specs. For drag after hook-up, it was designed so you can also just use your hand on the out-spool edge to control the drag if needed. I've never caught anything big enough yet to worry about it though. See http://imgur.com/a/da9rE for a few more pictures I took during the design process. Anyway, that's it for now - if you try to print this and have any questions, just ask and I'll do my best to answer them. Enjoy!