Help with reel spares please

 Hi all, odd question so thought I would post here as well as other forums :-)

OK  ... I have a pair of old fishing reels .. Mitchell 499's .. they are in pristine condition as I cared for them since I was 15 (40 years ago .. ouch) .. I have all the spares in the world and both reels are fully functional in every way apart from .... a small teflon washer that sits behind the line roller. It is 9mm OD with a 4.5mm ID and is as thick as a sheet of paper (no way to measure it) ... does anybody know who sells teflon washers as I have exhausted all the washer/plastic suppliers that are in the phone book. The washer needs to fit perfectly as it seats into a housing (OD) and also fits a shaft (ID) ... any hints tips or ideas are most welcome :-)

sunshine's picture

Posts: 2624

Date Joined: 03/03/09

Love the old Mitchells

Fri, 2020-11-20 10:52

 Had them when I was a young pup back in the old country. Are there any machinists on here who might be able to fabricate a couple

Daryn's picture

Posts: 165

Date Joined: 01/05/12

 You can't buy a sheet and

Fri, 2020-11-20 10:55

 You can't buy a sheet and just cut a washer out of it?

Posts: 77

Date Joined: 16/02/19

 yeah they are golden oldies

Fri, 2020-11-20 11:06

 yeah they are golden oldies for sure ... I mean I have penn 10500's now that are smooth as silk and tough .. but I still love the Mitchells. When I heard they stopped making them I went and bought as many spare parts as I could .. so mechanically they will run for decades more ... but this silly bloody washer GRRRRRRRR

 

Teflon sheets ?? never thought of that .. will look it up now .. thanks for that :-)

Tom M's picture

Posts: 661

Date Joined: 22/09/15

 The washer would only be a

Fri, 2020-11-20 11:18

 The washer would only be a spacer, so see if you can find a washer with hole size to match and then cut the OD and use nail file to fit. Think given the age that the size is imperial anyway? so most likely hole 11/64" OD 3/8" Have a look in Bunnings in the plumbing section?

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Tom M

Posts: 77

Date Joined: 16/02/19

 The washer is the only thing

Fri, 2020-11-20 11:30

 The washer is the only thing that keeps the line roller from scoring the mounting and the roller itself ... so it's pretty critical to have it space the 2 surfaces (one chrome the other stainless steel) .. the washer is so small and fine though .. I have looked at bunnings online and they do have a PTFE sheet but it doesnt mention thickness .. cant find washers that fine either .. I have asked machine shops locally but they say to buy a rod of teflon or to cut it to size would be crazy in price due to labour .. 

 

Posts: 274

Date Joined: 08/10/13

ebay

Fri, 2020-11-20 13:14

 https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/100-Line-Guide-Shim-Real-Part-83492-Washer-Teflon-498-Other-Reel-Mitchell-/292421625117#shpCntId

Are these the ones. I Bought some a few years ago on ebay for an old reel mitchell reel.

Posts: 77

Date Joined: 16/02/19

 that is the chap I got them

Fri, 2020-11-20 13:28

 that is the chap I got them from .. they are slightly too small OD and they are not quite the correct thickenss .. 

Posts: 274

Date Joined: 08/10/13

 Have you tried shimano

Fri, 2020-11-20 13:56

 Have you tried shimano service. They arent called shim-mano for nothing. There reels are full washers and shims  of all sizes and materials. 

Posts: 77

Date Joined: 16/02/19

hahaha 

Fri, 2020-11-20 14:14

hahaha

 

Mike17's picture

Posts: 323

Date Joined: 30/06/13

Reel Smooth

Fri, 2020-11-20 14:24

 Timbo if youre on facebook look up Reel Smooth or pm me and i'll send you his number he services reels down Warnbro way. 

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 Use The Force

Posts: 77

Date Joined: 16/02/19

 cheers mate .. im on

Fri, 2020-11-20 14:42

 cheers mate .. im on facebook so will check it out :-) thanks 

Posts: 876

Date Joined: 30/12/09

 you could also try this

Fri, 2020-11-20 18:52

 you could also try this fella

https://www.facebook.com/lr.rodsreels/

 

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 Get busy living, or get busy dying!

Posts: 77

Date Joined: 16/02/19

 all sorted people :-)local

Fri, 2020-11-27 14:20

 all sorted people :-)

local plastic supply mob had a tiny torn off corner of teflon sheet .. enough to do 4 washers out of it .. fully functional again with new bearings, shafts, brake pads, gears and a super smooth line roller :-)

Posts: 77

Date Joined: 16/02/19

 Well I thought I would

Mon, 2020-12-21 12:55

 Well I thought I would follow up as I know you are all waiting (with baited breath .. sorry the pun), to hear how this all ended ... turns out the teflon I got was about 0.08mm oversize so it didnt work and was slightly binding when under load. I got a sheet of teflon online that is 0.24mm thick .. Drilled a 5.15mm hole and managed to find a bolt and correct sized washers (10mm outside and 5mm inside .. they are rare). I drilled a whole  bunch of holes in the teflon sheet, cut them out roughly, bolted them between washers and trimmed the excess .. perfect .. and i mean perfect ... for all those out there who are just dying to try this with their old 499's (hands up all of you), the washers that came with them had the flaw of being too small an outside diametre .. under load they will eventually rub on the roller seat and wear off the chrome plate and also cause drag on the roller (which is a bad thing). The new ones (from France) are stainless BTW .... so there ya go ... race out now and get .24mm thick teflon sheet, a 5.15mm drill bit .. a matching nut and bolt and make yourselves some washers to get that old Mitchell running again .. oh one more word .. the new brake pads are of a different material than the old stuff and are loads better ...