Newbie Salt Water Gear Maintenance

[Red Owl]

Got my stuff and I'm ready to go- I've fly fished for years but salt will be a new thing. I am a little worried about how much maintenance I should do to keep my gear as new as possible- On the rod- rinse with fresh water a couple of times. On the reel- soak and gentle clean in fresh water? What about the line? Strip off as much as was in the salt water and rinse or rinse all the line and backing? How long do you rinse. I seems like this would be a big job and without another reel the line and backing will get all tangled up- so, do you hook up another reel to take off the line and let the line between the reels run through a tub of water? Towel dry to put back on the actual reel? Am I overdoing it?

[BigCliff]

I rinse my reels under the sink and then submerge them in a tub of fresh water for 24 hrs. Then I dump out the tub and let the reel sit in the tub for three days to dry out completely before putting it in any sort of case.

For the rods, I take them in the shower with me after fishing, being careful to rinse them thoroughly and not leave any soap or shampoo on them. They stand up well in the corner of the shower stall and the drips got down the drain after their rinsed off.

[bigjim5589]

I rinse mine in freshwater & use this: Salt-X = The best salt and salt corrosion fighter!

Works very well!

[Rip Tide]

For my lines, I'll periodically strip them into the wash basin in the sink and wash them with the same dish detergent. Then strip through a dish rag on to the floor to clean. Then strip back into some fresh rinse water and reel back up through a dry towel. You don't need to do it every time, but you'll know when it's needed. You're casting distance will drop off and you'll be able to feel the salt coating.

For my reels (and used flies), I do as Cliff does.
When I fished the salt with Medalist reels, I'd scrub and lube the reels daily, but with modern anodized reels maintenance is now much easier.
Once in a while though , break them down as far as you're comfortable doing and be sure to clean any salt build-up

My rods I don't worry about too much. I wipe 'em down with a wet cloth and maybe hit 'em with some furniture polish. I don't have that kind of relationship with my rods where I'm comfortable to bringing them into the shower with me :

[peregrines]

Mostly I just give everything (rod, reel) a good dousing of freshwater with a hose after a trip, and occasionally run the fly line through a rag to get the salt off. Also after each trip, i back off the drag on the reel so as not compress the cork washers.

Unless there's a problem of some sort I usually don't clean and lube the reel until after the season.

If you've got a decent reel rated for saltwater use, it should be fine with a good soak with a hose-- and the same goes for the rod. The main thing is to keep the reel out of the sand-- so be careful about where you put it down, or dunking it in the surf zone where there is a lot of suspended sand in the water.

Like Paul (Riptide) I used to use some of the larger Pfleuger Medalists in the salt-- those things started to corrode for the time you just start planning a trip in the salt, and they had to be really soaked, scrubbed and lubed after each trip. But modern anodized reels are much more resistant to corrosion so it's no where near the problem it was years ago. The same goes for rods-- where many especially 8 weights and up are built with corrosion resistant components for use in saltwater.

[sxm]

For the reel, I take the reel off the frame and do an an extensive flushing of all the parts with fresh water, no soaking, followed by WD 40

[chuck s]

In the following link you'll find advice gathered from experts and manufacturers on this: Tips For Rod, Reel And Line Care - Rod care - a three part harmony about maintaining your precious fly fishing equipment - Global FlyFisher

Note in part two of that article they strongly recommend that you never dunk or soak your reel for very long as damage may occur. I've owned most of the mainsteam salt water reels, plus sold them and none advocate soaking that I recall and if you have that advice from a reel supplier please let me know. I do most of my day trips cleaning in the shower and bathroom sink as described with a more indepth cleaning twice a year or so and have rods and reels that have been used extensively in the salt for a couple decades at a minimum.

As far as a protectant goes, some manufacturers advise none while others supply a bit. Almost all supply some fine grade lube for the bearings, etc and all I've contacted say that Boeshield T-9 is one of the best when it comes to the salt. Just spray or squirt a bit on and, let it dry and then buff it off. Outlasts all others, by weeks rather than hours. Here's Bauer's take on this" http://www.bauerflyreel.com/care.html. That Reel X they mention is also great stuff and that's what I use for bearings, etc. It seems a bit thinner than T9. Other than that get some neats foot oil for cork if your reel has a cork drag washer or use what ever your manufacturer indicates for other drag surfaces. Second to that T-9 for all outside surfaces, is WD 40 but is thinner, has more solvent and less lube/protectant and therefore evaporates and wears off faster.

Check out any saltwater boat/motor shop in Florida and you'll find them using T-9 which is where I first ran across it. Since then I've found that for reels, guns and more it's the cats meow. Here's a link that shows how good it really is. http://www.brownells.com/.aspx/lid=1...-Preventatives

[swirlchaser]

Originally Posted by peregrines

Mostly I just give everything (rod, reel) a good dousing of freshwater with a hose after a trip, and occasionally run the fly line through a rag to get the salt off. Also after each trip, i back off the drag on the reel so as not compress the cork washers.

Unless there's a problem of some sort I usually don't clean and lube the reel until after the season.

If you've got a decent reel rated for saltwater use, it should be fine with a good soak with a hose-- and the same goes for the rod. The main thing is to keep the reel out of the sand-- so be careful about where you put it down, or dunking it in the surf zone where there is a lot of suspended sand in the water.

Like Paul (Riptide) I used to use some of the larger Pfleuger Medalists in the salt-- those things started to corrode for the time you just start planning a trip in the salt, and they had to be really soaked, scrubbed and lubed after each trip. But modern anodized reels are much more resistant to corrosion so it's no where near the problem it was years ago. The same goes for rods-- where many especially 8 weights and up are built with corrosion resistant components for use in saltwater.

What he said ^^^^
One thing to add, even saltwater grade reels need some attention in a few places. These are the places I take a toothbrush to a few time a year:

1. The head of the screw that holds the handle on.
2. The screws that attach the reel seat to the frame
3. Under the drag knob
4. along the inside rim of the frame.

The salt loves to get into those little cracks and crevises.