I have two reels that I still take out time to time. I got emotional attachment to those. However the performance (casting distance basically) is not as good as newer reels (of course!)

 

I was wondering if there's any way to make them perform a bit better.

 

Reel #1. Shimano BM-1 (Japanese market model of Lews BB-1 from 70's)

 

Reel #2. Shimano Bantam BlackMagunum 100GT from 80's.

 

These reels are lightly used and are in pretty good shape. I have schematics for BlackBugnum, but not for BM-1.

 

I have recently cleaned up the bearing for Citica G and put a drop of oil to them. I was happy with the results.

 

Can I do the same thing ( clean and oil) with these older reel's bearings and expect similar kind of improvement that I got on Citica? 

Can I replace the bearing of these older reels with something new and expect improvement?

I did the flush and oil with Citica. My understanding was that worked because Citica's come with bearings of decent quality. What I was not sure about was if that's true to the older models. And as far as replacing I was not sure where to get bearings for older reels...unless someone tells me that Shimano have always used the same size for their spool bearings...

I would try flushing the old bearings and re-lubing them before ordering new ones.  Bearings tend to last a long time unless they are abused or corroded and if you can clean them and get them to run smooth, there's really not a big benefit to changing them out.  I rehabbed several Abu Promax reels from the early 1970's and found that clean and smooth running original bearings performed as well as new ABEC 7's.  Ceramics are usually a marginal improvement but it's not a night and day difference.  More than just the bearings determine how well a reel casts:  basic reel design, spool mass, the braking system, and the cast control are also critical.  All areas have to be working right to maximize casting performance.

I have two reels that I still take out time to time. I got emotional attachment to those. However the performance (casting distance basically) is not as good as newer reels (of course!)

 

I was wondering if there's any way to make them perform a bit better.

 

Reel #1. Shimano BM-1 (Japanese market model of Lews BB-1 from 70's)

 

Reel #2. Shimano Bantam BlackMagunum 100GT from 80's.

 

These reels are lightly used and are in pretty good shape. I have schematics for BlackBugnum, but not for BM-1.

 

I have recently cleaned up the bearing for Citica G and put a drop of oil to them. I was happy with the results.

 

Can I do the same thing ( clean and oil) with these older reel's bearings and expect similar kind of improvement that I got on Citica? 

Can I replace the bearing of these older reels with something new and expect improvement?

Not like you saw on the Citica tolerances have gotten tighter since the 70's.

 

Good Luck & Tight Lines! 

Here´s my 2 cents:

 

You say you are attached to those reels, I understand it, if they were mine I would rather drop the money and have them serviced by a true profesional, we got in our board two such members: RM and DVT, it will be money well spent.