I have a Zillion less than a year old that is making a loud noise on the cast. Sounds like buzzing or grinding but only on cast, not noticable on the retrieve.

What should I check first? I have taken the spool out and oiled the recommended parts by Daiwa with their oil, but the bearings have a cover over them in the side plate. Is that plate as easy as taking off and lubing the bearings or more involved than that?

Twitch

Place a drop of oil that came with the reel on each of the spool bearings.  I find with heavy use, that my Zillions need a drop about every 6 weeks or so.

Start by putting one drop of oil on the bearing's race. Has the reel been cleaned?

The reel has not been professionally cleaned. I have taken the spool out and cleaned as much as I could.

My problem with cleaning the bearings is that cover. I assume that is where the bearings are. Is removing that cover like removing the lid off a can of whoop? Or is it shockingly easy?

I am sorry to bother with this, but if this is common routine maintenance, I want to be able to do it. Not have to send it away.

Thanks for your help.

Twitch

Reels should be taken apart , cleaned , oiled and greased at least once a year at the minimum.

Try soaking the spool bearings on a brake cleaner or carb cleaner, but you need a hazmat globes when dealing with those cleaning agent or you can use a goo gone. Soak it on goo gone and try to spin it, if its spinning fast and long. Repeat the process until its spinning free and long. Blow dry the bearings with a compress air in cans. Add a tiny bit of Reel X oil, spin it again to spread the oil inside the bearings. Wipe off any excess oil or blow off the excess oil. Reinstall the bearings.

Look at the instructions that came with the reel for opening the palm side plate and removing the spool and oiling.  The only tools needed are a penny and the oil that came with it.  No screws, tools, whoop, or brake cleaner.

Opening the access to the bearings is just half the job; you still need to clean it before adding oil.    Adding oil w/o cleaning the bearings would not really solve most of the bearing  issues.  If cleaning and lubing does not help, then it's a good time to replace the bearings with Boca ABEC #7 ceramic bearings.   It does not matter how old or new is your reel; the bearings get rusted first when reels are not maintained.  If you don't want to use carburetor or brake cleaning agent  for cleaning the bearings then your best bet is  goo gone.   

Happy Diy.

Opening the access to the bearings is just half the job; you still need to clean it before adding oil. Adding oil w/o cleaning the bearings would not really solve most of the bearing issues. If cleaning and lubing does not help, then it's a good time to replace the bearings with Boca ABEC #7 ceramic bearings. It does not matter how old or new is your reel; the bearings get rusted first when reels are not maintained. If you don't want to use carburetor or brake cleaning agent for cleaning the bearings then your best bet is goo gone.

Happy Diy.

im curious, is there a reason you suggest this bearing over a steel bearing? id love to know the pros and cons of both ceramic and steel.

thanks.

Boca ABC #7 Ceramic bearings cast better and retrieves smoother than steel bearings. It last longer since there's less parts to get rusted. I upgrade my chronarch 50mg with ABEC #7 orange seal and I can feel the see the difference right at the very first cast. I recently upgraded my core 100mg with ABEC #7 and i'm excited to see how it would perform this weekend. Casting advantage is only about 10% but it feels good

The only down side is the price but you'll gonna love it!

LOL, replacing the bearings on a reel that is still under warranty.  Just put a drop of oil on the spool bearings.  If that doesn't resolve it, call Daiwa.

Yes, removing and soaking the bearings in acetone, or replacing with ceramic hybrids would be a small improvement over current state, but total overkill for a new reel.

You don't need to wait for the warranty to expire to enjoy doing upgrades on your reels. Besides most expensive reels are backed up with limited lifetime warranty. So if you are going to wait for the warranty to expire, most likely you already got a new reel before it ever expires. Then you'll not be able to take advantage of new tech / materials in the market. But if you are satisfied with the stock reels then enjoy.

I just got my shimano core 100mg last month and upgraded it after 3 weeks of use w/ abec #7 ceramic bearings and now I'm enjoying it more. It was casting further and feels smoother.

I have Office ZPI bearings in my Zillions.  The difference is infinitesimal on the water, in real fishing situations, but they're nice to have.

Try abec #7 orange seal ceramic bearings and you'll be surprised with the results. Office Zip bearings are not the same as the Boca bearings, they use different materials. Office ZIP use SiC, Boca uses Silicon Nitride (Si3N4) for their ceramic bearings. When choosing a bearing upgrade go with the company that specialize on bearings don't go with one stop shop company.

Dude, I have Boca Orange Seals in three TD-X reels, and the new sheilded hybrid ABEC 7 in an Alphas ITO, as well as a set of very expensive ABEC 9 hybrids in an Alphas.

As I said before, they're nice, but the difference on the water is infinitesimal in most people' hands.

If a bearing is bad, by all means, replace with ceramic hybrids (they're usually cheaper than OEM anyway), but for most guys to replace good bearings with $32 worth of new ones is silly, when you can simply open the palm plate, remove he spool, and put a drop of oil in there.  Plus, if a person isn't going to learn how to properly maintain their bearings, then what good is replacement as a fix?

Dude, I have Boca Orange Seals in three TD-X reels, and the new sheilded hybrid ABEC 7 in an Alphas ITO, as well as a set of very expensive ABEC 9 hybrids in an Alphas.

As I said before, they're nice, but the difference on the water is infinitesimal in most people' hands.

If a bearing is bad, by all means, replace with ceramic hybrids (they're usually cheaper than OEM anyway), but for most guys to replace good bearings with $32 worth of new ones is silly, when you can simply open the palm plate, remove he spool, and put a drop of oil in there. Plus, if a person isn't going to learn how to properly maintain their bearings, then what good is replacement as a fix?

thank you, i thought it was just me...............