Are sliding band reel seats worth the risk?

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cwood
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Re: Are sliding band reel seats worth the risk?

#21

Post by cwood »

I'm not sure why I'm the odd ball, but I've never had an issue with slide band reel seats. I've fished with a ton of different rods, but almost always have a Hardy lightweight (featherweight through Princess) attached..... maybe those reels just happen to fit well with my rods. I much prefer the looks, weight, and simplicity of a slide band reel seat; however, I'm a small stream guy and screw lock seats just seam like overkill.

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Gnome
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Re: Are sliding band reel seats worth the risk?

#22

Post by Gnome »

slide bands can be made in such a fashion as to be able to twist and lock them with no threads.

You Ask "How is this Done?"
make your slide band oversize and then smash it to an oval and not round shape. In conjunction with an hourglass shape this allows the slide band to be locked tight to the blank over the reel foot.

Is it traditional? No!! but it works really well, to the point I was fishing with one of my customers on his first day with his new rod and he kept worrying that the slide band would loosen and drop his reel so he kept tweaking it down tighter and at the end of the day it was so tight it was all the two of us could do to get it loose.

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Idahoan
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Re: Are sliding band reel seats worth the risk?

#23

Post by Idahoan »

I bought a cheap cap and ring ONCE!! Now I buy quality cap and ring reelseats with an internal taper. They bite onto the reel foot and I've never had a problem since.

Matt

bassman
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Re: Are sliding band reel seats worth the risk?

#24

Post by bassman »

Jaimec wrote:
...as I'd attached the reel seat with Gorilla glue, and that thing probably ain't coming off in my lifetime...
"with Gorilla glue" :eek :lol

Good Grief Jaimie, you may as well cut the rings off and quit worrying about it. ;)

:lol I have to edit this to say that I read that you Gorilla glued the reel to the seat. :lol
Last edited by bassman on 12/29/12 15:20, edited 1 time in total.

sevilla315
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Re: Are sliding band reel seats worth the risk?

#25

Post by sevilla315 »

I have a rod with rings made by the maker, along with the ferrules and agate strippers and are beautiful and also are of very high quality. With a Bellinger it was very snug and never had a problem however with a Godfrey with a narrower foot the reel slipped from side to side and on a few occasions had the reel fall off in the river (with horror!) whilst fishing.
I solved the problem one day by tearing off a small piece of cardboard and putting it on top of the foot then pulling the ring on top of the cardboard making a very secure lock. It protects the reel foot, is temporary, cheap and makes no mess with tape etc. I now use this method all the time now to secure the reel on this rod.
Cheers

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Jaimec
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Re: Are sliding band reel seats worth the risk?

#26

Post by Jaimec »

Bassman-

Granted, I can be a dumbass, but not quite that dumb ;)

I'm giving some serious thought to using a small zip-tie to secure my reel, though.
Jaime
"Custom Made Silk Fly Lines, Tenkara and Furled Leaders, Hand Made in the USA"

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bamboo
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Re: Are sliding band reel seats worth the risk?

#27

Post by bamboo »

Mister Bill wrote:For the umteenth time, while landing a trophy fish, my reel feel off the wooden reel seat insert. There are just too many things going on in the heat of the battle, dealing with the current, footing on the river bottom, getting the landing net ready, while keeping an eye on the whopper the whole time.

I never have this problem when bringing in a small fish or winding up at the end of the day. My reel sits pretty well on the insert. It is a Hardy reel and a name brand insert. However, with just one false move in a big event, and the reel can be in the water in a heartbeat. I handled the last situation by bring the fish in hand-over-hand and retrieving my reel from the river bottom when the battle was over.

Has anyone else had this problem?

Bill
I haven't used a sliding band in many years since having a problem . Maybe I am just paranoid ,but it just doesn't seem worth the risk to Me. As you say , there can be lots going on while standing on rocks in a swift currant with a nice fish doing his thing. I only use either up or down locking threaded seats on all of my rods. Can anyone tell me the advantage of the sliding band except for it being the look that you like on a cane rod or lack of weight ?

bamboo...mike

PYochim
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Re: Are sliding band reel seats worth the risk?

#28

Post by PYochim »

The best rings that I have seen are the ones that Don Schroeder uses. I believe that he machines them himself. They have an internal taper and the entire length of the band contacts the reel.

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kimk
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Re: Are sliding band reel seats worth the risk?

#29

Post by kimk »

A figure 8 wrap with 1/2 inch surgical tape provides total security if the match of reel seat to rings is a problem.
AgMD

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LeeO
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Re: Are sliding band reel seats worth the risk?

#30

Post by LeeO »

As I said earlier, the most trouble I have had with a seat is a threaded downlocker from a highly regarded reel seat maker. I bump the threads with my hand while fishing and eventually the ring works lose and plop, off comes the reel.

I think cap and ring are superior for smaller rods - if they are made correctly. When I make a mortised cap and ring seat, I cut the mortise my hand and check continuously the fit of the reel foot. I have an old CFO that I use as a standard. The band should come up a little less than halfway up the reel foot, while the other side should go well down into the cap without bottoming out. Throughout the process I check to make sure there are not high spots or other fit issues.

The most critical part, in my mind, is cutting a bevel on all edges of the hardware that contacts the reel seat. Especially the ring. If you don't the ring will have less surface contact and will cut into the wood.

I learned how to fit a reel seat the hard way and I think I make a pretty good seat now. I generally test my own rods by shaking the crap out of the rod and making sure that there is zero wiggle at the reel.

Here is a recent seat I made.
Image

RonT1
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Re: Are sliding band reel seats worth the risk?

#31

Post by RonT1 »

I believe that Bob Summers also has it prety well down pat also....
R

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CDCdun
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Re: Are sliding band reel seats worth the risk?

#32

Post by CDCdun »

I, also, haven't had any problems with slide band reel seats. I like the look of them and have yet to have a reel come loose. Indeed the only reel seat that continually comes loose for me is a down locking screw type. I have to check about every 1/2 hour to make sure it's still snug. I like the O-ring idea or even the figure 8 of tape idea just for the added measure of security.

Jake

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PkwyAngler
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Re: Are sliding band reel seats worth the risk?

#33

Post by PkwyAngler »

As a number of folks have stated, a simple & sure cure for loose or potential slipping reel seat rings is a faucet rubber “O-Ring” washer or two. I too have used them on all cap & ring reel seats ever since I had a nice reel pop off while landing a large fish, and get a micro ding which serves as a reminder of sorts. I’ve had no cap & ring reel seat failures since then… The rubber ring(s) makes for cheap insurance!

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wannabe
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Re: Are sliding band reel seats worth the risk?

#34

Post by wannabe »

Stupid question, I'm sure, but am I right in assuming that you put the O-ring on the reel seat just behind the tightened band to keep it from sliding? Not on the band itself, correct?

Never have had a problem with sb seats myself, but this sounds like a simple solution to keep it that way.

Bret

caddisman3
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Re: Are sliding band reel seats worth the risk?

#35

Post by caddisman3 »

Thats way i do it,O ring on first then snug uo the slide ring as usual
Karl

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PkwyAngler
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Re: Are sliding band reel seats worth the risk?

#36

Post by PkwyAngler »

Bret

I like to use the O-ring as a “lock ring”, as you state. The rubber O-ring is used to lock the reel seat slide ring in place after slide ring is seated on the reel’s dove tail foot by snugging the rubber ring directly behind the reel seat slide ring. You want to make sure you have a rubber O-ring that has sufficient thickness to hold back the slide ring, and the O-ring itself needs to have a diameter such that it creates sufficient holding tension on the reel seat blank when seated against the slide ring.

cebe
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Re: Are sliding band reel seats worth the risk?

#37

Post by cebe »

I had a CFO with the same problem and I switched it out with the foot from an old battenkill (screw holes lined up perfectly) and have not had a problem since. Ordered another battenkill foot from Orvis for I think about $8.00 or $10.00 to replace it. If I remember right I got this tip from this board a while ago.

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ffftroutbum
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Re: Are sliding band reel seats worth the risk?

#38

Post by ffftroutbum »

Mister Bill wrote:For the umteenth time, while landing a trophy fish, my reel feel off the wooden reel seat insert. There are just too many things going on in the heat of the battle, dealing with the current, footing on the river bottom, getting the landing net ready, while keeping an eye on the whopper the whole time.

I never have this problem when bringing in a small fish or winding up at the end of the day. My reel sits pretty well on the insert. It is a Hardy reel and a name brand insert. However, with just one false move in a big event, and the reel can be in the water in a heartbeat. I handled the last situation by bring the fish in hand-over-hand and retrieving my reel from the river bottom when the battle was over.

Has anyone else had this problem?

Bill
Bill
I am curious if you are using the newer Hardys. I have many rods with up and down locking slide bands and I have never had any real issues with the exception of two reels - a Godfrey (they have thinner foots), and with new issue Perfects. The Godfrey probably feel off the rod twice over the last ten years. Last summer I had the Perfect reissue fall off twice. It is a shame that Hardy felt the need to change the foot on their newer reels. The newer feet appear deeper.

stoneflyer
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Re: Are sliding band reel seats worth the risk?

#39

Post by stoneflyer »

In my experience with SB reel seats, the cap has a big role to play in securing the reel. If the fit between reel foot and cap is not snug, it allows the reel to wiggle which causes the band to fail as well.
One problem I have seen is that people don't force the reel foot hard enough in the recess of the cap. The main concern being putting too much force on the cap- epoxy bond popping the cap off. This certainly can be a risk.

I have decided to make a signature custom soldered hooded cap with round spacer (sans mortise) and bevelled ring. Functionally, it is superior to other caps because 1. the force of the reel foot being secured is between the soldered nickel silver and not between the hood and the spacer. 2. The cap is epoxied 360 degrees around the spacer and is never coming off. 3. By controlling the taper of the hood it can accommodate most if not all reel feet.

It doesn't look like other caps but the notion has been floating around for a while as I stole the idea from an early FET rod.

Adam

PS. Gnome's reel seat design is out-of-this-world good at holding reels!

Image
Image
Image

Mister Bill
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Re: Are sliding band reel seats worth the risk?

#40

Post by Mister Bill »

On my last incident, I was using a Hardy Marquis # 4. This and an Orvis CFO have been very dependable until now, but on this particular day, the Hardy just fell off. I guess I bumped it in the heat of the battle.

I also like a J. Austin Forbes, but I learned the hard way and don't even take it out of the box when using a cap and ring reel seat. I built my rod think my reel seat brand is Bellinger.

Bill

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