List of Ambidex Reel Models

[Wallys-Cast]

Clive, the drag spring assembly is missing from your adjuster.
I'll put a picture on later.

Wal.

[Nobby]

Most annoying, I know I've had this problem with an identical reel I sold to Chris Sandford, but I can't recall the cure. I hate getting old.

[Ambidexman]

I am sure I will have a spare somewhere. Please PM me your address and I will send you one.

[Mole-Patrol]

I am sure I will have a spare somewhere. Please PM me your address and I will send you one.

Thank you. That is very kind

[Mole-Patrol]

I have checked through the box that the Ambidex came in. The reel came with an ABU Cardinal as one lot and inside the plastic bag that the ABU had been packed in I recalled seeing two pieces of metal that I thought were old bearings that may have been changed. These two pieces are the missing drag items from the Ambidex. I have assembled them and it now works fine apart from it being a little stiff to turn compared to modern reels. But the drag is now gudgeon ready!

[Andyman]

I also find the Ambidex a little difficult to turn. Pretty sure it is down to the short crank of the handle.
Still one of my favourite reels as it just so looks the part on cane, especially the hump back early model.

[Wallys-Cast]

The early reels can be quite tight to turn but usually its because they have been greased instead of oiled. A good clean out and some light oil will get it running much easier.

Wal.

[Mole-Patrol]

I don't think it is the handle that is the problem otherwise the reel would continue to turn after letting go of the handle after giving it a vigorous wind. Some of the best minds of TFF have looked into this issue and there are some really good comments on this thread and others about it. Friction, tightness, missing shims, misalignment and lubrication are all discussed.

I have resigned myself to it being a foible that adds to the reel's character

[Mole-Patrol]

By Jove I think I've done it!

Disclaimer;- I am a total amateur with tools and have no engineering or mechanical experience or competence at all. But I can bodge with the best of them

The reel was stiff to turn. Smooth, but stiff and the stiffness was consistent, not linked to oscillation and there was no noise coming from the reel that would indicate scraping or something touching another part. It was if anything over oiled when I got it and my first attempt at cleaning it and re-oiling it less liberally had no effect. Neither did removing the spool or turning the handle with the side plate off. My suspicion was with the Tufnell gear that meshes with the worm drive of the oscillator shaft. As far as I know about this is the only reel that is known to suffer with this type of fault and the only reel with a Tufnell gear. Hmmm

I wondered whether there might be some debris caused by degradation of the Tufnell that was interfering with the meshing of the gear with the worm drive so I flushed the oil out with white spirit and used a toothbrush (the wife's - she's out) to clean the entire gear. The reel was even more stiff but after a little lubrication was applied it turned stiffly at first then all of a sudden it flew! However, when I slowed down the turning it stiffened up again.

This was repeated several times, so I flushed the reel out again and brushed the Tufnell gear. Once the reel was re-oiled it turned stiffly and then released again. It was like turning the starting handle of an old car. This time it took less turns to get it to release. Long and the short; I flushed, cleaned and re-lubed five times, each time the reel became easier. After five cycles the reel now turns a lot more easily from a start. It does however occasionally jam in reverse and always at the same point. The other thing is that there seems to be a tiny amount of play in the rotor. I mean a gnat's.

I left it for an hour and then tried it again. It turns just fine; a lot less effort, smooth, but with a minute, almost unnoticeable sound from the back of the rotor. Where the new play is.

The only problem I have now is getting the toothbrush clean before Little Wife gets back from walking the dog.

[Nobby]

I did once conclude that 'some' lubricants could make the tufnol gear swell causing the reel to jam. One could have an Ambidex that spun over beautifully but put it on a shelf for six months and turn it again and it would be jammed.

I never did work out precisely which lubricants did this but Reel X Soft grease was fine. Until they changed the recipe. The new stuff splits into oil and grease and may not be as good. At £9 a jar they can keep it!

At a pinch, I'd try Gary Mills' 'Pin Oil', it's fully synthetic and doesn't deteriorate over the years. £5 a pop but it will do lots of reels.


The jamming in reverse may be a shimming issue. Some reels originally came with thin perspex washers to stop this, but they are so easilly lost.

There is quite a lot of thrust generated by worm gears and the handle shaft can be pushed pretty hard against the reel side cover or the bodywork...made worse if it looks like this one:




Whilst searching for that image I found this old digital sketch of a mod I tried with the gears. From dim recollection it helped a bit but that reel had many issues....