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Penn Fishing Tackle has developed a revolutionary new drag, the Penn Dura-Drag™. The Penn Dura-Drag™ will dramatically improve the performance of Penn International® reels, as well as extend the life-span of an International® drag. A full consumer marketing campaign for this new material is forthcoming, but in an effort to provide the end-user of our products with the finest performing drags on the market, Penn has decided to immediately supply our Parts Dealers with this new drag material. Our goal is to get the new Dura-Drag™ in as many International reels in the marketplace as possible.
THE PRODUCT
Penn Dura-Drag™ was developed in a joint effort between Penn engineers and a leading US Auto Manufacturer supplier, and is based on the same material used in the transmissions of high-performance racing cars. This material has been awarded QS-9000 compliancy, among the highest of quality standards in the automotive industry. Dura-Drag™ is tough and durable; it endures frequent and heavy use; and withstands the high levels of heat generated during big game battles.
Dura-Drag™ contains a special Phenolic bonding agent that prevents premature breakdown of the material while also providing a water-barrier. Dura-Drag™ is then pre-treated with a special formula developed by Penn Engineers through extensive testing and research. This special formula improves the drag performance, provides a barrier to prevent water damage, and gives the drag a silky, smooth feel from initial start-up through the entire drag run. The combination of new drag material and special formula gives anglers the toughest, smoothest, longest-lasting drag ever developed – a drag so revolutionary we’ve trademarked it Dura-Drag™.
Scientific tests prove that new Penn Dura-Drag™ performance is unsurpassed. After 30 hours of drag pressure in controlled testing, Penn Dura-Drag™ looked and performed as if it were brand new, right out of its packaging, while competitive drags showed obvious signs of wear.
In terms of performance and smoothness, both light-tackle and big-game anglers will greatly appreciate the lack of an initial surge in drag-pressure, common in other drag materials. Smoother start-ups and more consistent drag pressures translate into fewer pulled hooks, and broken lines will quickly become a thing of the past. According to our field testers, this is by far the finest and smoothest drag they have ever fished:
Ray Rosher, Captain of the Get Lit and his charter boat Miss Britt, “Whether I'm fishing a tournament or a charter, I rely on the performance of my drags. I've been fishing the new drags (Penn Dura-Drag™) for several months with seven tournaments and a steady charter schedule. The drags have stayed perfectly smooth and consistent from one day to the next. Penn has hit a home run.”
The need for fishermen to change their International® drag washers after long fights with big game fish is now a thing of the past. Say goodbye to hesitations and jerky drags. New Penn Dura-Drag has set the gold standard for performance, reliability and durability.
PROPER STORAGE OF PENN DURA-DRAG™
New Penn Dura-Drags will be shipped to you in a sealed pouch. When storing your new Dura-Drag washers in inventory, always keep them in the sealed pouch until you are ready to replace the old drags.
NO GREASE
DO NOT APPLY GREASE to Penn Dura-Drag™. Penn’s special formula has already been applied. Dura-Drag™ washers are ready to be put into International® reels WITHOUT grease being applied. Note – DO NOT APPLY GREASE, applying grease to new Penn Dura-Drag™ washers will drastically reduce performance.
DO NOT APPLY GREASE to Penn Dura-Drag™. Penn’s special formula has already been applied. Dura-Drag™ washers are ready to be put into International® reels WITHOUT grease being applied. Note – DO NOT APPLY GREASE, applying grease to new Penn Dura-Drag™ washers will drastically reduce performance.
oh, really? i posted the entire bulletin in the first post. what i have quoted above is the part that i was most interested in. yes, the grease issue. it says, "Penn’s special formula has already been applied. " what special formula? WHAT SPECIAL FORMULA??????? what in the world are they now applying to these new drag washers??????
no one on this board had ever asked me about what i do with penn internationals, so i never said anything. well, now you're going to get and answer even though you didn't ask. and the answer is simple. i tear the reels down. i wipe out a ton of excess grease out of the side plates because it looks terrible, but i leave a thin film of grease on all the metal surfaces to resist corrosion. i pull out the bearings, pop out the retaining rings, remove the shields, clean out another ton of grease from the bearings, lube them with corrosion x and slap them back together again. in most, i can change the orientation of the belleville pressure washers from "()()" to "(())" and increase the drag at strike by 30%. then i apply a thickcoat of shimano drag grease to the ht-100 drag washer, rub it in really good, wipe off all the excess and reassemble the reel. it's basically the same as the shimano tld two speeds.
so now penn says not to grease their new international drag washers. i've got no problem with that. why? because the cynic in me says that they are about to release a carbon fiber drag with teflon grease. my response? it's about damned time!
where are you, dr. rob? i need your wisdom and guidance.
Wow, you're really on top of the reels and drag technology. Thanks. Will this new drag work in the 320 gti? If I recall, you posted on how to increase the drag for the 320 using the HT 100 washer and new handle. How does one get these parts? Cost?
What's your opinion on the 320 LD reels by Penn? Can they be improved or is there a problem to begin with?
Wow, you're really on top of the reels and drag technology. Thanks. Will this new drag work in the 320 gti? If I recall, you posted on how to increase the drag for the 320 using the HT 100 washer and new handle. How does one get these parts? Cost?
What's your opinion on the 320 LD reels by Penn? Can they be improved or is there a problem to begin with?
sorry, round2it, these drag washers are for internationals only. as for your 320gti, you have carbon fiber drags already. shimano grease ($5 per ounce) will give them a life time of reliability. as for the handle, it's just a penn 4/0 power handle, part # 24-349H ($12?). the 320 lever drag does not have a seald drag chamber like the shimano tld line does. properly tweaked, the lowly 320 gti will give you 25#'s of drag, not that you'd ever use that much. i'm not a big fan of single speed lever drag reels. i am not a big fan of the 320 lever drag in particular. i'd recommend sticking with the star drag version. i'll find the 320 upgrade instructions and post them again. alan
Dang, that was the fastest reply I've ever seen on tht. Thanks. I have 5 ea of 320 GTI's and 2 TLD 15's that I wanta start working on. I just can't wait until all the goodies on the inside go BOING off into never found land. All work good. I do have a slight bump in the tld 15 in freespool but don't have a problem with the drag engaged.
I've been reading your post and you make it sound easy. It takes real skill to make something this complex look so easy.
i went back and searched a bunch of old posts. i realized that i never actually wrote a blow-by-blow post on how to hot rod a 320 gti. i don't have time to write one now, but keep an eye on this board and i will do so in the next week. until then, find a tub of shimano drag grease and a penn power handle. alan
tld 15 drag washer upgrade
i've got a carbon fiber drag upgrade for the shimano tld 15 to replace the white canvas drag that shimano uses, and you can do this at home. if 5 years of reliable service with star drag reels is enough of a track record to say that a carbon fiber drag with teflon grease will last a lifetime, then i say it's time to start calling these drag washers "lifetime drag washers." i'm using a 2 inch diameter drag washer found in the penn old penn 25gls and 225ld that is just slightly smaller than the stock washer from the shimano tld 15. figuring this out has taken months, but now that it's done, the upgrade takes only 20 minutes.
here's the proceedure....
1. crank the lever back to free (this is important!), remove the preset knob (#9), the cam (#10 and 11) and the drag lever itself (#12).
2. remove the three quadrant screws (#19,20 and 21) and the gold quadrant.
3. remove the 5 side plate screws (#24) and set the side plate (#65) aside.
4. remove the spool, unscrew the cooling shield (#186) by turning clockwise (it has reverse threads), remove the drag plate (#216, 31, 67 and 199).
5. remove the white canvas drag washer. brush a moderate amount of shimano drag grease onto the penn #6-25 carbon fiber washer, rub in with fingers, wipe off the excess off of the pressure plate side with a clean cloth, leave excess grease on the spool side, and install.
6. reverse steps #1-4 above.
7. set drag to 10#'s at strike with 30# mono, check for smooth cranking and good free spool.
8. pat yourself on the back and have a beer.
all you need is a small phillips screw driver, drag grease and the #6-25 washer. here's more info....
shimano drag grease - $5 plus shipping, shimano (877) 577-0600. if needed, you can order a new handle and quadrant while you're at it.
penn ht-100 drag washer (part #6-25) - available from pennparts.com (aka scott's bait and tackle, new jersey) (609) 296-1300. the drag washer is $6, handling $3, priority mail $3.85 for a total of $12.85. these washers can not be mailed with a 35 cent stamp because the post office sorting machines will break the washer.
typically, you will loose free spool if you try to exceed 12-13 pound of drag at strike. there is a more complicated proceedure to change out the belleville washers and increase the drag to 16-18 pounds at strike before loss of free spool. i will post this info if asked, but you need to already have a good working knowledge of bellevilles and lever drag design.
lastly, we made a new handle grip. you can drill out the grip of almost any reel and install this grip. it's great if you're trying to fight a larger fish. we target 100# yellowfin and the larger grip really helps.
here's how to increase the drag range on the shimano tld 15. first, download the schematic for the tld 15 from the shimano website. here's the link....
second, call shimano at 1-877-577-0600 and order up a pair of heavy belville washers for the tld 20/30 two speed. the part # is TT-0040A and it is a "preload spring B."
now you have to open up the reel. you have to remove the right side plate and pull the spool shaft out of the spool. from the schematic, find and remove "spacer A" (part #TLD-0047). now locate two "spacer B's" (part #TLD-0058). remove one and leave the other in place. now locate and remove the light duty belleville washers. these a called "preload spring B" in the schematics (par #TLD 0044) and install the heavy duty bellevilles for the tld two speed that you just received from shimano.
this might also be a good time to clean out the excess grease from the bearings. better yet, call boca bearings in florida for a new set of abec-5 bearings for improved freespool. now admire your work!
if you stick to the schematics, you should be ok. there is only one trick to these reels. when you install the drag lever, cam and preset knob, you have to do so with the drag lever in the freespool position.
almost forgot. there is a down side to this. i am not a lawyer and this is not a junk disclaimer, so here goes.... at drag settings of greater than 13 pounds, i would have to be concerned about the risk of frame failure. i have never seen a cracked tld 15 frame and would be very interested in obtaining one if anyone has a lead. also, at these higher drag settings, you will notice more lateral load on the bearings. this translates into resistance when you crank the handle. again, my friends use 40# test mono topshots and 13#'s of drag at strike. frame failure and lateral bearing load have not been an issue at these modest drag settings. do not exceed these known safe limits.
bottom line. the shimano tld 15 was originally designed to hold 700 yards of 15# test mono some 30 years ago. 30# test mono and 10#'s of drag is the standard for the community. many have used spectra, a 40# topshot and 13#'s of drag and i know of no failures. i strongly recommend against using this reel for spectra, a 50# topshot and 17#'s of drag. this is not a 50# reel.
Wow. You are so quick to respond and so thorough it's incredible. Thanks.
A final question for the night please. Is it necessary to reduce the drag, ie unwind the star drags on the penn 320 gti's? I've always done it but I do think I read another of your post stating not needed anymore.
And is it necessary to reduce the drag on the tld's?
Alan, when your doing the 320GTI will it also work for the 321GTI (lefty)
I most surtenly will ask my friend in Florida to learn me how to take the reels apart and do the upgrade.
Pitty you are so far away
round2it, 40 years ago star drag reels still had leather drags. you had to back off the drags so they would not seize up into a single block. with greased carbon fiber, you do not need to back off the drags, ever. as a matter of fact keeping the drag buttoned down with also help prevent water intrusion.
the tld series of of lever drag reels has a rubber gasket built into the spool cap. when the lever is forward, the lip on the drag plate wedges up against the gasket and seals the drag. in free spool, there is a small gap. the two speed tld's and tiagra's should be left in gear always. they have greased carbon fiber drags that will not compress. the single speed shimano lever drags should be in gear when being rinsed, and cranked back into free spool after they are dry to take pressure off the canvas drag material.
the avet has no spool cap. the drag is open always. my guess is rinse in gear, store in free spool. the penn ld/kg/gld series has a drag pressure plate that butts up against the spool cap with no rubber gasket. terrible design. rinse in free, store in gear. you'd almost be better off removing the spool cap altogether. then it would be just like the avet. the daiwa two speed i don't know about. i really need to crack one of these open.
this is all so stupid. there is no reason this should be so hard or confusing.
Alan, when your doing the 320GTI will it also work for the 321GTI (lefty)
I most surtenly will ask my friend in Florida to learn me how to take the reels apart and do the upgrade.
Pitty you are so far away
marti, my friend, it will work just the same. i will write a brief on the 320 as soon as i get some breathing room. if you want to start ahead of me, look carefully at the penn 113h dog spring instructions. the 320 is close, even a little easier.
rmm, this was a bulletin that i found while cruising around the net. a friend confirmed it's authenticity. that's when i decided to post it. it's a bulletin to dealers and service centers from penn in philadelphia. i guessing that this drag washer will be made available for purchase to current owners of international reels. i do not believe that this is a recall. besides, a little shimano drag grease on your current ht-100 drag washer should do the trick. no need to spend the extra money for a new washer.
no, i'm not affiliated with penn at all. i actually spoke to their vice president of manufacturing several months ago and she specifically told me that penn was not evaluating a greased carbon fiber drag. maybe it's not grease that they're putting in.
PENN REPAIR BULLETIN # 5 
Thanks. Will this new drag work in the 320 gti? If I recall, you posted on how to increase the drag for the 320 using the HT 100 washer and new handle. How does one get these parts? Cost? 
You are so quick to respond and so thorough it's incredible. Thanks.
