shimano tld 15 rebuild

[alantani]

the shimano tld 15's were the first lever drag reels that i started working on. it seems like ages ago, but it was really just a few short years. in that time, i've learned a tremendous amount about lever drag reels. what were going to do is put in heavier belleville pressure washers to increase the drag range, clean out the bearings to increase freespool time and decrease the risk of corrosion, and install a greased carbon fiber drag washer. here's the schematic....

http://fish.shimano.com/media/fishin...9830570243.pdf

here's a brand new tld 15 spooled up with 65 pound braid.



remove the preprogram dial (key #9), the lever shaft body (key #11) and "O" ring (key #10), and drag control lever (key #12). Note that there is no spring.



remove the lever quadrant (key #191) and screws (key #19, 20 and 21).



there are 5 side plate bolts (key #24) to remove.



separate out the frame, spool and side plate.



add a little grease to the click pawl (key # 231) and click spring (key #57)>



install the rod clamp. grease the bolts first.



remove the cooling shield (key #186), drag plate assembly and drag washer (key #68).



remove the click gear (key #48), screws (key #49) and cross pin B (key # 50).



here's the main shaft (key #200) with all washers, springs and bearings in place.



and here it is disassembled.



i've cleaned out and relubed the bearings (key #42 and 170) with corrosion x. if you have an older reel with shielded bearings, take the time now to pry out the shields and throw them away.



i've reassembled the left side of the main shaft using the heavier pre-load springs (belleville's) from the shimano tld 20/30 two speed, part #TT-0040A. to accomodate the extra width of the new belleville washers, i've removed one of the thrust washers on the end, spacer A (key #47).



install the click gear (key #48) and screws (key #49).



grease the inside of the spool and new carbon fiber drag washer. you have your choice of either the penn #6-25 or the avet jx drag washer.



and remove all the excess grease.



install the bearings (key #170) and pressure release spring (key #202), the drag plate assembly and cooling shield (key #186).




install cross pin B (key #50).



slide the spool assembly back into the frame. now, this is important. if the spool does not slide back and forth easily inside the frame, pull the spool out again and rotate the main shaft (key #100) 180 degrees and slide it back in. this works!



install the pinion gear (key #198) and set the spool and frame assembly aside.



here's a shot of the right main side plate bearing. we need to pull this out and pack it with heavy grease.



remove the handle lock (key #2) and screw (key #1).



remove the handle nut (key #3) and handle (key #206).



remove the gear shaft shield (key #5) and thrust washer (key #6), and line everything up.



let the main gear (key #197) drop straight out.



pull the right main side plate bearing (key #28) and pack it with grease.





install the bearing, lube and install the main gear.



push the dog (key #26) back until the main gear drops into position.



install the gear shaft thrust washer (key #6) and gear shaft shield (key #5).



install the handle (key #206) and handle nut (key #3).



install the handle lock (key #2) and screw (key #1).



install the right side plate assembly and screws (key #24).



install the lever quadrant (key #191) and screws (key #19, 20, and 21).



install the drag control lever (key #12) in the free position.



install the lever shaft body (key #11) and add a little grease.



install the pre-program dial (key #9) and you're done!



these modifications accomplish several things. first, it eliminates the risk of drag failure from the canvas drag that comes stock in this reel and all the other single speed shimano lever drag reels. a sticky drag washer is the leading cause of structural damage to any reel. second, cleaning out the bearings will improve freespool and the castability of this reel, as well as decrease the risk of corrosion if the bearings have shields. open bearings are now found in all shimano reels for a good reason. and lastly, the increased drag range means that this reels can be loaded with 65 pound spectra and topshots of 30, 40 or 50# mono. all this in a 3/0 sized package! this reel benched out a 15 pounds of drag at strike before loss of free spool, and had a freespool time of 35 seconds at that 15 pound strike setting. not to shabby! i predict that this reel will kill lots of fish! good hunting, bill!

[djy]

You can make some great instructional pictures!Easy step by step directions much better than shimano has on their web site.Thanks for taking the timeout to pass along this info.

[tprice]

Great job again.

I love the detail and pics. I think I could probably do one of these by watching your pics and following your instructions

[keith91]

As always, thanks Alan! I am really thinking of getting a little TLD 15 or 20 now!

How come you didn't put one of your Alantani handles on it?!

Thanks again...great post.
Kg

[Ludicrous]

Thanks Alan. Been waiting on this one. My TLD 15's go out with me on every trip. Very versatile reel.

[alantani]

you have your choice of two drag washers. i just installed a drag washer from the avet jx and it worked great. check this out....

[picua]

Thanks again Alan for this interesting rebuild!

[jeffro22]

Very interesting. Thanks for taking the time to post the info. I am still a little nervous I won't be able to get my reel put back together.

[twotems]

Great pics Alan. I might just be able to fix it myself with these pictures afterall.

[2ntow]

Great instructions and photos. Perfect timing, too. I have a TLD-15 that the clicker stopped working last time out. I dis-assembled it following your step-by-step instructions and found the clicker gear (#48) loose from the shaft. I figured that was the reason it stopped working. Cleaned it up, put a light coating of grease on it, and pushed it back on the shaft. Re-assembled, then tried it. It worked for about 2 revolutions, then stopped again, with the same results when dis-assembled. What can be done to correct this?

Thanks.

[alantani]

shimano is absolutely the best when it comes to supplying parts for their reels. call them at 877-577-0600. if you get josh, tell him i said hi! after he stops laughing, ask for part #TLD-0048. they usually send these out for free!

[2ntow]

Didn't get the opportunity to talk to Josh, but did talk to Karen. Very nice customer service and part is on the way at no charge! Thanks again for all the help you have given on this board.

Dan

[TG_190]

Nice Post.

The next time I service my tld20s and 25s, I would like to upgrade the drag material. I never had a failure, but I did notice wear on 2 of them so I cleaned and greased them as I didn't have replacements on hand. What are the replacement drags on the tld20 and 25? I assume the TLD20II, for the tld20, but I am not sure about the tld25.

I really don't need more pressure, I just want to never have a drag stick in the heat of battle, but I was wondering if changing the bellevilles changes the characteristics of the drag, like is the amount of drag pressure proportional (linear)position after the addition of the beefier belleville?

Thanks,

TG_190

[alantani]

oops! you can't grease the canvas drag washers. they will stick like crazy!

[bait crasher]

Pictures or not, my reels would never be the same if I attempted that.

[TG_190]

alantani - 6/6/2006 12:53 PM oops! you can't grease the canvas drag washers. they will stick like crazy!

Really? Oh, well another hour of my time down the tubes. Actually, had a good fight this past weekend w/ a bluefish that took some line, the drag was so smooth, I couldnt tell when I was gaining of loosing line. Its not really canvas though, seems more like felt. The key is what grease to use. I like the Marykate stuff.

So, now I guess I really need an answer to my question: what are the appropriate Carbon Fiber replacements for the TLD20 and 25? Do they both take the 20 II drag, or is there a diff that I'lll measure the next time I open them?

The II speeds are carbon I assume?

Thanks for the info. Great pics. And to those that think its too hard to do; its not that bad.

[alantani]

i use the same carbon fiber drag washer from the tld two speeds. i snip off the tabs with wire cutters, then find a bar that fits snugly inside the drag washer (impact sockets work well). then i hold it gently against a grinding wheel to grind down the outer diameter until if fits snugly inside the spool of the tld 20 or 25. for the tld 15, you can use penn drag washer #6-25, or you can use the drag washer from an avet jx.

[Cracker]

Wow...Great job, but I must admit I am a little apprehensive to do deal with all those parts...

[TG_190]

alantani - 6/6/2006 5:35 PM i use the same carbon fiber drag washer from the tld two speeds. i snip off the tabs with wire cutters, then find a bar that fits snugly inside the drag washer (impact sockets work well). then i hold it gently against a grinding wheel to grind down the outer diameter until if fits snugly inside the spool of the tld 20 or 25. for the tld 15, you can use penn drag washer #6-25, or you can use the drag washer from an avet jx.

Thanks a bunch for the info. I don't have any TLD 15s, but in addition to the 2 TLD20s and 2 TLD25s I have, I do have a charter special that seems to have a lot of parts in common w/ the 15. All of my shimano tldsthus far have been flawless, and some of them have a good # of fishing trips and fish caught. I have serviced all of them at least once, but I enjoy that kind of thing.

I also serviced my 2 AVETS, and thought my little SX was great to work on, but the 4.0 W II speed was the hardest reel to to work on.



Thanks again.

TG_190

[flapbreaker]

I found this description for the TLD 15 and wondered if it were true or are they doing something new now?

" The superlative ball bearing drag system has a titanium-impregnated fabric that runs smoother, lasts longer, dissipates heat more effectively and keeps drag tension more even than other materials"