Roller Bushing on Spinning Reel - Direct Replacement

Very often you heard about by having a roller bearing instead of a roller bushing will enhance your fishing experience. I will show you how to do it, however should your roller bushing is of an odd shape or size; it is not possible without any modification. See previous posting on having an odd shaped roller bushing Roller Bushing to Bearing


In this posting, if your reel is equipped with a bushing that have a bearing that is of exact fit or if you think your roller bearing is rusted and need a change, you will find it useful.

Before you proceed, do ask yourself if you really do need to 'upgrade' to a roller bearing. Reason being roller bearing are highly prone to rust due to it's exposure to the elements esp the salty water that your line picks ups.  And if you do not maintain your reels often, this might not be a good idea.  Nothing wrong with the bushing design really, it is almost a maintenance free part, thus I am not really surprise to find some mid range reel, ie.g. Daiwa Kix, using bushing rather than bearing.  Anyway if you do fish on a regular basis and have some extra cash, do consider to upgrade those mid range reels' bushing to ceramic hybrid bearing, not fool-proof but definitely a few notch above the standard ball bearing in terms of being rust prone.



In this tutorial, I am using a cheap Made in China, 'White Rabbit' Brand reel and a standard ball bearing.


What do I need?
Fitting screwdrivers
Vernier Calipers (if you intend to measure the replacement yourself)
Reel oil
Ball Bearing - Available from tackle shops, bearing retail outlet. Popular bearing outlets are Kian Ho, SLS, etc.



Locate your roller bearing and remove the screw. Carefully remove just the roller bearing and bushing from the assembly. At this stage, if any other materials drop out, refer to your reel schematic to put back the other stuff.






Remove the bushing from the Line roller.
Now you have a choice of taking the bushing to a bearing shop to have them measure the bearing for you. Alternatively, you can measure the bushing yourself and buy the bearing base on the measurement taken. Bearing size is defined by 3 dimensions, Inner Diameter (ID), Outer Diameter (OD) and Width.
* If you are a regular angler, I will suggest you buy one or two more to change in future; as roller bearing are highly prone to getting rusted if proper maintenance is not render.  Standard ball bearing are not expensive, ranging usually from $3 to $5 (excluding GST) from bearing retail shops for standard bearings found in most fishing reels. Funny thing is that sometimes, smaller one cost more than those slightly bigger ones. Think is more of manufacturing process and demand rather then material cost.

Once you get the bearing, put the bearing where the bushing is previously and oil the bearing. Put the entire line roller assembly back; make sure you got the orientation of the Line roller correct.
Put the screw back in and tighten it.

Sometimes, you might need to sandwich the bearing with suitable thin washers or 'O' rings in order to prevent the bearing races from coming into contact with the reel roller assembly. When there are contact, the roller will not be able to spin quite well. With regards to if the washer is required or not will depend a lot on the reel design itself, some trial and error is needed.



Now use a cotton bud to test if the line roller is moving freely. If it does not move or is not moving freely, it means that you might have gotten the orientation wrong or some parts not fitted correctly. Correct them and you will get a more enjoyable fishing experience.