For anyone who wants their fishing reel to perform as it should, they should set aside an hour of time, once a year, to clean and oil their spinning reels. An hour of time is a small price to pay to make sure that you spinning reel performs, as it should. As you gain experience, cleaning a spinning reel won't even take an hour, but the point is that it doesn't take much time at all. I know from experience that this is a great idea, because your reel will always choose to stop working properly at the most inopportune times, like when your in the middle of battling a trophy fish!

If you're going to clean your spinning reel, you're going to need 5 things: 1. a clean area to work, 2. small screwdriver(usually Phillips head), 3. Q-tips, 4. Reel grease or WD-40, 5. Some clean towels. Now that you're ready the first thing to do is to remove the handle. This is normally accomplished by either turning the crank counter clock wise, or by backing out a screw on the opposite side of the crank. Now that you have the handle removed, simply wipe it clean and add a little of the lubrication. Now set the handle aside.

If you examine your spinning reel, you will see that on one side there are several small screw-heads (usually 3 or 4). Using the small screwdriver, remove these screws, and set them aside. The plate that the screws were holding in place should now be removed. Removing this plate exposes the inner workings of the spinning reel. Now using a Q-tip or two, remove any debris such as dirt or sand that you see inside the gears of the reel. Now add your lubricant to every gear that you see. A drop or two (or quick spray) usually works fine. Now simply reverse the process.

Once the spinning reel is re assembled, give it a few cranks, to distribute the lubricant. Your reel should be working as if it were brand new at this point. If these simple steps are followed once a year before the beginning of fishing season, your spinning reel will last you for years and years. Think of it like changing the oil in your car. It's simple and easy, and just keeps everything working properly. If you follow this advice your spinning reel won't let you down when you least expect it either.

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