Daiwa Steez reels locked up.

[fishnfireman]

Anyone ever had this happen?
Recent trip had two Steez reels just lock down. Both times it was at the first of a retrieve, had to hand over hand my line in to get baits.

Got home, tore them down and found one of the two little coil springs that hold the pinon gear disengage mechanism had come loose and lodged in the gears. I've never had this happen before in 50 years of fishing with other reels. I've just about got enough of the Steez to have one on every rod- which was my goal. After this I'm having second thoughts. All my Steez reels were bought off this site and appeared in great shape cosmetically.

Any ideas how or why this happened?

[Bronzefly]

Who knows what could have happened to them prior to your purchase. If the reel gets engaged during the cast, it can certainly cause some problems, sometimes immediately, sometimes later on. The yoke could be damaged, obviously the springs, and it's entirely possible that even the gears are damaged if the springs were lodged in the gear set. I've seen reels that were cosmetically beautiful, but mechanically had real problems, so cosmetics don't always indicate the mechanical condition of a reel.

The Tackle Trap stocks a lot of Daiwa parts and is also a warranty and Executive Service center - Steez purchased new from an authorized dealer have 5 years of Executive Service and warranty - used, not so much. Feel free to shoot me a PM if you need assistance acquiring the parts necessary for a repair.

[fishnfireman]

I put them back together with some springs salvaged from another reel. Both sets of gears have a bad spot on them. If they don't smooth up will need replaced.

[dragon1]

That is a very strange occurrence...I have fished with hundreds of Daiwas and Shimanos since the 1980s and have never had a yoke spring be the cause of gear failure, although I have heard of it happening if the reel is not assembled/re-assembled properly. That's why there is always a spot of grease on the yoke springs to keep them attached to the posts, before the cover is put back on the reel and reattached.

Sorry to hear of this, but I highly doubt this is a from a poor mechanical design as the internals of even modern day Daiwas are very much like they have been for the last 20+ years.