Ambassador 5000

[HairyMooseKnuckles]

I have an Ambassadeur 5000 that belonged to my late uncle. I'm not sure of its exact age, but I would like to clean it up and start fishing with it.

I'm not sure if this is the same reel, but sometime in the 80's my aunt asked me to help her pick out a reel for him on his birthday or it could have been Christmas. I only remember her asking me, not the details. This may or may not be the reel we picked out. He was a life long fisherman who taught me to fish.

It has sentimental value to me and I don't want to take it apart unless I'm sure I can put it back together.

Here is a picture of it. any help at all would be appreciated. Oh, one question about the first picture. What is the purpose of the metal clip I'm pointing at with my knife?

 

[HairyMooseKnuckles]

I think I've figured it out. According to some guys over on the hunting forum, the metal clip doesn't belong in this reel. I was told Southwestern in Dallas could make it like new again

 

[Pup]

This is a great page for Abu Ambassadeur Bait Casting Reel information.

Fred's Classic ABU Reel Information

There's even information about cleaning these reels.

Can't tell you what the metal clip was for. I'd remove it. Will tell you that the reel's handle isn't original. It appears to be a Gator Grip which is sold today as a 'power handle' replacement for many bait casting reels.

I own four Ambassadeurs. A 5000, two 5500Cs, and a 3500C. Great reels that have seen a lot of use and stand the test of fish and time.

I think that your reel likely dates to the 1970s or earlier. I don't believe that grooved rim side plates were present on many, if any, Ambassadeur models beyond the very early 1970s.

 

[HairyMooseKnuckles]

Thanks for the link, Pup. There is a ton of info on that website

 

[Jig Man]

Those are prolly the easiest reels to take apart and put back together. I have several and they are excellent reels. Not sure why the clip is there but it doesn't have one there normally. Might be that the clip on the inside of the worm gear is gone and he was holding it in pace with that. Don't know just assuming. But heck, clean it up and fish with it...

 

[Jig Man]

Abu has a good list of parts and schematics on their web page...

 

[rich mc]

maybe the clip is there as a hook/lure holder? rich mc

 

[Pup]

Those are prolly the easiest reels to take apart and put back together.

I agree. The last one I opened up was my '70s 5500C. It required an anti-reverse dog replacement and continues to work just as well as ever.

 

[redman]

They are easy to tear down and clean up. Do have a few extra parts laying around most of the parts are still available. ABU is now a part of the Coleman company the lantern and cooler people. There reel division I think is still in Spirit Lake, Iowa.

Redman

 

[JSC]

I would really like to know what the added wire clip is ?? Looks like it may have been a stop to force the carriage back due to a bad worm/pawl ?
The biggest problem with that reel was that I "Palm" a reel and that model would leave a special callous in my palm ... later models they left all the control on the other side to have a smooth "palm" spot. Well worth the effort to fix it up.

 

[HairyMooseKnuckles]

I would really like to know what the added wire clip is ?? Looks like it may have been a stop to force the carriage back due to a bad worm/pawl ?
The biggest problem with that reel was that I "Palm" a reel and that model would leave a special callous in my palm ... later models they left all the control on the other side to have a smooth "palm" spot. Well worth the effort to fix it up.

You could be absolutely right about the clip. I notice that the little doohickey stops moving when reeling when it gets to about where the wire clip was. If you keep reeling, after about 10 to 12 turns, it starts again.

 

[papaperch]

As a way to build up traffic during the off season. We would run a clean lube and spool special for every type of fishing reels. Except ones that had been used in salt water and left to corrode. For the amazing sum of 7.95 or 8.95 can't remember for sure now. We would strip down reel and remove all grime and dirt. Polish the finish. Correctly lube it and spool with fresh line.

The two most numerous reels to come in for this were the Garcia Amb. All models. and the mitchell 300 spinning reels and other variations of it . During Jan, Feb and first two weeks of March. The bigger faster Garcias were big favorites of diehard muskie fishermen.

I remember a truck driver by the name of Pierre. who was a garcia collector and a tournament bass fisherman. He used to drop off a reel case of the Garcias. Anywhere from 8 to maybe as many as a dozen every winter. That guy had some of the most beautiful reels I ever seen. In particular one 1500C Amb that had a chrome /silver type finish. That sucker gleamed like a newly minted dime. I tried begging him to sell it to me many times . He never hesitated to say no. I guess it was his favorite too.

 

[redman]

Back in 2003 ABU had a presentation reel it was set in a presentation case and had a personalized engraved name plate along with it's number of 1000. I bid the job to low and got the job to engrave the name plates. These were to sell to high end bass fishermen. Beautiful reels as I remember the price was around $750.00. Sad part was they only sold some where around 430 something. It was a big disaster all the way around. I broke even never made a dime for I had to supply the plates and engrave them. Some where there are 570 some of these presentation reels sitting in a warehouse.

Just a bit of history that I got involved in. Like I said the parts are available. There are a ton of parts for MOST of the ambassador reels. Call them and they will help you out.

Redman

 

[HairyMooseKnuckles]

That's a cool story. It's sad you weren't able to make a profit though. that had to be a ton of work for you!

Back in 2003 ABU had a presentation reel it was set in a presentation case and had a personalized engraved name plate along with it's number of 1000. I bid the job to low and got the job to engrave the name plates. These were to sell to high end bass fishermen. Beautiful reels as I remember the price was around $750.00. Sad part was they only sold some where around 430 something. It was a big disaster all the way around. I broke even never made a dime for I had to supply the plates and engrave them. Some where there are 570 some of these presentation reels sitting in a warehouse.

Just a bit of history that I got involved in. Like I said the parts are available. There are a ton of parts for MOST of the ambassador reels. Call them and they will help you out.

Redman

 

[Pup]

I believe that JSC is on to it. The clip may well be a stopper for the levelwind mechanism. One other thing you might try is loosening and then re-tightening the pawl adjustment (doohickey) on the line guide . I believe that its base is slotted and will accept a slot head screwdriver. Try it. If it works, hooray! If not, part two.

Part Two: Look for a used reel on eBay. Often you can purchase them dirt cheap. A used reel that looks like it has good parts will often times be much cheaper to purchase than to order the needed replacement parts online. Here's a link for one that I'd keep an eye on. Not an exact match, but its worm gear and pawl should work.

eBay Link

You might decide to replace many of the parts to make your reel look and function better. Regardless, this could be a very interesting and fun project since, I believe, you enjoy restoring furniture.

 

[HairyMooseKnuckles]

Thanks Pup. I'm watching that reel

 

[Pup]

Thanks Pup. I'm watching that reel

HMK,

If you become seriously interested in that reel, soon ask the seller the question "Does the reel crank properly with its spool moving and does the line guide move from left-to-right and right-to-left without hesitation?". This way, you should be assured that the worm gear and pawl work properly and will be suitable replacements for your reel.

Good luck. :icon14:

 

[HairyMooseKnuckles]

good Idea! Thx for the heads up

Thanks Pup. I'm watching that reel

HMK,

If you become seriously interested in that reel, soon ask the seller the question "Does the reel crank properly with its spool moving and does the line guide move from left-to-right and right-to-left without hesitation?". This way, you should be assured that the worm gear and pawl work properly and will be suitable replacements for your reel.

Good luck. :icon14: