Ulusub Reel install on my wooden gun

    Hey guys,


    I bought a nice Ulusub 60m reef reel a couple months ago and I'm finally getting around to installing it. I thought I'd do a sequence of how I did it, in case someone wanted to see one way it could be done with only a chisel and minimal hammer work.


    The first thing I did was take the spool off of the base plate to trace the location of the mortise. Once I traced my lines I taped the outline with duct tape to protect the edges of the mortise as I removed stock.


    The next step is to put what I'll call a stop cut in the wood to prevent the edges from being ruined. I'm not sure what the wood working term is...a stop cut is something I would do when I was chiseling or cutting stone. Anyway, I used a 3/8" for the long lines and a 3/16" for the corners. The 3/16" was angled 45* to shape the stop cut in the corner. I didn't go very deep with the cuts...maybe 1/8".


    Chisel to the inside of your lines and never try to hog out big chunks. Use the chisel like a hand plane and try to shave even layers. Make sure you don't go deeper than your stop cut, because you'll break out the edge. Continue to your stop cuts and lift the tip of the chisel about 1/16" from the edge of the mortise. Assuming you didn't go too deep, the material will come out clean and your edge is intact. Again, make sure you cut down the edge deep enough, but don't bury the chisel too far or you'll deform the edges.


    Cutting the line for the next layer...


    After checking and making small adjustments, the mortise was chiseled to depth. I just kept using the base plate as a depth gauge and made sure it sits flat and even before I screw it down.



    This was done with cheap flat chisels and a small hammer in my kitchen. Just go slow, and it'll come out fine.


    I did this for a simple reason. If you're a fan of Ulusub guns, you already appreciate the quality of the guns and the design. With the way the reel base in set into the gun, you have a stronger connection ( as it was explained to me) as opposed to just screwing the reel base directly on the bottom of the gun. So, in my mind this installation works like a mortise and tenon joint instead of a butt joint. This is the way a lot of the reels are set on Ulusub guns, and that's good enough for me..and it makes sense. Ill get to try it out Monday so I'm glad to have it done. Now I've got to buy some SS screws and set it for good.


    Take care, and happy hunting.




    Thanks for posting this sequence stonecutter! You've done a lovely job and just sold the idea to me for my humble sling - though imagine the base plate will be too small on my rig to accommodate this (maybe I could cut it down a bit to fit or there is a smaller version of the ulusub reel that do the trick!


    I only have a 5x8cm area to play with you see. But like Pete pointed out earlier I'm really interested in just improving my retrieve and live handling for relatively small fish such as a lively bass - so I'm not after a hefty set up. Your pictures will help mind - as I'd previously not thought of physically modifying the structure of the gun - but like you say it makes sense. Cheers Rick



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    Well done, looks great.


    As for the UK sling, I think the Ulusub reel is much bigger than needed. I like the simple looks of it, though which would match your sling nicely.


    But that said, I think an LGSub reel would work great, too. It looks a bit more high tech, but I think that would still look pretty cool on wood. They come in all sizes and could be countersunk in to the wood like in this thread.




    Cheers gecko ! I'll take a looksee



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    Quote from silverspearo

    Would you mind posting the link for sourcing this ulusub reel on the net - can't find a supplier (UK) ?



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    You can reach out to them via Facebook or buy the reel from neptonics..they ship internationally. My reel was brought in by a friend that came to visit. There are two sizes and I've got the smaller reef reel 60 meter capacity


    Ulusub Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/Ulusub/about/?entry_point=page_nav_about_item&tab=page_info


    Neptonics - Ulusub Spearfishing Reels | Bolts Directly to Wood Guns


    BTW, the gun is an Andre 120 Euro RH that I stripped down and sanded with a couple other small changes. I've got a thread on here that showed that process too...there was a ballest problem with too much lead.

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