"Big A" 5500C

[oldschoolbasser]

Here's a few pics of my latest project.I bought this reel on Ebay for $28,and up-graded it with new gears,bearings,side plates,spool,and handle. I haven't shown any 5500C's,but they hold a special place in my heart because they were the first Ambassadeurs I used when I started bass fishing in the "70"'s.The "73" Big A is my favorite because of the way Ambassadeur is engraved,and the dark Grey color.I will be doing more 5500C's in the future with different color side plate as well.

[KcDano]

Nice Looking reel! Fine job on the rebuild as well. My first nice reel way back was 5600 with the red thumbar! Are you able to get new endplates or you refinishing and/or re-annodizing the old plates?

[oldschoolbasser]

I can get new side plates for most Ambassadeurs.I tried finding a place to anodize them,but was unable to do so.What reel do you need side plates for?Let me know,and I'll try and find them for you.Thanks for the feedback.It's nice to see others with the same interests in these "Great" reels.

[KcDano]

I tried many years ago to get some plates for a old 60's red ambassadeur 5000, I was told that there where none around, unless you stumbled upon some n.o.s.. I do know that there are plates for many op 70's models. I was reallyt inquiring to find out if you had refinished those plates yourself. There is a person I think in Florida or the west coast that is re-anodizing reels in some wild colors. I was hoping you might be doing this yourself, and would like to hear more about the process. Thanks for the info and keep rebuilding the ambassadeurs, they look great!

[oldschoolbasser]

You're probably talking about Don Iovino.He has his side plates anodized in some nice colors.He will build you any style Ambassadeur, in any color you want,but the are pretty expensive.What's the fun in having someone do it for you?I'd rather do it myself,and enjoy the fruits of my labor.If I can find someone who will anodize side plates,I'll let you know.If you still want side plates for your reel,let me know the model,and I'll see if I can find some for you.

[KcDano]

That is the guy! Thanks Again!

[JSC]

Great looking ... but one thing that caught my eye was the good old Red 5000 and the the good ol black one (the bearings on the black one were the first ball bearings on the Ambassador series and they were bad .. replaced them with Red bushings and you were in business) ... I "Palmed" them and have a permeanent calouse from the tension knob.

JSC

[oldschoolbasser]

Here's my 5600C that I added new side plates to.

[oldschoolbasser]

JSC,you're right about the old bearings,but with the new bearing out on the market my 5000C works great! I retired the Red 5000 "Big A",but I still use my 5000 4 screw.I like bushing reels with heavier baits like jigs and blades.I also like the slower retrieve ratios that these reels have,they're great for deep diving crankbaits.My workhorse reels are my 15 and 2500C's,5000 4 screw,5000C,and my "73" Big A 5500C.These reels can be updated to make them even more fishable than they already are.

[JoE_f!shEr]

Hi,

I try to rebuild my ambassadeur 5000C but I don't find any website/tutorial or any other thread about tackle to rebuild it.

I recently read oldschoolbasser's post in TU and see that he is a master about ambassadeur and rebuild ^^.

hope you would help me, thx a lot and have a nice day.

(I'm french that why my english is too poor, please understand)

[oldschoolbasser]

I would be more than happy to help you upgrade your reel.Just tell me what you want to do to it,and we can go from there.You can reach me at jchinsr@gmail.com.Regards Oldschool.

[thedude]

Joel - find a paintball pro-shop in your area. If those plates are aluminum, they should be able to anodize them for you. I used to have parts for my guns done up all the time when i used to play. They can do some SWEET stuff too - camo, splash effects, fades..... check it out.

[graying.geek]

I would be more than happy to help you upgrade your reel.Just tell me what you want to do to it,and we can go from there.You can reach me at jchinsr@gmail.com.Regards Oldschool.

I acknowledge this is a pretty stale thread, but am hoping to tap into the considerable expertise you guys have in refurbing old Ambassadeurs. I picked up a 5500C Big "A" recently that seems to be in pretty good condition, but it obviously needs some cleaning and attention. I've never worked on the internals of one of these critters, or any other reel, so hence my questions:

1) Noting my lack of experience, is this something I can reasonably take on?

2) Checking the advice on a couple of sites, replacing the drag washers with carbontex and doing a thorough cleaning and lubricating seem to be gimmes. Any other replacements?

3) Which schematic matches the Big A model? I wasn't able to find anything specifically listed on the Abu site, and visual inspection of all of the older schematics didn't give me a solid match. Last thing I want is to open up the reel, hear it go "sproing", and not have a diagram to help me put it back together.

4) Anything I should avoid doing? e.g. "Never, ever remove the screw holding the...."

5) Any other advice would be appreciated.

[Lure--Prof]

Hey, better a stale thread than stale bread!

I will say that yes, If you have just a modicum of mechanical ability, you can take this on. The 5000 series in general is really Free Spool Baitcaster 101. There have been more than a few baitcasters on the market which were uh-oh specials as soon as the right side cover was removed, but the Ambassadeur is not one of those. The most frequent mistake made upon reassembly is incorrectly positioning the anti-reverse dog, and sometimes the pinion gear. Over-oiling and greasing are popular, as is thinking that WD-40 is a good bearing lubricant...over time, WD will turn gummy, which is a good thing to remember about door hinges also.

If you can take good close-up digital photos as you disassemble the reel, it is a good idea to do so. Use a good clean, well-lit work area, and use a system for grouping your parts. On a right retrieve reel, I always started by removing the left side cover, and then the spool from the frame. Then you can go to the right sideand remove the right casing by loosening the big thumbscrews to free it from the frame. Now you canlay the gear case on its side with the handle and star drag up. Now you're in position to remove the right side cover, which is done by removing the handle nut, handle, and star drag (you may need to grip the shaft flats gently and firmly with something non-marking to unscrew the drag star). Remove the two screws remaining on the cover, and you're ready to remove the cover.

You may need to use a thumbnail to gently pry the gear plate and the cover apart as you jiggle them slightly, and this should be done slowly and gently, but firmly to remove only the sidecover, with its right side spool bearing cap still attached. As you lift, be sure you're not lifting the gearshaft, spacers, and drag washers along with the cover, and be sure that the anti-reverse dog remains in place also on its shaft, just forward of the free spool button.

This gets your side covers, spool, frame, and gear plate apart with all gears attatched and in place, and if you take your time, the rest of the procedure is pretty straight. As you reassemble, do not grease the nylon levelwind timing gears, or any part of the levelwind: Just lightly oil. Know that the spool edges are toleranced to the frame, and that the frame is not a bearing surface: Keep this tolerance clean and dry, and your levelwind and pawl area clean and oiled, with a drop of oil on your bearings, andy your reel will always cast well.

Yes, I used to do reel repair! I still have my first Ambassadeur, a new 1962 model that my Dad gave me for my 11th birthday. I hope this gets you started on the right foot!

Dean