Mitchell Reel Forum

So I picked up a Mitchell 308 that I thought was a good deal. It came with three spools. The seller said it ran a bit rough. I received it yesterday and it has a few issues. One is the bail trip lever mechanism. It was shipped with the spring not connected. I reattached it and could not get the bail to close properly. After comparing it to a 308 I have, I realize that this reel has the wrong bail wire. I can fix this with proper bail wire I believe. I did check the bail spring and it seems fine.

The bigger issue is the pinion lock screw to remove the rotor. It looks as if one side of the head has sheared off so there is no way to get a screw driver to bite. I see that there are replacement pinion lock set screws for sale. Does anyone have any ideas as to how I can remove this screw with a broken head? It is a tight spot to get at. It may not be removable if the steel screw has galled into the aluminum rotor.

Much thanks in advance for any ideas.

I would first try to get some penetrating oil onto the threads by applying a drop or two into the head of the screw. Let it sit for a day or two giving it time to breakdown any corrosion in the threads. Nextm I would use a punch and place it on the head of the screw and hit it once, twice maybe three times to jolt the threads and hopefully help dislodge any corrosion acting as an adhesion.

You mentiion that one side of the screw head slot was missing. If that is the case, then I would attempt to use the punch to catch a part of the screw head such that when I hit the punch with a light-weight hammer it would drive the screw CCW. Watch the screw closely looking for any movement and if you're lucky, you can chase the screw CCW until you can grab it with tweezers or pliers. Something similar to this https://youtu.be/1Tx7yILT-Fc in a much smaller scale.

Be patient and Good luck. I sent you a private message with a contact name who can assist you as well.

Good luck on that one.
I have several with similar issue
I Would work around it, if you do not have to take off the rotor don,T mess with it.
Only other method is drill it out and rethread, if you can not remove screw with easy out.(am talking some small bits and easy out)
Your other issue is a no brainer, lol.
I have a hard time with later model bail springs, the early ones are a piece of cake.
If price was right you have some good parts, plus extra spools.