[oldschoolbasser]

Being a fan of the older Ambassadeur reels,there are a lot of ways to make them smoother,and better casting.Lets start with the 5000.First off this is a bushing reel and not as smooth as a bearing reel.A simple solution to your backlashing problem would be to change the brake blocks on the spool.There are 3 different sizes available.Ambassadeur part #1880(small size) #1881 (large),and #1884(medium).If your brake blocks are too small,you won't get as wide a selection of braking as you would with a larger brake block.Another thing to remember is bushing reels work better with heavier lures,and don't handle light lures as well as a bearing reel.Your reel can be converted to a bearing reel,but a number of parts need to be changed in order to do the conversion.I suggest you try larger brake blocks first to see if this helps with the backlash problem.If this helps,and you still want a better casting reel,I would go with the dual bearing worm gear,and bearing supported cog wheel.As for the 5500C,I would go with ABEC5 bearings for smoothness,and increased casting distance.I'd also go with the worm gear,and cog wheel upgrades.If you need any help email me at jchinsr@gmail.com,or call me @(626)235-5598 and i'll be happy to help you out.There is 1 more conversion that i've done to some reels,and that is converting them to a narrower size reel which makes them a little more comfortable to fish with.