The Rooster

Some things I read here I agree with: Lucky craft bait avoidance, or for that matter, any bait over $10, both fall in the same category. Too expensive. I love the term "bait bigot"! Whoever thought that up, it was awesome. Having said that, I'm a bait bigot of sorts. I avoid Storm lures for the most part, not because of quality, but just because they're ugly. The chugbug might be an exception for me. I have one that was given to me but I sort of like it. Haven't brought myself to buy more yet though. In hand at the store, they just don't look worth the cost. I don't use or even like the looks of crankbaits with metal lips. Just seems unnatural looking to me that a fish would be swimming around with a metal plate stuck to its face so I just don't buy them. Same could be said for treble hooks or a whole lot of other things as well, but in a nutshell I think most baits will catch fish some of the time anyway, so the ones I pass on or substitute for others won't be missed. This might be why I don't own any jitterbugs either. You can also add to this that I don't buy crankbaits that have a painted lip to match the body. Clear lipped baits are all I buy. My thinking is that the lip disappears in water leaving only the baitfish profile of the crankbait. Now I'd like to add to my earlier post of things I don't use. Besides techniques, or lure types and brands, there are certain colors also. Any bubblegum colored baits. I've heard a million times that it's awesome but I can't stand the looks of that pink color. I don't throw red too often either. Maybe a red streaked bait but not red as the primary color. The exception there would be red based plastic worms. I'll throw those all day. Red cranks? Rarely, and I own none at this time. I'm sure I'll think of more later.

That's interesting. I didn't think of adding techniques to this. I'm going to edit the original post for that.

Are there any specific baits that you won't use? Either certain brands of a particular type of bait, or the brand in general, or just any specific type of bait for whatever reason? That last one is the main reason I was asking this question but I thought it might be interesting to see how brand effects this too. For me, I'd have to say it's soft plastic creature baits that I don't use. Don't own any. They just don't look like anything to me. Certain ways they can be trimmed might make a crawdad out of them but I'd just use a craw instead if I want that. Also, the notorious Alabama rig. Never tried it, probably never will. Also giant swim baits. Besides being expensive and requiring a whole new setup to throw just that one bait on, they just don't look appealing to me. Looks like a few casts of one would wear a person out. I know I'm just guessing with no experience, but I just don't feel the desire to try one. Even the small ones. EDIT......one of the members here posted a certain technique they wouldn't use either. I hadn't thought of that when I posted this, so I'm adding it now. Any specific techniques that anyone won't use? I can't think of any certain ones myself that I won't use.

But it's not lipless.

Ever wonder if it was just the right combination of hooks and split rings you put in that other one that made the difference? Maybe something was just slightly different in weight from what the factory puts on them. If you still have the old bait or its hardware, switch it out on the new one and see what happens.

I used to be all about light tackle. I had multiple UL and L rigs. 8 pound line was as heavy as I went, and then I got my first baitcast reel on a medium rod and used 12 pound line on it. That was as heavy as I went for years. A few years ago I got convinced to try a MH rod with 14 pound line on it. It became my favorite rod and last fall I bought my first H/F rod and spooled it up with 17 pound test to get into some heavier fishing areas. I gave my UL rigs away until I have none now. What's funny is I still have a few UL topwaters and crankbaits in my bag but the only rod I have I could fish them on is a 6'6" M/F spinning with 8 pound line. I guess it would work but those baits haven't seen water in years. These days I prefer a 1/2 oz jig with 1/4 oz of plastic hanging off the back of it. Not really heavy but not light either. Bought my first 3/4 oz rated spinnerbait just the other day. Seems my tackle is moving heavier all the time.

Is this your "non fishing" hobby?

This could be true too. What I don't get is if some companies have made a solid reel with straight handles and still have clicking drag stars, like the straight handled Shimanos, then why would others still have that problem to overcome? Bent handles don't get much closer, if any, and adding something that moves the handle out seems unnecessary also, since there are ways to do it without causing that issue.

This is one of those replies I was waiting on. Can't argue with facts.

I'd get a medium heavy casting rod with a fast tip. Something that's sensitive for bottom contact lures like jigs and rigged plastics. From what I know of the Lightning Rod Shock it has a softer tip so it can get by with treble hook baits like crankbaits or jerk baits, but you need something with backbone for the large single hook baits like spinnerbaits and jigs. That's what I see missing from your lineup now. The Pro Qualifier reel would be good on it for all those lures it would be for, or the Citica, either one. I'd probably use the Citica since its so easy to cast, it would make it easier to pitch a jig. Put the PQ on the Shock. I'd use 14 pound line on the medium heavy rod. That's me.

Could be too much grease. Roller bearings sometimes turn backwards when overlubed or in bad need of cleaning and flushing.

I went down with the goal of getting at least one, and maybe two. I didn't get one at all though. Got sidetracked with grabbing up new lures and spent near double my budget on just that. The PQ did look good though. Definitely a solid reel.

That was a good explanation. I now know more about this bearing, why it needs to be a bearing vs. a nylon bushing, and what happens if there is none there. Having read that, I'm wondering if I could add a bearing in there and get the right size at all, being that according to the above description it's actually supposed to be a different size than the reel shaft. How would you order one to fill it? Mic the shaft and take off 0.006 for I.D.? To address where this thread seems to have gone though, I think 4 bearings is all that is "needed" in a casting reel, and I like 5 myself, 3 on the spool shaft and 2 on the main crank shaft. 2 more would be nice on the worm gear, and 2 more on each handle paddle is even nicer to really slick it up for retrieving. I'm the type that wants new reels every few years anyway so it's of no real importance having bearings for longevity of the reel, only to make it smooth until trade up time.

I have the Citica E and it's an excellent reel. Cast ability is better than some others in the same price range. Retrieve is good. I've had other reels just slightly smoother but it's not rough at all. The braking is top notch. I compare other reels cast abilities to how my Shimanos cast. None have been equal so far.

Had a buddy who fished a tournament. The winner had pre fished earlier in the day and staged a stringer up in the back of a cove with fish on it. When the tournament started he simply went to the cove and retrieved the fish. Unfortunately for him, he was seen by someone else. I guess the witness said nothing though. He was allowed to weigh in the fish and collect the winnings, but afterwards on the way to his truck, 3 guys jumped on him and gave him a beat down. My buddy said he wasn't involved but was there to witness it.

I did number three. In a few more years I'll be able to do number two.

I didn't get the combo, I only looked at it. By the way, I want to say that all the individual reels on display at the counter were smooth, and worked as expected, but every combo I picked up had something wrong with the reel. I looked at 4 combos. All were either excessively tight to crank, even after adjustments, or the tension knob was very hard to turn, the gears felt gritty, the spool would spin just one second and stop dead, even with brakes set to zero and the knob backed off. Something was wrong on every single one of the combo reels. I took the knob completely off on the one it was so tight on, nothing wrong underneath that I could see. I put it back on and from the moment the threads connected it was tight again, almost like being cross threaded I actually loved the reel but if I wanted one I'd first pay $80 for just the reel before paying $70 for the combo. I don't want to get rumors started about quality being off on the combo reels but my experience in store was that the same model reel from the box is better somehow. If you get one, check it thoroughly, and compare it to a singly sold reel also.

Yeah, they might but I'm not interested in bearing counts so much. That seems to be where this thread is heading. I'm more curious of whether having one less bearing on the spool shaft behind the tension knob could actually improve things a tiny, immeasurable amount by having less resistance (2 bearings, not 3). Not for real world use, just as something to think about only. But, as for counting bushings as bearings, if they advertise them as ball bearings then they better not be bushings.

I owned a BPS Rick Clunn reel like this once........for about a day. The first thing I did was see if it could be disassembled since I clean all my own reels. After tightening the drag down about as far as it would go, using extreme force to turn the handle backwards to unthread it, and a few sore fingers later, it finally budged loose. I took it off, saw a couple of the aluminum threads up inside the handle stripped out and coming out in pieces. I reassembled it, boxed it up, and sent it back for an exchange and swore off reels that didn't have handle nuts after this. I noticed this design isn't being offered anymore either.

At BPS yesterday I took a look at the new Bionic Plus baitcast reel. It has 6 bearings. Normally one of those bearings is under the tension knob but this reel doesn't have one here. I took the cap off to see. That got me thinking. Could it be possible this reel could maybe cast a few feet farther without this than it would with it? Think about this. However small the startup resistance is in a ball bearing, it's still there. A reel having three bearings on the spool shaft has to overcome the resistance of three bearings at the start of every cast. One having only two bearings has 1/3 less bearing resistance. As long as the shaft extending through the pinion gear doesn't touch any other part or rub against the frame in any way then all else is equal. In theory, the two bearing spool shaft should have less resistance than the three bearing version. So then, how could the absence of a third bearing on the outer spool shaft end be a negative? The spool itself is supported up close on both sides with the two bearings it has. The rest of that shaft isn't doing anything but extending out to the tension knob to provide a slight resistance to slow the cast (some use it this way, like another brake) or to keep the spool from sliding left and right (I use it this way, no tighter than juuuuust barely touching to prevent sideways movement). I looked close (close as I could) to see if there was any other support as the shaft passed through the crank handle side plate to touch against the tension knob and as far as I could see, the tolerance was tight but it looked like it just passed through a hole with a slight space all the way around the shaft. There was no bushing or any frame contact that I could see. If the tension knob was tightened too much, then in theory the spool shaft could be forced slightly out of line and cause rubbing somewhere without bearing support at that end of it. But realistically, I don't think that's even possible. The tension would be so tight the reel wouldn't even cast in that scenario. I know I'm talking about nearly microscopic units of measure here, with startup resistance of bearings and tension knob pressure, and all. Think of this as a brain teaser. Could it make any cast length difference, usable or not? This sort of makes me want to yank a bearing out of one of my reels and try it. Haha.

I do this at the store before I buy it. Helps me to know what it might feel like reeling under the weight of a large spinnerbait or a deep diving crankbait. Otherwise you'd have to put line on it and actually fish it to know.

...and hadn't made about 75,000 casts with it (finished your sentence for ya, Goose).

It was popular several years ago when it was being sold. It was of good quality but is just a bit heavy and a little larger in size than some others currently offered.

When I buy new baitcast reels I crank the drag down so nothing slips and then hold my thumb next to the top edge of the spool to provide resistance, but keep it off the whiffle holes in the spool, and then crank away. If the reel is going to feel rough it will do it right then.

It never does on straight crank reels. I went to BPS today and held the PQ in my hand and cranked it. The handle nut cap, and sometimes even the metal handle bar itself, was banging my knuckle. I can modify my grip on the paddles and have it clear so it's doable, but I got starry eyed at all the baits around me and passed on the reel. I spent $170 on a $20 tackle bag, $30 on 4 rolls of line, and the rest in baits. I still want a reel but I think I'll put a little more use on the ones I have. Later in the year or maybe next spring I'll get two of them.