oldschoolbasser

Your reel was made in March of 1981,and was the 1st production of that month.

You can add a duel bearing cog wheel,and worm gear,Carbontex drag washers,and Boca Bearings to replace the bushings. Polishing all the friction points is also good to do. As for handles,there are many options like Hawgtech.

Great reel,it will last forever. I have the narrow spool 4600AL,and my biggest bass was caught using it. Very simple design,easy to work on. It's good for heavier baits like jigs,and blades. I use mine for shakey head jigs. If you want to upgrade the reel,there's a lot of options available.

I've never fished the Orochi XX line of rods,but I've handled them. I like the fack that the new Destroyer Rods have a split handle which makes the rod lighter,and the price difference is moot as they are both around $300. The only drawback for some is the fact it's a shorter rod,and the blank is unsanded above the 1st guide. Neither of these bother me,and since I ordered 2 more rods means that I really like the rod. I have rods from Palms,Majorcraft,and Phenix all for BFS, and I have to say,this is my favorite rod out of all of them

After taking my new rod out on my last 4 trips,I have to say it's one sweet rod. Despite the fact it's a 6' rod,I've not had a problem setting the hook. I've been using it for Ned Rigs exclusively, and it's been a great match for this type of bait. The fit,and finish of the rod is Megabass quality, it's super light,and extremely sensitive. I have a Custom built Ambassadeur 150+ mounted on the rod. Even though it's a bit heavier than most low profile reels,it balance out nicely( I'm not giving up my small Ambassadeurs). The tip loads up nicely which is great when fishing light lures,and it has plenty of backbone for a rod in its power power rating. I have 2 more on order from Japan Angler that I'll be using for flick shaking,and light shakey heads. It's worth the $300 shipping included for a rod this light,sensitive, and build quality. This rod wil also be a great rod for Doodlin as the tip is a bit soft which is perfect for that technique

Congrats,you're officially hooked!

I'm a "56" A reel like that deserves better lol!

I hear the AE74 is supposed to be "The" finesse reel in the Revo line-up. I almost jumped on it,but I can't stand the yellow stripes. Something about yellow on fishing rods and reels makes it look cheap

That's probably what my 2500C weighs by itself. Good thing I'm a manly man who can handle the extra weight

I don't think that would ever happen as it is a National Treasure. Pure Fishing is losing out on some big money not taking care of us "Old Reel Crowd" Maybe Simon can expanded hos operation to include parts for our small Ambassadeurs

Welcome to the Dark Side Luke Skywalker

Great reel,wish that I had one. The closest I've come to getting one is getting its dual bearing worm gear lol!

I've enjoyed this thread,and I appreciate being able to give my perspective on small Ambassadeurs. They have a world wide cult following,not just because they're great reels,but being able to tune,and customize them is a big part of it too. 41 years after they came out,you can still get parts for them,and many more aftermarket parts are being produced. No other reel company has the following like ABU Garcia. We're world wide,and dedicated to our old,slow,and heavy round reels. Unfortunately,Pure Fishing continues to neglect us,but we'll find a way to keep our reels going.

I've been finesse fishing since the early 80's. Japanese fisherman didn't invent this type of fishing,they refined it. Doodlin, splitshotting, tubes are all finesse baits. I throw 1/16oz & 1/8oz jig heads with 4" worms on my 15-2500C's all the time. Sure the new rods and reels for BFS are a great leap forward, but I don't give them credit for something they didn't invent. Don Iovino, Bobby Garland,and Dick Trask deserve a lot of credit for their part in making finesse fishing a big part of bass fishing. Iovino was going to Japan back in the day to teach Doodlin to Japanese fisherman. Phenix was building rods for the Japanese market specifically for light line and lure fishing. Japan is one of the largest markets for small Ambassadeur reels. Daiwa,and Shimano started making smaller reels for use with lighter lines,and lures because Ambassadeur reels were pretty much the only reels around capable of handling this type of fishing.

I'll give you a report about the rods. I'm planning on going out tomorrow

No,I use straight 5-6 lb fluorocarbon.

It was a lower cost variant of the 1500C that was only produced for a short time. If you haven't read Small Ambassadeurs by Espen Sjaastad & Karl-Eric Svensson do so as it has all the information about the 15-2500C's, and all the variants. I couldn't believe all the different reels that were produced over the years.

I've built my own CDL's. I have a 2500C, a 4500,2 4500C's, a 4600C, and a Silver Record 5000. Big thanks to Simon for making all the parts for me.

Good eye Goose52,the handle was made special for me by my good friend Simon Shimomura Mr.Ambassadeur. The reel on the left is also built with hard to find parts. I was able to get the 2500CDL parts from a seller on EBAY. I'm hoping to find more Nostalgia side plates so I can build a few more reels. The only problem is finding IAR brake plates.

Received my 2 new 2016 Destroyer Rods from Japan Angler. F2-60X Criffhanger,and the F3-610 XSVLC. I like the design,and actions of these rods so I pulled the trigger! I also picked up the Destroyer X7 F5-75X7 Extreme Mission for heavier worm and jig applications. I don't mind that the Criffhanger is only a 6' rod as most of my finesse rods are only 5 1/2'. My 2500C sits nicely on the reel seat,and is very comfortable in hand. I'll be taking them out Saturday,and hopefully I'll catch a few fish and get a good feel for these rods

This is what happens when you have time,access to parts!

Done

The top 2 are both 2500C's. The bottom 3 are 2 1500C's,and a 2500C. Actually,the grey 1500C has 150+ side plates on it. The 150+ was a lower cost variant of the 1500C. I liked the side plates because of their sandblasted finish as opposed to the normal anodized one.

That's a hell of a deal! I pucked up a ZPI Morrum AE74 cheap,so a good deal does come around once in a blue moon. I've seen those line guides,and plan on picking up a few. I already have the SIC bearings,and dual bearing cog wheel. I'll probably add an Avail spool,and swept star drag wheel,and a carbon fiber handle.

I had to do it! Can't wait to get my hands on it and tune it!