hawgchaser

I have a 1. Pflueger Echelon 2. Pflueger President 3. 8 BPS Extremes 4. 5 Zebco 33 Golds all have lasted over 10yrs of being fished regularly. I have several reels over $100 and even $200 that didn’t make it that long. In fact if you look at my 20-30 reels, longevity and reliability has had zero correlation to price!

Zebco 33 with Camo accents

No rod should break from flipping in a 2lb fish. If you read online, Abu Vendettas and Vengence snap all the time! I was going to buy a Vendetta to pair with my Revo X. After researching I passed. Lots and lots of reports of this

Nice!

Whoa! Can’t beat this!

Shimano SLX combo. $200 my local shop had them for $159? BPS Pro Qualifer is really nice too im not a huge fan but some of my friends love the Lews Mach Crush combo. Make then of course there is Kastking with a whole arsenal of stuff in that range.

Everyone knows Shimano makes great stuff. But so do other companies! It’s kind of a Ford vs Chevy debate. I personally think both of the reels you mentioned are proven performers and I doubt you would regret buying them. However, is it worth upgrading? I’m not sure.

11 years i just stumbled across my own review on here! I don’t even remember writing this. However 11 years later I’m still using both of these reels! Probably the best fishing equipment I’ve ever owned? I’ve fished these all over the gulf and have caught hundreds of bull reds, thousands of trout and bass as well. I’m glad I found this review bc it reminded me of how d**n great this purchase was ??

Having 2 different actions is pretty dang appealing!

Awesome! Thanks guys. I’m using 2 piece rods more and more simply bc I don’t have a truck anymore. I keep them in my SUV and I’m hauling kids around. It’s easy to find good spinning 2 piece rods. Ill check out yalls recommendations!

I need a two piece casting rod to keep in my car. I travel a lot for work and want to just keep one in the back. I have an awesome spinning setup for this but want a casting one as well. I’ll either have a Citica or Pflueger Supreme on it. And want an all arounder rod preferably a 6’6” or so. I’ve never used a 2 piece casting rod so I don’t even know what’s out there!

I have 2 Sahara’s, 2 Symetres, 1 Daiwa Procyon, 2 Pflueger Presidents. Im buying Pfluegers from now on. I have a 12yo President that is just as smooth as when I bought it. I LOVE my Shimanos but not anymore than the Presidents. They fish about the same. The Daiwa Procyon sucks and it was the most expensive by far.

Its a fun lake but dont expect too much. There is always a chance at a hawg but its not automatic. I have had some down right miserable days on that lake. It can be windy and rough and when the fish aren't biting, it can suck. However, it is a great lake and the fish are fat! I would highly stress getting a guide for at least a half day. I was so stressed and frustrated the first time I brought my boat out there that it nearly ruined my trip. You will hit stumps so go slow. I have fished with James Niggemeyer, Brooks Rogers, and Larry Large. They were all capable guides. I have contacted Tom redington and hope to fish with him this year. I usually get a guide the first day and then go on my own the rest of the time. However, this year I am skipping my annual spring redfishing trip so I might just spoil myself with a guide for 4 days BTW...My first trip there I caught a 7lber on my second cast.....didn't catch another fish over 12 inches the next 2 days.

I was a huge fan of the Extremes until they went to mag. brake. I have roughly 10 of the older ones with centrifugal system. I just ordered 2 of the PQ and have not received them yet. However, I would go with the PQ for the dual braking.

It's a good topwater with a very unique action. It's a sort of cross between a pop r and a walk the dog type bait. I have caught a lot of fish using it next to heavy cover when they want something a little faster than a pop r. It actually has become one of my favorites for hybrid and whites. I don't know why but they kill this lure. This is the only time I use it in open water. For blacks and smallies, I stick to the cover. I prefer a Sammy or Jimmy for open water. The action is erractic and sort of frustrating. It doesn't walk great and it's not a Pop R so it just kind of splashes around BUT it catches big fish. I caught several 4s on it and I think I hooked a 5.5 but I can't remember exactly if it was on the top dollar. As for color, I don't know the official names. I use a grey ghost and clear/blue type color. One good thing about them is that they are pretty cheap.

What a trophy!!!! Congrats on beautiful fish!!!

Here are some more suggestions to confuse you further I use a lot of jerkbaits in the colder months. They are my top producers in March and April. I have several boxes full but there are 3 that I have found work best for me...pointers, X Raps, and H20 Shadtreuse(Academy brand). The pointer and X Rap are two totally different baits. When the fish are less active and you need a bait that suspends perfectly and has a slower action, the pointer will outfish all others. Work it slow and when you are about to jerk it again, wait 10 more seconds. Most bites will come when the bait is sitting still. X Raps are more of a slash bait that excel when the fish are more active. I still work this slow but not near as slow as the pointers. This bait tends to catch a wider variety of fish. I catch walleye, smallies, kentuckys, and blacks on the X rap. Lastly, is one of the greatest secrets in the jerkbait world. Academy has their own line of cheap hardbaits. Their suspending shadtreuse jerkbait is a killer!!! I probably caught more fish on it than any other last year. They are 3 bucks and have really good hooks. For the record, their cranks, frogs, and wakebaits are all very good knockoffs. 8-) Good luck!

The good news is that Academy will accept returns for just about anything. The Accurist PTs are actually very good reels and many ppl on this forum have stated so. I have several Quantum rods and reels. They are all great and have performed better than some of the other brands. I have fished with many Shimanos, several quantums, many BPS, and a few others. As far as performance, the Quantum Energy PT is at the top with the Shimano Chronarch. However, I find the BPS reels to be the best value. I promise your Accurist PT will serve you well!

That combo will work well. Buy it and enjoy catching fish. You may want to upgrade gear as you get mire serious or your budget increases. Until then, that combo will work great.

I have 3 of them and the perform great! They are a little heavy if you are used to lower profile reels. 2 of mine were screachers out of the box until I oiled them. They are worth the original price and a steel at $50.

Important? yes Overrated? extremely

The new Energy is the best sub $200 reel I have used. The Curados are nice as well but I prefer the energy. I have owned over 20 Shimano reels from Calcuttas to Citicas and everywhere in between. They have all been good but did not hold up any better than Quantums or any other brand i have owned. If they would go to external braking controls, i would start buying them again but until then I will stick with my Quantums.

Exactly! I Berkley Lightning Rod with braid is more sensitive than a GLX with mono. Sensitivity is overstated and overrated when it comes to rods. Most decent rods have all the sensitivity you need. It's more important to pick the right size and action.

Hey hawgchaser, My reasoning for not liking Hot Sauce is on both ends of the temperature range. In Cold weather (somewhere around 40 degrees and lower), it gummed up on me and the reels did not feel any where near as smooth as they do at room temperature. In Hot weather (about 90 degrees or warmer), I found it to thin out to the tip where the reel would scream on a handful of casts. I also found that it wouldn't matter if I cleaned and lubed the reels the night before an outing. Maybe, I just ran into a bad batch, I can't say for sure there but that's my experience with it. Since I made the switch, I haven't experienced this with the Reel Butter. Good to know. I don't do much cold weather fishing here. Usually in the winter i am duck hunting However, I do fish in Feb and March and haven't had that problem but it usually isn't below 40 when I go. I use Ardent right now and its fine. Honestly, I don't really care what oil I use. All of the major stuff has worked well for me.

I have the 7'm and 7'MH, I have posted on here how much I like these rods. I think they are very underrated. I haven't used the specific model you are talking about but they are great rods with a great warranty.