MarauderYak

I've fished both reels. If they were the same price I'd give a slight nod to the Sahara because to me, the drag seemed to be ever so slightly smoother when it breaks loose. But since they AREN'T the same price, I'd choose the President & better spend that $20. I saw several people comment on how well made the Sahara is, so I chose to get a hold of some info (don't ask how). Through most of the major retailers... what % of the SH2500FD & 6730X are getting returned by purchasers this year so far? I'd like to see guesses. This doesn't prove which is made better, but it does give a picture of how many people decided not to keep each reel after buying it. Let's see what % you guys think on each one.

Like a lot of people on here, I'd rather spend my full gear budget on a single outfit of the highest possible quality. But... if you want to best spend around $200 at Gander on a general walleye spinning combo & general bass baitcast combo, I'd go with these two: http://www.gandermountain.com/modperl/product/details.cgi?i=401579&pdesc=Pflueger_President_Freshwater_Spinning_Combo&r=view&from=grid http://www.gandermountain.com/modperl/product/details.cgi?i=410786&pdesc=Pflueger_Purist_Baitcast_Combo&cname=Baitcast-Combos&aID=504A3A&merchID=4006&r=view I'm not throwing my personal recomendation behind these as the best option for spending $200, but it's the best option I saw within your criteria.

Well, I just happened to pick something good to use as a comparison then. ;D But unlike the contrast ratio, you may never even test out the max drag. Unless you're using heavy braid in thick cover you should never be maxing out the drag for bass fishing. A smooth drag with consistant start-up is much more important most of the time. Try the Extreme for a while, and if you really like it, you can always pick up another. I think it's a good reel for the money, but of course you can always spend more & get better.

They are the same. Woo just specified what lengths & actions he wanted & BPS filled out the rest of the line up with rods that don't have his name on them.

I have a couple of rods from the JM series, but not the exact one you're asking about. I love them. Very sensitive, and great backbone when fighting a fish. They are very fast action though, and if you're casting a 1/4 oz lure it won't be quite as effortless as it would on say... a similar Powell. I would still recomend the JM though. I personally think it blows away the Lowrider, and is more sensitive than the Crucial.

Rear drag is a matter of convenience. It's easier to get to while fighting a fish. But because of it has to come up through the middle of the drag washers, it requires a larger hole, and therefore less drag material. So with all else being equal... front drag is smoother. A front drag reel will also be noticably lighter.

There is no "standard" method for how a maximum drag rating is established, so it quite possible that a Garcia rated at 24 lbs, and a Brand X rated at 18 lbs would actually have the exact same maximum drag if they were tested in exactly the same way. It's kind of like the contrast ratio on high def. tvs... it's good for comparing within a brand, but not apples to apples from one brand to the next.

Another idea... You can put some silicone in the butt end of the blank, then add shot as desired, and cap it with more silicone. On a side note, I find it funny that the most frequent compliment you hear on a Carrot Stix rod is how light they are. In comparisons, you see the light weight listed as giving the Carrot Stix an edge. But then, I good number of people want to add weight to ballance the rod. NOT picking on anybody at ALL, and I do like Carrot Stix. I just think some times the weight of a rod is over rated, and ballance point is often overlooked.

Maybe listening to anglers. "These Johnny Morris signature reels are nice but they're sorta big and weigh a lot. I wish someone would make one lower profile and lighter." Cosmetically they obviously coppied the Johnny Morris. That happens quite a bit in the fishing industry, but this one is just really obvious. Yeah, I have a Johnny Morris reel, and I'm fine with the size, but it does seem heavy compared to some other reels. The Johnny Morris Elite is lighter, but I've never fished one, and sure don't have one. I've cast a Patriarch, but not fished one. They do feel nice.

Over lunch I remembered I have a 6'8" med. action Extreme spinning rod, and I also happen to own a 6'8" med. action spinning Mojo (I know the original question is about casting rods). So I pulled the reels off & weighed them on a postal scale. Mojo 4 oz. Extreme 5.1 oz. But the ballance point on the Extreme seems to be slightly closer to the reel, so the weight difference isn't noticable when casting. Between these two, I do prefer the action of the Mojo a little more, and the sensitivity is a wash for me. But I paid $60 for the Extreme & $90 for the Mojo.

I have a 7mh casting Extreme that I've had for about 5 years. I like it. I prefer some of my higher dollar rods, but when it's on sale I'd say it's very good rod for the money. Burley, you've obviously never fished with either an Extreme, an Ugly Stik, or maybe neither. The sensitivity of those two series of rods aren't even in the same ballpark.

The Patriarch is a good reel. I wonder where they got the idea from...

Reels with such a system have magnets mounted inside the sideplate opposite the handle. There should be a dial on that side that moves the magnets closer to, or further from the side of the spool. The closer they are, the more they slow the spool down.

Just to add my 2 cents... I agree that both BPS and Cabelas have their brand on products that are both good, and not so good. I haven't used either of the Cabela's rods mentioned so I can't give a valid comparison. I do know where both companies make their rods and I can tell you the BPS factory has a better reputation. There are a few big "name brand" companies that use the same factory (Shimano for example). The pro staff was brought up earlier, and I think they do make a difference. Cabelas essentially just has other companies (Daiwa for example) put the Cabelas name on products. BPS does that some too, but for the most part BPS finds their own factories and develops their own products. That's where the pro staff comes in. They work closely with a large number of pro fishermen (not just bass) to get input on what works, what needs to change, and what new products should be developed. Thats why you saw them come out with a reel like the Nitro before other companies came out with similar reels (Revo Toro). Finally, to give my thoughts on the original question... I do have two JM Elite rods, and I love them. They do have a really fast action so I don't use them for any really light, finesse techniques, and definately no cranking. But for spinnerbaits for example, I'm just as happy with the Elite as I am my Loomis SBR813C.

Just FYI... BPS is having a 1 day sale on 3/14 that is last year's Accurist PT for $50. It was $130 last year. That is a reel that's noticably better for less money.

Well, the ideal rod for most jig, spinnerbait, and buzzbait fishing is going to be at least 6'6", have a fast or extra fast tip, and normally be MH. Hook set can be a little tougher with those techniques and you want a rod that can drive the hook home. Depending on how your frog fishing, that could be the ideal rod for that as well. For a ratt-l-tap & tubes I'd prefer a MF rod. If I could only have one MOJO rod for all these.... I guess I'd go with the MBC70MHF.

Cool stasher. You got the best of both. And that factory in Korea... Some of the Pflueger reels have been made there for a long time. So have some of the BPS reels. Revo reels were the last to join in, but have always been made there. Now that Abu & Shakespeare/Pflueger are owned by the same company I would expect them to start sharing tooling where ever possible.

The free GPS offer is only good if you pay over $169.95 for your Patriarch. They're available on Ebay for less than $150 if you don't mind bidding and waiting, or around $160 if you hit the 'Buy It Now'. If you're worried about paying the least... why not buy it for full retail, get the GPS, and sell the GPS on e-bay? That's more work, but when it's all said & done you should end up with about $115 invested in the reel. Just another thought.

Vekol, The IGFA doesn't test mfr claims, but if you are submitting a catch for an IGFA record they actually test the line you used. If a line is IGFA-rated it must break very close to the stated rating. Other lines will typically hold at least 10% more than they are rated for. But once again, the key is to test it without a knot.

If you're wanting to test the line strength, and NOT the KNOT strength, there should be no knot at all. You need to find a way to connect to the weight without a knot (such as a no-knot cleat). Then AFTER determining the line strength you can test different knots to see which has the best strength for you. When you do test the knots make sure you moisten the line before tying.

For you that are buying the reel right now, don't forget your coupon for the free GPS http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Product_10151_-1_10001_103787____SearchResults

You say the truck has a cap. There's so much different terminology here... is that the same as a camper shell, or a topper? If so, I'd mount something to the inside roof of that. One of these options would work: http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?CMID=TOP_SEARCH_GO&langId=-1&searchOption=products&hvarSearchString=38-542-956-00&catalogId=10001&partNumber=15992&storeId=10151&y=17&cmCat=SEARCHRESULTS&x=13&ddkey=http:SearchResults http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?partNumber=15989&CMID=TOP_SEARCH_GO&langId=-1&storeId=10151&searchOption=products&hvarSearchString=38-394-338-00&catalogId=10001&cmCat=SEARCHRESULTS&ddkey=http:SearchResults

Brauer did switch to Ardent recently. There were 4 guys in the Bassmaster Classic fishing Ardent reels. That's pretty suprising to me.

I think not having an adjustable drag is fine for what this reel is intended for. But at 28 lbs, if you set the hook on a stump, you're risking your rod. I know someone who has one of these. I'll see if I can't give it a try soon.

Well I won't make a final judgement yet, but so far it seems like a reel that would be fun for casting competitions, but not so much for fishing.