Cavfirst

Check your spacers under your handle they should be installed were they look like this ( ) not (( just a thought happened to me all the time this will defintely keep your drag from tighten down.

I have no experience with the z bones but I do own kistlers and love them by the way and have had experience with their service an it has always been great. I do not buy products based on written warranty I buy them because I like them, and the company they come from. I have had rods with "Lifetime Warranties" that broke the first time out on hook set when I explained the problem I got no service and was stuck with a high priced broke rod. Then I found Kistler broke a rod placing the rod in the rod locker, was not the original owner never filled out anything an they gave me a hardship warranty anyways got a new rod cheap they won me over on the service no waiting on hold no talking to a computer just good ole americans taken care of their customers.

I was a die hard abu man an after about 3-4 years of use I started having problems then I switched to daiwa no problems an they are smooth the breaking system is awesome, they are very well balanced, feel good in your hand, and they are easy to maintenance Ive always been to each his own kinda guy but I would recommend daiwas products to anyone wanting good equipment at a good price.

Another white rod (Just like Boyd Ducketts) blanks are probably made by the same company making Ducketts in China, I bet Abu's will be cheaper.

I use it on everything from cleaning my rods and electronic screens to spraying on my line. Vicious and KVD seems to work better but sometimes hard to find in this part of the country. When I spool new line on I spray it on a felt pad used by fly fishermen to put fly dressing on their line and run the new line through it as it is spooled seems to work really well that way on fluorocarbon's.

Has anyone heard the rumor that She-mano will not be selling anymore Loomis rods in 2011? Some of this is because Gary Loomis is back in the rod making business?

I just try to put my hands on one of the makers rods before I buy to really get a good determination of what is what and then stick with the same rod company for all my rods that way I kinda have a Ideal if a MH is more Medium or Heavy of course sometimes when they come out with new models they will throw you a curve so you have to do this with different models even from the same company.

Kistler mag 6'9 APS, 6'10 Alton Jones football head jig rod works you can find them on sell or save alittle money an go for the 6'9 MH Carbon Steel model all good rods for that technique just depends on what ya heart desires and the tackle money wants to be fed this time

I luv my Kistlers!!! ;D

Check out Kistler rods new Z bone customs using these new blanks.

SMOOTH as buttermilk and a rock solid drag makes an awesome pitchin reel

Kistler Mag 7" mag worm carolina rig hvy-daiwa black widow 2 reel.

AWESOME! Just what I wanted to here I own the crankbait model being that Kistler doesnt make a MH glass cranking rod I went with this one and WOW!! I have never had a glass rod that was so light and sensitive so its good to hear that the other technique sticks are also as good gonea get one of the 7'3 MH for flippin!!

Mine is also kinda noisy even after a good cleaning an lube job, but it preforms flawlessly I used it last year for flipping jigs 3/8 to 3/4 oz and the drag was pretty awesome an it never failed me even when working heavy stuff so if you can get over the noise good reel for the money, but not as good as my advantages.

Check out Kistlers new Z bones if you really want to spend some ducks on a awesome custom and Trey is using Gary Loomis's new blanks but if you just want a good off the shelf reasonably priced the Kistler Carbon Steel 6'9 medium is a decent small crankbait rod and you can find them on sale for less than 100 bucks.

Owned two of them and they never made it on a fishing trip, 1 blank was warped so bad towards the end that I am not even sure it would cast straight the other one was not splined right and would roll when loaded just the slightest amount. Imo not very good quality control and I hate that for the original all American rod company like All Star, Man in their day they were it now like so many their day has passed

I use these reels exclusively and they do not seem to like braid much, however the best way I have found is to set the mag brakes to the max hold the rod tip elevated with about a 3/8 oz casting plug tied on and push the button allow the plug to fall to the ground adjust the tension knob until the spool almost stops when the plug hits the ground not allowing the line to loosen on the spool then start short casting and playing with the tension knob until you get the distance and accuracy that you want. Just alittle trick you can overcast these reels really easy dont try and over power them by casting to hard with light lures not the best reel on the market but probably the best for the money just my 2 cents hope it helps

If it is a bait caster and you want to save alittle money tie a nice big plug on it a throw the thing as far as you can in the yard then pull out about another 8 ft or so cut the line and tie the new line to it with a good strong knot use a spooling station and respool. Using the old line as backing will save you alittle money on line and unless you get ahold of a sea monster you will never see the knot were you tied the line together again till your ready to respool. Specially on flipping and pitching gear.

Yep once again I agree with Reel Mech consider them battle scars gives the rod character, but if you just must hard as nails clear nail polish clear coat will do the trick if the scratch has really scratched through the clearcoat of the rod you will want to lightly and I mean lightly wet sand it with a very light emory cloth or finishing paper before evenly coating it with the polish and you can use it directly on the threads of the eye to re coat.

Vicious is about the best flour for the money followed closely by Triple Fish but I don't fish it on spinning gear. Of course you have to really check you line with all flouro I have tried and i think i have about covered them all if they get a nick their going to break with a heavy hookset unlike most co polymer but then again flouro is so much more sensitive to me anyways. THE ONLY reliable KNOT to use with flouro when using vertical baits is the San Diego Jam knot the polymer works good when tied properly for horizontal baits but not worth a darn for the hard hook sets required for single hook vertical baits I believe this is because flouro is not very impact resistant and any time the line is doubled over itself or doubled through the hook eye it will slip slightly and cut itself into resulting in lost fish. Just my 2 cents after alot of hard-aches and research on the subject.

Great thread!! Here is what I find IM means nothing it is not standardized across the market therefore what one company calls IM7 may be another's IM8 go figure, but 1 thing that I find to be almost constient if a rod blank has a higher IM rating it tends to be lighter, thinner and sometimes more brittle. IMO, I have some IM6 blanks that I dearly love because they are plenty sensitive maybe not the lightest things on the market but very fishable and most of all I aint gonna break the things on a hookset!!! My 2 cents find a rod you like and feels good to you and go for it I promise if it feels good to you, you will fish more efficiently with it and hence have more fun and catch more fish and that's what it is all about aint it?

This is the only brand my Brother-in-Law will fish he loves them particularly the older ones. The same man who started ALL Star rods built Castaway hence the older ones or the pro-sport series feel the same. Good rods for the money and they seem to be very durable built with quality stuff. Oh yeah Kistler rods is owned by his son I dont think you will be disappointed with them the actions seem to be alittle lighter on the newer ones a med feels more like a med lite etc...Semper Fi

I have problems throwing smaller cranks with the Revo. Anything under 3/8's for me is a no-no now for 3/8 and above i can throw the line off the reel if i am not careful. Two reels you might want to look at for smaller stuff bps makes the finesse reel it works great for lite stuff or just a standard revo s this reel is very versatile for me, but i have always been a Abu guy had a bad experience with She-man-o reels along time ago and never got over it. Different strokes for different folks.

Once again the Reel Mechanic is right on the money, IMO!! I do alot of cranking deep and shallow and I started out with the cranking sticks which is a great rod for the cash really nice action but its got that darn hump with killed my wrist and hand in the same area you are speaking of at first i thought it was due to an old wrist injury i switched off to the straight handle rods and have actually gone to the split handles now and have no problem. Its gotta be the Hump!!!!!!

Revo Winch or Abu 5500 if you dont mind a round reel.