Goose52

Hey Kirby - the Bait Monkey made me vote for the Flea Market....

Not rumors - people are thinking back to when the Citica and Curado "E" models were discontinued. I got a Curado 50E for $98 shipped (50% off). Some of the last Curado 200Es were clearanced under $100 as well (40% off). The final clearance price on Citica E that I saw was $60 or so (50% off). Not saying that it will happen again...but with the Curado G's baggage (deserved or not), I think people are predicting pretty hefty clearance prices. OTOH - perhaps the major retailers just don't have that high of inventory to have to blow them out that cheap. In a month or so...we'll see how it all pans out.

The Flea Market link is back on the Forum pull-down menu. Thank you Glenn...

The Flea Market link is back on the Forum pull-down menu. Thank you Glenn...

Good, serviceable reel. If you like it - wait a month or so and check the price then. A new model Curado will be released on or about February 21 and the current "G" models will be for sale at clearance prices. Guesstimates of the clearance price have ranged from $100 down to $50. Be patient...and save...

I guess I don't dream big enough... I usually pick 15lbs as the "dream" since the Tennessee state record LMB is 14.5lb...

I always answer these "dream" threads about the same way.... My dream rod is the one with a 15lb largemouth bass on the end of the line........................

My first thought when I saw that was the person that did the layout of that page probably put the photo of the 11-13 right next to the "11-4" on purpose..... Now, if you saw the photos (no weights listed) of the 11-13 and the 17-0 side by side - which would you call the bigger fish? Hard to tell. Photos capture memories,.........................accurate scales capture the weight...

2nd endorsement here....

A vote for the Flea Market !

Interesting. I noticed when the new Electronics forum was created that it was NOT added to the pull-down forum menu. I thought it might be a while but it would eventually be added. Guess it won't be now.... Perhaps I'm in the minority, but I jump from forum to forum using those pull-down menus. It's extra effort to have to go back to the main forum listing, then back out to the desired forum. I rarely visit the new Electronics forum for that reason. I mostly only visit four forums on this board - all are still on the pull-downs - so it's not a big inconvenience for me. Does seem strange, though, that a handy navigation feature is truncated for what reason......?????????

It's not hard. I sketched mine out to fit the space I had and used a 4.5" center-to-center spacing for the rods so the reels wouldn't bang into each other. I probably could have used 4" c-t-c and got in a 10th combo and still had enough clearance for the reels. I didn't use any on-line plans but I did have a store-bought rack to use as a model (see photo). The store-bought rack uses 2.75" c-t-c which is much too close for a working rack and is even marginal for a display rack where you aren't handling the rods all the time. The angle of the board that the bottom of the rod butt contacts is important - I used about 30 degrees off vertical. Also, the horizontal location of the upper and lower supports needs some thought to keep the rods vertical. Six inch width (5.5" actual) stock gives enough clearance for reels when the rack is positioned against a wall. Have fun!

Shimano will be announcing a new model Curado (and possibly a new Citica) at the Bassmaster Classic around the 3rd week of February. Soon, the current model Curados (and perhaps Citicas) will probably be reduced to some REALLY attractive prices. My advice is to wait a month (if you can) and see what types of prices are being offered on Curados and Citicas then. A Curado for about $100...or a Citica for around $75, might influence your decision.

It's not how many tools you have...but how you use the tools you do have.... Sounds like you got the stuff to go kick some bass....

Thanks. L-R: Five BPS Crankin' Sticks, three St. Croix Legend Extreme cranking rods, one St. Croix Rage rod.

I built this one - same basic design as mentioned above. Width optimized to fit some wall space I had in the garage, casters to move it around if necessary. Room for 9 combos with plenty of handle clearance. Cost? $10-$12 bucks I think. Whatever 2 pieces of 1"x6"x6' pine cost me at Lowe's. I had some 2x3 stock for the feet, the screws, and the walnut stain left-over from other projects. The casters came with a plastic storage container the wife bought and she didn't want to use the wheels.

Got my Bearing Blaster in and used it for the first time today. I have to give it a pretty solid thumbs up. Perhaps it won't get a bearing any cleaner than soaking them...but the pressurized brake cleaner going through the bearing seems to flush them out faster. I had been soaking a pretty small bearing (3x7x3) for a while and couldn't get it to spin. Put it in the bearing blaster - gave it a couple shots of brake cleaner, and then spiiiiiiiiiinnnnnnn it went... As baluga mentioned, I put the blaster in a small bowl to catch the run-off and didn't have any escape. You DO want to give short blasts with the brake cleaner or you potentially can have solvent come back up the port for the application straw.

I have regular YZH on my deep cranking rod (10lb) - it just seems a bit stronger and abrasion resistant than the Ultra-Soft. BUT, all my other YZ applications are with Ultra-Soft - both BC and spinning. Ultra-Soft is probably not as good a line as the regular, but it IS more manageable, and still strong enough. The main reason I have so much Ultra-Soft was the outstanding deal on it a couple years ago - $25 for ONE pound spools (5,800 to 8,000 yards per spool). I got two spools of 10lb, and one each of 8lb and 6lb for a hundred bucks plus shipping - about what some folks pay for 3 filler spools of flouro. I'm just about finished with the first spool of 10lb - glad I have the second spool ready to go... The 10lb Ultra-Soft seems to be strong enough for my purposes...

I already have a Sol, two Pixys, and a PX Type R - don't need to shop for those. I'm familiar with the T3 Air but hadn't given it any consideration for my 10lb applications since it would only hold about 40yds... Anyway, my original post was a comment not about the old models...but the new ones. Big capacity; no smaller capacity option. Too bad. I will probably eventually get a Tatuala as I want to play with the t-wing system...just would prefer the option of a smaller capacity model.

I wasn't aware that any price point had been introduced... Daiwa has some nifty new reels (in all sorts of price ranges) but it seems that they have adopted a capacity of 120yd/14lb as "standard" - T3, Lexa 100, Tatula 100. That's equivalent to about 145-150yds of 10lb. Some anglers, including myself, would like to see a smaller capacity model. It doesn't cost more to build a smaller capacity reel - but Daiwa would have to feel that there is a big enough market to warrant tooling up, and maintaining spares, for an additional model in the product line. Similar situation on the Shimano side. Capacity of the CiticaE and Curado200E was listed as 155yd/10lb. Too much for my 10lb applications....but ideal for 14 or 17lb applications. Then, Shimano released their 50 size line (US market Core and Curado 50). Instant hits - people love them. I guess what many people are looking for is the replacement for the Daiwa Sol - capacity 105yd/10lb. Perfect. Perhaps Daiwa will eventually think so too...or not.

I have a bunch of dual-braking reels. I generally run the centrifugals that I need (1 to 3 on) and have the mag braking between 0 to 2. Wind comes up, or with high aerodynamic drag baits, or it gets really cold and my thumb gets "dumb"...then I start cranking in more magnetic.

Yup - that would work and the concept of backing is well known. That still doesn't make it a "right-size" reel for my purposes...

Yeah - X2. I have been fascinated by some of the latest Daiwa products...but the line capacity thing doesn't fit my needs. If all I used was 14-17lb test it would be a good deal but I do most of my fishing with 10lb and thats just toooo much capacity with 10lb. Wish they would come up with smaller capacity models.

Something like this except longer...

Hey RW - I started using YZH based on your recommendation. Having a standardized line lets me buy new reels without having to worry too much about line selection. You and the bait monkey = lotta reels... Sure- mono for topwater. Also, 14lb and 17lb applications are still mono as I have a lot to use up; eventually, 15lb YZH will probably take over those applications. I also still use mono for 4lb applications.