OnthePotomac

Shimano reel design is successful without numerous bearings in every model, because they are not necessary. The new Curado has three bearings on the spool shaft (the new X-Ship feature), one on the draft shaft, a pinion bearing and an anti-reverse roller bearing, all that is needed to do the job. Of course you can always change the handles for four bearings if you want a nine ball bearing count. The Curado bearing configuration is the same as the $420 Metanium, which with the handle bearings has nine bearing with an anti-reverse bearing. Of course the Metanium has higher quality bearings. If you have not tried a new Curado you will love the reel. So my recommendation is do not get caught up in a bearing count when deciding on a reel.

Thanks for the comments.

Anyone here fish with this reel? My grandson is using Curado 50E reels and wants a Calcutta 100B just for kicks. I am not sure going to a round reel from Curado 50E's is a good idea, but what do I know. I am sure it is a fine reel.

Dollar Yen exchange rate?

I put a little grease on it to keep it in place before I squeeze it on with bent needle nose hobby pliers. the grease will also prevent it flying out. Good points on getting your worm gear seated in all the way before you begin. Just be sure the groove is clearly visibile before you begin. They can drive you nuts though just when you believe you have everything lined up OK. You really have to keep a finger pushing on the worm gear the whole time to keep it in.

I do not have a BPS Cranking Stick, but I read a ton of favorable reports on them by experienced anglers.

Agree. Great worm/plastics rod.

It runs from Feb 19-March 11. The values are: SPEND SAVE $29,99-48,99 $5 49.99-74.99 10 75.00-99.99 15 100-119.99 20 120-159.99 25 160-199.99 30 200--249.99 40 250-499.99 50 500 + 100 Many of their rods are already heavily discounted. I looked at a new Tournament Series and it was $99.99 marked down to $49.99. Light as a feather.

As stated above, remove the orange seals and leave them off. This DVD series may be of help to you. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZLpO74dWuoE

If you have a Gander Mountain near you check them out. They are selling the last model of their Tournament series for $50, marked down from $99.99. I looked at them the other day and they are really super light.

Let me add that if you are going to use a spinning rod, add a tiny swivel 18-24" in front of the bait and it will eliminate line twist.

I fish jigs on a 7' MH Carbonlite with 17lb flouro on a Curado 200I. The rod has worked well for four years.

You will find many anglers pack their pinion gear in grease and some like the drive shaft bearing in grease (if your reel has one on the drive shaft). I use grease on my pinion gear and ReelX on my drive shaft bearing and worm gear. I am currently experimenting with TSI 301 dipped pinion bearings. I only fish the tidal Potomac.

I have been using ReelX on my worm gear for a few years now and it has worked well.

That is another feature I have always liked about Shimano, they do not load up their reels with unnecessary bearings and get the same performance.

I bought one 15 years ago in a 2 piece to take to Florida on a family visit and it is still going strong. Surprisingly, it is light as a feather even by today's standards. It is a 6'6" MH baitcaster. That rod has hauled a ton of bass over the years.

Line & Lure is a special polymer blend that becomes part of the fishing line it is applied to. Other line treatments you find on the market are primarily silicone oil and solvents. Silicone oil only temporarily coats the line and solvents can damage line. Silicone oil rapidly comes off the line (on your hands and in the water), requiring re-treatment of the line after just a few casts. The special polymers in Line & Lure are hydrophobic (water repelling) and very slippery. It doesn't allow water to draw back on to the reel spool, which eliminates the line drag that a "wet" spool has. It also protects the line from wearing out as quickly as un-treated line because it resists the abrasion that wears line out. It contains no oils or solvents as in Reel Magic that can build up and collect dirt like silicone/oil treatments will.

The Classic sale from Feb 6-15 offers Carbonlite rods starting at $89.97 and you can use a working rod trade in. The new white Carbonlites are included. With a trade in you will get $15 off a rod purchase of $75-$99.99, $20 off a rod purchase of $100-$119.99, and $25 off a rod purchase of $120-$159.99

I have three Chronarch C14's now and although I have replaced bearings and drags in my other Shimano reels, I have found the black anti rust bearings in them pretty darn smooth and efficient and the drags also pretty efficient, so I have left them alone for the time being.

In the Christmas flyer I just received it appears that the BPS Carbonlite rods have turned white. Anyone know for sure?

Super Lube or Yamaha blue marine grease on gears and pinion bearing, Shimano drag grease on drag washers, ReelX oil on worm gear and drive shaft bearing, Yellow Rocket Fuel on SS spool bearings and handle bearings and Oust Met Oil on ceramic spool bearings.

For just the inside of the reel, bearings and gears excluded, I use a 50-50 mix of Simple Green and hot water in a container, hold the reel over the container then with a soft brush keep brushing with the solution until it is clean, rinse under the laundry tub faucet with hot water and blow dry the reel with a computer key board blower. My gears and bearings are cleaned separately.

I fish a variety of jigs with my Curado 50E's with 15lb flouro and have no problem.

What is KVD? Line & Lure is a special polymer blend that becomes part of the fishing line it is applied to. Other line treatments you find on the market are primarily silicone oil and solvents. Silicone oil only temporarily coats the line and solvents can damage line. Silicone oil rapidly comes off the line (on your hands and in the water), requiring re-treatment of the line after just a few casts. The special polymers in Line & Lure are hydrophobic (water repelling) and very slippery. It doesn't allow water to draw back on to the reel spool, which eliminates the line drag that a "wet" spool has. It also protects the line from wearing out as quickly as un-treated line because it resists the abrasion that wears line out. It contains no oils or solvents as in Reel Magic that can build up and collect dirt like silicone/oil treatments will.

LakeForkTackle.com has produced a how to DVD for cleaning and lubing baitcasters. I bought one 8 years ago for then $20 and it set me on the road to doing my own reels. You get better the longer you do it, but this was a good start for me. When I hit 13 baitcasters I decided I had better learn how. Organization and attention to detail is the key, but at least for my Shimano reels, I discovered that they are all basically the same inside.