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That was my point..... Revo's are like Kia's. Look pretty, feel smooth, but before you know it the paint job takes a dump. The pig metal clutch breaks etc. etc. After awhile you notice there arent many Kias on the road that made it past warranty. I just rank your Shimano to be no better than the Revo. *******Lews aint nothing but a Revo that went out a different back door of the factory.

The other day at the book store I found that Bassin' magazine has put out a special issue called "Pond Hopper" . All kinds of info on shore bound fishing and fishing small waters. Plus none of the tournament garbage! I recommend you find that magazine for tips too.

Yeah but longevity doesnt play into the equation anymore, if you are the manufacturer. You simply upgrade it in two years play up the hype and everybody has to have the latest and greatest before durability becomes a visable issue.

They make reels out of what sells. What the consumer thinks he wants after being pumped up by sponsor toting magazines, shows and sites. "Oh...so and so used this to catch 79lb. in 3 days...... wow its great I gotta have one". If companies were not in it only for money shimano would still be offering the Curado B. Cheap to make and adored by so many it would have sold trillions. But no, they actively guide you into thinking you need to continuously buy new, more complex products to catch a fish the size that most of the world would consider bait.

Dont get me wrong I'm not praising graphite, I learned my lesson with CI4. My comment is more a slam on anything being made currently. Techno wonder or not. None of it is worth the money they are charging.

Funny, way back in the 80's we used shimano Beastmasters all graphite even the spools. Never gave a lick of trouble. Caught huge snook, baby tarpon all day long. Graphite never flexed, gears never moaned. Graphite spools never cried either. Guess we just were'nt as sophistically educated as the new breed of metro-angler.

Make your own, thats what I do now. New rods look like they come off a old cadillacs hood or hanging on a chain around someones neck. Technique specific in all these odd ball length made just to catch fishermen. You can make your own they way you want them without a huge expenditure in tools.

Yeah Jerry Foran builds my Ambassadeurs. I look forward to finding and reading Mr. Shimormura's books. Do you fish the reels with the white handles? How do they hold up if so? Thanks

Oldschoolbasser....... amazing collection! Are you getting the white gripped handles from Japan? Your pic of the collection did me wonders. I showed it to the Mrs. and she became much more acceptable of my humble collection.

Same here. A tiny fly fishing bag with a couple spooks, 3 bucktails, a copper spoon and a leader wheel. And Im always glad when tarpon throw the hook. Lures these days cost too much to be donated to old rock mouth.

Ive played alot with ultralight baitcasting. Throwing 1/8 to 1/4oz jerkbaits at baby tarpon. I cant imagine that a ST. Croix would fit your needs since they always over power all their rods compared to how they rate them. I use crankbait specific Crucials for their soft castable tip, but they still are graphite so their second half is less moderate. Loomis Kokonee casting rods are a blast and will throw a tiny lure a mile.

Same here. Ive come to realize that the type of lures I use dictate little into it and the reel is actually just picking up slack. If anything I now prefer slower reels and gain a smoother feel.

On the way to the cruise port a couple months ago we past Capt. Harry's. They are a shimano warranty center, most likely have the parts since thats a Stradic a couple of series discontinued.

I feel your agony. I just got over the same kind of infection. Mine lasted a month and I lost 25lbs. Friday I get to have a colonoscopy and endoscopy. Infections gone but the symptoms remained. Good luck.

The 11oz was incorrect. Its like 10.5 for the 300 size. The 200 size is comparable o the competition. The Lexa is the only new reel thats even worth looking at IMO.

This year it seemed like everything was leaked out by the companies very early. Even shimano who never speaks before the first day did it. Best line award to trilene? Did no other line get introduced this year from any company, that they had to give it to a 50 year old line that gets a new colored box? Neither Shimano or Daiwa can garner any awards. They give best of show to a kayak model that already got that award in the past? And as amazing to me as it is they give best rod award to what may be the most ugly rod ever conceived, the most interesting think to come out of ICAST is that shimano quietly discontinued the Calais, Cumara and Cumulus. And like I read somewhere its kinda sad to see Bantam reporting on shimano clothing!

Absolutely they are the benchmark others in the U.S. market are compared to. Why? Technology. In the JDM Daiwa is light years ahead of them and stand as the benchmark. Especially those from the Evergreen and MegaBass ProShops. Again why? Technology. But just how much technology do you need to catch a dink bass? Heck a fraction of that technology isnt even needed to catch serious fish that can kick your butt. The typical bass angler is dragging a bass across the surface with a mindset to avoid a fight. Or worse yet, a typical modern male cries if he's holding 8oz of reel in his hand...its too heavy. Daiwa has even acknowledged that the technology comes with a price of less durability and longevity.

You wont have trouble getting parts from Korea. Pure Fishing doesnt send you back a repaired reel, they send you a replacement reel. Same with Quantum. Shimano will repair your reel, but it'll come back with scratches from the careless repairman. To think of a Shimano as comparable to a 1911...wow. Way too many parts. Many if not most people wouldnt or couldnt even strip one down. A Abu C series is a 1911. easy to strip, clunky, simple, unrefined, thats a 1911.

13 years. So what? Ive got reels still going after 30. My buddy still uses a 6000 Ambassadeur still going since like 1960. Curado D was not supported for 6 years. Like I said less than a year. My experience. Why do you insist on saying my experience is a lie?

5 paragraphs, a new record

I agree. I thought thats what I was trying to say. Everything made right now by any of the major brands is.........POS.

Capt., since your very first thread, a I'm in love with Shimano thread at that, you talk alot. But I just never can get the gist of what your saying. But I enjoy the volumes you write......

Heirloom? Zeebass. No other currently made spinner could qualify. You couldnt give me a Glock

Nobody in this world babies their rods and reels like I do. Reel covers on whenever theyre not in my hands. Off the rod as soon as in the man cave. Do all my own service monthly or more often. I dont take the term throw away lightly. So no......my reels are not treated as throw aways.

ReelMechanic......... those are all reels I tried to get parts for. Back orders that last several months, a handle for the 2500 CI4 lasted 10 months. Perhaps as an industry insider you dont recall that you and your fellow repairmen are in shimanos eyes, on a different tier as us retail purchasers. You get priority on parts. Perhaps you have never looked at shimanos very own list of models they no longer support on their site. For many years, even before you went by .RM. , I valued your posts for their knowledge. But I see no reason why you feel the need to claim that what I say about my experiences are lies.