kickerfish1

I agree with CGriner - If the Alphas SV 105 was in consideration it would be tough to beat for lighter baits. What do you consider to be light or at least light to you? I haven't used the Curado 70 yet my Alphas SV 105 stock will outcast my any my Shimano 50 series reels for 1/4 oz baits. The Alphas 103 is discontinued so you would have to buy one second hand. For the 103 you would be looking at the Purple 103, Alphas R edition, Alphas 103 Type F, and Alphas 103 ITO. The breaking profile of these will all be Mag V. This breaking profile can be hit or miss for casting. I had a 103 with upgraded bearings and supertuned that was pretty uncontrollable until I put a SV spool in it. Prior, it would backlash easily with any type or size of bait and with fluorocarbon and braid alike. IMO the Alphas SV 105 is a very user friendly reel for baits around that 1/4 oz mark. It is more costly than the Curado 70, so if price is an option I would opt for the Shimano.

I wouldn't put Reel Magic anywhere near my reel or line. That stuff is garbage. Instead I would highly suggest KVD Line and Lure. As far as fluorocarbon ... Sunline Sniper or Segaur Tatsu is great as main line. Tatsu is spendy but worth it if you back your reels and by doing so I can do about 3 reels off a 200 yard spool. Invisix will give you a bit more stretch while Shooter will give you less stretch but is a bit more stiff.

Exchange rate. They may have lowered the yen to stimulate their economy. Assuming that their plan worked and now then yen is starting its rise. We will see the prices climb even higher. A good way to tell where the exchange rate is would be to look at a reel solid both in the US and in Japan. Take the Alphas SV 105 for example - US price is $269 and the Japan price is now over $225. I bought one last year for $185. Some of these reels are now almost catching up to US reels in price thus taking away the allure of ordering overseas and saving some money.

Now is the wrong time to be buying goods fro Japan. However the prices will only get worse. Years ago the Exsence DC was about $325 give or take. Last year the price of the reel fell to about $255 and stayed there for many months. I decided to buy a 2nd one for about $260 a few months later. Right now they are about $350 or more. Other DC reels like the Metanium DC are even more and so is the Conquest DC and Antares DC. The only DC reel that is the cheaper is the Scorpion DC. While a nice reel it isn't near the distance caster as the others. However it is very foregiving and would be ideal for windy conditions, wind resistant baits, or someone starting out. I couldn't tell you where to find one used. You may try keeping an eye on IchibanTackle but I am not sure how often used DC reels pop up. Obviously Ebay would have the most options new and used but the prices with shipping seem about the same as Digitaka (around $350). It has been a while since I have seen an Exsence DC pop up used so unless you are willing to wait for one to pop up you may be best taking the plunge on one new.

Reading and watching how to videos would be a good starting place. Digest information in small pieces. When watching videos find the videos that explain the "how to" part. If they are showing you how to drop shot make sure they show how to rig one up, how to fish it, and some baits to use for example. Don't get caught up in trying to find videos of guys just out catching fish to maintain a YouTube channel with their subscribers in mind. The other piece is just to get out there on the water and get after it like Catt said. So to summarize... read it, watch it, and then practice it.

Well that is a rare find. New they were $119. Tackle Tour did a review of the reel if you are wanting more info on them. If they are on sale I am guessing $100 or so? I would buy as many as you want for that price. I have one that I still use for reaction baits and love it. I paid $75 for mine in lightly used condition.

Very true, however some want to label the reel as a finesse caster. He certainly didn't say much in the initial post to give us an idea how he arrived at those 3 only...

Based on the 3 models he listed it could should be best high end reel based off it being light weight. Less and high end shouldn't be mentioned in the same sentence. Their most expensive reel is under $300. They are more value based reels.

If you are referring to the binding problem then it is a well documented issue on Sahara and Symetre reels. Shimano and various reel techs claim they can fix the issue but it is usually short lived. Once the reel gets set it will likely do it again. I would suggest another brand of reel or stepping up to the Saros or Stradic.

I only have the Metanium of the 3 on your list. It is an excellent reel. Great casting capabilities from light baits up to 3/4 oz and the retrieve is very smooth.

It really boils down to usage. I have some reels that may only get used a handful of times a year for a few hours at a time (niche reels). I also have some that go with me about every time. I don't fish as much or as often as some so generally a full tear down and cleaning of all the internal parts gets done once a year or every other year for the ones that don't see much use. I usually flush and clean all the bearings annually or semi-annually if they need it.

Not for me. My biggest fish of the year came on a 1/4 oz Rebel Excalibur Zell Rowland pop-r.

105

Save that stuff for food.

Very nice choices, and welcome!

The bubble walker in the loon color has been working quite well for me early in the mornings. Great hook up ratio. Had 10 blow ups and connected on 9 fish landed and only one managed to toss the hooks on a jump. I would say the 80 size has compared favorably to a pop-x for me.

Worst fighting for me would be a toss up between crappie and yellow perch. It is like a hooking into a piece of paper.

Color matters some days, to some guys, and in certain lakes more than others. I have had days where I have tried a wide range of baits and colors on the same lake the same day and couldn't notice a drop off or increase in catch rate. I have also witnessed the opposite.

We will just agree to disagree on this. It has everything to do with the taper. Same can be said for ALX rods.

One of the most underrated things about Dobyns rods are their ability to keep fish buttoned up from the hookset to the boat or net. Rarely do I lose many fish on their rods.

SK Caffeine shad and Zoom Super Fluke for me.

Not trying to be mean but you keep using the phrase "MHX rods". Just to be clear MHX are rod blanks made my Mudhole. They are sold as blanks only. Do I think they are good? Yes, they are a really solid blank for the price plus with most sizeable orders you can 10% off your order from Mudhole. Yes, there are nicer blanks to use but for right around $100 or less they are hard to beat. Plus most are unfinished and not painted which is huge plus to me.

The problem was prevalent only on specific Shimano Spinning reels and only from various generations. Not all Symetre reels bind. I have an older Symetre from the late 90s or early 2000s that I have never had an issue with. A previous gen Sahara FD (not the newest model) has binded on me off an on over the last 3 years.

I am with Blue on the lure wraps. I use lure wraps from BPS for all my hard baits and even on my Texas rigs. They help keep the blank from getting scratched up but more than anything they help keep the hooks from getting snagged into everything else like carpet, clothes, and from getting tangled in other rods. All my rods have some form of a hook keeper. I would NEVER hook a treble hook into a reel that was of any significant value. The 2 reels you have pictured (Chronarch and Conquest) I would never put a treble hook into.

They look cheap and tacky especially on nicer reels. Depending upon the knob material they can sometimes leave marks or indentations on the current handle knobs underneath. I would just get better handle knobs for the reel.