Smallmouth Hunter

I'd be more worried about the noise than the color. The actually noise braid makes going through the guides seems to be a problem in a lake that I fish and several ponds. Even with really long leaders to suppress the noise down, mono or fluoro will out fish braid 5:1 or more. Just my experiences with braid, so take it for whatever it's worth.

I have used 2 of the ones mentioned, and fenwick is the way to go

That's a great way to start off with a new rod!! Nice fish!!

We don't take kindly to bait monkeys 'round here..

he will be back... And stronger than ever!!!

I stand corrected.. my mistake.

Ignore the smallmouth part of the name... Feel better? Lol They only named it elite tech smallmouth because the rods in the series are the generally popular power/actions that smallmouth fisherman prefer. It doesn't mean a MH is closer to other rods M power or anything like that. Just different rod models more suitable for smallie fisherman.

tons of reels have IAR with the ratchet as backup...

I feel like they overprice their rods just so they can afford to have floods of prostaffers so they can review the rod with 5 stars on every site out there. LOL

meh.. Dynamic braking > non-dynamic 99% of the time. Dynamic meaning it brakes more at the beginning the cast and tapers off by itself. Non-dynamic means it applies the same braking force throughout the whole cast EVEN when it isn't needed to avoid overruns. The linear braking in the ORRA sx really can't match the centrifugal (dynamic) braking of the S. I'd go with the S if you're set on getting an Abu, but if it were my money, I'd look for a lew's tournament speed spool with dual brakes.. Can be had for $100 or so easily.

To fix that problem simply remove a shim from the cast control knob.. I'm guessing they put 2 in their originally so just take the inner one out.

Be careful putting lube on a bearing while in the reel. Make sure none of the oil gets on the inside of the bearing sure then it will make it slippery, and when casting the spool shaft will slip rather than grip the bearing. This will decrease casting distance pretty severely. To fix, just put the spool in and turn the handle 20-30 times, then take out the spool and wipe off the spool shaft. Repeat until the end of the spool shaft stops picking up oil.

Is the clicking affecting your casting distance? The tatula comes with very low tolerance bearings (one of mine was so bad that the bearing seized up somehow), which can make lots of noise if they are really bad. A problem with bearings is rather minor though, and you should be able to fish with it just fine. I would take a look at the bearing in the non-handle sideplate to start with. Just check it out and see if the inner ring stays perfectly in line and doesn't move about inside the outer ring when spinning fast. If that bearing seems dandy, the other spool bearing is more difficult to get to as you will have to go inside the reel to get to it. But, you could probably check it out without opening up the reel. Take out the sideplate and spool and also the spool tension knob that is next to the handle. Under the spool tension knob, you will see a bearing. You can test this bearing in two ways. One put the spools long end through the bearing that is visible from where the spool tension would be. Yes it is a weird way to test the bearing, but worth a try to isolate that one bearing for testing. Just spin the spool in you fingers slowly and feel whether the bearing is gritty. The second way is to put the spool and sideplate back on, but leave the spool tension knob off. Press the thumb bar button down to disengage the clutch, and spin the spool with the bearing under the spool tension facing you. Watch the bearing's inner ring, and make sure it spins and stays perfectly in the middle of the bearing. It shouldn't try and waddle around at all. Mine did.

The tatula doesn't have centrifugal brakes or a brake drum.

So it makes the noise on the cast, but not the retrieve? My guess would be the inductor. Take a look at the non-handle side of the spool. It will have this piece that looks like a cup (sort of). Try pulling it out. It should be spring loaded and pop right back when you let go. Also, make sure it is straight. If that looks fine, look on the inside of the non-handle side plate. You will see 2 rings of grey magnets. Make sure they are seated and not rattling around. Next guess would be the spool tension knob, located next to the handle. Put your thumb on the spool and see how much you can move it side to side while in the reel. If it moves more than say 2 mm, tighten the spool tension knob just until it can barely wiggle side to side a mm or so. If that isn't it, my next guess would be the pinion gear.. I have heard of people having issues with pinion gears rattling/bouncing on the spool pin during the cast..

Fenwick ETS > SC Avid. I can only imagine how nice an aetos is...

Denali uses cheap components but I haven't used one so I can't comment on the blanks. They hired hoardes of pro staffers so I'm going to get my head cut off for saying that, LOL. If it were my money, I'd get a fenwick elite tech bass. Fenwick's states they are similar to the ETS but higher modulus iirc. If that's true, it will be a heck of a rod.

IM doesn't really matter. If you want to try a different brand, look at the new fenwick elite tech bass, or the ***, or the SC Avid.

Or put line on it. I heard spools look different with line on them.

they charge $150 just for the name "g. Loomis" on their other rods.

If they did, it would be the quality of a Shakespeare rod but it would have a really fancy grip to play the mind of the average joe. LOL. The gl2 is the biggest POS rod I've used under $200. I wouldn't pay $50 for one. Heavy, dead, and overpriced. But they are marketed to look like an amazing rod, with a company name that appears legendary. That's why people who never use them think they are so great. That's also why there are aluminum oxide guides on a $200 gl2. Edit: to make things worse, the gl2 is actually over $200. my mistake. In other words, you can pay $200+ for a name and a fancy handle.

I don't think so, but you could get pretty close with the lews bb1 with the multistop anti reverse clutch.

Dark green IMO.

Yes the type R to be exact.. Didn't like it. Casted pretty wildly and I couldn't get much distance out of it compared to a standard tat, same rod and line. It did casts smoothly though. Then again, I don't get along too well with mag brake reels. I'm not a hardcore shimano fan either. 200e just performs better.

Either gandermountain or cabelas has veritas casting rods for $39 right now or at least they did earlier.. Jump on that deal.