Redsyn

Save yourself some money. Go to your tackle shop and buy the rubber butt caps for saltwater rods and put it in the back of the rod w/ your reel mounted. Start balancing by just using the rubber cap. Then put in 1 additional quarter at a time until your rod/reel feels the most balance to you. The butt caps I bought are $3 each and just add how many quarters you need.

I use the 15lbs platinum on my curado 301 for the salt and I like it. I would choose izor over p line any day because its relatively cheap and has little memory. You will like it.

2 piece? sounds like a perfect trunk rod. Glad you like the reel. GO CATCH SOME FISH!!!

A sensitive blank is a sensitive blank. What does it matter if its spinning or casting? If you are one of those people you touch the line w/ your finger when using a casting rod then I dont think you really need a sensitive rod at all. Your feeling the line not rod. But if you are like me who have smaller hands and palm the reel then you might need a more sensitive rod. My most sensitive rod is a glx 853c bcr but I can detect bites better w/ my st croix legend elite 70m spinning rod just because when I hold the spinning rod, my index finger is touching the blank to feel for bites. All I can say is if you want to get the most out of your rod, USE BRAID!!!! I feel and this is just my opinion, when I use braid w/ my imx rods. It feels as sensitive as my glx w/ mono line. So imagine if you use braid on glx. I can never go back to straight mono on bottom contact baits anymore. There is no reason for using mono in this technique for me when you can use braid tied to a small spro quality power swivel rated 35lb test and tie flouro to the other end. I have no to need cut the braid. Every outing I use a 18" leader and retie one when it gets short from changing baits. Over time I can't even tell you how much money I save on line. Dont think if you get backlash on braid, you will have to cut the crap out of it. In fact for me its easier to undo backlashes w/ braid. That and it wont damage the line like if you had a bad backlash with mono. By the time you fix the mono line, it will have weak points in it and you have to cut the line to get rid of it.

congratulations on the combo. Dont worry about how good the rod is. Its FREE!!! Go out fish it and enjoy it. As long as you like it and enjoy using it the rod and thats all you really need right? If you want some more sensitivity then spool you reel with braided line and use a 1-3' mono or fluro leader.

If you want to stick w/ daiwa I would look for a daiwa sol. I have the japanese version, alphas ito and it cast light weight lures w/ no problem. If you want a new reel out there then I would suggest you check out the shimano curado 50/51. The spool is very light, low line capacity (not a problem if you are fishing fw bass) , and it has HEG Which you will feel the difference if you used a shimano w/ and w/o it. I dont think you would be happy w/ the aggrest because it feels and look cheap.

Hey Russ If you are interested I have a tdz 103hl type r in great condition for $260 shipped. Its not the type R +, just type R.

how much $ are you planning to spend? its $135 and I dont have one but if you have the money definantly take a look. I think its only a nob that you turn on low to high. max is 100 lumens which is crazy!!! http://www.surefire.com/SaintMinimusHS2-A-BK

For $170 I would get a rod w/ lifetime warranty. Doesn't daiwa only offer 5yrs? I would seriously look into a crucial dropshot rod. It was either that one or the gloomis DSR822s for me when I was shopping for one. At the time the Xpeditor service was only $50 and when I went to the tackle shop to check them out the handle felt better in my hand so I went w/ the loomis. If I were to shop for one now, In the $100-200 range I probably go for the crucial and $200+ I would go w/ st croix legend elite/extreme. I dont use my loomis much anymore but it was a bday present from my gf so I didn't sell it. The st croix is a $300 rod but of course I didn't pay that amount but it is by far much more sensitive than the loomis.

I think the question is really how committed are you to bass fishing? If you are not sure then I wouldn't spend that much money on tackle. What is your budget? If it is $300 then I would suggest you get a $250-$200 rod and spend the rest of the money on the reel. Baitcasting reel is another story. In bass fishing the rod I believe is that much more important than the reel especially spinning reel. To me all a spinning reel does is lay line when you reel in line. When fighting a fish you still have to pump and reel. Casting wise they all feel the same to me. Open the bail and line comes out. The most important thing to look for in a spinning reel is one w/a smooth drag. My gloomis dropshot rod is about $250 and the reel I mount on it is a $40-50 shimano reel bought back in 2002. I think in all these years I serviced it once and it has been used in the surf/pier and for catfish. I lined it w/ 15lb powerpro braid and use 8lb flouro leader. It still works as good as the day I bought it. I was going to upgrade it w/ a daiwa sol spinning reel but I just couldn't pull the trigger because its still works good like it should and there isn't really much gain in performance compare to a $200 spinning reel. I mean how much drag will you put on 8lb line?

o, i didn't know they made an EZ mono but don't ever buy the braid, its crap I've never even used braid ;D Don't really see a need to, given the conditions around here. When you get some extra cash after you get the rod. You should do yourself a favor and get some braid line on your spinning reel. I use 20lb power pro braid and a short flouro leader 3-5' and it really helps in the sensitivity and hooksetting dept. Also it saves you money in the long run. the braid last for years. All you have to do it change out the leader. I agree w/ the other person about getting a shimano rod in that price range w/ no hassle over the counter warranty. All my rods have lifetime warranty even though I didn't break any yet. I like shimano spinning reels. My first reel that I bought was a shimano 2000 size spinning reel when I was vacationing in asia. It was a $40 usd range spinning reel which I still have to this day. Never changed out the drags yet and it is still as good as the day I bought it. It has been fished in saltwater and theres no corrosion on it. I use it on my g loomis dropshot rod and I dont see a need to upgrade. I would rather spend the money on casting reel or rods.

buy the boat. this way you and your dad can enjoy it together. You will probably catch more fish using the boat than a brand new combo.

I have not casted a viento but I removed the spool out of one to see the spool and that thing is freaking heavy. I dont think it can cast lighter lures as good as a citica. Most of my freshwater baitcasters are daiwas but I wouldnt recommend the viento to anyone.

It fishes like a dream, the blank is magic. Please give more details steezy I'm probably not going to get one but can you tell us how it compares w/ loomis glx in terms of sensitivity, action, feel and lure weight rating (how well does it cast the lures w/in the stated weight) etc... I feel my loomis rod's lure weight rating is a bit overrated.

I think that is the slightly heavier aluminum version of the core 50/51. If anything its not a overpriced curado but rather a economical core I have been drooling over that reel but I know i'm not going to get it until 1-3 years later when it gets a little cheaper, or used. :'(