MickD

Start with dilute vinegar, then work up to dilute CLR or similar. No abrasives. Once you have the stains off then put on Lucas Slick Mist. Then when you come back from fishing use only the Slick Mist which is very easy, quick, and will keep the engine looking like new. Even if it's black. You will be amazed at how good the engine looks and how easy it is to keep it that way.

The issue is not left or right retrieve, it is that the handle is a folding handle and it hasn't been "unfolded" to its working position. Back off the nut on the other side so there is free play on the handle side and move it to get the finger grip to be pointing out, then tighten it back up. It's designed to make the reel more compact for storage, especially when one has a bunch of rod/reels to fit into a small space. I expect you've already figured this out.

it could be as simple as not zooming in enough. I must have had exceptional units for the last 10 years or so because I can get accuracy down to less than 10 feet with ease. That is based on going back to spots where if I'm on them, I can see them, so know exactly how accurate. But if you're not zoomed in enough, you can think you're on them and you're still a ways away. I agree with A-Jay, GPS is not the best way to stay on a spot. Once you find where you want to be, use a floating marker for precision and ease of seeing exactly where the target is. By putting a couple out, with the target in between,you are sending signals to other fishermen that they are not welcome inside the markers.

tubular glass is better for that. I think a solid graphite piece would concentrate the stresses so much at its ends that the repair will fail. Find a piece of a tubular glass rod (graphite will work, but is a little more risky, but it has to be tubular so it forms an external sleeve, not an internal spigot.) to use. Very good article below. https://www.rodbuilding.org/library/repair-oquinn.html

Fuegos are hard to beat. I'm not familiar with Lew's , but a lot of folks on the forum like them. I'm wondering why your Shimanos are giving up. With proper care and maintenance they should last a lifetime. If you are not keeping them clean, keeping them from getting dunked, and lubing regularly, cleaning not nearly so often as lubing, then your new reel will go too. Sorry for mentioning it, but we have some real lax people on the forum who don't seem to realize how important proper care is. I hope you're not one, and if not, your new reel should last a long time.

If you conclude you need bait Gulp little grubs like waxworms work great, and are pretty tough, are clean to handle, don't mess up the boat. What more could one ask for? Really, they do work well.

I think companies have a maximum IQ limit on people they hire to answer customer inquiries. They simply don't often get what one is asking. You'll like the products you're ordering.

I think it's in "setup" where you assign the transducers for each function. You can have your trolling motor be the source for some and the mega transducer at the stern for others. I can't imagine you don't have a big flat one at the stern, the mega transducer. Humminbird offers a power unit that allows you to screw around with the Helix in the house, plug into a 110 outlet.

Is it off the rod now? If yes, that's good. If not, use only a little heat and it will come off if Lews used hot melt. If it doesn't readily come off, take it to a pro builder. Getting an epoxied one off is not easy and blank can easily be damaged. When I say a little heat, if done right the tiptop will be uncomfortable to touch, but hardly. I hook a rubber band on to the tiptop and put tension on it, when it gets hot enough it will slide off. IN ONLY A FEW SECONDS OF HEAT FROM A LIGHTER. iF IT DOESN'T READILY COME OFF, STOP. Ask Lews for the size. And brand/model number. Or measure the OD of the tip for the tube size. need it in 64's. The ring size is tougher, you must measure the OD of the ceramic ring, not the ID. Use a micrometer or similar for this. Need it in mm. Then order the next higher tube size from what you measure with the right ring size in mm.

What he said is right. I'll repeat that the most important thing is that the power be right for the lure weights you want to throw. Fast or Xfst action does not tear trebles out of fish's mouths, but too much power can. If the power is too high, regardless of action, it can tear the lures out. Power determines the force you are putting on the fish. In fact a heavy power Xfast will have a lighter tip than a heavy power moderate action. So it's easier to deflect the Xfast of the same power. But it won't deflect as far before cranking up the force quite rapidly, so if you go through that lighter tip too far. . .

Keep a tight line.

It's much easier to simply crush the barbs. I think taking the barbs off in some way is a great idea.

This discussion is very interesting. Objective numbers for rod action and power can easily be measured by the CCS process, but this process measures the reactions of the rod/blank using the whole length. From the tip of the tip to the tip of the butt. BUT, that's not how rods are often used. They are used from the GRIP to the tip when one-handed casting or fighting the fish. And from the tip to the tip when two handed casting. The position of the grip does not enter the CCS process either for blanks or rods. This has been a point of confusion for me for years. Still working on it. In CCS the rod/blank is supported at the tip of the butt and at 10% of its length up the rod/blank. So a 9 foot rod has its second support point up from the tip of the butt 10.8 inches. A 7 foot rod has its second support point at 8.4 inches up from the butt. From my testing whether that second support point is at exactly 10% or not is not significant. For a long time my rig supported all lengths at 10.8. And I still correlated with manufacturer data quite well. i've since added a support point to be used for shorter blanks at 8.4 inches, but the difference between the numbers using the different lengths is within other test error and cannot be found. What does this mean? It means the characteristics of the upper part of the blank have a lot more to do with how a rod performs/feels than the characteristics at the butt. Which is probably why i've never liked a rod that has lost length at the tip top. Even a couple inches. Bottom line for me is that CCS accurately describes how a rod will feel and perform. If you like a high modulus graphite rod from St Croix, and if you can get a high modulus graphite rod from Kistler with the same CCS numbers and similar guides, you will conclude that the rods perform very similarly. If you like one you will like the other. For those not familiar with CCS go to this site. It is applicable for all types of rods although it started with fly rods. http://www.common-cents.info/ Still learning.

I need "lock-up" to be defined. And where does the 20% come from? I'm just trying to understand. thanks Also, "it moved. . . " What is the "it" that moved? Can't be length, sounds like it's the "lock up" point since 16.8 is 20% of 84, the original length of the rod. But you just said the lock up point hasn't moved.

You'll get a lot of opinions, I'm sure. Mine is that only advantage of FC is that it sinks. It is sensitive to poorly tied knots, it's fragile, it doesn't cast very well, lots of looping. Yes I know line treatments can help, but I don't want to bother with those. If you feel a nick in it, cut above the nick as it will probably fail. Unlike mono. But, a lot of guys like it and manage to make it work. I don't want to screw around with the problems.

Happens all the time with smb, but not after having fought for a good while. It's quite common to nail them, feel them, miss them, then have them come back. I'm convinced in these cases of brief contact they are often the same fish. Another interesting thing that happens now and then when fishing tubes is to have the tube snag, and snap the rod a number of times to get it free. Then it snaps free and jumps off the snag very fast, and gets nailed instantly. I think they see it twitching and are watching for quite a time. I also think I have had a couple pick it off the snag.

But worse came to worse and couldn't get it. Then you said sand it and seal it. Without having cork seal. But you recommend sealing it with cork seal. ??? Another option that will keep it from getting nasty again is to clean it up as above and use Tru Oil gunstock finish on it. It will turn it a little darker, increase the contrast. As with cork seal, one coat. I put a few drops on the surface then move it around evenly with my bare hands. Doesn't take much. Tru Oil is pretty easy to find.

Seal it with what?

I don't think that touching it up would cause any problems, but I would use a clear hard finger nail coating for its hardness and UV resistance. Having said that I would not want to use a rod with paint coming off it. Sealing the edges most likely will not stop the paint from coming off. When it first started, it didn't have an edge, but it still came off. I would get it replaced. It is correct that paint adds weight to a rod which, in a small way, is detrimental to sensitivity. Although it would be hard to detect the small difference.

Avids are not the IMX of St Croix. The SCV would be more accurately called the IMX of St Croix. They are good rods for the money, well up on the cost/value curve. Meaning that as you spend more you are not getting that much more value. Alconite is not a coating on rings; it is the material the ring is made from. It is a premium ring just under the hardness of SIC, comparable to zirconium. Has anyone ever grooved an alconite guide? SIC is somewhat harder, but is harder needed? SIC is also more brittle, so more apt to break if knocked against the boat while jerking. Since SIC is more brittle, most SIC is thicker than alconite and other similar ring materials. Fuji has a slim SIC that is thinner than usual SIC. I have grooved some old cheapie tiptops, but never a guide, even an old cheapie guide. Avids are no more tip heavy than other rods of the same length, using the same reel, and the same approx cost There have been a bazillion fish caught on rods that are heavier, less sensitive, and that have lower performance guides than the Avid. Some of the favorite lines of rods today have much lower quality cork and workmanship.

Shimano Calcutta 100.

Make sure you don't have the ones you cannot find hidden in the menu. There is a menu (setup I think) that assigns one of two values to each view, either "hidden" or "visible" or some such word to show it's not hidden. If it's designated "hidden," it will not be visible as you scroll through the different views when operating the unit. Mine has many more available than I want to use. I hope this is the solution to your missing views.

Really good reels won't have to be adjusted much between lure weights. Between a spinnerbait cast upwind and a lipless crank, yes, but not often just due to weight. After lubing it will take a number of casts before the reel stabilizes.

I find them best when retrieved at the speed that gives them a regular side to side rocking motion. But individual lures will react differently, and especially the smaller sizes tend to spin easily if reeled too fast. As mentioned above, feel them as you retrieve them at the speed which gives the desired motion, and you'll be able to get the right speed without actually seeing the lure. You may have a bunch of non-Daredevil spoons in there, and I would put them in a separate box and concentrate on the real ones. They, unlike the cheapies, are forged which means the thickness varies throughout the spoon. I have never found the cheapies to have the good motion that the real Daredevils have. I have no idea if they have some collector value, but you might want to check.

My BS detector just went off.