freelancer27

Hi all, Looking for a rod that I can use for medium swim and glide baits and heavy flipping. I am currently using a Okuma Scott Martin TCS Casting Rod 7'3" Heavy that is rated for 1/4 -2 oz but it is a bit underpowered for the swimbaits that I am throwing and also is a bit too short in length. Baits that I looking to throw: Swim-Glide baits * Huds 68 * Duel Hardcore Twitch'n Ninja Glider * Team Leader Baits Bad Boy Glide Bait 7" * Mattlures Ultimate Bluegill Series Swimbait Punching/Flipping * 1-1.5oz Jigs / Weighted plastic The rod needs to be relatively light (for the flipping part) and I would prefer a longer handle. Here are some options that I am considering: * Phenix M1 Swimbait Casting Rod 8' Med Hvy * Phenix M1 Swimbait Casting Rod 8' Heavy * Genesis II Cast Rod 7'8" Jr. Swimbait Med Hvy * Dobyns Fury Casting Rod 7'9" Med Hvy Swimbait * Okuma Guide Select "a" Series Swimbait Rod 7'11" Heavy * other options? Price point should be under 200 USD. Thanks for your help!

Thanks man! Appreciate it!

Do any Tackle stores have Columbus sales?

Sent it to JLS. Lets see how long it will take...

Are there going to be any Columbus Day sales for the bigger tackle stores?

No, I did not. The weird thing is though that this issue is sometimes completely absent (for example when I have the reel just in my hand and then try to reproduce it).

Here is the video that I took yesterday: https://photos.google.com/share/AF1QipPtwrpajIF7miK2-0q1iEmC69pBFW-mwjcVQUO0IS_tZtcoDBY4f4Xw28Jby6vG1A?key=Rjk4MDE5R2JEejN4TkR5eWhqLV9kQWhjeE81MXl3

Hi, during the last couple of fishing trips a issue with my Antares becomes more obvious. I am not sure how to best describe it (English is not my native language), so here is my best attempt. After a cast when I am engaging the handle to retrieve the line, the 'bail' snaps in to prevent the spool from rotating back. Now the handle and the spool should not be able to be turned back. Though this is happening with my reel. Every now and then I can rotate the handle back a bit or almost a quarter rotation. Not sure what to do... My last option would it be to send the reel to JapanLureShope where I bought the reel. Anyone experienced this before or with any other reel. Thanks for your input!

You guys are all assuming that he wants to go with a spinning combo. For Baitcasting I would recommend something like a used Aldebaran BFS + used Major Craft Belkei. Probably gonna be a bit more than 250 USD though...

+3 on the Ora Winch. I am super impressed by the reel for the money. I can cast a 1/2 oz crank a country mile with it. It is a bit louder and the materials on the reel are not as nice, but honestly for 80USD I think it is AWESOME! Can recommend it 100% for lipped cranks and also for a budget swimbait reel!

Hi all, I am looking for some recommendations on cleaning/ lubrication material. I am new to completely disassembling my reels and cleaning them. I am wondering if you could help me understand what you are using to get the job done. Since I have different brand reels (Shimano, Daiwa, Abu, Lew's) I am wondering you guys can recommend lube, grease, etc. that works for all reels? Thanks a lot! Cheers!

I can confirm this! Sturdy, smooth reel that can also withstand a beating! Do you have the default spool or did you replace it? What line are you using on the reel when you are throwing light lures? Thanks!

Thanks! Will include this into my considerations. I am inclined to go a budget route initially: Rod: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Major-Craft-Corzza-Series-Baitcast-Rod-CZC-672-L-BF-5752-/142378678748?epid=1839054240&hash=item21266e39dc:g:uyEAAOSw0hlZEtFG or http://www.ebay.com/itm/Major-Craft-BENKEI-BIC-672L-BF-Light-67-bass-fishing-baitcasting-rod-pole-/253149043527?epid=1666939017&hash=item3af0dbdb47:g:QXMAAOSwmLlX2Qtc Reel: SV103 with BFS spool: https://japanlureshop.com/rcs-baitcasting-sv-spool-1000-15315.html or http://www.ebay.com/itm/112348374694 of course I am open to other recommendations.

Thanks, though I am willing to invest a bit more money IF I go down and buy a dedicated BFS reel. Cheers.

I am about to pull the trigger on a BFS set up (assuming I can sell my Metanium). As the rod I will most likely go with: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Major-Craft-BENKEI-BIC-672L-BF-Light-67-bass-fishing-baitcasting-rod-pole-/253149043527?epid=1666939017&hash=item3af0dbdb47:g:QXMAAOSwmLlX2Qtc I am wondering which reel to pair it with: Options that i am considering: * Aldebaran BFS (light and compact, price is ok) * Calcutta Conquest BFS (incredible machinery and robust, salt water safe, price is of course something to swallow) * SV103 (that I have) with a BFS Spool -RCS BAITCASTING SV SPOOL 1012 SV G1 (probably the best bang for the buck. I just want to avoid spending a good amount of money on BFS and then have to update the reel eventually, given that the I could not fully leverage the potential here). What do you guys think? Thanks!

Hi all, I am about to pull the trigger on a BFS set up (assuming I can sell my Metanium). As the rod I will most likely go with: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Major-Craft-BENKEI-BIC-672L-BF-Light-67-bass-fishing-baitcasting-rod-pole-/253149043527?epid=1666939017&hash=item3af0dbdb47:g:QXMAAOSwmLlX2Qtc I am wondering which reel to pair it with: Options that i am considering: * Aldebaran BFS (light and compact, price is ok) * Calcutta Conquest BFS (incredible machinery and robust, salt water safe, price is of course something to swallow) * SV103 (that I have) with a BFS Spool -RCS BAITCASTING SV SPOOL 1012 SV G1 (probably the best bang for the buck. I just want to avoid spending a good amount of money on BFS and then have to update the reel eventually, given that the I could not fully leverage the potential here). I want to use it for 95% bass fishing (5% trout and little pier fishing). Want to throw anything from poppers, little jerkbaits and weightless plastics. What do you guys think? Thanks!

I would also be worried that the line breaks on an aggressive hook set.

High end bait casters are like everything 'high end' in life. You pay a lot of money for a slight increment in performance (refined manufacturing, Casting distance, weight) and sometimes even loose quite a bit (Ferrari vs Volkswagen). Is it worth it? Very subjective question with a very subjective answer to it. Here is my personal experience: I started with a BPS Qualifier reel for around 100 USD. I used it for a couple of months until I was wondering if a more expensive reel would not do a better job, so I bought a Lews Team Pro Speed Spool (for like 170 USD). This was a big upgrade! After some additional months, I was wondering if I would get such another big upgrade if I again spent a bit more money.. so I bought a Daiwa Coastal (220 USD at that time). And yeah I thought that it was a reel well worth it but looking back I can tell this was the price range where the diminishing returns started... Soon after I started to look into high end baitcaster, when I bought my BPS reel I thought that I would never spend 600 USD on a reel - that would be crazy. With more and more reading/ watching videos and doing research in different forums I and ended pretty fast at the top (2016 Antares DC and Calcutta Conquest). I bought both of them and I am not going to lie, they are amazing! Now a year later (after having purchased a couple different reels) I am realizing that though it is nice to have high end reels, there are better ways to spend your hard earned money when it comes to fishing. For example I was lucky to try the Daiwa SV103 (sale for 190 USD) and I got really impressed by the reel. Of course it is hard to take somebody elses experience and applied to one self (this is somehow how I ended up with some high end gear in the first place ) So here is what I would recommend: get yourself 1 high end reel and keep it at least for 6 months and use it in different situations along side your regular reels. After the time if you feel like it was worth the money then go ahead and get more of them. After 6 months I feel the 'G.A.S' has passed and reality should give you a honest reflection of your purchase. Also worth a thought: rather than spending a lot of money in rods/reels and lures, get a kayak/boat or go on a fishing trip of a life time! Just my 2 cents...

WHich spool are you using? I am also playing with the idea to get something reel nice like a Conquest BFS. Is it possible to use a deeper spool for the conquest in case I would like to use the reel for something else?

Thanks guys! So, to summarize: it is better to buy a used dedicated BFS reel like the Pixy rather than upgrading one of my reels with a BSF spool.

Hi all, I am currently using a G. Loomis E6X Casting Rod 6'8" Med Hvy 803C JWR with a Lew’s Team Pro Speed Spool (system is spooled with 20 pound braid with 8 pound mono leader). I am looking to throw lighter lures than this combo is currently capable of. I am struggling to get a 1/8oz popper further than 15 yards and for weightless plastics I would like to go even lighter than this. What kind of BFS set ups are you guys using or can recommend? Budget is around 400-500 USD. Thanks all!

WHich St. Croix do you have? Which one do you prefer? Which would you recommend for my purposes?

Ok here is my current list of options: * Phenix Bass Recon Elite Casting Rod 7'6" Heavy * St. Croix Legend Elite Casting Rod 7'4" Heavy * St. Croix Legend Elite Casting Rod 7'6" Med Hvy * Phenix Bass Recon Elite Casting Rod 7'4" Med Hvy * Orochi XX Casting Rod 7'2" XH Perfect Pitch * St. Croix Avid X Series Cast Rod 7'4" Med Hvy How would you rank them and which would you choose?

Fair enough. Honestly I think I will stay in the 1/2 - 1 oz range. Yeah, good point. Friday nights I pick a max of 4 rods that I will take with me the next day. Those 4 rods will alway cover 1-x applications. For this particular rod I am looking to get something for heavier bottom contact lures and also something that I can fish a single hook lure (chaterbait, spinnerbait) with that I have to set the jig hook hard. My Daiwa (though Medium- Heavy) just feels not right for those applications. I liked the Avid X basics, but would like to improve on Length of the rod, Sensitivity and handle length& type

So you are using rod and frog rods interchangeably? IMO that is a bit of waste, since you do not really need the sensitivity (high quality components) for a frog rod, no?