FrnkNsteen

If that's the same rubberized coating that goes sticky on the Abu rod reel seats and Pflueger President reel knobs, I haven't found anything that helped. I eventually just got rid of all of mine.

In my opinion, the reason the rod and reel companies offer so many different lines of product is so that no matter which one you are looking at,... All of us on here can say, "well, for a little more money you can step up to the ...." 😁

I see where you are going,... And yes, there may be slight differences in feel between the shorter rods and the longer ones. In other words,... The 7ft may have a little softer tip, but may also have some of the length difference in the handle region. I'm not a rod maker, but I believe they may take the same blank and just cut it in different locations to set the rod length, power and action. A light action may include more of the tip and less of the butt section, while a medium or medium heavy may have less tip and more butt section to make a more powerful rod overall. I like Dobyns rods and they offer a 704 and a 734 in casting rods within a given series. Both have about the same action and power, but the 734 might feel a little softer in the tip due to the extra length, while some say the shorter 704 feels a little stiffer. It all comes down to preference and what you like.

Well,... The only thing I can say is not everyone wants the same length rod for one. I looked at your link and it looks like it is offering a 6, 6'6", and a 7' to address different peoples wants. As for the different powers..... Just because you are using a specific technique, that doesn't mean you are using the same exact lure. For instance,... I might be interested in a Jig and Worm Rod (JWR) so I want a faster action, but i might want a medium action for throwing weightless senkos or trickworms. But I may also want a heavier rod to throw 1/4 - 1/2oz texas rigs, or maybe even heavier rod to throw 3/4 - 1oz jigs. All are Jig and Worm Rods.... But need different rod weights. They are just giving you the option to choose your desired rod length and power.

I like to swap things out and flip things around until I find a setup that stands out. Right now I have a couple rigs set up for swim jigs. One is an older Kistler Zbone 7' MHMF with the NFC blank that has a Gen3 Revo STX and a Siebert's Shot Collar in Golden Shiner tipped with a Largo Shad. The second is a GLX 783c MBR that I just picked up on ALF clearance. It has an Alphas SV 800 rigged with a Sieberts Mini Swim Jig in Sexy Shad tipped with a 2.75" Strike King Rage Swimmer. Light, comfortable and well balanced. Don't know that I'm locked in on them, but liking them for now.

Well,... If it were me, I would go with the Tatula Elite (over the Tatula 100) and the Chronarch MGL. My reasoning is you say you love the Chronarch MGL, and the Tat Elite is a better reel than the Tatula 100. As for which reel to put on which rod,.. Since both are 6spd reels, I would default to which one feels better on which rod. Reels can feel completely different based on the reel seat they are sitting, so try both on both rods and see what feels right!

What gear ratio is your Zillion? My opinion,.... If the ratio is right,.... Put it on the technique you like to fish a lot. Whatever that favorite technique happens to be. If you like spinnerbaits, put it on your spinnerbait rod. If you like chatterbaits, put it on that rod! Doesn't make sense to put a good quality reel on a rod for a technique you rarely fish. Put it in a place where you will use it A LOT and get some good enjoyment out of it!

I will take a Kistler over anything Abu any day of the week and all day on Sunday!! I've had multiple Abu rods and came to HATE all of them after a while and don't own a single one anymore. My biggest complaint, other than that they all seemed to be overpowered, is that they put that stupid rubber coating over all their plastic components that eventually breaks down and gets sticky and starts to peel. I only have a few Kistlers (one Zbone, two Heliums, and a Jerkbait) but I have been REALLY happy with all of them. I think there is a reason Fenwick seems to be the brand Pure Fishing is starting to push again. I see more and more advertizements for Fenwick and the name is showing up again on fishing jersey sponsorships. I'm a huge fan of Fenwick spinning rods. Not as much on the casting rods for some reason.

I don't have much time on either to really say for sure, but at least initially,.. I would say I don't see enough difference to justify the extra cost of the Ballistic. Both are very smooth and the Tatula is actually listed as being lighter (Ballistic = 6.9oz, Tatula = 6.7oz.) I'm not sure what the actual difference is between the two. A couple more bearings maybe?? I honestly don't know.

Lately I have been using Cals drag grease on the gears and drags, 80/90 gear lube on frame bearings and either ReelX or Abu oil on the spools and levelwinds. Haven't really decided which I like better. The Abu oil is a little thicker I believe, but still casts fine. Thinking it may hold up longer and stay in place better.

I recently picked up a Ballistic MQ and a new Tatula MQ. The Ballistic is significantly over your $190 price point, but so far I like it a lot. Haven't had a LOT of chance to use it, but fished it around a friend's pond for a while and I like it. I have it on a Falcon Expert 6'10" ML dropshot rod. The Tatula MQ is more in your price range if you could find a sale as it normally retails at $199 I believe. I bought the 3000 size and I really like it too. It isn't as light as the older Tatula LT, but it still feels good and is very smooth!! I think I put that one on my wife's Daiwa RG Walleye 7' M rod initially and now have it on a Fenwick HMG.

Isn't the CHX a faster ratio too?

Mine too 😊 the guys on Lindners and In-Fisherman get yelled at quite a bit by her too.

I have recently been buying Invisix and Suffix 832 on Amazon and have not had any issues.

^^Agreed^^ For slower moving baits like whopper ploppers, crankbaits, even spinnerbaits,..... I also like a slower 5 or 6spd reel. I have a hard time slowing myself down too and have the same issues. I was thinking more of baits like poppers, and walking baits where movement is imparted by the rod and the reel is just picking up slack. I typically use higher speed reels on those, but good points by all.

Just curious why you would want the 6spd for poppers, walking baits, and buzzbaits? I typically prefer faster speed reels for those methods. A faster ratio lets you pick up slack quickly, or recover your cast quickly and get the next cast back out there. A faster reel also helps get the buzzbait up on top and keep it there without having to reel as fast. I know 6spd's used to be considered fast and we used them for all these methods in the past. I was just curious of your thoughts.

Mine was just like this. I had just got done cleaning a reel and thought I had set the brake and spool tension, but had actually set brake to zero and didn't even start to adjust the sool tension. I tied on a jig and went to the backyard to test. Wound up to cast across the yard and let it go, immediately heard the worst version of vvvvffffttt!!! you've ever heard and felt the ball of fluff form under my thumb. Immediately knew what I had done. Looked down and knew there was no hope. Out came the scissors.

Nice collection of reels @A-Jay. What are the red & black ones in the middle? I can't place them.

Well,... Got the spool linked above that I had ordered and it doesn't fit the Sol. Assuming it may fit the other 34mm spooled reels I have, but it is too big to fit in the Sol. I have other old Daiwas that I will try it in to see if it fits. I would think it may fit the older SV 105, TDZ 103, or TDX 105 that I have. Edit: Just tried it and it appears to be a 34mm SV spool as it fits perfectly in my TDZ 103H and TDZ 103HL. No worries on the mixup as it might be a nice fit in one of my setups.

No worries man! Anytime!

Oh,... You had asked if anyone knew the sizes of the bearings in this reel, and were talking about having replaced the handle and levelwind and wanting to do it again, so I thought that was what you were asking about. I dont know the sizes of the rest of the bearings off the top of my head. The only ones I have purchased as replacements are the two spool bearings and the handle/levelwind bearings. I know I have seen a couple companies that offer complete sets. One is called Fast Eddys, and the other is Spool High Speed Bearings. Both appear to offer complete sets, but I have no history with them. I have only used Hedgehog Studios.

Well,.... I got home from work and grabbed my Ark Tharp Hammer. I had a TDZ 103HL on there with 20lb flouro and a 3/8oz Thundercricket and a small paddletail trailer. I took it all off and grabbed an SLX MGL I had loaded with some 12lb flouro and tied on a 5" Cabelas stickbait (Senko). Took it out to cast around the back yard and feel that my expectations were correct. It really doesn't load up very well with the weightless senko and casting more than about 25-30 yards took more force than it should. I put the TDZ and Thundercricket back on instantly felt it load up better and longer casts were a breeze. I think the weightless senko is a LITTLE bit light for it, but it DOES work in a pinch. I think a 1/2 - 3/4oz may be the sweet spot on that rod.

I don't have a Moneymaker to compare to, but I DO have a Hammer and I like it. Both are rated 1/4 - 1oz, so I don't know why someone would want to be throwing 1 1/2 - 2oz on it, but a senko typically runs about 3/8oz, so it would be toward the bottom of it's range, but would likely still work. I was using mine to throw 1/4 - 3-8oz swim jigs and chatterbaits ( with a small trailer) and felt it was just a bit too fast for those, but it casted them ok. The concern I may have is the XF tip on the Hammer may make casting the senko a bit if a challenge I guess I could go home tonight and tie a senko on the Hammer quick and see how it does with a senko if that would help

I think the Daiwa reel handle bearings are a 4mm x 7mm x 2.5mm. I believe Tackle Trap offers a specific kit to upgrade those from bushings to bearings.

They used to be really good about it, but in my experience, the last time I had issues with one of their reels, they started getting a little more resistent and they started requiring the receipt. Fortunately I still had mine so hang on to it if you get one. Don't know how long they will accept them back anymore though. My last one has been a few years so I haven't exchanged one lately. The sad thing with my last return was I noticed them putting it in the "Back to stock" basket. I stopped them and said it was defective. They looked at me and said " Well I didn't feel anything wrong with it" I said, why do think I exchanged it? They shrugged and moved it to the defective basket. Be careful if you get an open box reel there!!