Eric 26

I’m running braid on my Ned rig setup, I prefer Daiwa J-Braid Grand 8X in light grey.

I have a 6’-3” light powered extra fast spinning rod and a 7’-1” med light fast spinning rod. I’ve fished with 6pound test and currently with 4 pound test on the 6’-3” with 1/16 th ounce road runners and my 7’-1” has 8 pound braid and it’s primary use is Ned rigs. Mind you I fish retention ponds that don’t produce many large fish but I don’t feel I would be underpowered with either on a decent sized bass.

I own a Curado 151 MGL and the Tatula 80 is definitely smaller than that so I would think the Tatula 80 is going to get lost in your hands. I wish I could help out on the new Tatula 100 but I haven’t personally handled one as I know if I do I’m going to want to upgrade my current Tatula 100 😉

@Flyfish-mt Although as I said I don’t own the 24 Tatula 100 but I do own and love the previous version and I will say the Tatula 80 is definitely smaller than that. I’m not sure if you’re familiar with the Daiwa Alphas 800 but the Tatula 80 shares the same frame.

I purchase from Japan Lure Shop as do several others on this site. Although I don’t own a Tatula 100 from what I’ve read and hear from others it’s a great buy, I’ll also add the Tatula 80 which I do own and love available from JLS for $109.20 and the Tatula 100 is $113.75 as of today. I will suggest the upgrade on the shipping which cost me $12.50 to Illinois and delivery was 5 days or less. I tried the cheaper shipping option as I was in no hurry on my last order and it took around 2 weeks but I believe there was a holiday involved. The bonus of ordering from JLS is you receive a free lure with your order, my 3 orders included a Jackhammer chatter bait, a Megabass vision 110 jr and a Megabass dark sleeper.

I’m not saying you’re wrong @Peacedivision but always make sure the special deals such as these ring up correctly as I’ve had multiple occasions at the DSG by me when the store put colored dots on the clearance merchandise which dictated the % off and when it was rung up it didn’t match with the % off it should have.

@slonezp Those are some beautiful fish especially the pike 👏🏻

As some on here may recall as I posted before I’m the happy recipient of @bulldog1935’s retired Tica Cetus. He and I have swapped many pm’s and although I’ve never pulled the trigger on a Tica I can understand why he speaks so highly of them. It’s no secret I can’t service my reels opposite of bulldog and many others on here who frequently tear down and add upgraded bearings etc but as far as I recall the Cetus is stock with the exception of a set of aftermarket handles bulldog so generously supplied as well when he gifted me the reel. I had the reel paired to a bargain priced St Croix Premier light powered rod I bought on clearance too many years ago to remember when DSG moved into what was once Galyans sporting goods.

Although I’m not sure how far back we’re going I have a few. I have a Daiwa Tatula Type R that I bought when a tackle shop website posted it for sale and told me they were cleaning out the warehouse and came across them still brand new and its brother the Cabelas Arachnid I bought at least 15 years ago and still love them both. Also although it’s not currently in my possession as it’s in Springfield being serviced I love my 2001 BPS pro qualifier spinning reel. When I spoke to the gentleman who worked on it I asked about a spare spool and he informed me he found one which is on its way to my local store as of Monday. As a side note I bought the reel second hand brand new from a guy who bought them on clearance and resold them for a minor profit and he included the free rod that was advertised which I also still own.

@Bigbox99 I’m assuming you’re talking about the 7’ rod 🤔 although I held and almost bought the 7’ version mine is the 6’-10 medium powered fast action rod and it has a soft tip with a decent amount of back bone. I’m pretty sure it’s the same blank as the first generation Lews Carbon Fire which I also have in the 6’-10” version. Either way it’s a heck of a bargain rod imho. Dang it now I’m thinking I may have to purchase the medium heavy version based on your review. Dang Tackle Monkey 😆

@Skunkmaster-k That’s the one I was referencing also and man that was a great find on your part😉 I loved throwing the Strike King Finesse jigs available at Walmart also.

I’m going to apologize for the lengthy story ahead and by saying thanks to all who read this. I feel compelled to share this story as a way to hopefully promote a local to me store that unfortunately will not help the vast majority on here but also shouldn’t be unheard imho. I recently was in “The Anglers Outlet” which is in Tinley Park Illinois buying a rod and asked if they performed reel repairs as the reel doesn’t justify the cost for me at least to ship to our more than capable site sponsor DVT and when I was told no an employee by the name of Josh asked what was wrong with the reel to which I replied that I broke/cracked the “nose”piece on my Piscifun Saex Elite and when I tried unsuccessfully to replace the part I also bent or installed wrong a washer that was causing a “sticking/stutter” point in the retrieve. Josh then asked if I had the reel which I did and he took it upon himself to not only take the reel home and replace the nose piece he reinstalled or bent the washer to eliminate the “sticking/stutter” point in the retrieve. I just picked up the reel yesterday and when I opened the box Josh included a hand written full page summary of everything he did to the reel and pointed out a few other issues the reel had and still has and although he didn’t fix them he pointed out the reel is still useable but will probably not last much more than a season or 2 which with the minimal amount I fish I’ll probably get 3-4 more seasons out of it before I retire the reel and replace it with another Daiwa or Shimano. The absolute kicker is when I picked up the reel yesterday Josh wasn’t there but when I asked how much I owe I was told there’s no charge, so this young man did all the work out of the kindness of his heart to help a fellow fisherman. I’ll end this by saying although I take advantage of deals and the current JDM market I will definitely be purchasing from the store much more in the future.

Although I don’t know if it counts most of my purchases are when I find a good sale. As far as combos I purchased a bps carbonlite 2.0 for $120.00 when they were first released, although I no longer own the combo I feel the rod was better than average for the price. My favorite combo was/is a favorite Soleus reel I purchased for $50.00 a few years ago on a Black Friday deal paired with what I feel is a steal of a rod being a Wright & McGill pro insight advantage for around $55.00 still available at Wal Mart by me. Another good bargain setup was/is a Lews speed stick Hank Parker signature series rod also around $55.00 at my local Wal Mart (recently swapped out for a different rod) that I paired with a Daiwa CA80 reel which I feel is a good deal at $99.00 for an aluminum framed reel and usually available on Amazon for a lower price which is where I bought mine and also available in the JDM market as pointed out by our very own @MN Fisheralbeit in a different color scheme.

I’ve purchased 3 reels from Japan Lure Shop and due to their prices, selection and service I don’t feel the need to stop buying from them and I do check several other sites prior to purchasing.

@ardeact You can also try Mud Hole rod builders and tackle crafting.

@Basshunter_ Here’s a version of the spool both @KP Duty was referring to and originally shared with me by @bulldog1935, although I haven’t picked one up myself yet it’s just a matter of time before I do for my Tatula 80.

@ghost

@Jorge D That was all I could find myself. I’m not very tech savvy but maybe if you search ways to translate the videos you may find something 🤔 Sorry I can’t be more helpful.

Although I’m not trying to say what is right or wrong as I don’t own or anticipate owning a DC reel my thought process is parallel to learning to drive a car. If you have a chance to learn stick shift when you’re learning to drive why would you pass up the chance. I feel the same about learning how to cast a bait cast reel although I will say and have said before on here I feel the Daiwa’s from the Fuego on up have some of the easiest brakes for beginners imho.

Welcome from New Lenox Illinois

So I picked up a Kast King speed demon rod after eyeballing them for a few years in a 6’-10” to replace my Lews speed stick Hank Parker rod. I know the KK rods aren’t exactly perfect but I really like the Wynn grips, the Fuji component’s although I’m not to sure about the rubberized handle area that has been pointed out, and lastly the color match with my Daiwa CA80 looks like it was made for each other. I will say for a $130.00 rod I would like to see a minimum 5 year warranty but it is what it is. I also received my Miravel from JLS and I have to say I’m excited to get this one spooled up and put to good use.

@bulldog1935 I do if I want a “tuned” Daiwa or I need ZPI or Isuzu and a good amount of money 😉😆 Absolutely gorgeous!

@redmeansdistortion As I have zero mechanical skills when it comes to “servicing/tuning” my reels, in fact I ruined the first reel I tried to service years ago I’m absolutely floored with the amount of talent displayed on this site. From the simplest things such as new handles and color matched screws and knobs to the full tear downs/tune ups and sometimes just starting from a frame such as you and @bulldog1935 have done it is an absolute joy to see and I for one look forward to seeing them all. Thank you one and all for sharing your talent on this site.