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Well, SOMEBODY is buying them...BAAAAAH

Heck yeah, for $109 it's a steal. The original spool is pretty over-braked but IMO not unusable as long as you don't need 50 yd bomb casts. But for the guys with the trick thumbs who like the somewhat wild and on the edge spools, it probably seems really lame. If you like the SS SV, you'd probably love the Steez reels. The old ones that the SS SV is derived from can be had used for under $200 in really nice shape. Maybe you should look into them the next time you're on the market. They feel a lot like the SS SV except for smoother and more solid.

I think the bigger (and so heavier) reels definitely make a difference. In the case at hand of the 2 SC rods I have, I originally tried to put Steez reels on them and they were horribly tip heavy, so I tried Tatula SV TW and it helped quite a bit. One rod became sort of OK while the other, 1" longer, while not good enough, did improve. For me I think a lot of it is because I'm older (64) and came up using heavy reels on fiberglass rods 6' long for about 25 years. The reels and metal handles on those old combos were so heavy that there was nothing tip heavy about them. Fast forward 40-50 years and now all the rods are 7'-8' long and they just don't feel right to me. Another factor is likely that I have never acquired the habit of palming my reels for the most part, so I am always feeling the rod from the handle. For me, while I really like the feather weight stuff, the overall weight of a combo isn't a deal killer for me as long as it balances well. It's a good thing that they make gear for all of us isn't it?

I like mine pretty well too. When I bought it I was hoping that because it was a spinoff from the STEEZ OG reels that it would be pretty much like it. But even after changing out the spool, the bearings and adding the handle bearings, it still isn't a Steez...but for the price it holds it's own in my opinion. Of course I paid around $190 brand new and not the $350 or so it listed for. If I would have had to pay list and then replace the spool and add bearings, I wouldn't be that happy with it I don't think. As it is, I have spent around $330 on it (not including a bit of bling) and for about 2/3 of a Steez and I ended up with a reel that is about 2/3 of a Steez.

Yes. I have it on a Megabass Destroyer Speed Tip Special rod and use it for lighter weight (< 1/2oz) top-water stuff and for small Texas rigged lizards, 1/4-3/8 casting spoons and things like that.

Sums me up pretty well. I cannot afford to buy all the most expensive rods, but I do tend to buy a lot of Japanese rods because they seem to think like I do and offer many shorter and lighter rods. I also favor the lowest power rods that I can use. I mostly use ML and M rods but favor Moderate taper for most things and XF for a few. I have quite a few rods under 6'6" that I like quite a bit. I guess the majority of USDM rods seem way too long and tip heavy. For example my favorite rod is a 6'3" Megabass Evoluzion Super Griffon. For me it is nearly a perfect rod. As for lighter reels, all but 3 of my bait casters weigh under 6 oz. There are a few other things that I can do as well. I tend to favor full grips on longer rods, which does add weight, but seems to help balance a bit. The weight matters to me less than the balance with a light reel. I can also have a builder add few grams of weight to the butt if need be. You are spot on about the ergonomics in my opinion. A jerk bait rod with a trolling rod handle is useless.

That rod has pretty good specs for a $50 rod I'd say. I have never used one so I can't offer much. But IM8 was a high end offering not too long ago. It should be pretty sensitive though typically IM8 will be a bit fragile. Not that it will not hold up to fishing, but it will not take well to things like hitting the tip against door frames and that sort of abuse. Of course that is just the trade off for having a sensitive rod. The IM6 is a lot more forgiving but not that sensitive. At $50 I'd say it's worth a look.

I'm sure that what you are saying is true....for you. For me balance matters quite a bit. Most of my combos balance right at the lock nut of the reel seat with line installed and I notice it very much when it balances a few inches higher. I don't like it and so do not use that rod as much if at all. If I can't get a rod to balance with something as heavy as a Zillion or Tatula SV, then I don't want it. For example I bought 2 of the SC TB rods that the OP is asking about sight unseen. The 7'1" Med is so tip heavy that I have never used it at all. The 7'0" medium heavy was a little better and so I tried it out a few times. They are both now sitting on my rod racks waiting to go away. Yes, it probably changes the way I fish. I usually buy rods in the 6-6 to 6-10 range, order rods with top drawer guides (light) and in general have to buy more expensive rods. I also shy away from techniques where an unbalance rod is unavoidable like big frog rods, big Carolina rigs, and etc. I am probably at the other extreme from the guys who say they don't really notice much. But what I say is equally true....for me.

Maybe you just don't care? One of my sons is like that. All of his combos are tip heavy and out of balance and he says it doesn't bother him and that he never noticed my other son and I started ragging on him about it.

No, I love them. They are cleverly engineered so that they can be used in 3 different positions each of which allow for different hooks. What I could use is a way to keep track of what line I have on my rods without putting label tape on them or some bulbous contraption stuck on the butt to ruin the appearance and balance of that $500 rod.

Yes, If I remember correctly, they skipped the handle bearings that came stock on the Steez.

An XF has a thinner tip than a Fast, so how do you figure that breaking the thinnest part of the tip will make it even faster? It will be more a moderate action because it will now go straight into the backbone.

For a few dollars more, you can use the build your own option on the Kistler website and specify that any of thier blanks can be configured how you want it. I'd be willing to bet you could come up with something pretty close to what you want that way.

I wouldn't think that it would be a pool cue....but close. I would guess that it would now be something like a H/Mod or maybe even an XH/Mod

One of my sons has Scorpions that are made in Japan. I'm not a Shimano guy so I can't tell you much more than that and to agree with what some others have said. The Scorpion 70 is not a BFS reel.

I have 2 of the casting rods, a 7'0 MH/MF and a 7'1" M/F. As everyone says they are impeccably constructed and everything is first rate as far as the build goes. That said I'm wanting to sell mine. They are so tip heavy that I have to use 7 OZ reels on them to make them anywhere near balanced. I don't find them very sensitive really. My Falcons, Megabass, ABU Villains and BLX rods are all much more sensitive it seems to me. The one place where they shine though is with a fish on. Then they feel very nice, powerful and smooth. As for the reel seat, I kind of like it, which is to say that I never really notice it.

Thanks for the heads up. I just bought a 6'8" Z-bone and a hoodie for $390. A pretty good deal if the rod is any good. It is a no frills plain Jane rod compared to my Megabass stuff, but I am willing to give it a shot as it is 100% American made.

The reel is where the line is attached and is the largest and tightest connection between the rod and the line and is where the line is pulling the most. Seems to me that the reel would be the place where most of the vibrations would be transmitted based on mechanics.

I see them as a system where each is potentially as important as the other depending on exactly what you are doing on THAT particular day. For example the best rod in the world isn't going to help much if you are trying to use a $50 reel to cast 1/4 oz crank baits on a windy day. By the same token, The best reel you can buy isn't going to help you any when you are using a big hybrid glass crank-bait rod to fish a 1/4 NED rig. Along with the line, hook, and bait, each rig is a system where the relative importance of each component will change with each different scenario.

Falcon Bucoo...$129

I like the aluminum FL personally, it's just a bit heavy for a lot of rods made these days. But it feels solid as a vault door. And smooth as it should be. It's not like the Vanford is going to make the FL feel like a coffee grinder all of a sudden. It simply has a lighter frame and rotor. That said, Magnesium rotors are nice.

I'm right handed and usually use left handed spinning reels. The only reason I haven't changed to left handed casting reels is because I have too many right handed TD-Z and Steez type of reels that I've over time made just how I want them and there is no way that I can replace them. That aside, it feels very natural to throw with your right and crank with your left. And there is a lot less hand shifting right to left after the cast...which is very, very nice.

On a spinning reel the spool has little to do with how it casts as long as you have the appropriately sized spool and the lip isn't damaged. Think about it. It doesn't do anything except sit there. The Magnesium rotor is all about the retrieve. A lighter rotor means that there is less inertia to overcome when you start to reel the line in and less of a flywheel effect when you want to stop reeling. It's hard for me to see how it would make the reel smoother but that may be the sensation some folks may come away with. To me a lighter rotor just feels more controlled and quicker which makes it seem a little more precise.

I thought that it already was....I used to hear the guys on the Tuna fishing show refer to the hordes of clueless weekenders who don't know or follow the rules as Googans. My guess is that these twerps picked up on it and thought it fit them and would be a clever way to wave their delinquency in everybody's face..

Sure I have plans, but...Like Mike Tyson said...Everybody got a plan till you get punched in the nose.