newapti5

I'd add P-Line Floroclear to the list. It's very supple and manageable, strong, cast great, and quite affordable.

I like pond fishing, especially with the whole family. Bass, panfish, turtle, snake, birds... it has everything!

Coming for Butch, leaving with Randy. Gee, this post escalated quickly.

There's a similar post before sharing the experience of AGS guides and leader knots, and the consent was it's ok, at least for FG knots.

This is my line winder / back scratcher. It's ready handy when you're putting on new line on reels or having an itch on the back.

IMO, as long as the drag is not totally locked down, all the above reels can handle punching or other heavy duties. Some of them may lose the smoothness rather quickly, but they can handle the task in long term all right. The question is, would you use abuse an expensive reel that is not designed/intended for that task? It's like wearing a wedding suit for gardening - it would get the job done, but it seems like a waste of material for non-rich folks.

Hybrid ceramic bearing like BOCA is mostly for improving how easy the casting is - you don't need to whip it hard anymore. For casting distance, my experience is that they may have some noticeable improvements on lighter finesse lures, but not so much on heavy lures. The other good thing about them is you don't need to add oil anymore, just a acetone bath once a season. The down side is the noise and a bit "roughness." Also, like others said, a flushed good quality stainless steel bearing could have similar results.

Don't know about the new Tatula 70, but the Alphas SV you have uses brass main gear and aluminum pinion gear. So, I wouldn't suggest it for long term heavy duty stuff.

Could be many things; hard to say without detailed descriptions. You could just send it to the sponsor of this subforum - DVT.

Amen! I was just about to quote that. I personally don't eat much fish, but I would keep some for friends who asked for one.

Oh boy, this is like asking "I want to buy a cellphone; which one do you think it's better, Apple iPhone or Samsung Galaxy?" Either reel is great, and just like cellphone purchase, it usually falls on personal preferences.

I have this Dick's/Field & Stream house brand rod, Field & Stream Tec-Spec Arsenal spinning rod, 6'8 ML, made with 40/46 ton blank. I got it before they stopped making them. Even today, if I have to pick a rod between it and a Daiwa Steez for fishing finesse stuff, I'd probably pick it. Ultra light weight but strong, casting 1/8oz jigheads a long long way, and super sensitive.

Shouldn't it be in the "show off your stuff" thread? It would be a waste to be buried among normal threads.

In theory, high drag number should be matched with high strength gears; that's what "heavy duty reel" means IMO. But in reality, that's almost never the case with today's many reel brands. Without a rigid frame, a strong gear set, and other parts, high drag only means worn/damaged gears in a short time period.

This has been THE smallie lure for me for the last couple of years. I sometimes would twist off the first tip of the body, making it even a bit more shorter.

Oh yeah, this is a crack for sure, and I'd bet this is the culprit. When you press down the thumb bar, the two arms of the yoke are pushed in, along with the pinion gear sitting in the middle of the yoke. But due to this crack, it's quite possible that the deformed yoke couldn't push the pinion gear all the way in, leaving a little contact between pinion gear and spool pin.

If it's a new reel, IMO why spending time to guess the problem? Just return/exchange it. If that's not the case, then we could try to figure it out.

It sounds like the pinion gear isn't fully pushed back in when thumb bar is pressed, a situation causing the spool pin still have some contact with the pinion gear tip, hence the sound and backlashes. A month ago, some other member was having similar problem with his reel as well. A deep cleaning fixed his problem, I mean a down-to-the-bone cleaning, followed by re-greasing. When doing that, you can also check for any wears on the parts of thumb bar/pinion gear mechanism, and change them if needed.

Some differences aren't so easy to tell, especially the tolerance and material minor differences. But in long term, it usually tells. Regarding T-wing, it won't make as much difference on lighter lines as on heavy lines.

Yes I believe kinks are fluoro's nemesis; that's also why palomar knot doesn't work well for fluoro. But if the lost strength percentage is worrisome, we could always upsize the line like pros do - like using 15lb instead when 12lb is the common case.

This: Or that:

Yep, Z-man Big Trd for me.

I have 3 of the last gen - 2 casting and 1 spinning, which will be put on sale in near future. Like other said, the sensitivity is not on par with its $300 price tag, but it's not that bad. It's more around the $200 rods sensitivity level. It's very light and strong though, thanks to the proprietary Powerlux 500 resin.

I wonder if it would wear off and weaken the line? It's known to scrape off paints and cause scratches on metal surface. I find it very effective for cleaning some cork handles; it seems to peel off the dirty surface of handles. That is my past experience as well; it seems to get clearer after a few trips in clean water. I just wonder if there're any quicker ways to deal with it, as it does bother me a bit (just a bit). If not, eventually I'll just flip the line I guess.

I usually skip his ranting, and focus on his technique tips parts. I don't mind his advertisement or "clickbait" video title either, as he gave out many great ideas at the beginning of his channel. But lately, it is almost like he's going out of his way to be against common fishing techniques and perceptions. I don't know, maybe I am too narrow-minded, but I don't follow everyone of his videos anymore, only occasionally.