newapti5

Between that model you mentioned and the 6'8 medium heavy, I picked the latter for its accuracy and ease to control. I haven't fished it yet, but it's a bit on the stiff side. There're many threads here, as well as on other sites, that talk about Expride rods. A quick search and you'll see.

Come on, there're tons of threads online fighting over whose reels are better, and there'll be no end to the arguments here if we keep it going. Let's focus on something else, like slick deals on Christmas sales.

Gee, the autospell. But you know what I meant.

Strike King Bitsy Bug could be very good for SM, but I used Bass Patrol football jig more often. These are hand-tied finesse size football jigs, with a very stout but small size Gamakatsu hook (they changed to Mustad hook, and slightly thicker rubber skirt strand). I mostly use the 1/4oz or 3/8oz. They have two versions of skirts to choose - living rubber or regular silicone. And most importantly, they are very affordable. River jig fishing is bound to snagging. With these jigs, it wouldn't hurt much you lose a few along the trip. TW have them in stock here: https://www.tacklewarehouse.com/catpage-BPATROL.html?from=basres The living rubber ones are my favorite, though the color choice is limited. Speaking of SM jig fishing, I've heard many talks about the importance of scents from SM gurus, but personally I find that the right action is more effective than scents and colors. A living rubber skirt jig with the right trailer, such as Baby Rage Claw, has been very successful for me. Big one small one, they all love it.

Gee, is Rico really that good? Every year I see people go crazy on them. I don't fish poppers much and I just got a PopMax to try out next year.

Haha, I don't want to torture myself; buying fishing gear is supposed to be fun. I do agree that Amazon is probably the best place for fishing line deals, crazy deals sometimes, if you're patient enough. I just got a couple spools of 12# Tatsu for $26 per spool from else where. How's that price compared to other Tatsu sales? I seriously want to know. I am also waiting on the Vicious No-fade braid on day 18. Those are very good braid and not many places carry them.

SVS brakes have external dial as well as internal adjustment. I interpret Lew's ACB system as "you CAN'T make any internal adjustments with the ACB" because all the brake shoes are loose/turned on, unlike SVS brakes that you can choose how many brake shoes to be on. The third generation Abu's Revo Premier has a similar design, they call it IVCB-4. All the brake shoes are loose and can't be locked. But on the fourth generation, Abu changed it to IVCB-6L. The letter "L" at the end probably stands for "locked," as now all the brake shoes can be locked or unlocked as you wish, just like SVS brakes. But that is not the reason I think ACB is an imitation of the SVS. The key is how the brake shoes are designed and operate under centrifugal force. IMO, compared to SVS, ACB just uses smaller brakes shoes, and move the brake pad ring from the center to the outer ring. To be fair, it works pretty well as I really enjoy the new Tournament Pro, but I don't think it's very much an original idea.

I see it now. Thanks! TBH, I was hoping a better deal on Seaguar Tatsu line. 30% off is good, but TW's original prices are pretty high. I could get better deals else where. Still, a lot of things to look forwards to; I guess I'll get a $50 giftcard first and wait.

If you're sure about that, then it's probably the spool bearing, because there aren't many parts in the palm side plate. I suggest try turning off all the SVS brakes first, as the brake shoes could make a noise as well if you reel in really fast. Then change to a new bearing instead of cleaning/oiling the old one, see how it goes.

There were some complaints of braided line groove issue with T-wings, but that's long time ago during the first generation T-wing, when it just came out. I believe Daiwa solved that issue quickly.

I think these are just gears meshing sounds. Especially for high gear ratio reels, you'll hear it more often. For lower ratio reels, you can also hear it when you reel in really fast. On this aspect, Daiwa does do a better job isolating this "connected" feeling; it's like reeling air. If you don't like it, put more grease on the main gear and pinion gear, especially high viscosity grease like Cal's.

Sure, I have been saying that to myself on daily basis since years ago, twice on Sunday.

First of all, I don't have brand loyalty. I like well-made reels, no matter where it's made. But I do believe in general, Shimano (and Daiwa) has an edge over Lew's, because it has better build quality and tolerance, better design and material inside, and most importantly, better innovation. After you open enough reels, you will see the differences. For example, Shimano and Daiwa have had dual bearing supported pinion gear for decades, while Lew's has just implemented their P2 supported pinion, and it's a bushing and a bearing. Dual bearing supported pinion gear is a crucial feature for baitcaster reels, but it is not some fancy technology. Even some $20 Chinese brand reel does it. But to do it right, it requires higher manufacturing tolerance and quality. IMO that's why Lew's and other known brands didn't do it until now. Shimano and Daiwa are large companies that have their own factories. That's a huge deal from business viewpoint. No matter located domestically or oversea, these factories could control manufacturing quality much better. Lew's has to ask OEM factories to make reels for them. Doyo's quality is good, but IMO not as good and stable as Shimano's. Innovation is another thing. Nowadays, Shimano and Daiwa are the two brands that can truly develop new technologies and lead the trend. Take a closer look at Lew's braking system, you will see that it's an imitation of Shimano's SVS brakes. Also, DC reels, TWS, MGL and SV, Micromodule Gears... whether you like these or not, only Shimano and Daiwa can keep pushing out new techs like that. Lew's reels do have the line indicator and build-in hook keeper, but IMO these are only marginal innovations. All that being said, all brands have hits and misses. For ~$100, I would not buy any SLX variant reels, yet the new LFS reels and Tournament MP reels are quite good for that price point. But going with higher price tag, I find that what Lew's can offer is getting fewer, except maybe smaller frame and lighter weight. Performance wise, a Pro Ti reel and a Tournament Pro are about the same IMO. On Shimano side, when the price going higher, you can get DC reels, better MGL spools, silent tune, top notch bearings, tighter tolerance... All the talks so far, we only cover the baitcasters. On spinning reel and saltwater reel market, it's a no brainer which brand wins. Those are the fields that really put a trial on reels' build quality.

The grease probably dried up. The SX series has been in the market for several years. They have been sitting on shelfs or in warehouses since they're manufactured. Try the newest freshly-made models; it might be a different story.

To make things worse, with every heavy flood in the Spring and Summer, city of Harrisburg is dumping tons of raw sewage water directly into Susquehanna river, because the city lacks the funds to give the outdated sewage system an overhaul. It's been going on for over 6 years, and sadly there's no saying how long it will keep going like that. While dead fish and human feces floating downstream, mother nature has nothing to do with this. https://www.fox43.com/article/news/investigations/fox43-reveals/sewage-dumped-susquehanna-river-fox43-reveals/521-7efedb86-d954-4992-86a6-1643215d86ab

If you're talking about the Revo lineup, then personally I think they will soon, but they probably won't make a big deal out of it. Abu nowadays is like Lew's and others, pushing out new reels quietly, and one series at a time. I lost count of how many generations of Superduty reels Lew's pushed out in the past 5 years; IMO they're all pretty much the same inside and out. There's also a "new" BB1 Pro model out there, and I have no idea when it came out. Abu pushed out the Revo EXD, the new Revo Rocket, and other reels quietly, not like the past when they would present a whole generation of reels all at the same time, with a brand new design. It's less risky from a marketing standpoint I guess, but now it's more like "Evo" reels than "Revo" reels.

Like many others said, sensitivity is a subjective thing. That being said, I really don't think there is much difference in sensitivity between Expert casting rods and Zolo casting rods. Their spinning rods may be a different story that I don't know.

I have Zolo Deputy casting rod and Zolo Maestro spinning rod. The Maestro is one of my favorites - It has great sensitivity and action. The Deputy, not as good as I expected it to be - the sensitivity is still good, but less impressive than the Maestro. And it's tip heavy. But the Deputy is quite strong though, perfect for 3/8~1/2oz jigs. I also have a Falcon Expert Hudson Special casting rod. Sensitivity wise, it's on bar with the Zolo Deputy, but it is a little softer, has a mod fast action instead of the fast action of Deputy. I like it better for SM fishing, easier to keep them pinned.

I wade in creeks for SM as well, and I'm 6' tall. For wade fishing, 7'2 or 7'3 would be my limit, rods of 7'6 are a little cumbersome to cast, unless casting distance instead of accuracy is the goal. I never used any 7'8 rods for wade fishing, spinning or casting. Besides the casting inconvenience of long rods like others mentioned, I also find that 6'8 to 7' rods are much more accurate when you try to silently drop a finesse jig near a fallen tree branch or a piece of rock, even from a long distance. Trying to do that with a 7'6 rod is relatively difficult, at least for me. While wade fishing, I think accuracy is more important than casting distance in many scenarios. In hot summer days, a lot of times if I miss the mark by a couple feet, the SM just won't bite.

Now that's a slick deal?

I had my share of high sticking error as well. Now when I set the hook, I set on 45 degree, not so hard, and watch how much the rod tip bends, never allowing it to bend over 90 degree to the rest of the rod blank.

If you have a cash back account with Rakuten, today it has 20% cash back on Academy, and Academy itself is also having a site-wide 20% off Cyber Monday sale. Thus, it'll totally be 36% off site wide. Shimano is excluded, but Daiwa, Abu, Lew's... and Megabass are all included. There are some nice selections left, like Tatula SV, Dobyns Fury, some Oneten, Oneten+1, ...etc.

Just a long-waited, my first Expride rod, and a couple spools of Tatsu line. I have to get a new compatible phone before Feb, so this year budget is a little tight.

I don't own a Curado MGL 150, but I am sure it uses a different frame than Scorpion MGL. The spool also has a different SVS brake than Scorpion MGL's and Curado K's, so I wouldn't bet on the spools are interchangeable. It also has the "Silent Tune" feature, which is not included in Scorpion or K.

JDM Shimano reels have the same quality that you'll get from Shimano reels in US market, sometimes even better. The only catch is the lack of warranty. You can order JDM reels from many Japan websites such as Asian Portal and Digitaka, just as you order things from US websites. For spools and other parts, Hedgehog Studio and Plat are the ways to go.