Big Hands

If that's what they want to do, they should get the right reel for that. I'm looking at them side by side with a dial caliper. Y'all can decide for yourself where the truth resides.

I have talked to people that told me about it. I researched it and found more about it on SU.

Like the Lexa's that would engage the spool mid-cast?

I now have both a Tatula 200H and a Curado 200K in my possession. To my naked eye, the spool sizes look to be pretty much the same size. The spool diameter is around 1-5/16" when filled with line with the Tatula being ever so slightly larger (measuring the line), and the width is very close to 1" with the Curado being slightly wider. The biggest difference is in the arbor size. The Curado definitely has a thicker arbor diameter which would account for a bit more line capacity, but not to the extent that the supposed specs suggest. If I had to bet on one being closer to reality than the other, I'd be betting on the Shimano Curado 200k specs being more accurate. I am OK with the line capacity of the Tatula 200H. I was hoping the reel would be significantly, physically. . . . beefier. . . . for durability reasons. The larger arbor diameter on the Curado 200K would seem to be a concession for reducing the rotating weight of the spool. The arbor diameters of the Tranx and Curado 300's is similarly thicker than the Tatula 300H too. So, I suspect any noticeably larger line capacity on the Tatula 300 is a result of the arbor size more than anything else. So, to sum up my feelings relative to the OP's question, they should both be excellent for chunking around lures that weigh 2 ounces or less. I think they are well suited for using 15 lb line, with the Tatula being better suited if you wanted to use 20 lb line purely due to the line capacity being larger with the narrower spool arbor. Use 15 lb line on either and they will cast a looooong ways for for that size baits with the appropriate rod. The lack of a magnetic cast control on the Curado did not hinder it's casting distance with a 2-1/8 ounce Megabass M7.5 at all. I could pretty much cast it as far as I wanted and still had a very reasonable amount of line left should I hook up at the far end of the cast. Hard to make a poor choice here unless you don't care for a particular feature of something like a T-Wing or lack of magnetic cast control.

I did detect the faint essence of a well played troll, but went with it. Now, if you would kindly remove your gaff . . . . ;~)

I would call them different rather than one being better than the other. I have rods and reels from both companies that I like a lot. I think both have rods/reels that excel at a particular niche or pricepoint and others that don't do as well for the price they sell for. Both have put out absolute turkeys as well as standouts. Some products work better for some than for others and that could be based on the way one person uses them rather than a an actual or perceived shortcoming. It's great to have choices, and they aren't the only ones.

Maybe the 'anal fin' should be labeled a 'vent fin'?

It is known to trigger conniption fits in a significant number of bass anglers.

I have been thinking about how one might fish it. This stuff is surprisingly thick. I have heard of throwing or casting a heavy rig high up into the air so it has enough force to punch through it, but haven't tried it here. This stuff is like tree bark, wood chips, twigs, and branches (mixed with actual mud and several inches thick in spots). The bass might be more likely to get a concussion than to be able to reach a bait scooting across this industrial sludge. I know there are times when fish will hang out under surface debris and I have caught bass and crappie in Texas fishing under the mats of surface debris after rain storms.

Can we just nudge the bear a little and see if that works? Or maybe toss a pebble in it's general direction from afar? Inquiring minds want to know. . . about the interaction with said bear and especially about rigging the stick bait to fish it in the trees. If it's just not a good idea, I understand, and I will thank the bear for sharing as much as it did, and proceed to learn the old fashioned way.

I had a Tranx 400 that I used with a Phenix PSW869 for swimbaits and large deep divers. Heck of a setup, but it was a beast to use and I ended up selling it for that reason alone. Had I chosen a lighter duty setup with a Tranx 300, I would probably still have it. In fact, I am keeping my eyes open for a good deal on a lightly used Tranx 300 for myself. Tranx are not fancy and for some, the tendency to knock the side cover switch to open inadvertently is a bit of a negative if you handle the reel that way (not everyone does). It might give up a little distance to some 'swiss watch' type offerings, but it is a well built reel that can survive for the long haul when you want to throw big baits around. A true workhorse that performs very well.

I don't know of an 8" Senko, but there is such a thing as a 10" Soft Stick bait made by Magnum. I will admit to being curious about these myself.

'Matt & Tim' have a good video up showing underwater footage of several different styles, sizes and rigging methods of 'stick baits' that's worth a watch. Interesting for me to see that a wacky style jig head equipped stick bait falls at nearly the identical rate that a weightless wacky stick bait does. I would not have thought that to be the case.

Nice rig. Looks like a VERY similar layout to mine. Aha, you have the hand control. That definitely explains the 52" Riptide. The first time I visited TX in the mid-90's, it seemed like most people were running those at Lake Fork. By the time I left, I understood why. With all of the down timber floating in the coves, it made it a heck of a lot easier to raise the motor as we crawled our way up and over them to get back to where we wanted to fish. I rarely see boats there rigged like that anymore. They also used dimmer switches (possibly momentary) mounted on the deck to turn the power on and off.

I lived in Redondo in the mid-80's and also used to fish in King Harbor for those 'Redondo Striped Tuna' as we used to call them. They could take you for quite a ride.

I have probably caught more bass on 6 lb or 7 lb line than any others size line. I caught my first double digit on 6 lb test and I always felt like I had a chance. I caught my PB on 10 lb mono. I caught a 22 lb channel (39" long) cat in deep water on 8 lb mono and that took over fifteen minutes to bring in. Those were a fair fight. I felt like both the fish and I had a legit chance to emerge victorious. I have proven to myself that I don't have the talent to handle big fish on 4 lb test line. A friend of mine caught a 14 lb bass on 4 lb mono at the same lake that I normally fish. So, I thought I would try it. The deal breaker came when I hooked a big fish throwing into a pocket that was about six feet wide while pre-fishing for a tournament, and the fight lasted probably less than twenty seconds. I couldn't do anything with her and the line broke (not exactly sure why, but it did). I went back the very first thing in the morning on the day of the tournament and what I believe was the same fish slammed the bait again and promptly broke me off again. Some anglers may feel like they have a chance if they have a big fish going with 4 lb test, but I am not one of them anymore. I have taken that train and I don't intend to end up visiting 'destination: disappointment' again if I can help it. That fish still haunts my dreams. Y'all knock yourself out and have a ton of fun. I will be the first to congratulate you if you have success with it.

I have my transducer cable attached in such a way that I can't raise it in the clamp more than an inch or so. But I have committed to doing it differently next time so that I would be able to raise it in the clamp if I want to. If I'm fishing next to the bank, I do sometimes wish it was closer to the surface. I have a 42" shaft (on my trolling motor) and on my 1648 Grizzly, it sticks down quite a ways. The times I appreciate that the most is when the wake boats are out in force and I am fishing near sheer cliffs and I don't want the TM going in and out of the water as I dance with the devil trying to keep from being bashed on the rocks, but still being able to fish parallel to the sheer walls. If that wasn't ever a problem, I could probably get away with a 36" shaft length (on my trolling motor). Keeping the turbulence from the propeller closer to the surface might disturb the fish less in some small way to at times too, but I have no way to verify that.

Shimano and Daiwa 'fanboys' put together are but a mere carbuncle on the posterior of ABU Garcia Ambassadeur fanboys.

Great explanation. You might be afflicted with Tatulaphilia, which would make you a Tatulaphile ;~)

I own an Ambassadeur Royal that I bought new back in the early/mid 80's. The box indicates that it was a model 'exclusively' distributed by Bass Pro Shops. I still have the original box, parts schematic, owners manual, extra drag weights, wrench, and warranty card that came with it, but I can't find anything about the finer points of lubricating this reel properly. It has a copper spring on the spool shaft between the spool and the gear that drives the level wind. The gear engages in one direction, but not the other. I, through my unbelievably superior level of intelligence ;~) , have figured out that this is what works with the level wind to center the pawl during casting so it isn't negatively casting distance, and I have also noticed that the spool spins freer backwards than forwards, I imagine as a result of being able to disengage the level wind pawl when casting and/or to impart some level of cast control. My question is, what parts of this part of the spool and level wind should I be lubricating and how should they be properly lubricated for best performance and durability? I have included a pic of the spool as this is different from any other pics of Royal/4600 spools I have been able to find.

Although not a lover of the T-WIng, I see it as this reel's best feature ;~)

Looks like Daiwa will be releasing a low profile baitcaster that is bluetooth enabled and will interact with a smartphone. It has various colored lights that apparently indicate something built into the sideplates. What the nature of the bluetooth interaction will be was not easily discerned by me due to the fact that I don't understand whatever language the video was presented in. I guess I need to know how long my average cast was for the three week period of what I call 'never'. I think I would rather have lures that communicate with my cell phone, and I really don't even want that in any way.

Question: Do you have a quiet place? Answer: No. I live about a 50 minute drive from downtown Los Angeles. In light of the above, I look forward to occasionally going to visit my fellow fishing fiend friend in Texas. In comparison, we generally go fish whenever we want to, wherever we want to (without trespassing of course). I absolutely LOVE to go night fishing in Texas. Go to the ramp at midnight? I am in!

I asked one of the employees at a local tackle store about a rise in Shimano pricing and although he didn't say it outright, his response led me to believe that he didn't disagree with that being the case. I'm not saying it is happening for sure, thus the question mark at the end of my post.

I recently acquired a Fury 806 and I believe that the Champion 806 might be a tad stouter/faster. But, I got the 806 for treble hook baits in the 2 to for or 6 ounce range. It's not a stud stick as the bend is more toward the parabolic end of the spectrum IMHO. If your hooks are kept sharp and are not super heavy duty, it might have the backbone to get the job done, but I don't see that being what the 806 is best at (at least with the Fury version). The general consensus is that the 806 (Champion or Fury) are great for baits in the 4-5 oz sweet spot and it won't be great for larger single hook baits. Once the fish is hooked solidly, I think the 806 will be great for great for keeping the pressure on them without unloading easily. The stud stick (my generic term for a rod with more backbone) is great for getting the big hooks to set, and sometimes having to apply a lot of pressure to keep a rod like that bowed can tear a treble hook loose. If I wanted to throw a lot of baits in the 5 to 6 ounce range, I would go with the 807. I haven't held an 807 and haven't been ale to see for myself how the rod bends. My take is that there aren't a lot of rods out there that would do a good job with both single hook and treble hook swimbaits. The fellows at TB feel that the Loomis IMX-Pro966c SWBR is an exception to that rule, but it kind of stands alone in that regard. At almost $400, one could make a case for pairing that up with something like a Tranx 300 with 20-25 fluorocarbon line and have one high quality rig rather than two $200 swimbait rods and two reels that run another $200 to $300 each. Just to give you an idea, I am posting a couple pics of a Dobyns 806 in action (with a Tranx 300 with 20 Seaguar fluorocarbon line) so you can get an idea of what to expect. This guy was fishing mostly treble hook baits with his 806 and you can clearly see the rod is nowhere what I would consider a fast action and loads up all the way down.