AmmoGuy

I bought a $55 reel from academy sports recently with an aluminum frame, carbon fiber handle, nicely hinged side plate, and carbon drag. fully supported pinions I agree with. In the Diawa lineup, that seems to be the break over point on more guaranteed smoothness and longevity. But you don’t find that in the mid-tier reels.

Yea. I should be clear. I’m not concerned with a piece of gear putting more fish in the boat. Rather, my concern/thought is whether or not spending a little more on mid tier reels has afforded me any predictable, tangible benefits over their less expensive counterparts. So far… I don’t know that that is the case. My education and background is Engineering, and I manage a manufacturing facility. My world is machining, assembly, quality, and creating good product. I regularly hear “a more expensive real gets you tighter tolerances, etc etc…” and at some point in the $$ scale that’s probably the case, but in the mid-tier reels I’ve been gravitating toward, I cannot pin down much predictable difference.

Why? is there something objective about the way they are designed or manufactured that would benefit me? Or is the Lews sticker that Doyo puts on them just better?

That’s how I’ve always addressed it. But objectively speaking, it hasn’t been my experience the last few years. All reels have their own nuances, noises, etc. they vary reel to reel. Everyone perceives these differently as well. One persons “smooth” reel is another’s “noisy” reel. Confirmation bias also comes into play sometimes. I just haven’t been able reliably predict “better” reels by spending a little extra $$ the last few years. I think I’m at the crossroads of trying truly high dollar reels, or the opposite.

Milage varies, but the reels I’m referring to are approx of the same age and usage. If anything his reels get much less maintenance, are never covered, and get stored in the garage. I’m more than meticulous about maintenance, my reels are stored indoors, and wear covers unless the are on the deck or being fished. ??‍♂️

Idk. I know the Tat platform pretty well inside and out. The non-fully supported pinion Diawa reels (all the Tats) are kind of a lottery. You may get a good one, or you may get a really bad one.

Only…. It hasn’t. I’ve witnessed quite a bit of variation and rough operation out of the “mid tier to nice” reels I’ve purchased in the last few years. It’s disconcerting when your buddy has a couple of $60 Walmart reels that are as smooth or smoother than your $260 Shimano.

Warning. Bit of a long rant. Lately, I’m wondering why I spend money on “nice” reels. I usually look for the best value in reels in the $150-$300 range. My lineup includes reels like Coastal SV TW’s, Tatula 100s, Tat Elites, Revo SX’s, Curado DC’s, Curado MGL’s. Some of which have been hit or miss to say the least. My first Curado was so rough/geary I sent it straight back. The replacement was smooth. I’ve had three Coastal SVs, one is smooth, one is decent, and one is flat out terrible. These aren’t lube or maintenance issues. On the other hand… one of my best fishing buddies is NOT a gear head. He can easily afford any tackle he wants, but just doesn’t see the point in spending $$$. His regular lineup includes reels like $99 Lews Xfinity combos from Wally World, $60 Lews Classic reels, and Abu Black Max’s. When we fish together, he catches as many fish as I do, and to be honest, a few of my reels are gearier and louder than his. Specifically one of my Coastals, and one of my Curados are noisier on retrieve than pretty much any of his reels. I fished one of his $99 Lews Xfinity combos a good bit recently, and it casts and retrieves as well and as smoothly as any reel in my boat. I realize that making the jump to truly nice reels… Zillions, Steez, Metaniums, etc.. buys you more consistency and performance… and maybe I’ll decide to make that jump one day. But for now… I’m kind of having a hard time figuring out what the extra $ has gotten me, other than a lighter wallet.

I'm re-working an older 16' Xpress bass boat. It's a great little boat, and I'm almost done getting it like it needs to be. The one outstanding item that I need to tackle is electronics. Currently it just has a Garmin Striker 4 Plus on the console and a PiranhaMAX 4 DI on the bow. I've actually gotten a lot of use out of them, but the boat needs side imaging. I'm thinking a Garmin 93SV on the bow, and a 73SV on the console would be a good fit. Currently I could pick up both for about $1200. The reason for the 73SV on the console is that the console area is already pretty tight in this boat. It also saves about $200. The 73SV would never be very far from my eyes, so I thought the smaller screen might be fine. Anyone have any thoughts on this setup? Will I regret the 7" on the console? I like the idea of the two graphs being the same control and feature wise. I'd also plan on linking them to share data. TIA.

Eh. Maybe disregard this. I thought it would be a pretty great deal at that price. Stetson Blaylock uses them in the Elite Series (because of sponsorship). But I just picked one up, and it's definitely not a smooth reel.

Well dang. They verbatim told me twice that a reel bought from overseas would not be accepted, so I never turned it in. Guess it was a "better to ask for forgiveness than permission" type situation.

I've never seen any reason to stray from the Baby 1-. I'm sure the Mid is good too though.

https://alxrods.com/collections/ikos/products/hustler-7-medium-heavy-moderate-casting

Mann's Baby 1! They just flat out catch fish.

https://www.academy.com/p/h2o-xpress-tac-40-baitcast-reel-120744101

Just ran across this and thought I'd clarify that the XD Cranking series rods are NOT composite. They are graphite rods.

So. The Mustang HIT's are 100% the best choice in inflatables. Outside of that, they are kind of the same. To be honest, it's hard to make sense of all the various Onyx, BP labeled, etc. choices. If you're not going to spend the money on an HIT, this seems like the best "value". https://www.basspro.com/shop/en/bass-pro-shops-35auto-auto-inflatable-life-vest-101155070

I bet one is a pre-authorization. If so, it won't ever post, and will disappear in a day or two.

Just buy a Wally battery, and maintain it properly. Plug it up to a maintainer immediately when you return from the water, and leave it plugged up 24/7. I've used the 27 & 29 Everstart Deep Cycles a lot, and get many years out of them. I think the one in my boat is over 4 years old. Works like new. https://www.walmart.com/ip/EverStart-Lead-Acid-Marine-RV-Deep-Cycle-Battery-Group-Size-29DC-12V-845-MCA/20531543?wmlspartner=wlpa&selectedSellerId=0&wl13=707&adid=22222222420450916370&wmlspartner=wmtlabs&wl0=&wl1=g&wl2=c&wl3=547331341345&wl4=aud-1219917706781:pla-293946777986&wl5=9013775&wl6=&wl7=&wl8=&wl9=pla&wl10=8175035&wl11=local&wl12=20531543&wl13=707&veh=sem_LIA&gclid=Cj0KCQjw1ZeUBhDyARIsAOzAqQKECWfU2XFRFIDellLTsEbRkpInTTbExe6x7qaPIAIsxGTRss4w7NcaAqdHEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

Very similar here. I fish jigs with the 7'1" Heavy/Fast "Jig" Tatula. I have two of them. I have quite a few Tat rods. The blanks are definitely great. That said, I've had the cork come loose and start squeaking on a couple of them. The triggers are odd and irritate my finger if I'm casting heavy lures too. I don't really cast my jig rods often, so that doesn't come into play on those.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002PI0R8K/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Saying "nEeDleSS sPeNdiNg" on a fishing forum almost seems oxymoronic. It has nothing to do with how it makes me feel, and everything to do with the utility/value of it. Being able to pull the the "tool" (pre loaded with rings) out of my pocket, and slap a ring on a worm is worth $6 to me. How you value your time is up to you. I used pliers to open o-rings for a while. Then tried to fashion my own "tube". finally I just grabbed a $6 "tool" one day while I was in Academy Sports. I've never once regretted it. If I lost it, I'd buy another immediately. Heck, a bag of Senkos costs more than that these days.

Rant all you want, but for $5, you can't beat a "wacky tool". Simple and quick. They are like $5-8. Just buy one, fill it up with o-rings and throw it in your tackle box. You won't regret it.

This is what you seek. Fantastic shirts, especially at the price point. (and they are 25% off right now). https://www.academy.com/p/magellan-outdoors-mens-pro-angler-gaiter-hoodie-130550721?gmc_feed=t&ogmap=SEM|NBR|GOOG|SHOP|c|OUT|IM|Non-Brand-PerformanceMax-Outdoor-Stream|Stream||16517466167|0&ogmap=SEM|PLN|GOOG|SHOP|c|OUT||Non-Brand-PerformanceMax-Outdoor-Stream|Stream||16517466167|0&gclid=CjwKCAjwsJ6TBhAIEiwAfl4TWOXupdjji6SKQsnP9IUu5nm4aaydxBbYw8uQoCJNhU2_yGQIe9pwIBoCnnAQAvD_BwE

If you don't mind buying lithiums, and/or you have the extra space and don't mind the weight, ALWAYS go 24V. In my 16' Xpress, I currently run a 55lb because I don't want the weight of a third wet cell, and don't want to spend the money on lithiums. The 55 pulls the boat around fine unless it's pretty windy, then I always wish I had more umph. In good conditions, I can run the 55 off one 29 size 122ah battery for most of the day.