RipHair

I don't have any Zman elaztechs. Is your advice to keep them all separate no matter the brand or just ensure I keep Zman elaztechs separate from the rest?

I'm getting packed for a week long fishing trip on my motorcycle and I have about 30 bags of plastics (worms, creatures, swimbaits, frogs, etc..) some opened, some new in my money bag. There are certain plastics or colors for which I bring 1-2 full bags of but the majority I actually only need 2-3 individual plastics of. The brands I have are mostly Zoom and Yamamoto Senkos. I was thinking about making a few quart ziplocks with 1-3 of these random ones which should actually cut down my total bag count/volume by around 50%. Curious if anyone has had any luck doing something like this to minimize the number of bags they need to carry? I know some plastics manufactures don't mix well with other brands but I assume I should be able to at least mix non-like colors of the same brand in similar bags? Zoom Horny Toads don't come in molds but Rage Tails do and I think I need to keep those guys in molds in molds even if just for a week or so?

I just built a BFS rod and wounder her up with 6lb FC and looking for more finesse lightweight stuff to throw on it and those Raps look like they may do well. Which ones are your favorite? Also what is the name of that spinner where the blade goes under it? I saw it a youtube video and added it to my list of things to get.

I think I'm starting to lean more towards finesse also. Been building up a huge amount of terminal tackle lately. Would you care to elaborate more on what finesse baits you use and find to be successful? I have a few new L/UL/BFS builds to try this year and looking for more ideas. I'm pretty much set in the wacky, ned, neko, texas rigs already and just ordered these from Midway: - Owner Block Head #1 1/32oz Wacky Jighead Green Pumpkin - Owner Block Head Offset 1/0 1/16oz Wacky Jighead Green Pumpkin - Bullet Weights Tungsten Finesse Drop Shot Weight 1/8oz Tungsten Natural 4Pk (no idea if 1/8oz is light enough for finesse) - Zoom Tiny Fluke White Pearl (gonna try these weightless, no idea what size hook to use though) - Lucky Craft Pointer 78DD Jerkbait Aurora Black (hoping 78mm is finesse enough and will be my first jerkbait ever)

Was looking for chartreuse neds last summer to target walleye (pickerel for Canadian folks). Found these on slickdeals earlier this year for $3.49 and may have overbought by a tad...

Finished building my long overdue BFS casting rod today: Specs are: SB781-3 blank ECSM seat RV6 to 3 4mm BAGs to 8 TAGs all alconite (or SIC I forget) Sunburst size-A thread Forget the tiptop but it's one step down from the Fuji Arowana, I think it's SIC. Funny this supposedly lighter build weights the exact same as my much heavier SB841-3 build. I guess it's mostly due to the ECSM instead of SK2s. I was really hoping for a sub-3oz build but it seems to be quite elusive! I won't be able to fish this for another few weeks at least but I was reading up on some of the popular BFS rods and a lot of folks are recommending the Dobyns Sierra Ultra Finesse 700. That rod has a lure rating down to 1/16oz while this has 1/8oz. I should probably compare the CCS rating once I test this one out. I may be due for a new build if this rod is too strong. Pairing this with a 2022 Shimano Aldebaran rigged with Tatsu 6lb FC.

That's a great article and one I read only after having built my first couple of rods. I've since prepped my bonding surfaces with a magic pad which seems to do the trick.

At my rate I might as well take them apart in outer space - at least they'd have a constant trajectory! ? That said, I think I'm done with taking these apart and got my kick. Too afraid to do the same on my higher end reels...

If anyone's curious, the Bail Trip Strike is the piece on this reel that will auto-flip the bail when you reel. Got it back on and she's now good as new.

Yup I've already had one SK2 fail in the field for thinking I was smart with using as little glue as possible - I've since learned from that. I agree anything down the handle should be geared for comfort rather than weight savings. I've been waving it around a bit today and the ECSM indeed feels more solid. Also easier to attach compared to the SK2 with those graphite inserts, measuring distance between them, etc..

If my schematic is correct, it looks like the white piece is the "Bail Trip Strike" which apparently is: This bail trip strike is an original part from Shimano. The plastic component is fastened to the fishing reel body. This component is designed to lock the bail and strike once the bait is taken by the fish. The bail trip strike is sold individually. A screwdriver is necessary in making the repair. Never new this was a thing or how to use it or even if it's something I need... Anyone have any ideas? 19802 in the diagram.

That was exactly it!

For anyone curious, here is an SK2 vs ECSM comparison photo. I probably should have reserved the ECSM for my regular MH rods instead of using this on an extreme lightweight BFS rod but I didn't have any MH builds in the pipeline. I palm reels with the trigger between my ring and middle finger and notice that half the back cork isn't used. I really like the contoured cork backing of the SK2 - it's very comfortable the two fingers fwd, two fingers back compared to the convex and much larger diameter BGA95RC. Anyway, only time will tell after I've fished them side by side.

I've always thought the schematics could be found easily only but for some reason this particular model "Shimano Stradic 2500 HG-K" I can't find anywhere, there is an HG-FK and other variants but I'm not sure if they're the exact same. Same went for my Abu Garcia Revo STX. I think going forward I will keep the schematics that came with the reels or scan them. You're probably right regarding reel maintenance. I have a couple of reels that I never maintained that are over 8 years old and don't appear to be very smooth. I'm going to gift them to some family members and figured I could try my hands at some deep cleaning to hopefully give them another 5+ years. The last reel I did last night I followed your advice and just did the minimum maintenance required without issue ?

Got'er working again. It was the roller clutch inner, I had it upside down so it wasn't making contact with the pins. Thanks for pointing me in the right direction! As for that white piece or those washer/spacers, Lord only knows from where or from which reel it came from...

Thanks a lot. I think I know the part you are talking about - the diagram calls it the rolling clutch assembly. I cleaned my desk a bit and found a white plastic piece I remember being attach somewhere around that assembly. Almost managed to find a couple more washers (really small and thin ones, maybe just spacers?). Going to take it back apart and see if I can get my AR going again.

I ended up taking the whole reel apart to clean it before the season starts and noticed after putting it all together that my antireverse doesn't work. And to be honest, I don't even remember if this darned reel had it in the first place. There's certainly no anti-reverse switch that I can see so it's not that. Under the spool there is a clutch and I'm not sure if that's just the drag clutch or also anti-reverse (I didn't open it up). Trying to search online about this reel, I'm getting mixed hits saying there and some saying there might not be... Figured someone here might have more experience with spinning reels and can chime in. It's my only spinning reel, rest are baitcasters. PS: use a good surface or even baking tray with a lip, can't tell you how many parts I thought I lost and was about to order replacements only to find them randomly through the apartment - found one part last night on my kitchen floor!

Do you mean to recommend a particular handle with one of those nice wood inlays? I'm completely fine with splurging $70+ on a reel seat with a nice wood inlay if 1) it won't detract from functionality 2) it doesn't add more weight than some reasonable aluminum alternative that cost 1/5th the price 3) it isn't too much more difficult to work with and won't warp or need extra servicing.

I'm thinking half wells for this particular build.

In my research I read that some prefer downlocking especially on smaller rods. Any particular reason you recommended downlocking? Is it because of your grip comment?

Thanks for your input. Do you have any other blank manufacturer recommendations to build this basic rod? I also found this guy too it's a 7'6 and less than half the price. It uses their RX6 instead of RX7 though but I'm not sure how much that is going to matter? I also found some NFC blanks but they were like $400+ probably a little more than I'd care to spend for my first little stream rod... The other ones I quoted about are around $120. Also the one below is Mod-Fast instead of Fast - what are your thoughts? https://getbitoutdoors.com/unity-7-6-2-pc-med-fast-3wt-olympic-green EDIT: Nevermind the above blank, it's a 2pc!

I should also ask if it ends up being the ECSM, Anglers Resource's catalog shows the ECSM16 should be paired with the BGA95RC back handle but anyone know if the RGK6016RC or RGSK1617RC-W would fit? I kind of like the latter on my SK2 even though it's a bit smaller.

All of my rods are built with SK2 split seats size 16. I have it on my list to try the ECSM seat and my next build is a BFS rod. The ID of the section it'd go is 10.5. The blank itself is a Rainshadow SB781-3 which is 6'6 in length. I'm pairing it with a Aldebaran BFS XG Left reel. Do you think I should use the ECSM with this rod or would it be too bulky compared to doing another SK2 build?

I need to order some components to finish a BFS rod build and I'm considering building a 3wt Fly Rod as well. Ideally I'd like to go as minimalist as possible especially for a dinky 4pc 3wt when traveling or to bring on my motorcycle in case I come across a little stream or creek. I haven't yet looked into component specifics, nor have I ever even built a fly rod yet but I'm sure the guides are all pretty standard but I may come back to those later in the thread as things develop. I guess the first question I have is, is there some kind of minimalist reel seat to use? When I mean minimalist, I guess I mean cost, ease of build, low profile/weight. My casting rods are all fuji SK2 split with rear cork and small butt, no winding checks or fancy wraps. I see on my fly rods that there is some kind of metal casing where the reel seat is and I imagine that thing if needed will have to be properly fitted? I suppose you can't just mount the reel to the blank? Any tips or pointers while I start preparing and researching would be appreciated! Also any suggestions on blanks are appreciated. I think I'm looking for around a 4pc 7' for ultimate portability and work-ability in heavy brush. I've so far set my sights on REVF703-4SB or REVF663-4SBL: https://batsonenterprises.com/rainshadow-rod-blanks/blank-rev-fly-6-6-4-pc-3-wt-satin-black-revf663-4sb https://batsonenterprises.com/rainshadow-rod-blanks/blank-rev-fly-7-0-4-pc-3-wt-satin-black-revf703-4sb I'm no professional fly fisherman and I don't think I need to go uber expensive for this build?

I tried google searching for sleeve-repair but didn't come up with much. Do you have any further info on what this is? The only other repair I found was to make a spigot ferrule.