Rocky998

After some delays, my reel finally came this evening. I'm so happy. Got the fluorocarbon on and test casted it. It's so smooth. Can NOT WAIT to get this thing out on the water

I got it from tackle warehouse. If I got it from a jdm site, the warranty wouldn't apply in America. And I can't even have it worked on in a shop for repairs. That's good to know! If it becomes a problem for me, I might get one of those cush-it rod butt covers

So I just got my 873+ a few days ago. It's a beautiful rod and works amazingly, I love it so far. Although while I'm waiting for metanium to be shipped to me, I'm using a daiwa coastal 150 to test the rod. It balances well to be honest, but when I balance it RIGHT where the cork meets the blank, it is tip heavy and I have to adjust my finger just a tad up the blank for it to balance out. It wouldn't be That big of a concern, but my coastal weighs (I believe) 6.9oz, and the metanium weighs only 6.3. Should I be worried about tip heaviness here? I got this rod to avoid the awfully reported tip heaviness of something like the 894, so I'm a bit saddened by the lack of balance, though small, this rod is giving, especially with the price point. That doesn't take away from how well this rod preforms overall though, don't get me wrong. This is the only very minimal (so far minimal) issue I've seen

Tested out my new NRX 873 today. Works amazingly. Even held up against a MASSIVE snapping turtle thrashing around. He was nice, though, and finally decided to spit it out after wrestling with him at the bank for a bit 😆

Put my reel on my other setup on my NRX to test the rod today. Works beautifully. Was able to feel bites nicely with a jig and the rod loaded up very well. Caught 2 and lost 1 when it jumped out of the water. My fault. I didnt reel in fast enough on it. Also caught a massive snapping turtle. Thankfully he was nice and spat it out after a minute or two of wrestling with him at the bank when I was trying to decide what exactly to do and if the jig was worth it lol. Was surprised in the rods power to handle the force that turtle was putting out with all its thrashing and pulling.

Alright! The 873 arrived today with no issues! Ill post a picture of it once my reel for it comes (should be on Tuesday sometime).

Update: With the tackle cash I got from the rod and reel, I was able to get all this stuff for only $41 and some change all together: Pretty awesome considering the line normally costs more than what I actually paid for all of it.

Ah, gotcha. Thanks for the explanation!

After a long while of using multiple baitcasters now, I feel pretty proficient at it. I can cast far and accurately with low braking. Although backlashes happen to anyone and everyone, so I do worry about it happening with the fluorocarbon and having to replace the whole spool. Because if I remember right, if fluoro backlashes, it ruins the line, right?

Yup, I understand that, but since I do not own a boat, it's a lot more important to me than some others. Further I can cast = more presentation time and more water I can cover from shore. Awesome! That's great to hear, then! Thank you!

Thank you! Thats great to hear! You don't feel restricted by casting distance at all with the shooter line?

While I wouldnt say i have "disposable" income, this is money i have set aside for a while now to be able to get a bottom contact setup like this

Sadly I could not find where it lists that specific information. I looked for a while. Appreciate that, thank you!!

I checked out that calculator! It would be really helpful, except for the fact I need the line diameter and length that the company publishes. And I don't know. Shimano and daiwa, at least to my knowledge, does not show that information for their casting reels. I'm looking at putting 18lb daiwa samurai fluorocarbon (.353mm diameter) on a shimano metanium 150 for jigs. Would this be too thick, or should i bump it down to 16lb test? (.337mm)

Thanks! I got an NRX 873 and then a metanium 150 to pair with it. Still deciding what line I'd like to use. Thinking about 16-18lb daiwa samurai hidden concept fluorocarbon as we have stained water here and I'm not sure if clear fluorocarbon will exactly keep it's color. That sounds like an absolutely incredible experience! Yeah, I was considering the xtasy line for a while! They definitely look like tgeyd ve awesome rods. Just wasn't sure if it was exactly what I was looking for, for myself. Glad it works for you! And yeah, that is true when it comes to the premium rods from what I've heard. It really just comes down to the small things that differentiate it from others in its range. Yeah, thats true. Other rods for moving baits can definitely be found for under the 300-400 mark. Ill slowly change out my gear here. Especially my awful medium/medium-heavy spinning setup. It's so unbalanced. It will be for inshore red drum/trout fishing, mainly. Then next up I'll probably change out my medium light setup with something more balanced and lighter so my baits are easier to work. Interestingly enough, that medium light has the same weight all put together as my daiwa bg/XT combo, but it feels so freaking heavy because of how unbalanced it is. It hurts my wrist very badly to use it for anything where I have to repeatedly twitch the rod tip. Yeah, I agree with them as well, but that was the main reason I got it, "buy once, cry once". I knew this setup would last me a lifetime. Plus theres the Loomis lifetime warranty where I can get a new NRX for under 200 if anything was to happen to it.

Interesting!! That's good to know! Thabk you. Do you know how shimano rates their reel line capacities?

Over the years, looking at various reels and their line capacities, I've always wondered... Why are line capacities so different from eachother even when the diameters are the same. Let's look at a random reel. The Zillion SV TW. It has a mono capacity of around 14/100 or 16/85. But it's braid capacity is rated at 30/100 and 40/80. On average, 40lb test braid is around the same diameter as 10lb mono, and 16lb test mono is around the same diameter as 65lb braid. If that is the case, why then does the braided line's capacity seem so "short" when you look at the diameters. Maybe it's the way the line behaves on the spool? Does the braid "fluff" out more on a reel?

Ordered the rod and reel separately. As far as I know (will confirm tomorrow), I have received 120 in "tackle cash" as they call it. So I can use that on the 16th when it becomes valid to cover for line, a rod cover or anything else I've been wanting that fits in the price range.

If I order some of the stuff before April 16th in tackle warehouse, ill get $60 in "tackle cash". I can put that into line, a rod cover, and the extra stuff that goes with it. And POSSIBLY I can order the reel and rod separately to get 120 in tackle cash, but I'm not exactly sure how the terms and conditions work on that. I read through the rules multiple times and it doesn't say that there's a limit

Ahh ok 😂 Although something else i kotice is that both the lines are white clear. The water here is either a bit green or really tannin stained. Should I try to find a fluoro that is a dark greenish brown to blend with the water more? 😬

Ah ok. Am I able to ask why? Does Zmale not like their names used on forums or something?

I've seen the reviews of invisX and sniper on TW. They both get about 3.5ish stars. Compared to samurai which gets 4.5. Although the bladed jig bladed jig only gets 3 stars on there, so 😆 Wait, I can't post brand names of bladed jigs here? Thata strange... I wrote out one of the most well known bladed jig names and it edits to: "bladed jig".

If i do get this setup... I MIGHT try doing a full spool of fluorocarbon. If I do, I think it'll be the daiwa samurai hidden concept. Thinking around 16-18lb test should do the trick? The only thing I worry about is not if, but when a backlash happens. I know fluorocarbon line has the tendency to be practically unusable afterwards... that would kinda suck. I honestly don't get the payoff of fluorocarbon in the long run. I understand it's more sensitive and more "invisible", but you don't get as good of casting, and the line seems fragile compared to other kinds. You don't have to baby braid or mono too much. I can dig out a backlash with braid when it happens and not have to worry much about the line being screwed up. Unless maybe I dont have a full understanding on the line.

Yes, I realize that. I've tried shaky heads too. It's not that I don't like them, I just haven't really found the right bait for it yet that I like. Minnow shaking I just honestly haven't had enough time with. At the moment it's not a technique I like much. That could change. I'm open minded when it comes to those things. Yeah, that would probablybe my next rod and reel setup. Idk if i want to put a lot of money into true bfs, though. I'll keep it at spinning setups for those. It looks really interesting, but not where I want to set big money at atm. I wouldnt mind a really nice spinning setup for finesse, though. Something for dropshots and very small Ned jigs/rigs. As I said before, dropshotting, while not my favorite technique, is still a technique I use quite a bit to catch good fish. It's just not something I turn to often. Now ned rigging seems really cool. I've had minimal time with it if I'm being honest, but it just feels like jig fishing but smaller. And I love jig fishing. Yes, i knew that when making this thread. Was surprised it didnt come up earlier if I'm being honest. I know some people use more moderate rods for jig fishing, but I also know that people use fast rods with mono for chatterbaits. Swim jigs and chatterbaits usually go on more moderate setups while jigs need the faster action for hooksets, but I was looking for options sorta more leaning on the side of swimbaits/chatterbaits while it being to also handle some jigging as well. The 873 is looking like the perfect contender. Has a bit of a more moderate bend than most jigs rods while also having enough power to drive in those hooks for jigs. At least from how I see it, it looks like a perfect sensitive rod for hopping/yo-yoing chatterbaits, swimming swimjigs, and using it for jigging as well. Unless I'm possibly not understanding something with that rod? Yeah! I might get a few of those or the exprides in the future for other techniques I like, but not on the same level as chatterbaits, jigs, swim jigs, Texas rigs, ect. I don't miss fish that BITE, i miss subtle fish bites. Although I do pick up on subtle bites with my tatula XT (spinning rod). I set hooks with that rod when I use it and the fish are nibbling on stuff. The casting rod I have now is not great. It's a very old abu garcia. I like the way it balances with my reel. And it's light. I do like that. Would be great for my topwater stuff where I'm constantly working it. But I can't feel a darn thing usually. Especially when it's on the fall. The sensitivity is very "dull" you could say. It's not sharp and the fish have to really BITE it for it to transfer down the rod. That's what I've noticed. I've felt fish take a jig in on that rod. Its noticable, but barely. Haha, very true at times 😆 I watch tactical bassinet just to see what they recommend, but not EXACTLY. Just to see in general what they do. Rather than exact baits, I look for other key stuff, flash, color, hard baits, soft baits, finesse, power. From there I look at what baits in those categories suit me. I really clung to chatterbaits for sure. Love them. I have almost a whole 3700 tray full of them. 2 in each slot

I really appreciate that sound advice. It makes total sense! It really does. And I also appreciate you looking out for where money is spent, because some people will buy this kind of stuff as soon as they have the exact change for it. I can assure you that isn't the case, though. I've been putting money aside for a bit of time for this. As for time with various baits/lures, I have tried a lot of techniques. Some I liked, some not a lot. One I do not like is a shakey head minnow. And it's not because I haven't caught anything doing it, it's just cause it's not my thing, really. I don't know. Although, I still would like time with it and still think it is useful. I don't want to knock anything off the board just because it's not something I dont like using. That goes for the rest of the things I dont like as well. Crankbaits, I like them, but they're one of the last things I turn to usually. Same with spinnerbaits, although I like them more than crankbaits. Dropshots are right in the middle. I love them and dislike them for different reasons but it's caught me some good fish! With my time on the water, I've fished a lot of things, but I absolutely love jigs, swim jigs, swim baits (big and small), topwater anything (but mostly poppers and walking baits), Texas rigs, and of course, my favorite of all time, chatterbaits. You can hop them, straight fish it, burn it, burn and pause, or get really erratic with it. Plus there's so many trailers to choose from. I love the kamikaze swimon and the spunk shad. Power fishing and hopping stuff. That's what I love. That's why I think getting a high end rod for SPECIFICALLY just jigs, swim jigs, texas rigs, and chatterbaits would be great. Because I know it's something I love doing. I'm not trying to get this rod as a "try to get myself started in this technique" if that's what you think. Ive tried it a lot on the water and it's something I really like doing. Now if there is a $200-$400 rod that you guys think would work amazingly well, I'd love to hear it! But for these techniques I really would like the most sensitive possible as they are techniques I always use and love to use, not only for bass, but for red drum as well. I know I'm missing bites and I'd like to take the guessing game out of it. And I hope you know, I wasn't saying any of this in an argumentative way. I was just stating my thoughts on it is all 🙂 Everyone's advice has been extremely helpful! If I do go more on the budget side, I'd like to stay away from St Croix then. I've heard too many bad stories about their mid to lower end rods.