Just purchased a Lew's BB1 Pro from Ron for cranking among other purposes but am now looking for a reel that handles light lures/rigs with ease to compliment it. Hoping to gather thoughts between the new Curado I with the S3D design and the Tournament Pro, which has been proven as a killer lightweight lure reel. If it makes any difference, the primary application is weightless T-rigs and light Carolina rigs.

 

Thanks in advance!

Curado I hasn't been out long enough to justify... Although you should also consider a chronarch/curado 50. They handle lighter lures better.

Exactly. Anyone pushing the curado I is doing so based soley on the fact that it's a shimano reel. The curado 50e is a good option. The tp can throw lighter lures but isn't ideal just like the curado I won't be. Both their spools are made to hold a good amount of line

Tourney pro is very finicky IMO. Try to find a shimano ch or cu 50e.

Awesome. Thanks for the input, guys. Will start researching the 50E. Never owned a Shimano reel before but with all the renewed Curado buzz, I've been looking into them a bit more.

I have a curado I and many Lew's. I defend the curado I because the technology and design justify it. It is that good. 

The E series may be on the way out.   I've held a I series.   It is small.   I would get it.   Shimano always builds a superior product.   Their parts are of quality, and they are very simple mechanically.  The G was fine, it just wasn't marketed properly.   Read the Citica G reviews on BPS.  People love them.  The I will go down as an all time great Curado, as most new Curados do.  They normally just get better.  The only failure was the G and it just was a downgrade of an E.  Still a solid reel.   If you read the reviews, one person has put the freespool on the I series to be comparable to the Chronarch 100 SF, which is the all time favorite of several reel mechanics that post around the internet.   If the E series goes away, you will be able to get parts for a long time, if you even need them at all, but the I will be around for a long long time.  Another poster posted it works as good as the new Chronarch.  

This weekend I threw a keitech with a jig head that weighed 4.5 grams total on the Curado I. Accuracy was awful unless you took long deliberate sidearm swings. Even then it only went about 20ft tops. This was on 10lb test with a medium action rod rated down to 1\4. With lighter line and a BFS rod could it do better? Maybe but I don't predict by much. The spool weighs 16.4 grams so its not exactly made for finesse.

I have a curado I and many Lew's. I defend the curado I because the technology and design justify it. It is that good.

Wasn't attempting to me offensive nor imply that the curado I is a bad reel. I meant with regards to finesse stuff.

I've thrown weightless trickworms on a medium power, moderate action rod about 30 yards with my Tournament Pro. I had two of the centrifugal brakes on and the magnets set to about half or a little over. I haven't used a 50E, so I can't really comment on its performance. The 50e is made to handle lighter baits and lines, with a shallower spool and smaller overall profile. In my experience the TP will handle some pretty lightweight stuff. It isn't ideal, but it will do it pretty well. Just my .02

Jury is still out on the Curado. One thing I would consider is that the there will likely be some aftermarket spool options once the Scorpion is released in Japan. You may ultimately be able to buy a shallow spool for the Curado.

 

I don't know if the Tourney Pro "excels" at light lure applications, though it is capable. I would definitely agree that finding a 50 sized Shimano would be a good bet. Better yet, look for a used Daiwa Pixy reel, it will blow them all out of the water with the proper rod.

This weekend I threw a keitech with a jig head that weighed 4.5 grams total on the Curado I. Accuracy was awful unless you took long deliberate sidearm swings. Even then it only went about 20ft tops. This was on 10lb test with a medium action rod rated down to 1\4. With lighter line and a BFS rod could it do better? Maybe but I don't predict by much. The spool weighs 16.4 grams so its not exactly made for finesse.

4.5 grams is definitely less than 1/4 oz, it is tiny. Its slightly less than 3/16.

I don't see why either one would be able to throw what you mentioned, it's not too light. The TP can and even if the i is just as good as the e or g it'll handle them fine.

If you are looking for light lure castability I would check out the Daiwa t3-B 8:1 with hawgtech spool bearings, this is my favorite light bait casting set up. I use the 8:1 because it is basically only used for pitching...

 

Mitch

I got to play with the curado I and I'll say that with an 3/8 casting plug I could pitch wayyyy farther than any of the curados I've ever had. I don't know the ounce to gram conversion but I've got a curado 200g6 that I throw a weightless swimming fluke junior on and I can throw it farther than the lews speed spool I had with the same line. I'm not sure how the tournament pro handles but I give the nod to the curado I just because shimano makes a good product and have an excellent warranty. I've heard a couple of not so great stories about lews and there customer service

4.5 grams is definitely less than 1/4 oz, it is tiny. Its slightly less than 3/16.

Yeah I was just seeing how low it could go. It could work in a pinch for short casts.

The spool on the Curado I (has been reported on a different forum) to have a weight of 16.4 grams due evidently to its heavier brake blocks.

 

That weight is heavier than some other popular shimano reels.  See comparison in attachment.

 

I would suspect that this is not a reel for casting finesse baits.

The spool on the Curado I (has been reported on a different forum) to have a weight of 16.4 grams due evidently to its heavier brake blocks.

 

That weight is heavier than some other popular shimano reels.  See comparison in attachment.

 

I would suspect that this is not a reel for casting finesse baits.

 

Wow. That's great info. Thanks so much for that!

 

I'm wondering if because the spool is balanced better using S3D if it can compete with spools lighter in weight...hmmmmmm........

A Shimano rep (Bantam 1) has commented on spool weight for the Shimano CI.  

 

Hopefully by providing this link I'm not not going against this forums rules--go to Tackle Tour (Reels) Forum and scroll down to "Curado I Spool Weight".

 

Hats off to the response by Bantam 1

the spool is balanced better

 

I can't recall reading an out of balance spool complaint about any reel...

 

oe

The new brake system is just more fine tunable. No reel with an out of balance spool would last long in the super competitive $100> reel market.

 

A lighter spool will start up easier to make casting lighter weights easier and a heavier spool will store more energy and spin longer making it a better choice for distance casting. The rod is the biggest piece of the equation.  

If there was one thing i've learned over the last three years, it's how much impact the weight and design of a spool has on the reel's ability to cast specific weights. No wonder guys were asking about where to get an after market spool for their reels. Match the right reel design ( notice I did not say brand ) with the right rod design and casting/presenting very light lures is very attainable with baitcasting gear.