Hi Guys,

I'm wondering the point of the four-washer drag stack on bass baitcasting reels.

The two obvious things appear to be smooth operation and heat dissipation.

With the advent of carbon drag washers, I can get the same level of smoothness from an old two-washer drag stack as on any of my four-stack models.

Heat dissipation just doesn't seem to be an issue with bass.  I can't see that being a valid reason unless you hook into a long-running fish.  Still, it would have to peel an awful lot of drag to build up much heat.

Thoughts?

Regards,

Josh

You answered your own question.It's all about smoothness for bass. I know all my multi stacked reels are smoother. 

The new trend in old Penn saltwater reels, is to take out the old thick washers and add more thin washers. It's all about more surface area.