I have 7'1", med. power, mod action casting rod and I'm looking for a reel.  It was originally equipped with a Chronarch Ci4 which I've subsequently moved over to my MH Crankbait rod as it works better with a little heavier bait.

 

I was originally looking at a Aldebaran 50 but a gently used Alde BFS XG has come across my path.  Love the upgrades and the BFGs ability to toss even lighter baits but is the 8:1 too much?

 

This rod will be used primarily for small cranks, jerkbaits, and square bills.  

 

Thoughts?

The Aldebaran will be fine for those lures. For heavier lures and especially deep divers, a 5 something:1 would be more comfortable.

 

IMO 8.1:1 is far too high. Moreso than ratio's look at the Inches Per Turn.. I would be looking at mid-20s".

This is the first time I heard anyone say the ci4 didn't through light weight bait well, but that is a separate issue.

After a lot of demos, a 6.3 is what I am going to.

Just personal preference 

2 hours ago, NHBull said:

This is the first time I heard anyone say the ci4 didn't through light weight bait well, but that is a separate issue.

After a lot of demos, a 6.3 is what I am going to.

Just personal preference 

 

Depends on your idea of light.  It will be paired with a EBC71C which is rated down to 1/4 oz which is right where I plan to use it.  I had the Chronarch spooled with 8lb tatsu and didn't like the performance with baits below 3/8 oz. 

I would look at Daiwa Alphas SV which is just under $200 shipped from Digitaka. It is what I would call a mag finesse casting reel. I used mine a bunch for 1/4 oz topwater poppers and 3/8 oz jerkbaits. It outcasted my Curado 50e by a noticeable amount for baits in that weight range. I believe there is a 5:8.1 ratio that would be perfect.

For me, I usually like a reel from 6:6:1-7:1:1 gear ratio. 

I used to use a Revo Winch with 5.4:1 on everything.  I still like it for bigger cranks, but I am really taking a liking to 6.3-6.4:1 for most things like squarebills and small cranks. 

1 hour ago, kickerfish1 said:

I would look at Daiwa Alphas SV which is just under $200 shipped from Digitaka. It is what I would call a mag finesse casting reel. I used mine a bunch for 1/4 oz topwater poppers and 3/8 oz jerkbaits. It outcasted my Curado 50e by a noticeable amount for baits in that weight range. I believe there is a 5:8.1 ratio that would be perfect.

I use an alphas with the megabass deep spool from the zonda and my steez flexlight rod.  I use this for anything less than 1/2 and then i use my zillion HLC on a dobyns RM764.

Lipless cranks don't care about the speed, deep divers are a different animal, not only the resistance is huge ( it's like trying to reel in a bucket ) but also, they tend to lay on their sides when they reach high speed and then they are good for nothing since they won't run true, for those baits a 5ish:1 is the best option.

I throw my deep cranks on a dobyns 805cb foot with a 5:1 or 6:1 gear ratio (conquest or curado). I throw squarebills, jerkbaits, and lipless on a dobyns 704 cb or 705 cb with 7:1 gear ratio (Curado or Tatula).

I just stick with 5:1 for all cranks and rattletraps pretty much.  Gets the job done for me.

14 hours ago, kickerfish1 said:

I would look at Daiwa Alphas SV which is just under $200 shipped from Digitaka. It is what I would call a mag finesse casting reel. I used mine a bunch for 1/4 oz topwater poppers and 3/8 oz jerkbaits. It outcasted my Curado 50e by a noticeable amount for baits in that weight range. I believe there is a 5:8.1 ratio that would be perfect.

Thanks, the Alphas is now 230 shipped. 

Creation of this thread has now opened a big can of worms for me...LOL.

 

 

Something 22-25 inches per turn works for me.

I use the Curado 200i PG which is 5.5:1 and its perfect. I think the inches per turn is 23.

Daiwa Tatula 100HL at 6.3:1 and 26.3" per handle turn. I fish all crankbaits including squarebills and chatterbaits that weigh 3/8oz or less with this reel.