I recently sent back a lews custom (The white one) and as I'm waiting for my replacement  I was thinking if I should go with the curado k?

 

I would be using it on a flipping and pitching rod so the small compact frame of the lews is what drew me in.

 

I already know I like the curado k and I don't want to go with the curado 70 for a couple reasons 1 the line capacity limits me to just a pitching reel so i couldnt switch reels around if i wanted and I wouldn't use it for lighter lures like some do I just use my spinning gear. 2 with the new curado k out it's only a matter of time they redo the 70 and I hate getting something just to have the newer model come out right after or they go on clearance to make room for the new model while I paid full price.

 

My only concern is the finer teeth on the new curados would that cause an issue pinching on a fish in heavy cover over time?

The 70 still holds plenty of line for casting pretty much anything, except the biggest of baits. You're not going to be casting more than 50 yards very often, and it holds a lot more. That said, the finer teeth on the K actually make it better for longevity, in my opinion. The gears mesh together more smoothly than a typical gear, so there's less room for slop. They'll stay connected, throughout the retrieve. Only thing I hate about the K is the ignorant placement of the external adjustment dial, but you won't really have to worry about messing with that if you're just pitching most of the time. 

6 minutes ago, Tywithay said:

The 70 still holds plenty of line for casting pretty much anything, except the biggest of baits. You're not going to be casting more than 50 yards very often, and it holds a lot more. That said, the finer teeth on the K actually make it better for longevity, in my opinion. The gears mesh together more smoothly than a typical gear, so there's less room for slop. They'll stay connected, throughout the retrieve. Only thing I hate about the K is the ignorant placement of the external adjustment dial, but you won't really have to worry about messing with that if you're just pitching most of the time. 

I think it depends if you use 10 or 12lb line or 14lb to be honest. If you use 14+, I too would skip the 70 for the same reason.Of course for flipping and pitching, it will still work.

18 minutes ago, Boomstick said:

I think it depends if you use 10 or 12lb line or 14lb to be honest. If you use 14+, I too would skip the 70 for the same reason.Of course for flipping and pitching, it will still work.

I use 50-65 lb braid on all my baitcasters

I think the gears are wider so it wouldn’t matter much, I love my Curado K, I can cast around 200 feet.

I have 15lb Invizx on both of my Curado 70XG reels on 7' MH rods and fish a wide variety of plastics on them and I sure do not feel restricted on how far I can cast the baits if I want to.  You don't want plastics a mile away anyway unless it is a swim bait and they handle plastic swim baits very well.

6 hours ago, MDbassin said:

I use 50-65 lb braid on all my baitcasters

The 70 should be adequate with 50lb braid. With 65, it would be a little short of line if you ever cast.

 

That said, I wouldn't worry about a Shimano reel not holding up, they have a great track record.

The k series will work just fine for flipping. All of my 200 sized shimanos have. 

Will the micro mod gearing will wear over time?.... Who knows. I seriously doubt it will be a prob. I've ordered gear sets for many of the reels I've liked the most, and except for 1 worm gear, I've never replaced a gear set out of necessity. Even if I ever needed to, it would take less than two minutes to do. 

I think the bearing supported pinion helps with durability, by putting less strain on the gears.