Well I did some work for a friends father and he gave me a Quantum Tenacity Baitcaster for the help. I know it's not the most coveted pole and reel out there but FREE is better than any cost in my book. My question is there's a push type release switch UNDER the front of the shaft the line rolls over before the spool...what's it for? Also what's the best line to put on here for various conditions type fishing. I want something soft for good casting but tough enough to handle a good hookset or rocks or whatever. I know Gander Mtn carries alot of stuff and I am probably going after come Carp this weekend as well as my usual Largemouth spots....my point is when I go to get bait I'll get new line too. Also since it has no indications what lb. test should be on it?

Thanks, Mike

10 to 15pound test

If it's like the Quantum real I have, the little lever under the level wind is to release the side plate.

sounds right to clean it

would it be ok to put some graphite powder in there to keep it lubricated? and i'm gonna try some 12lb spiderwire mono and see how that does. My friend uses it all the time on his med. spincast and has decent luck with it so he gave me about 200 yds of it to try...

dont use any powder not even powederd gold in a reel all u need is rem oil and only a drop on each bearing DONT lube the whole inside of ur reeel,as for line i recomeend trilene big game in 10 pound test if ur new to baitcasting look up baitcasting 101 on this forum great advice

Yeah I read the baitcasting 101, and found some good vids on it as well on you tube. I have some 12 lb. Trilene XT on there it's a really bright neon green color though, I'm not sure how invisible that's gonna be but i'll try it.... As for the opiling I thought about it after I typed and decided against it already so no worries there. Looking forward to a good weekend of trying this thing out and believe me I'm not expecting to be perfect at it on my 1st day. I've gone out in the field the past few days and practiced casting it for a little bit and it doesn't seem to hard. I just wish I knew how to cast it more accurate than I am.... but i'll keep trying and practicing.

Thanks, Mike

Bingo Mike!

Practice, practice, practice and practice. When you're done practicing, practice some more. Even if you're not able to get on the water, set up some targets in the backyard and practice casting to them. (beware of the neighborhood comments like "are you catching anything" or "I thought you needed water to do that"). Accuracy will come, it just takes practice!  

Well i was out for about 6 hrs this morning and only had 3 birdnests. And they really weren't all that bad. I have come to the realization though that you can't put light tackle on this rod or you get nada for cast ability! So I added more weight and I was good. I caught 2 Carp (about 20lbs or so) and 5 baby Stipers (maybe 5lbs each) But since it's outta the Hudson River it's a strict   (i don't want possibly contaminated fish) catch and release policy. All in all i was very satisfied with the rod and reel and had a great day fishing....  

Well i was out for about 6 hrs this morning and only had 3 birdnests. And they really weren't all that bad. I have come to the realization though that you can't put light tackle on this rod or you get nada for cast ability! So I added more weight and I was good. I caught 2 Carp (about 20lbs or so) and 5 baby Stipers (maybe 5lbs each) But since it's outta the Hudson River it's a strict (i don't want possibly contaminated fish) catch and release policy. All in all i was very satisfied with the rod and reel and had a great day fishing....

Ah, I see you have discovered one tradeoffs of bc reels in general.  Generally speaking, the lighter the weight, say less than 1/4 oz, the greater the potential for difficulty in casting.

Also, not all bc reels are equal. Some are more capable of casting lighter weights than others.

It's not such a bad thing, because that's where spinning reels excel or you can get bc reels capable of tossing the lighter weights.  

Those must have been some nice catches. Congrats!

I also noticed on with reeling in the Stripers the rod was very stiff in response compared to a med. weight spincast rod... However that Carp sure gave it a good workout, and as an added side note the Trilene XT Hi-vis green works very well but is no where near invisible even in the murky Hudson River....