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The test reel for the PQ 5-Year Challenge hit its third service anniversary on October 26 (today). The bite is dropping off a bit here on the plateau but the reel did manage to bring in one 14" bass today to celebrate the anniversary. Background: This previous thread detailed the background of the PQ 5-Year Challenge: http://www.bassresou...interim-report/ Briefly, the challenge resulted from some board members expressing the opinion that the PQ reel was a “one-season” reel, and certainly wouldn’t stay in an angler’s arsenal for as long as 5 years. The subject reel is being used to test those opinions. Current Statistics (based on documented catch data and assumptions as discussed in the earlier thread): Reel placed into service: 26 Oct. 2009 Months of service as of this report: 36 Number of “catch days” (days when fish were caught with this reel): 294 Number of fish caught: 630 Biggest fish caught: 48.6 lb grass carp Biggest bass caught: 9.5 lb LMB Number of cycles (casts & retrieves): 31,000+ (see note) Note: Number of cycles is based on catch data, not on total days/hours of use. The reel was used many days where no fish were caught, especially during the winter months. Actual number of use days probably easily exceeds 400. Actual number of cycles could easily be in excess of 40,000-45,000. Significant Events Since the Last Report: The last report on this reel was on July 5, 2012, to report a repair to the centrifugal braking system - see this thread: http://www.bassresou...ad-to-paradise/ Since the last report, the reel has brought in another 117 fish - the most noteworthy being my new PB LMB of 9.54lbs. Another grass carp was foul hooked and landed - this one was 45 pounds. Since this reel is on my primary lipless crank rod, it will be seeing quite a bit of use through the late fall and winter - as long as I have soft water. Since a lot of fishing is done in winter...but not very much catching, there will again be quite a few "undocumented" cycles that will be accrued by this reel over the next few months... The 9.54lb LMB: The 45lb grass carp: Previous Maintenance/Repairs: December 2010 – Annual cleaning. December 2011 – Annual cleaning. Replacement of line guide pawl at about 26 months of use. Interesting factoid – the pawl had probably made at least 320,000 passes across the worm shaft at the time of replacement. July 2012 – Repairs: Repair 1 - debris jammed the line guide pawl causing the pawl to create a burr on the worm shaft. Filed off the burr and thoroughly cleaned the reel. Repair 2 – centrifugal brake wear – replaced the palm-side sideplate assembly as reported in the July 5th thread linked above. Current Condition: The condition of the internal parts of the reel was reported in the July 5th thread. Externally, the reel has some minor rash on the top of the reel. Since the side-plate assembly on the palm-side of the reel was replaced in July, the cosmetics in that area appear nearly new. The spool bearings are noisier than when new but are still serviceable. The reel continues to feel a bit “loose” as compared to a new PQ but this is a subjective perception and I can’t attribute it to any particular causal factor other than "high-mileage." As I mention with every report, this reel has not been babied, and has often been rode hard and put away wet. Indeed, in winter, the reel is frequently rode hard and put away frozen, with ice still in the line guide when taking the rod out of the trunk of the car! I still believe that much of the centrifugal brake wear that I reported back in July may have been a result of cold-weather service (air temps down to below freezing) - causing some of the grit and congealed oil film on the brake drum to become particularly abrasive - accelerating wear on the brass drum. The only operational issue of note at present is that the anti-reverse bearing slips a bit from time-to-time: I'm hoping that will be resolved when the reel is cleaned/serviced over the winter...and not that the AR bearing is wearing out. Added Maintenance: BPS does not show the inside of the brake drum as a lubrication point; I believe that this is a BIG mistake. I now try to remember to clean and lube the brake drum whenever I remove the side plate. The wear to the brass brake drum, and the captive brake shoes in the spool, are my only areas of concern on this reel and I believe are the weak link in the overall durability of the reel. Closing: This reel continues to provide excellent service for a reel at its price point. I own six PQs, some bought new on sale, some bought used. My average cost per reel is $64. I have already, in my opinion, received more than that in value/use and it’s all bonus here on out. In regards to the long-term durability of a PQ, my use data could be compared to your fishing activity. I have used the reel somewhere between 300 and 400 days and reeled in 630 fish. For some anglers, that might be many years of use - for other anglers, that might be only one "season." And, there is still lots of life left in the reel. More to come – 5 years is a long time… P.S.: So, people keep telling me that the PQ is a "one-season wonder" - it will just fall into pieces after the first season, its parts will tremble and disassemble when confronted by a whopper, it's drag washers will melt when pulled by a smelt... I think not...

For the price I would just go use it. The chances of the rod breaking or losing a fish due to the guides are slim to none.

The standard formula for rod building is one guide for each foot plus one not counting the tip. Most builders would count a 6-6 as a 7 footer and start with 8 guides. Static testing tells us where to move, add or subtract guides for best performance. The end result may be more or fewer guides. Line touching the blank is no problem but falling below puts undue stress on the blank. It's hard to say without seeing the test just how bad it is. If the line goes just below in the deepest bend you may likely never encounter that fishing. For $30 if you liked the feel I'd say just fish it and see what happens. A lost fish isn't the end of the world unless you fish for a living in which case we wouldn't even be having this discussion.

Excuse me sir, have you been drinking? LOL

unbelievable as always.

If you like the rod (weight, balance, action, power, price) I wouldn't worry about the number of guides. Take the Falcon Bucoo, it only has 7 guides plus tip, I haven't heard a lot about breakage from them. Most "older" rods did have as many guides and we still caught fish.

Cabela's will likely pay for the shipping costs, and your out nothing, give them a call... Edit: I just looked the rod up, and it's only $29.00 hardly worth the effort.

Whoever you are, if you are going to try to impersonate LMG, you better know, he only promotes Shimano. Heads up LMG, somebody is wearing a disguise. Hootie

If your adding a 2nd 3rd etc reel to your collection and have one already that is working, don't scrimp on price. Price does reflect quality. Bass Pro has the PQ for 100 and under that is about the less expensive reel that I would suggest owning. The new Revo S is bar far my favorite of all my BC's and like LMG said its about the least expensive reel they make that I would consider owning now.

I wouldnt go any lower than the Revo S. I know its out of your range, but they are the best inexpensive one they have worth buying IMO.

Retired, I have a wonderful wife who has had one neck surgery to get ready for her first back surgery and then a total of 7 back surgeries and two hip surgeries during the past 8 years. Our nureosurgeon is wonderful. He is a Johns Hopkins grad and he is up to date on all of the newest back surgery techniques. He told us that once you start replacing back discs the spine will start to "collapse" and you will find yourself needing to replace other sections of your back as they get damaged by the weight of the corrected areas above them. He is correct. He first had to correct a neck problem or my wife may have been paralyzed during her first back surgery. We were surprised to find out that she had a neck disc problem but once it was corrected she got back her hand strength and could go forward with the back surgery. As we repaired different levels of her spine the level below the repaired one would fail. A total of 7 (if not 8 but who is counting?) surgeries has corrected the problem and so far so good. However, we are very watchful of the remaining discs to make sure they do not fail. She now has two rods in her back and the last section towards the bottom of her spine is being watched, carefully. During her April 14th emergency hip surgery the surgery team ruptured a disc so she had to have it corrected in early May. The back doctor removed the particles, cleaned up the nerve, and she is doing great with back for now. As for the doctors, the surgeon who replaced her hip is a great guy but he had no idea why her hip was still in pain after six weeks. He just bailed on us. Our back doctor gave us the name of a hip specialist in the same practice as the emergency ortho doctor and the new guy replaced her hip on October 18th. I do not want to go into details on how we were treated by the ortho practice when I had to admit my wife via the Emergency Room into the hospital on October 13 for pain but in a nutshell the new hip doctor did not see her or was he concerned about her until I walked into his treatment area (another couple were leaving the area and the door was open so I walked in) on October 16th to give him a note that my wife was in the hospital in lots of pain and that if he wanted to mark her left hip he would have to come to the hospital across the street from his office. He had told us to come to his office the day of the scheduled surgery so he could mark the location of where he was going to cut. This is an SOP for surgeons today so they don't operate on the wrong area of the body. Overall I give the doctor a good report on the surgery. I fail his office on their practices especially in not sending anyone over to see one of their patients scheduled for a hip replacement in five days until I barged into their private area at their office and gave his nurse assistant the note. When I used to fly Cessnas and Pipers the instructors told me that the most dangerous pilots were doctors as the doctors did not follow preflight instructions as they thought they were God. I now understand what the flight instructors were talking about. The two ortho docs were very unusual: one just shrugged his shoulders and walked away leaving us to fend for ourselves and the other was not interested in moving up the surgery date or visiting his paitent in the hospital. After her hip replacement the surgeon told me that her hip was inflammed and infected from the first surgery where she had three long pins inserted into her hip and that a tendon was pushing on a nerve causing lots of pain which was from the first emergency operation. He said he corrected both problems. I hope you have a very good back surgeon and that you will no longer have any problems. Back pain is no fun and the recovery time is long. Just be aware that once you start messing with your back the problems move up and down your spine. All the best for you and your family regarding your situation.

Try a crankbait. My last 10 or so fish have all been on cranks. Maybe try and find one thats shad colored. I haven't had much luck with worms lately

There is no better investment than in your health!

Good report Goose. I work with data and can appreciate the work that goes into gathering it. It's kinda too bad though that so much work is necessary to prove what should be a self evident point. Some folks will be impossible to sway from their pre-conceived notions but just as many look forward to your reports. Thanks & good luck.

After 10-12 years with a couple of those rods and over 15 for one, my answer is nope, they are not bent or deformed in any discernable way. They are beautiful rods and I want to display them, I don't have any ceilings high enough to display 9'+ rods vertically. All these rods fish like the day I bought or built them. Ronnie

the 200e has no issues throwing 1/4oz baits on 12lb fluoro. The 50 would still be a better option.

Glad you got your reel fixed, enjoy.

I am a kid when goofing around with my kids, yet, at the same time, I am very aware that they watch my every move and look to me as an example of how they should conduct themselves, how they should treat other people. So, I can be both childlike and yet grown up at nearly the same time.

I've given up on C21 for a variety if reasons. Initially I was very impressed with the qualities. After a period of time, however, it fell off my list quite quickly. The memory jumps dramatically after you use the Lu e for a week or so. It necessitates a change of line nearly weekly if you fish much. The fact that it picks up water is something I don't like either. It's almost as though the line swells with use, and the stretch is terrible. I was fishing it for jerkbaits when the Lu e first hit shelves this year, and it's very good for that purpose. For most other techniques though, it lacks quite a lot. The abrasion resistance is very poor in warm water, for some reason it seems like the line gets much, much softer it warm weather. Cheap line, you get what you pay for in this instance. Which is a bit of a bummer, because initially I was very excited about the opportunities it was going to present for a multi-purpose line.

You're doing better than the best fisherman in the state: http://www.nybass.com/showthread.php?49691-The-NYBass-2012-Big-Bass-Board

If I lived closer I would haha. I've been looking also. I feel your pain man, fishing alone starts to suck after a while..

Same here, I'm in South Florida. I keep all of my saltwater lures and gear plus a few bass baits soft and hard in the trunk of my car. My rods and everything else, are stored in my garage, gets hot there too, never a problem or anything melting.

Do not get caught up in the BC vs Spinning gear wars.... I use both because I like both, not because I need both. I, and anyone else could use spinning gear only, and catch as many fish in any type of cover or situation, and never pick up a BC setup again. I've pulled in 40" plus striper's from the Cape Cod Canal on mostly spinning gear without any issue, as have hundreds of others. There is ABSOLUTELY no need for BC gear other than you enjoy using it.

Women

If you do a forum search on lefty reels, you can read about this topic for a long time. It usually turns into an argument about which is best and gets locked by a moderator. You just have to do which ever works best for you. There is no concensus on this. I cast and retrieve with my right hand and always will. In 45+ years I have never missed a fish by changing hands during the cast. Your milage may vary. Ronnie

Im looking for a weedless jig mold for "mini jigs" I think the hook sizes are 2 or 3 the head looks like a flipping jig but the sizes are 5/16 1/2 9/16