Leaderboard

The test reel for the PQ 5-Year Challenge hit its fifth service anniversary on October 26 (today), thus completing the 5 Year Challenge. The reel is still in service, most recently this morning. Background: Briefly, the 5-Year Challenge resulted from some board members expressing the opinion that the PQ reel was a “one-season” reel (it would be completely worn out after a "season"), and certainly wouldn’t stay in an angler’s arsenal for as long as 5 years. The subject reel was used to test those opinions. Posts 2 through 6 of this thread reproduce the content of the earlier reports. Below are links to the other threads in this series in the event that someone is interested in the previous commentary related to these test reports. : BPS Pro Qualifier BC Reel – 5 Year Challenge – Interim Report (12-7-2011) BPS Pro Qualifier BC Reel – 5-Year Challenge – A Speed-Bump On The Road To Paradise BPS Pro Qualifier BC Reel – 5-Year Challenge – Three Years In BPS Pro Qualifier BC Reel – 5-Year Challenge – Time To Pay The Piper! BPS Pro Qualifier BC Reel – 5-Year Challenge – 4 Years Down, 1 To Go Current Statistics: Reel placed into service: 26 Oct. 2009 Months of service as of this report: 60 Number of “catch days” (days when fish were caught with this reel): 502 Number of fish caught: 1114 Baits used for the 1114 fish caught: Lipless Cranks - 804, Misc. Hardbaits - 21, Soft Plastics - 289 Biggest fish caught: 48.6 lb grass carp Biggest bass caught: 9.5 lb LMB Number of cycles (casts & retrieves): 55,000+ (see note) Note: Number of cycles is based on catch data, not on total days/hours of use (see Post #2 or the linked 12-7-2011 thread for how the metrics were established). The reel was used many days where no fish were caught, especially during the winter months. I fish this reel nearly every day and actual number of use days probably easily exceeds 1000. Actual number of cycles could easily be in excess of 75,000. As I have mentioned in the last several reports, the passage of years of time has made it difficult to calculate the number of accrued cycles on this reel due to the significant number of days where it is fished, but no fish are caught – resulting in thousands of uncounted cycles. The biggest fish over the 5 year period - 48 pound grass carp: Biggest bass caught over the 5 year period - 9.5 pound LMB: Significant Events In the Last Year: The reel has been mostly trouble-free for the past year but certain operational aspects of the reel (clutch actuation, centrifugal braking) are being compromised due to increasing wear (see the Current Condition section below). The biggest bass caught with the reel during the past year was this 25", but emaciated, 6.28 pound LMB: 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 / cleaning (see Post #3 of this thread or the "A Speed-Bump On The Road To Paradise" thread linked above): 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. January 2013 - Repair / cleaning / upgrade (see Post #5 of this thread or the "Time To Pay The Piper" thread linked above): Repair – replaced the worm shaft, line guide pawl, and two idler gears. Upgrade – replaced the stock drag washers with Carbontex washers. October 2013 – Annual cleaning. October 2014 - Annual cleaning. Current Condition: The condition of the internal parts of the reel have been mostly the same for several years. There is wear on the clutch return pawl (from impact by the rachet) that doesn't affect function, the rear and side surfaces of the clutch thumb bar have started to wear through the plastic plating, the brake drum and brake shoes show considerable (nearly unserviceable) wear, and the grooving on the frame reported last year has increased. Externally, the reel has some minor rash on the top of the reel, very little on the sides. As I mentioned last year, the spool bearings are noisy but spin well when cleaned. If you are familiar with the whine made by Shimano Digital Control reels during a cast…that’s sorta the noise I hear when I cast this PQ – you get the audio experience of a DC reel without the high cost… Otherwise, the reel is fishable, but it’s readily apparent that you are not fishing with a new, tight reel. As I mention with every report, this reel has not been babied, and has often been rode hard and put away wet. 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. The reel has been placed on the ground hundreds of times while I measure/weigh fish, providing the opportunity for grit and debris to enter the worm shaft area and around the clutch bar - contributing to some of the wear in these areas. Handle Knob Wear: While the reel has little exterior rash, some of the markings are wearing off. The real exterior indicator of the amount of use the reel has seen are the handle knobs. These EVA knobs have been on the reel for only three years and the grooving has nearly disappeared from wear: Centrifugal Braking System Wear: This is the Achilles heel of this reel. The brass brake drum is soft, and wears easily, even when kept reasonably clean. BPS does NOT list the drum as a lubrication point - but they should. The captive brake shoes are small, wear easily, and are not available as spare parts. The only way to get replacement brake shoes is to purchase the entire spool assembly. I had already replaced the palm-side sideplate assembly in July 2012 due to brake drum wear. Now, 27 months later, the brake drum grooving is back. The brake shoes are original to the reel, but have now worn to the point where they are becoming ineffective, especially in combination with the brake drum grooving. Whereas when the reel was new, I would use two, sometimes only one, centrifugal brake, I now have to use four, sometimes 5 to achieve the same braking. Current brake drum grooving: New brake shoe: Current condition brake shoe: Frame Wear: This was first reported last year and the wear has increased since then. In the photo below, note the vertical grooves (indicated by the red arrows) cut in the frame by the “legs” on the bottom of the clutch bar - this entire area of the frame should be completely flat. The clutch bar is a plastic part but it does have some sort of plating on it. That plating, with perhaps the addition of grit and grime under the bar, have been enough to actually groove the aluminum frame. Thus, plastic trumps aluminum in this case. This condition results in the clutch bar being loose and making clutch operation somewhat dodgy at times. This condition potentially could be a source of an eventual frame crack. Summary: After 60 months of use, where are we at? Parts replacements: Parts replaced due to wear: (necessary) 1 line guide pawl, (optional) original drag washers Parts replaced due to damage caused by debris: (necessary) worm shaft, line guide pawl, (optional) idler gears Parts replaced (probably) due to my failure to maintain: palm-side sideplate assembly (to replace the brake drum) Parts ordered and installed but did not fix the problem: clutch bar and shims Lessons learned: Keep the brake drum CLEAN and appy lube to the drum to prevent premature wear. Accept that the dual-braking system (DBS), along with its advantages, has some disadvantages - added complexity and potential wear to parts that are not readily replaceable - like the brake shoes. Closing: That's it - the final report of the 5 Year Challenge. I'll leave it up to each board member to compare the usage that this reel has received, to their own fishing patterns, to determine how this reel would fare in their own service. For me? Well, the reel cost $80, caught 1114 fish, at a cost per fish of 7.1 cents. It reeled in my current LMB 9.5lb PB. It reeled in multiple grass carp in the 35-50 pound range. Value delivered for me. AND, the reel is not done working for living. There is a winter coming up and this reel will fish through the winter, as long as the braking system holds up and the frame doesn't crack. Next spring, the PQ will likely be retired to a nice warm place in my display cabinet. The near future for the test PQ... Epilogue: Five years ago, the PQ was an outstanding choice for a value, workhorse baitcasting reel. Offered in four ratios, in both right- and left-hand, eight models total. Something for everyone. However, time, and technology, keep marching on. Today, the PQ still offers value at it's price point, and this test has proven that it is capable of offering long service. BUT, there are other competitors in the playing field to challenge the PQ, and BPS is falling behind on it's bread-and-butter model. While not a competitor at factory list price, the Daiwa Tatula at the "deal" prices is a game changer and something that BPS will have a hard time competing with. It will be interesting to see what BPS develops as the successor to the current PQ. One thing for SURE, the 'ole Goose will not be running any more 5 year tests on any future model PQs!

I'm so dirty the fish disinfect their scales after I handle them.

Dude, I can loose 3 lures in 3 casts, nothing to bragg about.

The Ambassadeur squadron just added another member. To join the old-school 5000 and 1500, and the new-age Morrum ZX3600, is a "new-old" 2500CDL. This was from a special run of 100 that was released in 2012 and patterned on the original 2500CDL teal and gold model released in the late 1970's. I remember thinking 35 years ago that the 2500CDLs looked a bit guady but I guess in my old age my tastes have changed. Not an everyday use kind of finish...but sorta elegant. She might be wearing fancy pants...but everyone's gotta fish for a living. Seems to work - reels in fish...

My wife and I were also at Melvern Saturday. We didn't get anything over 3 lbs but caught a ton of fish so it was still a lot of fun. We basically fished the dam all day because my wife won't let me leave a spot if we are catching fish...even if they are only 6" long haha. We caught them on about everything we threw at them- various medium diving crankbaits, swimbaits, jetkbaits, and obviously the Ned. It's not very often we get a day in late October that is 80+ degrees and CALM. I will take that any day! Although, a little breeze would have been nice.

Lockdown!

So that tells me he missed 106 field goals in his career. My nut is safe.

Yah...stop using the rod as a pivot to tighten down a knot. Why on earth are you bending the rod at the tip when tightening down a knot...... fishing rods aren't made of adamantium. Take care of your stuff and use your head.

only disinfectant i put on is the dew from my beer mug.

Went out fishing for 7 hours on Saturday and it made up for my lack of fishing the past 2 weeks. Started at noon and averaged about 2 fish per hour until 6pm. It was a bit slow but the bites were big, we had our top 5 fish by 5pm. The bite started to pick up at 6pm, we found a school of 3-4lb fish on a 6ft rock flat and ended up with 30 of them in the last hour of fishing. It was unreal and probably the best fishing I've personally had in MN for pure size. My father-in-law broke off a 5.5lber at the boat right at the end that would have put us over the 28lb mark, but at that point it didn't even matter. All the fish were caught on 3/8oz NSCB jigs, either the New Gill Flip and Swim or Flippin Blue Knockout Jig .Here are the pics of our top 5 fish. Weights were, 5.97, 5.7, 5.5, 5.48, and 4.67

Got out yesterday; conditions were marginal with a brisk NW wind. Water clarity was still very good which always bodes well. The approach on this day was three fold, blade baits, followed by blade baits & then you guessed it, more blade baits. I got into the smallies right off (first cast) and it was a steady bite all afternoon. Never got that 5 plus this lake often gives up however this was the best numbers day I’ve had here all season; not uncommon for the fall. Ended by being a 40 plus fish day (when you throw in the dozen & a half walleye). I switched back & forth between silver & gold baits ~ silver buddies, Buckeye Jiggin Blades and the Damiki Vault were all sharing the work load. Might be the last day out this season; if so, it was a good one to go out on. A-Jay https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gDfJQjacSYE

My neighbor who has not been fishing in two years saw my pics on FB and wanted to go chase SMB. Ned Rig PB&J was the ticket again and as always my son was on them! My neighbor caught the big fish of the day as well 82 degrees in October in Kansas is crazy!! People where actually out water skiing Saturday!!

I finally got a PB worth being proud of. I've written out a fairly lengthy blurb so if you don't want to read it, there's a picture at the bottom I promise! This is my second year fishing for bass and I think I have finally clued in on what the bigger fish in my local lake will go for. The vast majority of anglers in my neck of the woods are trout or salmon guys and bass are generally frowned upon (blasphemy I know). Because of this, there really isn't anyone to learn bass fishing from. The belief that my local lake only had tiny bass was almost unanimous (to this day there are still people that are surprised to hear that it even has Largemouth), and it was only through word of mouth after getting to know other residents that fished the lake that there was one fish rumoured to have been in the six pound range that was caught the year before. Most people passed it off as just that however; a rumour. In my first year of bass fishing, I started out with casting small spoons and jigging curly tail grubs under a dock. This brought in a few fish, but the problem was that they were all in the 6-8 inch range. We ended the year with my girlfriend landing a whopping 10 incher, which we figured was a good size. This year started with more of the same, except I picked up on wacky rigging some small plastic Berkley trout worms. This worked wonders but again, most of the fish were very small with the odd 12 incher thrown in. Whenever I tried larger wacky worms or tossed larger lures like Rapalas, I would always get skunked. We even rented a rowboat to get to some new spots but all we could catch were these tiny bass, and there were lots. I spent an entire summer day chucking a topwater frog to no avail as well, which made me put it away for awhile (more on this later). About halfway through the summer I started making my own spinners, and this became a very cheap alternative to wacky rigging the Berkley worms. I then discovered a little outflow creek that would hold bass, and I eventually landed a 14.5 incher on a spinner there. Fast forward to early September. I had upped my average by catching a handful of bass between 13 and 14.5 inches, but it was never consistent and more due to dumb luck than anything. Furthermore, they were still not the monster bass that I believed the lake was harboring. One day I commented on how the lily pads in the lake were started to recede a bit, and my girlfriend said, "why don't you try the top water frog again?" I didn't think much of it, but after a few more uneventful trips I finally brought it out. On that trip I started with my home-made spinners while my girlfriend wanted to try the frog. It didn't take long for there to be a SPLASH as a small bass took a swipe at the frog and missed. A little while later, I watched a much bigger one fly out of the water with the frog in its mouth. Unfortunately we were very green at the whole frog technique and my girlfriend ended up setting the hook much too soon. Regardless I was spurred on by this and immediately went back in the days that followed to try the frog. I got a bunch of blowups but for the life of me I either couldn't hook them or I couldn't keep them hooked. That's when you wonderful people of Bass Resource came in. After consulting the knowledgeable people on this forum, I went back to try again and finally landed a chunky 16 incher, which became my new PB. This was already much bigger than anything my circle of newly recruited bass anglers had caught out of this lake, but I couldn't help but feel there was something more that I had to experience. In the weeks that followed, I consistently caught fish in the 13-16 inch range and had at least a couple of blow ups every trip, with the majority of the action occurring right where the outflow creek meets the lake. I was pretty content with this new change of pace from the 6 inchers but I figured that with this colder weather it would push the bigger bass out to deeper water and I would have to wait until next year to catch my local lake monster. Or so I thought. ACTUAL REPORT HERE: The evening started out as any other frog fishing evening. Got to the lake around 3pm for a couple of hours of frogging before it got dark. The first couple of hours went by without a sniff, with the exception of a fish startling me to death when my frog fell at my feet and was suddenly met by a blow up. Alas, I did not see nor hook that one. After moving along the lake, I came back to my old haunt that had been so good to me over the past month. On the first cast upon my return, a big blow up sank my frog about halfway through my retrieve. Turned out to be a good decision to revisit my haunt as this fish ended up shattering my previous 16 inch PB, coming out to 21 inches in length. Did not get a girth measurement but seemed decently chunky, so I would guess a solid 5lb fish? You can judge for yourself: I was absolutely elated and was shaking so badly while releasing this fish. I was so excited that I forgot to check my braided line and on the very next cast, another one that looked roughly the same size demolished the frog within a few seconds of hitting the water. I went to give it a good hard hook set when SNAP! My line broke. Serves me right for using old/used braid. luckily for me, I had a spare setup so I immediately put that one together and proceeded to land another six bass in the span of about 45 minutes. The rest were in the 13-15 inch range so they weren't that big, but it was still crazy fun having so many of them explode on the frog. At one point it was 5 casts and 5 blow ups. Best frog fishing trip of my career so far and a fish that I will remember for a long time. I grew up with salmon and trout and I normally head out for salmon during the fall months, but I've been enjoying the topwater bite so much that I am opting for a bass trip tomorrow instead. Consider me addicted!

i would stick to what has been working from the bank and just expand it to all the new water you have. dont be discouraged bybeing skunked. it happens to the best. save the offshore game for later. when you do decide to tackle it,dont forget a few marker buoys http://www.basspro.com/Tournament-Buoy/product/1595/ not sure if was covered in your safety course or not but the trim plays a big part in how your boat runs and handles. start with your trim low to get on plain then as you get up trim out. when you get to high with the trim it will porpoise or bounce up and down. trim down a little till it stops and you have found your sweet spot.

The part about the FishID color is incorrect. The Blue fish are what the 83 kHz sonar pulse is seeing and there are three sizes of those. The Gold fish are what the 200 kHz sonar pulse is seeing and there are three sizes of those. Blue fish will be farther from the boat and gold fish will be closer to the boat.

I use a 5.0:1 for slow rolling spinner bait

Big and/or deep diving crankbaits.

I used to feel the same way but I have since changed my tune. Now I hope for windy conditions (within reason of course) Flat calm is often though sledding. I hope you can keep at it and find out what works for you on your home waters because believe me when I tell you, once you learn which techniques & baits to present in these conditions, you'll be glad you did. Good Luck A-Jay

Timely question as I am rigging up for a charity tournament this weekend. This is my plan, but of course, always subject to change! Starting line-up: Cavitron Chatterbait/ Rage Tail Structure Bug trailer Megabass Ito Vision110 Later: Rage Bug (Jika rig) Norman Fat Boy LC RC 2.5 Rage Toad GYCB Kreature Sworming Hornet/ LFT Live Majic Shad Double Fluke Rig ( YUM Houdini Shad)) Panic Box: Baby Rage Craw GYCB Senko & Fat Ika

Fished Saturday with Jake and my neighbor John, who had not been fishing in two years. Caught a bunch of dinks to start the trip, I switched to a heavier jig head 3/8 and a 1/4 oz to see if I could get the ned down pass the dinks and on to some bigger fish. The change up worked my neighbor John hooked up a football and Jake and I caught a steady mix of 2's, most on the left side of the dam PB&J Zmans. Sun tan in late October in KC gotta love it!! It was nice to see a few folks out enjoying the weather as well!!

Yesterday I was out on a lake I haven't fished in while and was dragging a blade bait deep. It was an overcast, wet & kind of nasty day with only a few bass to show for my efforts. I had gotten snagged a few times and my plug knocker was getting more use than the net, never a good sign. However, on this one particular retrieval attempt, besides getting my bait back, I also got a surprise. A-Jay https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=icYqGaEqmDY&feature=youtu.be

If the first bait I pick up is working well there may be no cycling through other baits.

I use the force.

I got the bass pro one that looks like a fish with the chains. I attached it to a 25 foot retractable dog leash. It works like a charm. I pull out the line and lock it then retrieve the lure and retract the leash. It does not get tangled and is easy to deploy and store. I hope this helps.

The most dirtiest man in the world. I don't drink beer, but when I do I prefer Dos Eques.

HOW OLD GUYS PICK UP WOMEN I am getting on in years and not the best looking guy anymore. Some would even say I'm a little frayed around the edges.... But, I have a nice car, a little money, and I spend most of my time casually traveling from place to place and enjoying life. I met a nice looking girl in a park the other evening. There was an instant spark between us. All of a sudden, she did this cute little dance, then immediately dropped to her knees and lay on the grass at my feet. As we lay there making love, I thought ....... "Wow, these taser guns are really worth the money!!"

Two spinnerbaits, a diving crankbait, and a Texas-rigged craw....maybe I'll just fish soft plastics for a while since they are cheap haha.

Yeah one lost fish aint proof of anything really. Thanks catch.

Steelers and super bowl? nah......but i am ticked that in both of my leagues i had Big Ben on my bench and started Rogers and Brees instead. I kind of figured tonight's game was gonna be a shootout.

I have both. The type R is a sweet reel and the Zillion is just a pure workhorse. The type r feels a lot smoother, but as far as handling those weights, the regular zillion will do a great job pitching that!

iabass8, two of my Zillions are used for moving baits; one for deep cranks, and one for frogs/buzzbaits. The other two get used for plastics and jigs; 3/8oz and up. They pitch very well with 3/8oz and heavier weights. Again, I can't compare the Zillion spool to the 1016. But, I will say this; I've never felt the need to upgrade the spool in any of the Zillions. They are great casters as is.

8 combos and 1 spare reel? Rookie.

Flippin' The Bird and Moreau Baits Black Magic are two that I know of.

I have 6 Cumaras, 2 first gen 4 As, and have never broken one. I think your issue is user error.

Pulling the line down close to the rod bends that tip right over. There's nothing inherently wrong with the rod model.

Thanks for the reminder. Well tuesday should be nice in the 70s... While I'm at work.

If fish funk was going to hurt me, I would have been dead a long time ago.

You must have a lot of tension on the rod when you're tying your knot, I don't understand how it snaps when your synching a knot apposed to setting the hook.

Welcome aboard!

Invest in LC 115 Pointers and Megabass Vision 110 slow sinking jerk baits in shad colors.Tom

it has to eat somethin. Try catchin a average size bass and rigging it like youd rig a live blue gill or shad

Pond= enclosed body of water. No in flowing or out flowing water. Only rain to keep it filled. Lakes= in flowing water like a stream or river provides the body or main source of Lake water.most of them are dammed up to create the lake. Some lakes have an in flowing and or out flowing underground springs. These are not facts just opinions that I feel explains the lakes I see and ponds.

I'll send you a map when I get home today.

Supertune gives you the potential for more beuutiful and complicated backlashes. WORKS OF ART

Well its definitely cold in the northeast though the weather is warmin this weekend. I like fishin early but its also coldest early so after I get my fill with a couple good size bass I'm outa the cold early and into some shelter

Oh yes, it´s getting cold. Down here it´s barely 85°.

You need to throw the blade!

I have that exact combo. The 721 is a blast.

My dog. He's a pain in the ass and is very good at telling me where the fish were, but he makes me laugh and he's more intense about watching the line than I am!

Silver & black, gold & black, silver & blue, firetiger, with those 4 you ahve everything covered, of course The BaitMonkey will tell you it ain´t enough and make you purchase a lot of different colors. BTW, many moons ago when Heddon manufactured the Sonic/Super Sonic series they had this really bright yellow that for whatever reason was a very good color to have.