The Rooster

There are two Mitchells in that price range. The 300Xe and the 300XGe. The XGe is nicer, it has 10 bearings, a carbon matrix drag, and an aluminum spare spool while the Xe has a graphite spare spool and only 8 bearings and according to bass pro shops it's just a "multi-disk drag stack" which I'd think means it's not carbon matrix. Just a guess but I'd say the extra two bearings are on the paddle grip in the XGe, which should make it feel a little slicker overall, too. I persoally like the 308 size the best, it's more inline with what I think of as a spinning reel line capacity for bass fishing. The XGe retails for $59.99. The Xe retails for $44.99, but I have seen them for $39.99 at Walmart.

I never let the weight or lures touch the guides from reeling them to the tip of the rod. I'd say the tungsten could easily crack the insert if it hits it too hard. It could come from other things though as well.

When I disassemble a reel I lay the parts out in rows in the order I removed them from. I make several rows, each with certain parts that pertain to each other. Like the nut cap, screw, handle, washer, drag star. Then another row for the main drive gearing. Say, the drag stack, main gear, pinion gear, drive shaft, bearings, whatever it may be, all in a row in the same basic order they are on the reel. I lay screws in a similar position and order to how they would fit on the reel too, pointing the same directions, too, so it's not just a pile of screws. I've never had to worry about what order parts went in on the reassembly doing it this way. No pictures necessary either.

If you know where it might have landed and haven't ran the vacuum yet, get a magnet and see if it will pick it up. I read somewhere to take these out while working with your hands inside a plastic bag, white in color so it's easy to see, and if it flies on you it won't go far that way. It's either in the bag or it flies out and hits you in the eye. Either way, you know where it is. Wear safety glasses.

I will. I haven't bought any yet, but I'll try to grab a sack of 'em and see how they work. I've been meaning to for a long time. I don't fish Carolina much though so I just never did. When I did, I just did it the lazy way and crimped a small split shot under the slip sinker.

OMG, that's so simple I never would have thought of it. Thanks. Seriously...

I watched the video put up by one of the mods here on the Carolina Keeper. I've seen this at my local tackle store too and thought it was a good idea. Until now though I've been lazy and used a small split shot to crimp on the line and keep the slip sinker up away from the bait on my Carolina rigs. This always worked before, but I've always fished them on mono line too. The other day I was using fluoro and tried this, made one cast, and the split shot and slip sinker ended up about an inch away from the hook after the cast (it slid nearly 3 feet down the line). I just wonder how these Carolina Keepers would do instead?? by design, it looks like the same thing could happen with them, maybe even moreso since the split shot has small teeth that grab the line while the keepers have nothing at all but pressure. Or, maybe it's just the fluoro line only. It's treated with KVD spray, which makes it feel slick also.

If you like the Daiwa Exceler then I'd also look at the Cabela's Tournament ZX. Sometimes they are on sale for $50 also.

I read the title of "Spinning Reel Features - What's Most Important" and was about to type that is is necessary for it to say Shimano Symetre on the side. And the 2500 is the size I have, but I've had no problems. But for spinning reels, the most important features are that it is strong overall, and lightweight for comfort, and that it balances on the rod you put it on. There will be little to no casting differences between one vs. another, with the possible exception being the Shimano's due to the spool lip design. Most of the rest have a similar design. The only other difference would be how they wrap line on the spools because that effects the next cast also, and most of them do that the same way as well. I'd say the rod's lineguide size and action/power effect it as much as anything does, so basically it's also about the match between rod and reel together on how well they cast. Otherwise, when I buy a reel now I look for an aluminum frame or something just as strong (not graphite), brass or duralumin gearing, but I know a lot of them have zinc gears instead, and I insist on bearings being on both sides of the main drive gear support. As an example, (and I know you said no Shimanos, so it's just an example) the Sahara does not have this but the reels above and below it, the Sedona and Symetre, both do. I only do this because I don't want wear setting in after a while from nylon bushings letting it get sloppy. That main gear needs to stay aligned with the pinion, and I know that a solid metal supporting part will help keep it there. A high quality bearing is necessary here too. If I feel the handle wobble in the frame then I know it has too much slop, bearing or bushing, either one. This means I have to check out the reel schematics on every one I buy in advance, but it's one of those things I do, and if they're not available then I just pass on it.

Pinnacle has been making reels for other companies for many years and made a few good ones in doing so. It's only recently that they began putting their own name on the really good ones too. On the rod review, I'd be interested in knowing how each one feels during a fish fight. If it feels stressed, strong, or what?? Also, when casting, which one handles what weight of baits the best?? They might be rated the same in lure weight but sometimes one rod will perform better with weights in the upper end of its range while the other may do better with weights on the lower end.

The medium rod feels noticeably like a moderate fast action. The medium/heavy, it's harder to tell. It's not as "whippy" as the medium is, but it's not as stiff feeling as my Shimano Compre MH/F rod is either so I think it's slightly below fast action in my estimate. I'm not sure if it being 7' vs. my Compre being only 6'6" would make any difference in how one feels over the other. I'd love it if this rod would work for jigs, and I've read where some use it for that. I'm looking for a jigging rod to be fairly stiff though, and might end up using this rod for crankbaits instead, being that it feels a little less stiff than I actually wanted for jigs. I haven't been back to the shop in a few days. I'll ask about a discount once I go again. I sort of wanted to wait until he got the new Shimano stuff in to see what they're like. I can get the newer Clarus in IM8 blank (just like my current Compre rods) for a bit less than this Fenwick, even if he came down $30 on the Fenwick. I honestly really like the Fenwick, but I don't think it's worth anymore than about $80, maybe $90. A few days ago though, I liked it well enough I thought about paying whatever it took to get it. But I let my baitmonkey cool off a little since then and some sense kicked in.

Smokin'

I say wait until the new Shimanos hit the racks here soon. The Clarus is under $100 and should be fantastic. The Convergence should be nice too. Both rods are on either an IM7 or IM8 blank, made very well, and will have split grip foam handles too. Check out ***.com to see them.

What model did you get?? You got rod and all from them, or just the reel?? There are several on here that have purchased the Lew's reels in various models. The most popular from reading posts (as far as I can tell) has been the Tournament Pro with the carbon handle.

This is what worries me and I only want THAT rod, not any replacement that's not the same later. I like it well enough that if I thought it would last I'd buy it, even at it's pricepoint. Then last night the thought came to me that I could spend about $90 on the new Clarus (just the old IM8 Compre blank with the new split grip and new name, I think) and put the money saved into about a dozen jigs to go with it. So, I'll wait and see what the new Shimanos are like before I make up my mind.

I agree the ACS is agressive and sharp looking while the ECS is sort of plain. But it's like a smooth latte in my opinion, while you can have all the exotic flavors you want, nothing beats plain ole vanilla. The ECS is so comfortable to me while the ACS just feels ok only.

My buddy called me up and said he just paid $5 for a used fishing rod at the flea market. Asked me if I'd ever heard of a "Shimano Compre". I told him that's what I use and the retail price of it was around $100 originally. I asked him if anything was wrong with it. He said no, but then he noticed one line guide had a insert missing. I told him they are lifetime warrantied and to check at the local shop cause I know they had one left, I just looked at it yesterday. Told him to be expecting about $20 to pay for return shipping on the old one. He called me later and said he made the deal and now has a Shimano Compre 6'6" MH/XF rod in his arsenal. He's just getting into fishing so I told him to use it for jigs and spinnerbaits. For the grand total of $25 bucks he got that rod brand new. Needless to say, I'm going to the flea market this weekend.

I like the feel of the old HMG so much I'm trying to convince myself that I need it. It's like the baitmonkey is sort of asleep and I'm trying to wake him up. I did a search here in the forum and found an old review that Micro did on his HMG's and he said he uses that rod for plastics (I was thinking cranking the way it felt, it's not overly stiff), the MH that is. The M was for other things, and now I'm actually thinking I'd like to have one of each. If he'd do $70 on them I'd get both. I doubt they'll sell otherwise, but I could be wrong. They haven't up until now. Around here Shimano and Loomis is pushed hard. Other brands fall by the wayside a lot. Abu's are starting to build up in the stores I noticed too. White and gray rods everywhere.

I got to handle an Avid today. That rod is in a whole other world from the Premier!! I was about ready to pull the trigger on one, and then I saw the price. Not saying it's not worth it, it probably is, but it's out of my range. I wouldn't use it enough for me to pay that much on just a spinning rod for shakyheading. But man, did it feel "just right" in hand. I loved that grip the way it was shaped, the location of the hookkeeper, quality of the guides and blank, everything about the rod felt perfect. Maybe after I pay off the mortgage, pay off the car, save up some money, get a new wife.......nah, that's too much work. Besides, my wife doesn't mind if I get fishing gear, even stuff of that price. I, however, always end up thinking that for the price of just the rod, I could have had......

well, that older one is actually marked about $20 higher than what the newer ones are now. He doesn't have the newer ones though. And I really really really like that older one. BUT, I'd love to get it at a deal too so I may as well ask how low he could go on it. Trouble is, I wouldn't mind paying the sticker price. We're only talking about $20 difference. I just wondered if it's a real posibility that it might not last though due to some rough handling in the past I don't know about. I wouldn't like the newer version of it I don't think. So if I got it and something happened to it then I'd just be out the money. I'd have to get it replaced and then sell the new one then I think.

Do any of you have a problem with buying a rod that's been in a tackle shop for a while?? I guess some of you saw the post I made about the older Fenwick HMG rod. It's not the current series. It's been in the shop long enough there is some dust build up on the guides. It doesn't look like it has any damage, but you know how it goes, after it's been sitting around for a while you never know who's knocked or banged it around, or if the blank has some invisible damage that won't show until I set a hook hard and then SNAP! Visibly the rod looks fine, and the guides are all slick, no damage or chips, and it does have a lifetime warranty. I'm only interested in it because of how the rod feels, and not really the newer versions (haven't seen any of those but I don't care for the handle or reel seat on them based on pictures). The newer version is what I would get if I had to have it replaced for some reason though. So, would any of this worry you if you were looking at a rod you really liked that had been sitting around for awhile?? The warranty doesn't mean all that much to me because I just want THAT rod.

I'm sure it would be costly for them to set up a lot of different configurations of reel seats and handle styles for the same blank, but I'd like to see something like that too. Split grip or full, foregrip or not. I guess that's why we have custom rod makers. Everybody likes something different.

I'm ruling out the ACS. I went today again to look at them. Held the Smoke rod in hand and while it's not uncomfortable, it doesn't feel right and I don't think I should have to just get used to something in order to use it. It should feel right as soon as I pick it up. ECS all the way. Jury is still out on the split reel seats. I'm waiting on the new Shimano rods to come out before making any decisions.

Ok, I went back today to look at it further. It's an HMG, model GT70MH, rated 3/8 to 1 1/4 oz. lure weight, 10 to 25 pound line. They had a GT70M also, which is the medium version. Rated at 1/4 to 1 oz. and 8 - 20 pound line. I directly compared it to a Shimano Crucial and a Compre. The Crucial is rated about the same as far as I can tell. The Crucial was a MH with a fast tip. It felt stiffer than the HMG did. Then the Compre was a MH with an XF tip. It was really stiff compared to the HMG. It's like the tip of the HMG is in the MF range, which is what I first thought when I saw it without comparing it to anything at that time. The Compre was only a 6'6" though, so that might make a difference, I don't know, but it's all they had. Their Shimano stuff is really low instock right now, waiting on the new stuff to come. Also, last night I looked up an old review of the HMG that Tackletour did a few years ago. They reviewed the GT66M, which I would guess is just a 6'6" version of the medium rod I'm looking at. It had different line guides but should be the same blank type. Their take on it was that it was better for crankbaits also. I'm leaning towards getting this rod. I like the feel of it. I'd use it for cranking though. I think I'm going to see what's the least he'd take on it.

Nobody has mentioned that you might also try the KVD line and lure treatment. I've never used fluoro on a spinning reel but this stuff has done wonders for 12# fluoro on a baitcast reel. It softens the line it seems like, makes it very manageable to cast. I've used 10# mono on spinning reels with no problems. Can't see why you couldn't with fluoro unless it's just too stiff.