21farms

just curious where you saw it that they improved the gearing for 2014?

two things i want to say about the drag issue: 1) goose52, you are no doubt more knowledgeable about reels than the average fisherman and likely ensure your reels are properly serviced, lubed and set-up when you go out. this alone should prevent most on-the-water problems from ever cropping up in the first place and is likely attributable to your great success with the PQ. from what i've read of their test methodology, TT buys new reels from store inventory and tests the reels as they come (e.g., they don't flush the bearings or evenly spread a thin layer of cal's drag grease on the drag washers, etc.). 2) i've owned my fair share of BPS reels over the years and, from my experience, there's a HUGE amount of variability out there, even among the same model and generation of reel.

how interesting. i read the review first thing this morning and thought it was pretty favorable toward the PQ. then, i come over here and read this thread and you'd think TT trashed it or something. anyway, i've owned two PQs and i would agree with most everything they said. i think it is a good reel for $80 to $90 but not particularly memorable for anything. the PQ is definitely getting long in the tooth and is both larger and heavier than many of the newer reels. i liked mine a lot more a few years ago when i didn't have as much or as nice the stuff i have now...i think it's even moreso for the TT guys as they fish much more often and with a much larger variety of gear than most people.

i say veracity all day long. boyd duckett kicks puppies and steps on fish. okay, the first one isn't true but why on earth a 200-pound man has to step on a 2-pound bass to subdue it is beyond me. anyway, with the veracity, you can also send away for an embroidered abu sweatshirt...i have four or five of them and they're very nice and great for fishing in the mornings or in the fall.

fast is more versatile than extra fast, especially on a casting rod. however, for casting a dropshot or pitching a dropshot into cover, it doesn't matter much although extra fast gets to the more powerful section of your rod quicker so it may help you keep the fish away from cover a bit easier.

pflueger 35s are big reels. the 30-size is more comparable to your shimano 2500s.

here's what i would do: frog setup: daiwa tatula DTAT741HFB frog rod ($150) shimano chronarch CI4+ ($200 used, and there's two of them in the fishing flea market here ) dropshot setup: fenwick elitetech smallmouth series ESMS69ML-F ($100, currently on sale at cabelas) pflueger supreme 9230XT ($110, new from the fishing flea market here) (shimano symetre 2500FL at $100 would be another excellent choice here) all-around baitcasting setup: megabass orochi F5-610XX ($255, demo from tackletrap) (this is called the "spinnerbait special" but is ultra versatile and a GREAT rod) make the chronarch do double duty there you go, almost exactly $800 and, lemme tell ya, if i had to, i'd be very happy with these setups.

6'8" to 7'0" is about ideal. if it was just open water, i'd suggest a medium-light power with a fast action but, if you're dropshotting around cover, you'll probably want to step up to medium power with an extra-fast action. dropshotting is one of my favorite techniques and i have five dedicated spinning rigs just for it. at your budget, i HIGHLY recommend the fenwick elitetech smallmouth series. cabela's is offering a great deal now on them too: currently on sale for $100 instead of $130. plus, fenwick will send you a free sweatshirt with purchase (you have to pay $10 for shipping and handling though). plus, i have a $20 off a $150 purchase code (expires 6/24) that i'm not going to use that you can have (just PM me if you want it).

hey dan, have you ever fished the SR705R or the XCF-705R? if so, i was wondering how the excel2 705 glass rods compare? when i handled the first-gen excel 705 glass in the store, the taper and power sure felt a lot like the skeet reese cranking rod.

fishing line is relatively heavy so a spool that holds less line will be lighter and have less inertia to overcome at spool startup. it will be more effortless for pitching and casting lighter lures. as for the clicking drag, it's mainly cool I guess.

shallower spool and a clicking drag too to the OP, the extra speed is great for frogging

i used to be a big fan of seaguar fluoro and used invisx and red label with zero problems. i bought some 10# abrazx last fall and it is clearly defective...i'm really careful with my line but in my three trips with this line, i was getting breakoffs left and right. i emailed seaguar twice and got zero responses. i switched to sunline and will never buy seaguar fluoro again.

dan, thanks for the update and correction. my lami's were under the old system and i didn't realize their power rating system was changed.

dan, i believe you're off just a little bit. here's the graphic for lamiglas' visual power rating:

i have a recon2 (713) and an M1 (72H)...i've had the recon2 for two years already and still have not found a chance to fish with it yet so i cannot say about that one. the M1, however, is much closer to a 'medium-heavy' than 'heavy'. i like both of my phenix rods but i cannot for the life of me figure out why they can't get their hook keepers right (both the type of hook keeper and their placement). there were a lot of complaints about the hook keepers with the original recons so i thought they'd do a better job with the recon2s and M1s.

it's called "cush-it" and made by luna sea. i think more than balance, it will keep your rod afloat if you drop it overboard. i dunno...hurts my eyes every time i see ol' shaw fishing with those things on major league fishing.

there are other factors to consider here too. reels with narrow spools tend to lay the line down at narrower angles, increasing the likelihood of line digging; reels with wider spools can lay line down at broader angles, giving more of a crosswrap effect with less digging. the wormgear driving the line guide also plays a factor...if a reel manufacturer uses the same wormgear for their 5:1, 6:1, and 7:1 reels, you're going to have troubles. higher gear ratio reels need "faster" wormgears. i've learned through experience which reels can work with which lines and some reels i use 15 lb. power pro with no line digging problems, which other reels cannot handle any braid under 50 lb. test.

yeah, everyone is different. i've found that the yellow actually blends in with the tules i fish in the california delta. i have a ginornous bulk spool of the yellow too...i should contact GY and see if he wants to swap

I use 30 lb yellow power pro on many of my reels and color bleeding is not an issue. what I have found though is that it's not as visible to me as I thought it would be. I'm slowly switching to 40 and 50# white PP

interesting question. i like the concept but it just didn't pan out for me. for example, i love g.loomis rods in general but there are some models i just do not care for (e.g., the CBRs and their frog rods). for awhile there, i thought i could go all dobyns but, doggoneit, the color schemes on dobyns are very difficult to match with corresponding reels (laugh if you want but that matters to me). so, for now, i have a ton of rods from a hodgepodge of brands, picking and choosing just the specific ones i like. that all being said, i have been considering getting a full set of the megabass orochi XX rods...

to the OP, i'd be very careful here...lighter is not always better. i went down the same path and got a pflueger patriarch XT in the 30-size. i chose it specifically because of its 6.3 oz. weight to replace an 8.8 oz. daiwa on my 4.1 oz. dropshot rod. although the reel itself is wispy light, when mounted on my rod, the combo actually felt heavier because it didn't balance on the rod was well as the heavier daiwa. nevertheless, i decided to keep it. on my very first outing dropshotting with it, i developed severe tendinitis in my right elbow...and it was bad, really bad. i dropshot A LOT and have never had any issue whatsoever before. i sold that reel and specifically chose something heavier and life is good again.

the cabela's verano spinning reel is designed, engineered and manufactured by daiwa

definitely go with the 7'6" rod in heavy for pitchin', flippin', punchin' and froggin'. of your reel choices, go with one of the lew's in 7.1:1. the super duty weighs more and will better balance out your rod but the tournament pro has a shallower spool and will pitch and cast hollow belly frogs better.

tacklecenter has the stradic ci4+ and the pflueger supreme XT for 20% off with coupon code memorialday2014. there's only one stradic left, however, and it is the 1000-size. i've owned the stradic in the 2500-size and the pflueger patriarch XT in the 9530-size and both are excellent reels. i also have the cabelas verano in the 2000-size...i've only taken it out once so far but i used it the vast majority of the 9 hours i was on the water and it performed like a champ. mine is very smooth and i haven't experienced any line twisting issues.

another recoil guide fan here...i absolutely love them and can't figure why so many people complain about them. to the OP, i like both split- and full-grip...i have plenty of both. my problem with split grip rods is that the trend seems to be for them to get skinnier and skinner. capt.bob, i like the full-handle conversion...looks great and i bet they feel great too.