John G

What are the specs on your rod and just how light of lures are we talking about? What kind of line are you using? When putting line on your spool, you want to make sure that you are putting it on tight and that you are holding it straight in the middle of the rod. If you hold off to the left or the right, you are putting tension on the level wind and that is causing it to bunch up on one side. Something that has been mentioned before is to run the line trough a phone book or two for tension. Doing it that way, there should not be any issues of looseness or bunching up to one side.

To be honest, I would rather buy a used rod vs a used reel. If I were to buy a used reel, and I have, I would not buy one that that shows any kind of unnecessary wear n tear. I prefer my reels to not have scratches at all but I would buy a used reel if the scratch was hardly noticeable. If it was used in excellent condition and the savings over new was say, less than $100.00, I am going to buy a new reel.

Welcome to Bass Resource! Shimano Citica 200E would be a great first reel IMHO! http://www.tackletour.com/reviewshimanocitica200e.html

I had no success at all at throwing a 3/16oz Rapala with 10# Yo Zuri Hybrid, a JDM Calcutta 50 and 6'6" ML Clarus. If I wanted throw a plug like that in the future, I would either use a spinning combo or spend a bunch on a casting combo that can do it.

Look at the right side of this page where the advertisers are.

Your post is fine with me. Knowledge is king as they say!

Is Triple Fish now Trik Fish?

Would you guys rather have a Stradic 1000FJ or a Shimano JDM Biomaster 1000?

I know what you mean! I have some Scorpion 1500XT's and they are a $200.00 reel that will definitely get the job done but they don't even come close to the WOW FACTOR of an Antares or Conquest! I tell ya, if I had the $400 + on me right now, that NIB Alphas 103 R Edition on ebay would be on it's way to my door even though I know that it doesn't take that much cash to do what I want to do.

I just got the GLX version of the 844. I haven't caught anything yet but it is sweet!

Just bought an Antares AR yesterday.. Can't wait for it to get here! I used to have the CL100A and regretfully sold it. I will not make that mistake again!

Is that the one with the cork knobs, carbon handle and gold spool?

Well, I have been doing some investigating and what I have found is there are several variants of the TDZ103H. There is the regular 103H, the 2002 Type R 103H, the 2004 Type R+ 103H and the Megabass 103. On TT, in the vote for your favorite JDM Daiwa, the 04' Type R+ is ahead of the 02' Type R by a large margin. In the Limited Edition Reels section on Japan Tackle, Jun explains that the 02' Type R has least brake force (best casting performance) and should only be used by expert casters. The Type R+ is in the middle of the regular 103H and the Type R in regards to brake force (casting performance). I would have thought that the 02' Type R being tuned a little more, would be more popular than the 04' Type R+. Guess not! Do you recommend the regular 103H or one of the Type R versions?

I was wondering when the Alphas would get some nods. To be honest, the Alphas platform is what I have been looking at the most.

I have never owed a baitcaster other than Shimano and I am interested in maybe acquiring a Diawa. I have read Jun's comments on Japan Tackle's Website about current and discontinued models but I want to hear from you guys. The reel will be used for only T-Rigged worms and craws and lighter (1/4 to 3/8oz) jigs. This could also include the Megabass versions as well.

Yes

Yo Zuri Hybrid is some strong stuff! I almost pulled a giant pine tree limb off of the water the other day with 10# and I was extremely impressed.

It was tough but I eventually found it. LMAO http://yo-zuri.com/Products/Yo-Zuri_Fishing_Line/details/Yo-Zuri_Hybrid.html No luck with P Line.

Left handed and I use right handle reels. Last Saturday morning,I was Bluegill fishing with a borrowed spinning combo and the guy had the handle on the left side. I reeled with my left hand the whole time. It felt very awkward.

If that is the same KVD MH Combo from WalMart that I had the displeasure of using one time, if I were you, I would stay away from it. The reason is because IMHO, the rod felt like a Heavy +. I couldn't cast with it to save my life with the lure the owner was using and he couldn't either. I think you need a minimum lure weight of 3/4 to 1 oz to effectively cast with it.

Have you thought about replacing it with Shimao's over the counter warranty with the same spec rod that broke and then deciding for yourself if you like the Gen 2? If you don't like it, you can always sell it.

I'll bet no one here thought that you were making light of this Thread! This Thread is about showing your gear. My first baitcasting combo was a lot like yours in the pic. I had a Shimano Bantam Mag Plus 250SG and a 5'6" Fenwick Eagle Graphite. Unfortunately, I no longer have the rod but I do have the reel. My neglect as a kid makes it unusable today. I bought a couple of the Fenwick Eagle Graphites on ebay a while back and the Shimano that I had is on ebay all the time. I have thought about buying another one and using it just to bring back old memories.

Shimano has named their Flagship reel and it's not Curado. From the Shimano Website.... Antares Delivering Ultimate Long Distance Casting Performance The flagship in Shimano's low-profile baitcasting reel line-up, the Antares reels - offered in two gear ratios for multiple freshwater fishing techniques features the ultimate in long distance casting performance. With Shimano's innovative Micro Module Gear System, plus a lightweight Magnesium frame, it's built to be fished hard.

The Antares HG is also magnesium. It's has more to do with the gearing than the bearing in the knobs. Personally, I don't think that bushings in the knobs are a bad deal. My Scorpion XT1500's have 1 bearing only and no bushing and it's not near as smooth as my Calcutta 100 was with 4 bushings.

I agree. That was a bad attempt on my part at humor. I wasn't meant to be a put down at all.