JL Zingg

Fantastic rod! the feel of it is great, balance is awesome. My favorite fishing pole ever and in my favorite color, and beautiful work and the personalization makes it that much better, I am very proud of this one, a great retirement gift, thank you very much. Jerry

Okay fellas, I should have the rod in my hands this afternoon, will give you an update tomorrow, I really appreciate it already.

I do it by feel, anything over 3 lbs will be able to take a 'little' line out when fighting hard.

Ouch is right on the Quantum haters, I have three Energy PT baitcasters and they are great reels, especially the 2009's.

I agree, great RODS!

Baitcast Reels - I know the adage is "If one works for you than stick with it." Which I will stick with the Quantum Energy PT, my first and one I love everything about (I now have 4). But, JUST out of curiosity, what is the main or applicable differences between the Quantums and other much more expensive ones, $250 and higher? At BPS I've handled the Diawa's, Shimano's, Abu Garcia's and others.

ALL of the information given IS VERY helpful. Read everything you can find, even watch videos online: http://video.google.com/videosearch?hl=en&q=baitcasting+videos&um=1&ie=UTF-8&ei=1z0lSoC6OIKJtgf0kJzcBg&sa=X&oi=video_result_group&resnum=5&ct=title# Google - baitcasting videos. When determining my first baitcast reel, a Gander Mtn. salesman recommended I buy a cheaper one to learn with, then a more expensive one later. Well, I had made the decision to switch to baitcast period and disagreed with the cheap one first theory. My first one was the 2008 Quantum Energy PT, my next three were 2009 Energy PT's. The moral? Buy a solid quality sturdy reel, they cost more but the smoothness, reliability and castability are worth it. Jerry

I switched over a year ago, and before I took my baicast set-up to the water, I read as much as I could find and also watched several videos http://www.truveo.com/tag/baitcaster on technique. When I gave it a go I actually had it down pretty decent. Practice is a must, and don't give up, stick with the baitcaster.

Eddy, I am very impressed and thankful for your craftmanship. I was surprised with the retirement gift. I handled the one you made for Memo and it feels great. I'm sure the pics of this one do not do it justice. Thank you very much for the work you put into it, and yes, I will definitely put it to good use! Jerry

I cast left and retrieve with my right hand. I'm right handed, and thought that it would be hard to learn to cast lefty, but once I got used to it, found that it wasn't that bad after all. It makes more sense to me to retrieve with the non-casting hand, instead of having to switch hands after the cast.

Okay Sam, I'm looking for some oceanfront proprety in Arizona..... Now, how does the Yo-Zuri compare to other mono's? Personal preference and advertising lead some to buy products they could match with similar products of the exacting specifications. What sets YoZuri apart from other "No memory" mono's on the market?

Yes it is typical of the Cavitron. With mine, I noticed that when the blade is churning the water it moves to the left, slow the retrieve a tad to let it barely go under the surface and it will track to the right. I too have tried bending it just behind the blade, no luck. So, when I need to 'steer' it around things I alter the retrieve.

A couple of month's ago I was facing the same question as you are. A Gander MTN clerk suggested I try a Gander special reel for $60, after some thought, I figured that if I bought a cheeper reel and liked it, depending on it's sturdiness, I would end up buying another reel, (more $). So essentially, the 'learner' reel $60 plus the longevity reel $100 plus??? Now, knowing those that use baitcasters, much prefer them over spinner's, I knew that as hardheaded as I am, I would without a doubt master the BC! I bought a Quantum EnergyPT for $130, took me about three weeks to get it down. The Quantum Accurist PT is also a good quality reel and costs less. A friend of mine who has used Quantums his whole life suggested that I get a Quantum PT series. I am very thankful for his suggestion. And they do come in either hand retrieves. Now I have two 8-) As far as learning, this site as well as google, offer plenty of help. Google "How to use a baitcaster", read everything you can, and watch the videos on how to set them up. Then, try casting. Baby steps, progress not perfection.

For the McCoy user, have you used Suffix Siege? If so, how do the two compare? I prefer Suffix over Trilene XL.

ACT FAST!!! Gander MTN is selling the last of it's 2008 Energy PT's for $99.95, Dick's Spoting Good's $119.99. The Accurist is a very good reel, haven't used a BPS either. My favorite so far is the Energy PT.