jwhiteney

I took a look at the exsence. looks nice, the reviews i read on it are very positive. i have never used a 8:1 gear ratio though... seems fast. :S I may bite the bullet and look into the antares dc... i was thinking of going into a store and holding an antares now to see how i like the feel, but from the picture it looks like the antares dc has a different frame.

I did hear about the antares DC with the 4x8 system, but it is quite pricey for me. Even buying from one of the JDM sites, the canadian loonie isn't doing so well right now and I would be adding quite a bit to the cost... as well as if i get dinged for duties.

Thanks for the input. I'll be sure not to mention that company anymore, I had no idea it was banned. the maintenance I do on my reels is just putting some grease on that main gear on the inside and then put a drop of oil on each bearing. I do this a couple times a year (not that I have been fishing for very long so unsure if this is the best way long term)... If a DC reel requires more than that, I would rather stay away from it for the time being. Also it seems the 4x8 is the DC system people go for and as it is not in the metanium DC, that is another thing steering me away from DC. i do quite like shimano, I just find they fit best in my hand of the reels I have tried. I also live in Canada, so my selection isn't as vast as the selection in the US. I guess all three of my original options are still possible, but leaning towards two cheaper reels or the metanium.

It's sounds like I may want to hold off on a DC reel for awhile then. I do find them cool but the extra maintenance isn't something I want right now. maybe I'll go into a store so I can hold a metanium. I was looking at the Antares and aldebaran too... But from what I have read, it sounds like the metanium is more all round.

Hoping someone can help me out a little on this decision. Birthday is coming up and was thinking of getting a curado and a *** (for crankbaits and for soft plastics). However then i started looking into the metanium and was thinking maybe i should get my first high end reel. That led me to finding out about DC reels. Are DC reels all they are cracked up to be? I would be using this mostly for soft plastics. I also found out the metanium DC has a system which is inferior to the 4x8 system. Do you think I should get a couple lower end reels... a normal metanium... or the metanium DC despite the lack of 4x8.

Just yesterday I bought myself a second curado i. Would i be better off trying to return and wait for this one? Or is really just preference?

no. but i didnt think i had to as its not really cranked down to hard ok thanks. i will give that a try yes... i am aware 1/3 of 15 is 5. issue is 5 seems like the max it will go seems like it is cranked down really hard. also wasnt sure if it was bad for it to crank it down that much

I got it this year. Only used it a handful of times now.

I have a BPS pro qualifier and just picked up some 15lb line to go on it. I read that the drag should be set to about a third of what the line is. The drag only seems to be able to be set to 5lbs, online it says it should be 10lbs. I have it cranked down really hard. To set the drag I took the line out of the guides, attached a digital scale to the line and pulled straight away from the reel parallel to the rod. Am I doing something wrong or is it the reel?

Thanks all for the input. Th XML seems to be pretty popular. I went ahead and ordered 1.

The XML is on for $120 down from $150. Maybe I should go for that?

Thanks for the suggestion. I will definitely take a look at them. Too bad there don't seem to be any other options.

I am thinking of getting a casting combo and need some suggestions on the rod. It was suggested to me to get the pro qualifier reel and a MH 7' rod. My problem is I need a 2 piece which looks like limits my options by quite a bit. I went through BPS and cabellas and these are the 2 piece MH 7' rods I saw BPS bionic blade XPS Cabela fish eagle 50 Cabela tourney trail Cabela XML I was mainly looking at the bionic blade as I will be around a bass pro this weekend, but are the cabelas rods a lot better if at all?

Thanks. I am actually looking at getting #1. Although I'm limited to 2 piece rods which seem are hard to find for baitcasters. Looking for a 7' MH

Gotchya. I also spent the money on it because as you said it, the combo is pretty versatile. If it was a rod specific to certain situations, I definitely would not have spend that much on it.

You mean that combo wasn't a good choice or if I don't use it I will regret spending the money? If the latter I don't think I have that problem i really enjoy it, which is why I forked over the money for (what I thought) was a decent combo.

I just recently started fishing. I chose to start with spinning gear based on the fact that the friend who got me into fishing uses spinning gear. When reading on the forums it sounds like people have so many different rods and reels, so I started looking into how many different ones I should have. I saw some mention of a pitching/flipping rod. After youtubing what this was, I got interested in it and looked into it more (especially since most people recommend a baitcaster which I was interested in too). So now to the question. Should I bother? I will be fishing mostly bass < 5lbs and mostly in a boat where I do not have the ability to stand up based on its small size. The reason I wanted one was because there are lots of weeds/lilypads in several areas of the lake I would be fishing. If not a pitching/flipping rod/reel is there any other setup I should be looking into getting? Spinning or baitcasting? I currently have (all spinning) 6'6" lightning rod medium/fast and shimano sahara reel (3000 size) with 10 pound mono 7' st croix avid medium/fast and a stradic ci4+ (2500 size) with 20pound braid Thanks

Great. Thanks!

Thanks all. So I won't really have any more knotting or dig in with 20lb over 30lb?

I am trying to decide which size line to put on my reel. I was initially thinking 30lb braid then 20lb now I'm thinking 30lb again. I will be fishing mostly for <5 lb bass. However in the same lake there are ~20 lb muskie and I would like my line to be able to handle it. The rod I have purchased is the st croix avid 7' MF. I'm going to get a stradic ci4+ in either 2500 or 3000. So back to the line. I have read that 20lb braid will knot a lot more than 30lb braid and you are better off just going with the bigger line. But I'm not sure if that was under different circumstances. If I'm going with 20lb I was thinking if grabbing the 2500 size and if 30lb the 3000 size. That way I will have around 120 yards either way so if I get snags and have to cut line I will still have plenty. What are your thoughts on my line and my reasoning for reel size?

Well I am very glad I asked here before making any purchases. I it looks like I should be really looking at the 7' M Avid (although I do have a couple final questions about it at the end of this post). For the real I will look at the 2500 and the 3000. I have heard some people prefer the 2500 handle and some prefer the 3000 handle. Maybe I should base my decision of that? I think I may lean toward the 3000's bigger handle as I have pretty big mitts. Questions 1. My current Berkley 6'6" M Lighing rod is rated for 8-14lbs line the 7' M Avid is rated for 6-12lbs line. But based one what people have said in this thread, shouldnt it be the other way around 2. If the Avid is only rated for 6-12lbs... is it okay for me to use 20lbs braid?

I was actually also looking at the 2500 but I thought the 3000 would be a clear winner due to the extra capacity, and bigger handle (for me). Especially since it is the same weight. Does the 3000 HAVE to be filled to the top? If that's the case maybe I should get the 2500. As for the rod I was interested in a 7' MH, but I need a 2 piece for mobility and it only seems to come 6'6" MH. Would I be better off MH 6'6" or M 7' My other rod is a lightning rod 6'6" M

I'm going to be picking up a quality rod and reel. I have been doing a lot of reading on forums and think I know what i want I'm just not sure about line sizes and capatibility. I fish ontario... Toronto and further north at the cottage. Shore and boat. Lots of bass, pike, walleye. I mostly use soft plastics, spinners and crankbaits. For the rod I was going to grab a 6'6" st croix avid MH fast action. For the reel I was going to grab the shimano stradic ci4 3000 or 4000 (leaning more towards the 3000) Then I would put 20lb braid (powerpro) and a 12lb fluoro leader. Is 20lb braid good enough for me to use? Will the avid and ci4 work okay together? I appreciate your input