PhishLI

It's way beyond decent. One of my faves for sure. I have another one on the way right now.

I absolutely missed that! Sorry! Sincerely. You didn't. I was responding to the some of the other points being made on this topic and somehow twisted your post into those. More apologies. Sincerely. Me either.

So there it is in a nutshell. "You" are uncomfortable and less than proficient here. "You" find it clunky and awkward. "You" have extrapolated your experience out to anyone else who casts right and reels left. You've projected whichever glitchy movements you have out and onto anyone else who casts and reels this way. Most of us are probably guilty of something similar, even if we only think it and don't write about it as you have. I slide up the reel using the leverage of the handle while cranking once I haven't been struck on the drop or the first few cranks. It's nothing less than graceful, seamless, easy, and painless.

Yes Don't worry about it. It's a 5/8oz crank, not a 4oz jointed wake. It'll be fine. You've a got a double supported pinion and brass gears. I use my 6 speed Curado K occasionally for the same baits.

Cast with right, crank with left. I have one righty reel with me always for casting with my left arm due to boat position or casting down the shore to the right. No hand switching for me, 'cause I'm not weird. ?

Daiwa Aird-X 7 MHF 2pc. I have one for this reason myself. It's always with me just in case. Excellent for the price. I've caught hundreds of fish on it. No issues.

Last year I tried the Yum Thumpin Dinger in a pinch and my luck with chatters went way up. Sticking with the theme of lighter, stringy, trailers I tried a Missle Baits Baby D Stroyer with the same results. They're all I use now. https://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Yum_Thumpin_Dinger/descpage-YTD.html?from=gshop&gclid=CjwKCAjwqpP2BRBTEiwAfpiD-2DHKej25TIEnhUgR49A4yM-YMzErbQkA85r0PYCmt5eFFl9AuD8tBoC844QAvD_BwE https://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Missile_Baits_Baby_D_Stroyer_Creature_Bait_10pk/descpage-MBBD55.html

Daiwa Tatula LT 3000 CXH, Daiwa Tatula XT 6'6"MF. The reels's awesome. The rod's a good all arounder, reasonably light, and tough. I've abused mine slinging baits in tight wooded spots with branches all around me in areas around the bank. Pulled in a few 6ers. Happy with it.

By the middle of June, or possibly earlier, through late November I'll be back to having braid on 95% of my reels. Lakes nearest to me get completely choked, so treble hook baits are pretty much out of the equation. I'm perfectly fine throwing straight braid and have nothing against it. I simply despise leader knots clunking through my guides, so I don't bother. Bottom contact fishing is not happening here, so there's no need. Besides, I'm confident braid is not a deterrent to fish buried in grass or pads. Once the veg dies down I'll be back to mono and fluoro. I was warned off of using it as mainline because of what you've described, but I've adapted and do not suffer with it. Mishaps occur, but i'm mostly OK, and I'm constantly bombing. Regardless, I've come to appreciate plastic lines even after I was sure I'd hate them. Anyway, there really aren't any rules for personal use of gear in fishing. One man's right is another man's wrong it seems. That's illustrated in technicolor every day on these pages. It's whatever makes you happy. It's all good.

Stick to deeper water. I have yet to see a bed up in these parts deeper than 3 ft. If you get a fat female out in deeper water treat her nice and get her back in as fast as possible to reduce stress,

Berkley The Champ Swimmer rigged on an Owner 5167W-705. It's 4.75". Comes through weeds and muck great due to it's nose's shape and that hook. I have lots of colors but the best producers have been perch and green pumpkin. This bait has been dynamite since last season. This seller has them on sale and shipped several colors that everyone else listed as out of stock. https://www.sportsmansoutfitters.com/products/berkley-powerbait-the-champ-swimmer

Shirauo and Dark Shad. 3/8-1 oz, depending.

I think finding a booger on a Krispy Kreme that I've already taken a bite out of would be disgusting and awful, but fluoro and mono? Ah, brother. It's not bad once you've figured it out. It just takes some figuring. Anything I throw with trebles is connected to mainline mono. Wakes, glides, WPs, etc. I lose far fewer fish due to shake offs compared to braid. I understand your frustration, but adjustments are possible with a little patience. It has it's uses once you've got it together.

What you described isn't necessarily due to the braid digging in. Where plastic lines may slightly fluff and often correct midcast, braid will often wrap around the spool with a head wind or a sling shotted cast that gets the spool paying out line faster than the lure is pulling it causing a bird's nest. It can happen with any size braid. Plastic lines are stiffer and braid is limp. A touch of spool tension or a bit more on the mag brake will help.

Not being a wise guy at all, but can you read the schematic? Check to see if everything starting with the click ratchet on up to the top of the driveshaft is seated properly. The sections are keyed to the shaft or washers/plates. If they're not seated properly the problem with the side plate you're describing will occur. Don't grease the sleeve/bearing. https://www.lews.com/themes/lews_theme/assets/media/manuals/casting/TournamentMBLFS.pdf

I throw the Megabass Hazedong Shad 4.2 and Spark Shad 4 a lot, both rigged on an Owner TwistLok Light 5/0 3/32oz. Tatula SV on a 7'1 MF. Right now it's spooled with 8lb Sufix Advance as the water is still somewhat open. Once the veg gets a bit heavier I'll kick it up to 10-12lb line. If I'm working those baits through pads or when the grass is really heavy I'll kick it up to 30lb J8 braid.

My brother put some time on it, but he has 21 other rigs, so it wasn't anything like full time. And no, he did nothing stupid with it regarding giant baits. He has an assortment of Tranx models up to the 400 for that, plus several other big bait reels. It just started showing up progressively after pulling in maybe 20 hard fighting freshwater fish. It's been broken down and greased several times since new, so lube isn't the issue. It lacks a bearing on top of the ARB and X-ship which doesn't help. Those particulars might not have mattered much once upon a time, but in this case perhaps it does. Both of my Fuego CTs have remained unusually smooth with heavy use, including frogging duty. I caught 39 Walleye last week on one of them. About 15 were between 4-5 pounds and fought hard. The Walleye guys say that they're not particularly hard fighters, but in the shallow flats where I go they fight like crazy for every inch. Anyway, the reel is just as smooth afterward. I didn't recommend it in this thread because I can just throw frogs significantly farther with the Icon PT, and it ticks all the boxes for sturdy construction https://fishshop.shimano.com/collections/slx150hg https://contentw.zebcobrands.com/zebco/product/schematics/ic100hpt..bx3.pdf My Fuego CT has stood up to it without any loss of it's initial smoothness. I've beaten it like a dog.

Yes, except for the reel going geary way too quickly. Yukking a bass out of lily pads or grass will only speed that up. My brother's has gone to poop in just over a year. It's not an isolated thing either.

Lew's Carbon Fire Speed Stick 7'3"H casting Rod. $49 on sale at DSG. Great frog rod and doubles as a good medium swimbait stick. I have and use one alot. https://www.dickssportinggoods.com/p/lews-carbon-fire-speed-stick-casting-rod-19lewu7crbnfrspdsrod/19lewu7crbnfrspdsrod?sku=20270001&camp=CSE:DSG_92700048924971584_pla_aud-878140242411:pla-362413401277&gclid=Cj0KCQjw-_j1BRDkARIsAJcfmTFdwBNqmj6D9L8P0i-UQeM404U1uWfTbmjvpVUivY3WPrMlTROMB4UaAv0wEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds Quantum ICON PT. I have one and so does my brother. On that rod it'll bomb a frog into the next county. Rock solid gear train. Double bearing supported pinion. Double bearing driveshaft plus the ARB. Brass gears. Externally adjustable centrifugal brakes. No opening a side plate to adjust brake blocks. Aluminum frame. On sale at DSG for $69, but brick and mortar stores like Simmons have them up on the auction site. We won ours for $39. $53 tax and shipping. They close between that price and $50 typically. MSRP $159 before it was discontinued and replaced by the Vapor.. I have a few more on the way. An excellent rock solid sleeper workhorse reel for that price. https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=p2386202.m570.l1313.TR0.TRC0.A0.H1.TRS2&_nkw=QUANTUM+PT+ICON&_sacat=0

I have a TP LFS 6.8. It's very good all around and you can throw very light baits with it due to it's unusually light spool.

If you're ok with disassembling the reel you can do something about this. After you've removed the gear side sideplate apply grease to the entire edge of it minus the drainage ports. reassemble, then wipe off the excess grease that squeezes out. Some water will make it's way in through the pinion, so you don't want it sealed completely. This will help.

I used to do all day training seminars. It taught me what not to eat beforehand in order to avoid a digestive calamity and an embarrassing mad dash to a public terlit. My number one goal is no prarie doggin' when I'm on a hot bite. Three protein bars and a small water and I'm good for however long. One of the dudes showed up to the boat one trip with a bag of sausages to snack on. An odd choice. He ate 'em all himself and paid dearly. Four beachings. He had to take care of business in a panic while wearing shorts and flip flops in a woods full of deer ticks and chiggers. That won't be me. No siree.

I'd stay away from plastic reels for heavier jigs and baits. I use mine for lighter stuff only.

Why not just use it and find out for yourself? If I listened to reviews or opinions I wouldn't have half the reels I now own and like quite a bit. People tend to be hyperbolic. I'm cautious regarding recent products that have particular known parts failures, but subjective opinions? Fooey. I've had different and opposite opinions once I've actually fished with something myself. You have no idea what the preferences of other people even mean or add up to by reading what they say, including myself. There're just too many variables ranging from the ancillary equipment they used in conjunction with a reel to their casting style. Try it, you might like it.

I feel so dirty now.