newapti5

I would say it's around $20 to change ALL the bearings inside, except the AR bearing. If you have a budget of $50, you could change the bearings AND the gears. The gear set from Shimano official site or Plat is about $35 TYD.

I don't know what he was thinking and he wouldn't say, but I know he cried when she left, and now he has visited her so many times since last year that she "forbids" him to come visiting again. So yeah, I think you are right - he might be blaming the fishing now.

My fishing buddy, or ex-fishing buddy, is having the same problem. He hasn't touched his rods in half a year. He didn't know why, but just lost the interest suddenly. I suspect it has something to do with his daughter leaving for college last year. Since then he has purchased some top of the line rods and reels, and never even unwrapped them. Let's see how it goes this season.

LOL, but seriously, this is a classic case of Chinese manufacturers have little ideas of Western culture or market.

BTW how's the Silver Wolf treating you? Still running strong? I have been eyeballing one on JDM sites.

What a nice collection! What you're missing is one of these bad boys: https://jp.mercari.com/item/m39222096897 Or this: https://jp.mercari.com/item/m47389571421

Not a master on jigs (who can say that), but I use both braid + leader and straight fluoro. Each has its pros and cons. Besides sensitivity, casting distance, abrasion resistance, and other factors, stretch is also one of the causes. In short, different situation calls for different setup. But I have to say that since I MASTERED the FG knot, leader knot failure has never been one of the factors again.

See I don't know if you're just kidding or that's real. That's the problem with these "fancy" marketing terms Shimano and Daiwa came up with.

Nah, I've seen better.

So this is the one with a stash hole at the bottom of the handle. Interesting...

Even with ceramics, that reel will be screaming crazy after a while. Why would he do that? Ceramic won't make the dirt and debris inside the bearing disappear magically. Bushing may be a good idea. I would just get a cheap and disposable reel.

I think it's 5x9x3mm if I remember correctly, but you may want to measure it to make sure. That one doesn't take much effort to get to.

Yes, and on Roland's channel, I have seen he used the rod and reel as a walking stick when wadefishing smallies. We're talking about full submerge in the muddy water. I am just glad that's not a Shimano reel.

Such a bummer. I had the same experience twice out of all my online rod purchases. And I asked, why? why bother taping it up when the tube and the content inside are clearly broken in half? Might as well just ship it straight back to the seller and save me the heartbreak of seeing it.

I agree with DVT, but if you really want to know each bearing size and change them, a cheap digital caliper would do the job perfectly.

It's not brass gears.

After 9 long years, finally Shimano renews the Metanium DC reel. I don't care much about the black color, but the new IDC-5 brake is interesting. Using aluminum gears, it weighs only about 6.1oz, which is very light, given the DC brake unit usually weighs a lot. https://fish.shimano.com/ja-JP/product/reel/baitlurecasting/a075f000045zv32qag.html

A few things worth mentioning: 1. I used 500 and 1200 grit sandpaper to prep the surface, and wetsanded it with 1500 grit to finish. You don't have scrape all the original paint off, but smoother the surface is, better result you can achieve. 2. I didn't use primer, as I found the Testors lacquers work quite well without primer, as long as the surface is smooth. 3. Clear coats are optional, but I found them help alleviate small scratches. Painting clear coats, though, requires extra effort and care. Several light coats with quick hand movement. You don't want to spray too much in one coat, which could cause dripping. 4. For lacquer, masks are not gonna cut it. You must use respirators like this: https://www.harborfreight.com/p95-maintenance-free-dual-cartridge-respirator-large-67727.html?ccdenc=eyJjb2RlIjoiNzA0ODQ5MDUiLCJza3UiOiI2NzcyNyIsImlzIjoiMTIuNTkifQ%3D%3D&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=20938165855&campaignid=20938165855&utm_content=160520900791&adsetid=160520900791&product=67727&store=3030&gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAiA44OtBhAOEiwAj4gpObpqZ8eQFsVo6HelRDs7xkJc4rnPGEKJEx1efbD-cGFPpc3YJPyRaxoCK2gQAvD_BwE

I am new to this as well. I chose Testors Extreme Lacquer (the old One Shot Lacquer) for these reels, but TBH, I kind of regret that decision. Lacquer is good for many things, looks beautiful as well, but it's prone to even tiny scratches, which are inevitable for fishing reels. My next project would be back to enamel paint. There aren't much information regarding painting fishing reels online, but there're a TON of info about painting model cars. It's a really deep rabbit hole if you want perfection. If you're interested in the process, I found this YouTube video quite helpful: Forgot to mention, if you could disassemble the whole reel, the paining process would be much easier.

I have a couple of this handle. The quality is quite good. The knob tolerance is very tight without any tiny movement.

Another TD-Z repainted. The is the 36mm spool 100ML "US Trail" version.

What's the difference between the OG Muse Gold and the later Muse Black? Blank makers? I've only used the former in spinning setup, which is still one of my favorite.

If you have a budget over 200, my only suggestion is to take the JDM route. Digitaka, JLS, Plat, Asian portal... just pick your poison.