bulldog1935

@10,000 lakes Bassin I bought my Smith telescope from JP Angler. no, there are no Japan-based frauds, it goes against their culture. Bad service would lose face.

@webertime - the coolest I've found is Tsubaki, with both a stack of o-rings to grab your line, and a rotating hook-keeper.

Great $15 carbon jigging handle., able to install at exact pitch I wanted here. Threw away the 40-g pot-metal knob and swapped-on a 14-g Livre Ti-shell knob found a just-right-72-mm double handle (36-mm pitch), $24, for a low-geared Stradic 1000S - also swapped it onto a Livre handle base (Avail knobs). Have also thrown in a couple of hex-shaft-screw spinning reel stands along the way. They were smart building their business by copying Livre, and handy they copied them so exactly the parts interchange - though Gomexus quality has never reached as high, they got the look. I noticed from a quick peruse on their website, they're copying Studio Composite now, also.

I made the switch to Seaguar fluoro 25 years ago over tippet knots breaking on 30+" Alaska rainbows using Rio fluoro. AbrazX became my only fluoro on conventional tackle, 12-lb bulk spool, for the next 20 years, until I made a wholesale switch to coated braids. I've never tried Sunline, but it gets good reviews on BR forum. Seaguar 12-lb fluoro tippet here Lines below won't meet your cost requirement, and always bought in single-charge spools. When I added salt finesse 15 years ago, I found all the right properties for 4-lb in Kamikaze copolymer from Oz. My two finesse fluoro spools have Toray ExThread, which is the limpest low-memory line I've ever tried, and also the Most expensive fluoro made. I have a two other 10-lb spools charged with Tatsu. Also noted Tatsu has usable low memory after it's been spooled and put away for a couple years.

@FrnkNsteen - where I've used common Daiwa-S/Shimano-A knob on Daiwa handle, I just throw in a third 740Z bearing and 0.2-mm shim washer. Since I mentioned IOS SD adapter shaft on first post, IOS also makes hex-shaft adapter that lets you use fixed Daiwa handles on hex-shaft reels. @Bigbox99 the bushings and the bearings are the same size. They should never need thinning - just adjust the stack height with shim washers, which come in 0.5-mm and 0.2-mm thickness from bottom for Daiwa: shim; bushing (or bearing); shim; bearing; enough shims to dial out knob end-play. for Shimano, leave out the first bearing or bushing and 2nd shim. Also with a Daiwa SLPW knob, leave out the first bearing or bushing and 2nd shim.

@newapti5 I have a place for those fast reels. It's drift-fishing a kayak (with sock) in coast wind up to 20+ kts. Here, I just staked my boat to get out and land the redfish I hooked up - to keep him out of my drift sock rigging, and to keep my boat from blowing across the flat if I lifted the drift sock. In lighter wind, a 7-geared reel is just right, and we fish a lot of calm sloughs, also.

5000C gear ratio was 3.6. Introduced in 1973, 5500C with 4.7 gears (this is 4500C introduced in 1976) 1989 5.3 gears, Ultracast spool introduced in Royal Express (became C3) 1999 6.3 gears introduced in Royal Express I/II (current C4) all Ambassadeur were made in Sweden except S model made in China. Also Ebisu built reels in Japan, including small-frame, and current Factory Tuned limited reels.

@little giant - the only reason I could justify the SB - intended as an offshore jigging handle - was because I could swap-in the smaller fortissimo knob - I had a place for the 37-mm Livre knob that came from the SB on my low-geared jigging reel.

@newapti5 in LP reels, 6- and even 7-geared, 90-mm is just right for me. But when you get to smaller spools and lower gears, you need shorter handles to have control of line pick-up so fish don't out-charge you - you spin a short handle with more wrist, crank a long handle with more forearm. With the 8-geared Super Duty, everything about jerkbait presentation improved with the Livre SB (55-mm pitch, equiv to 110-mm dia). Could count the fish-rate improvement.

I've always wondered what dainty-size knobs are for. As long as the weight is small - and these are lighter than Daiwa tiny rubber I-knobs - even giant knobs make great finesse handles. (same spindle length, but titanium, same bearings, knob tubes are carbon) When you need power, you crank with your palm.

@F14A-B the right precision plier tips will work for a spanner, here removing a fly reel spool collar to flip A/R roller bearing. The Daiwa anodized knob covers scratch easily even with their spanner. a plastic tool, or drill a popsicle stick and glue-in toothpicks would solve that.

@F14A-B bearing hook, paper clip, small screwdriver - twist a bit and they pop out. If you're talking about round Daiwa knobs, the new knobs come with a small spanner.

hmmm IOS makes the part - a little red loctite, and SLP Works handle works on Stradic as far as using Shimano A knob on Daiwa S spindle, it takes adding an extra bearing or a bearing-size bushing. Shouldn't be news that these knobs interchange - all aftermarket knobs come with the plastic bushing ("collar") for Daiwa - leave it out for Shimano. .

@1984isNOW If you find that Fuji grip, you can use Bright River butt ferrules on a blank to build your own rod blade. https://brightliver.shop-pro.jp/?mode=srh&cid=660570%2C0&keyword=&x=17&y=10 8.5- to 14-mm ID https://brightliver.shop-pro.jp/?pid=126002529 low profile 5.5- to 8.3-mm ID https://brightliver.shop-pro.jp/?pid=126002529

@Eric 26 long-sold-out Robelson Resion grip made for Headhunters - think it's supposed to represent a dead trout - https://www.headhunters.jp/SHOP/killer-grip.html Resion grips are a tough find - like Megabass Pagani.