Bps Pro Qualifier Bc Reel – 5 Year Challenge – 4 Years Down, 1 To Go

[The Rooster]

Goose, that last post of yours was so well written and the subject matter so well explained, I feel smarter for having read it. LOL.

I noticed at least three of those big bass pics have KVD Redeye shads in the orange crawdad color hanging out of their mouths. Apparently I need to get some of those.

[Basswhippa]

Goose, that last post of yours was so well written and the subject matter so well explained, I feel smarter for having read it. LOL.

I noticed at least three of those big bass pics have KVD Redeye shads in the orange crawdad color hanging out of their mouths. Apparently I need to get some of those.

 

 

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[Goose52]

I noticed at least three of those big bass pics have KVD Redeye shads in the orange crawdad color hanging out of their mouths. Apparently I need to get some of those.

 

I'm not part of the crowd that thinks that color is critically important...but I'll have to admit that the RES Orange Belly Craw pattern is particularly effective in fall and winter...

[K_Mac]

Goose as a charter member of the PQ fan club I salute you! The only anomaly at evidence in this thread is you my friend. Many of us intend to do in-depth analysis of many things-few of us actually do. At its price point the PQ is a solid winner. Combine that with BPS customer serve and it is an exceptional value in my opinion and experience.

 

Some read your review and feel compelled to condemn for a variety of reasons. We would both agree that all BPS reels do not have the record of success that the PQ does. All of the major manufacturers are the same, esp at the lower end of their lines. You have not tried to make any case here, other than the over-all value of the PQ based on your well documented experience. Well done. 

[Goose52]

Thanks Kirby!  Another year to go.  If the frame hasn't cracked by then, I'll keep fishing it past the 5 year point, but perhaps at a reduced rate so I can spend some time with my other gear.

[Maxximus Redneckus]

Since the shimano posse jumped in...let me induldge Y'ALl. Into longevity.18 yrs ain't nothing.I have abus 60+ yrs old still going hard.so using shimano as a example as a long haul reel..they have a long way to go. AbuForLife

[Basswhippa]

Since the shimano posse jumped in...let me induldge Y'ALl. Into longevity.18 yrs ain't nothing.I have abus 60+ yrs old still going hard.so using shimano as a example as a long haul reel..they have a long way to go. AbuForLife

 

 

Go ahead and indulge.  Yeah, technically we may be hijacking, but the PQ guys appear to enjoy calling names such as bots and posse, so it's all in good fun.   This board would be boring without differing points of view.   I have some from the early 70's  ABU's as well.   Those were good reels for their day and decades later, if maintained, good as they ever were.   Heavy but built like tanks.  Replace a pawl every now and then and you are good for decades.  At Guntersville this last spring I looked on the deck of a boat of an old man (appeared late 70's) who was hard of hearing who got very close so we could converse, and on his deck were the Chronarch 100A's and Black Abus with knobs on both sides.  He was so old I was worried if he should be out by himself.  The stories those baitcasters could tell.  LOL There was a dark era in reel design in the 80's.  Actually in the early to mid 80's there were some breakthroughs, the ABU Ultracast spool AKA super free and Diawas magnetic braking.  But basically the reels were graphite junk.   Then in 1992 with the debut of the Shimano Calcutta the modern reel was born.  If there is a missing link between humans and our ancestors, the Shimano Calcutta was link between the old technology and the contemporary baitcaster.   And really, almost nothing about them has changed.  They were engineered that well and really that was their only secret.  Take what was good and worked and perfect the tolerances and create instant anti reverse.  You can use a Calcutta and you will never be outgunned or "out reeled" by any reel, assuming you need the gear ratio it had.  They eventually upped the speed.  Everything else is just some sort of copy, including other Shimano models.

 

To stay on point, the PQ is an excellent borrow design of the Curado 200B (low profile cousin of the Calcutta) and Goose has possibly proved it.   It isn't all that different than the Gary Yamamoto designed Senko and the BPS copy Sticko.    Lead, follow or get out of the way, BPS is a good follower and excellent loss leader marketer.   Come let us give you a PQ for free ($80 for that reel? Come on.)   and we will double our money on the soft plastics and other fishing gear and clothing you buy.  But BPS will never, ever change the industry the way Shimano did.  Maybe no other reel manufacturer ever will.  It was like we were using rocks and stones for weapons and they invented gunpowder.  Or maybe a better analogy would be we were using muskets and they designed the modern rifle.

 

Not knocking BPS stuff.  Love their stickos and my mid 90's 7 MH Extreme that was well worn when I got it at a pawn shop has caught me countless bass.   Love that stick!   I remember when BPS sold them with the $119.00 Shimano Curado for $129.00.   Did someone mention BPS knows about loss leaders.  LOL

[The Rooster]

Goose, I have a couple of good questions for you. I know the purpose of this research is to see whether or not the PQ will last 5 years. It seems the use you've subjected this reel to in that time has been absolutely extreme. To the point that I'd question if you fish your other reels like this or not when you use them, which I don't think you do. If not, then why did you not simply choose to fish this PQ as normal (for you) and see how long it would last that way in the regular rotation? Wasn't the original suggestion that the PQ wouldn't last that way? Of course I do recognize that the way you're fishing it does seem to leave no room for doubt at all. So based on all that, I guess we'll also know how these reels handle normal use after 5 years as well, based on your other PQ's not being officially tested and documented, and also not being fished as hard, but still in rotation.

My second question is, at this point considering the wear this reel has sustained to the frame, you are still using it because the test isn't over yet. But, if any of your other reels had gotten to this point while not being tested, would you continue to use them or retire them? I know you said you'll continue to use this one after the test is over, but I assume that's because you'll already have it at that point in its worn down condition so you may as well, it can't hurt it further. Others not there yet but heading that way eventually, would you stop using them before they got there, maybe due to them just not being enjoyable anymore?

Not trying to stir the pot because what you've done here I have a lot of respect for. I was just curious about these points. Sometimes words on a screen from the Internet without any tone to accompany them can be hard to discern the original intended meaning from. In other words, I'm asking this because I'm interested to know, not to "call you out on something". LOL.

[Goose52]

Hey Rooster - good questions.

 

Question 1:  The test period is 5 years because that is the period mentioned by a board member that prompted this test. By itself, the term a "year" or a "season" has no meaning since everyone fishes a different amount.  SO, I wanted to fish the reel as MUCH as possible to put the maximum amount of use on the reel that I could. At the end of the test, if I have documented, say, 450 catch days, and I estimate, say 1,000 or 1,200 use days - an angler can compare that usage to how often they fish, and calculate for themselves how long the reel might last in their service.  The data is already showing that the reel will last much longer than 5 years in typical service by most anglers and for certain, it is NOT a one-season, disposable reel.

 

Question 2: I tend to use things until they are "used up"...as long as they are still giving acceptable performance.  For instance, my primary fishing car I bought new 25 years ago, my "back-up" fishing car I bought new 41 years ago - they both still run OK and get me where I need to go.  Not as nice as a 2013 car I bought last year but still give acceptable service.  I still use tools that I've owned for 40 to 45 years.  As long as something still works, I tend to keep using it.  I don't really care if it doesn't feel "new" any longer - performance is what counts. Now, if something no longer gives acceptable service, or it becomes seriously obsolescent by newer technology, I might consider replacing it. You might remember the thread I started a while back about retiring the last of my mid-80s vintage Shakespeare spinning reels.  They were all still serviceable, they worked, caught fish...but the lack of an instant anti-reverse was bugging me so as I came across good deals on modern spinning reels I gradually phased them out.  So, this PQ, as long as it works acceptably, will continue to be used.  Same with one of my "modern" spinning reels - it's already over 2,200 fish caught, is getting a little grindy, but still gives acceptable performance, so it will be used until its used up...

[The Rooster]

Wow. Grindy gears are grounds for immediate dismissal in my arsenal. I guess in comparison to you, I'm very wasteful. I use things, long term even, as long as they work "like I think they should". I'll stick to fishing gear for any references, but this pretty much applies to everything I own. I like stuff to look and feel relatively new. I understand some break in wear and cosmetic blemishes will show up in time, like maybe the overall shininess has worn to a dull haze, but I want the mechanics and feel to be within 95% or more of where it was when new. I do all I can to help maintain my stuff too, but when it starts to wear beyond my tolerance of it, even though it is still well within someone else's, then I feel it's time for it to move on to someone else.

This will sound funny to you, I'm sure, but I told myself a long time back that I'd only ever accept three things used (as in not new and perfect). Cars, houses, and women. Whether we know it or not, we all still live in an unofficial caste system. According to my level within it, I always figured I'd "never be able to afford the best" in any of those three, but everything else would be new. So I buy new, I maintain as new, and I dump it when it starts to not feel new anymore. LOL. As an aside, my wife turned 43 this year and I jokingly told her when she turns 44 that I might have to trade her in for two 22 year olds. Also said I may have to wait until she's 54 because the 22's might not have come down in price enough until then. She told me not to worry about a price drop because I'd lose my rear end on that deal anyway.

[Goose52]

Wow. Grindy gears are grounds for immediate dismissal in my arsenal.

 

And that's OK - whatever it takes to enjoy your fishing experience...

 

Me?  I tend to think more about the fish on the wet end of the line than the hardware on the dry end of the line...

[Maxximus Redneckus]

Calcutta great reels...then again 60+ yrs can't be beat...

[DogBone_384]

Very interesting "study" Goose. Appreciate the info you've gathered. Always liked the PQ, but never pulled the trigger. How do they do with light baits - like weightless 4" senkos, etc.? I can throw weightless Zoom Finesse worms wacky rigged with my Chronarch 50e and Lexa 100. Curious if the PQ could throw the same. And yeah, rod helps, my fave is a 6' MF casting rod for the light stuff.

I throw 4" Senko's Texas rigged with a PQ on a 7' MF Vendetta pretty well. Once I cleaned & reoiled it it got better. I've tried weightless Zoom worms with it and find distance to be fair/decent.

[CWB]

I always thought the Ambassadeurs were the father of the Modern baitcasters. When did Shimano become the one. If I recall an Ambassadeur still holds the long distance casting record. My dad still uses his 5000, small white knobs and all, and has the leather case it came in. Gotta be pushing 60. Shimano wasn't even making reels until 1970. Think maybe they got a few of their ideas from Abu- Garcia? That being said, I do have some and they are darn good reels. But considering you can get 2 PQ's for what you would pay for todays Curado 200 G, which is nothing more then a green last generation Citica, I would probably opt for the PQ's. JMHO

[MarkH024]

Goose, What knobs are you putting on the PQ and is the handle itself stock?  They look like the newer Shimano CI4 knobs to me. I like them and after reading 5 pages of this post, I didn't see if this was asked. If so I do apologize, I must have read over it. 

[Goose52]

Goose, What knobs are you putting on the PQ and is the handle itself stock?  They look like the newer Shimano CI4 knobs to me. I like them and after reading 5 pages of this post, I didn't see if this was asked. If so I do apologize, I must have read over it. 

 

You're the first person to ask about that after all the pics that I've posted of that reel over the past 3 years or so.  That handle/knob combo is from a BPS ProLite Finesse reel - the last model (PRL05HC). It is about 1/2 oz. lighter than the stock PQ handle and it comes with two knob bearings. Add the two knob bearings from the stock PQ handle and you end up having a 4-bearing handle.  I've never mentioned this mod as it doesn't really affect the long-term durability of the reel itself.

 

Good eye !