Are Curados Really That Good?

[CYP]

It seems like a bunch of you guys gush like school girls over Justin Bieber about these reels. Im brand new to baitcasters I have never held one (Curado), never fished one (Curado).  I have looked at tons of review and tons of articles and only one thing really sticks out to me.  The plastic drag star.  It bothers me a lot.  I don't know why but does it make a difference to you guys? Do they break?  Are there other plastic components?  Yes I will get out to actually touch one but I'm just curious as to exactly why these reels are so good that it seems like a bunch of you would throw your lures at it on stage.

 

Thanks!

 

CYP

[Wbeadlescomb]

In my experience any shimano from the citica on up will last you a looooong time before it needs any work. In my experience a shimano might not feel as smooth as other reels in the store but once you are actually fishing with it the reel is hard to beat.

[Jig Man]

I like them because of their dependability.  I used my old ones hard for 15 years, cleaned them up and sold them for nearly what I gave for them.  Not one of them ever had to have a part replaced.

 

I switched to new ones when the Es came out.  I may never buy another reel because they seem to be as dependable as the old ones that I had. 

 

I never found that with the D and G brands.

[MarkH024]

They are solid, proven work horse reels. They're smooth and you can upgrade them easily for little cost.  Fish one and in time you'll understand why guys love them.

 

The thing about plastic drag star is that if you break one you're way too rough on your gear. If you're that rough on your stuff, you might as well buy $30 bait casters and throw them out each season.  I treat my gear very good and I have Curados over 4 years old that look brand new and perform flawlessly.  They both do not have the plastic drag star but wouldn't really bother me to be honest if they did. The plastic drag star is a bit blown out of proportion in my eyes.  I have other brands with plastic stars and have never had issues with them.

 

If you're fishing a reel below Curado price point, you're more than likely fishing with more plastic than Curado users anyway.

[lmbfisherman]

A lot of people still use the Curado CU200B and it is still part of my rotation.   I can still sell them for a decent price (80) one guy wanted to buy it from me right then and there... but I refused.  The thing is a tank! 

[Grizzn N Bassin]

Doesnt bother me a bit i love my,curado awesome,reel on the water. Hasnt gave me any trouble. Im not a loyal shimano guy i,use,lews sp33d spools and revos. Love them all. Treat your reels right,theyll last and dependable for years.

[john81]

I have used the G series(most people hate) for a while now all in saltwater and haven't had any issue's. Mostly used to vertical jig striped bass and seabass. Have caught fish to 40lbs on it. Still works great after hundreds of fish and abuse

[B@ssCrzy]

Yes.  They are that good.  I am speaking of the E series.  Buy one and fish with it.  If you don't like it you can sell it on this forum for about the same amount of money that you paid for it.  Looks like the new I series is back to the quality of the E series, but only time will tell that. 

[tomustang]

Touch one, play with one and find out. If you say you read about them a lot, even a thread you started isn't going to make a difference.

The whole plastic drag star complaint is a joke, there's nothing wrong with it.

[roadwarrior]

A long history of excellence and innovation.

[Chris186]

I will say that the old style green ones are hard to beat. Those things were bullet proof. I cant comment on the newer ones however, I stopped using Shimanos after I had 2 POS Citicas break on me. They were bought 4 months apart, 2 months after I bought the second one the first one broke. Then about 3 weeks later the second one broke. After that, I said no more Shimano reels.

[Fishes in trees]

The short answer is "yes".  Shimano reels are good reels.  Should you purchase a reel that says "SHIMANO" on the side of it, your self esteem will improve and you will be a better person. .. .. for a while.

[J Francho]

The "plastic" star drives a brass drag nut. The plastic they use is tougher than any soft aluminum alloy. It's funny, the old Curado B series had a plastic star - no one complained about that. There are Elite pros still fishing them.

[CYP]

The "plastic" star drives a brass drag nut. The plastic they use is tougher than any soft aluminum alloy. It's funny, the old Curado B series had a plastic star - no one complained about that. There are Elite pros still fishing them.

Im not complaining,  just stood out to me.  You guys are making me feel much better about it. 

[rbreedi1]

The reason I love my shimanos is the dependability. When I fish I know they are going to be ready to get through the day. Never once have I had any issues that deemed them unfishable. I cant say that for other manufacturers that I have used over the years.

[Paulasaurus]

I have a Curado E7(metal drag star) and a Chronarch E5(plastic drag star). Both reels perform great and I don't think the plastic drag star on the Chronarch takes away from its performance or reliability one bit.

[Raul]

It seems like a bunch of you guys gush like school girls over Justin Bieber about these reels. Im brand new to baitcasters I have never held one (Curado), never fished one (Curado).  I have looked at tons of review and tons of articles and only one thing really sticks out to me.  The plastic drag star.  It bothers me a lot.  I don't know why but does it make a difference to you guys? Do they break?  Are there other plastic components?  Yes I will get out to actually touch one but I'm just curious as to exactly why these reels are so good that it seems like a bunch of you would throw your lures at it on stage.

 

Thanks!

 

CYP

 

As anything in this world, s*t can happen and some of the graphite parts can break, the same goes to aluminum, it can bend and break, however, I don´t know about the latest Curados series, but until the G series Curados are THAT good at an affordable price. If wanted something better and had the money the next step was the Chronarch but it cost at least 50% more than the Curado.

[Teal]

I'm a Lews guys, but in my opinion, the curado has set the bar industry wide for durable work horse reels that perform well. No frills and bells just flat out performance where it counts. I've had a couple of the Bs and I still have one .. right now with the sales on them. It would be a good reel to have. Can't go wrong with Shimano. Especially when Curado is available for 100 or less.

[Smallmouth Hunter]

The thing about a curado is you can grind and grind day after day fishing with it and it will not fail you. That goes for any shimano. You can put hours upon hours on a single reel and no problems.

[F14A-B]

Fish one hard for a year..... Breaks in... Smooth like butter... The harder I fish them... The better they get! I like a alloy drag star better... But I have both and never ever have broke a graphite one..

I have bent a alloy one for sure.

Best reel for the money.. You bet !

Shimano has a very long list of awesome fishing reels at just about any price

[Delaware Valley Tackle]

 Plastic isn't such a dirty word word any more. There has been a lot of advancement in materials technology that has helped achieve the light weights we all like. I see a lot of reels and each manufacturer has features I like that would make the ultimate hybrid if it were possible to mix them together. You almost can't go wrong at the $150>price point. The Curado (including the G) is a work horse reel that performs well and best of all IMO is the simple Shimano design and user friendliness. 

[Hooked_On_Bass]

They are solid, proven work horse reels. They're smooth and you can upgrade them easily for little cost.  Fish one and in time you'll understand why guys love them.

Yup.

Another vote for the Curado! Great reels.

[ww2farmer]

I like them. I have beat on my 51E's for several years now with nothing more than a wipe down/back off of the drag at the end of the year, and spool bearing cleaning/re-lube,plus occasional lube on the level wind gear during the season The finish is pretty durable on them too. These reels always seem to be on the deck of my boat, and not hidden away in the locker, and they still look great...................but I don't even know what they weigh down to the last fraction of an ounce..........LMAO.......so I am probably not to be trusted.

[War Eagle 44]

I like them because of their dependability.  I used my old ones hard for 15 years, cleaned them up and sold them for nearly what I gave for them.  Not one of them ever had to have a part replaced.

 

I switched to new ones when the Es came out.  I may never buy another reel because they seem to be as dependable as the old ones that I had. 

 

I never found that with the D and G brands.

 

That last part surprises me, I think the D series is clearly the best all the way through the G series. Don't get me wrong here, I prefer to fish the E series reels on a day in day out basis but if I were given the ultimatum to pick one series of Curado's to fish for the rest of my life I'd go D series and wouldn't think twice. I'm fairly certain the E series would serve me just fine as well but I'm positive the D series would. This is, of course, assuming proper maintenance of both series when needed.

 

The new I series looks very very promising and I'm super excited to get my hands on one but I still have a little wait as the lefties won't be available until April.  

[roadwarrior]

The reels are worth additional investment. Consider supertuning your Curado.