Revo Sx Set-Up Help

[Washout]

I have two other baitcasters and I can't find the happy place on this reel. I'm getting minor overruns on low effort medium length casts. I'm running spool tension higher on this than I am on my black max and lots more than on my lew's speed spool. I have 10 lb fluoro on this one, and the other two have braid. I have had braid on this and found it to do the same as well. If I tie on a big ol' spinner, jig or crankbait I can let loose, but I can't get it to function worth a darn with my larger t-rigs. I've gone to just pitching with it the minute we get a breeze and I hate having my decent equipment being underutilized. All three reels have the mag brakes in the middle.

The lew's I can run the loosest on spool tension and work into the wind okay with. It's clamped onto a 7'2" medium heavy abu rod with 50# braid. I use this as my heavy cover and frog rod.

The black max is on a 7' medium micro guide GSX rod with 40# braid. I can fish this thing in 30 mph headwinds, is only slightly tighter spool than the lew's in almost all scenarios and it only backlashes when I try to bomb a cast. This is mainly a topwater rod and sometimes a worm/jig rod if something is working well.

The revo is on a 7' abu vendetta with 10# fluoro. Mainly a jig/worm rod, some cranks or spinners.

Is there something I'm missing? I'm getting really frustrated pulling off four to six feet of line for a 25 foot cast. If I go farther, it comes out of it. Any suggestions or input is appreciated.

[Diggy]

I have a gen 2 revo sx, what I do is make the spool as loose as it can be without any side to side play and then turn the brakes way up. I have 0 problems this way, I used to have tons of probs setting it up the "traditional" way. Im usually 3/4 of the way to max and if its a light bait sometimes im within 2 clicks of maxing out. I used to hate this reel but its one of my favs.

[Washout]

Sweet! I'll give that a whirl next round out. Thank you.

[bootytrain]

What weight lures are you throwing?  I had the 2nd gen SX and it casted great for heavier stuff and long casts. Its got a really heavy spool so if you are throwing anything under half an oz it might give problems

[CJV]

Sounds like the issue I had ... Seems to me that Abu Garcias are very hard to keep tame. Just dump it and get a Shimano.

[Diggy]

What weight lures are you throwing?  I had the 2nd gen SX and it casted great for heavier stuff and long casts. Its got a really heavy spool so if you are throwing anything under half an oz it might give problems

With the way I have it set up, I cast 1/4 oz walmart spinner baits with no problems.

[tritondriver]

there is a setup video on youtube on the SX there may be something in it that your missing, seems like the only time i have problem with the sx is when tossing weightless senkos but working on that one...all the others working fine...

[Tywithay]

Fluoro is much more dense than braid and will require more braking. If you only use it for short-ish casts, I'd remove the line, then add about a half spool of mono or braid, then fill the rest with your fluoro. This will make the spool lighter and improve the braking on the spool. It will also improve startup inertia, which may make casting take a little less effort.

[craww]

I have a gen 2 revo sx, what I do is make the spool as loose as it can be without any side to side play and then turn the brakes way up. I have 0 problems this way, I used to have tons of probs setting it up the "traditional" way. Im usually 3/4 of the way to max and if its a light bait sometimes im within 2 clicks of maxing out. I used to hate this reel but its one of my favs.

This is the exact way a friend and I use our 1st Gen Sx's (mine has 2nd gen brake upgrade). It seems weird running the brake so high, but it works. These reels arent perfect but they are tanks. I mainly use mine with a heavy rod for squarebills, buzzbaits, and spinnerbaits.

As mentioned by another poster, there is a video out there somewhere that I believe mentions a specific way to set the mag brake and cast control together, I havent seen the vid or tried the method.

[frantzracing0]

Sounds like the issue I had ... Seems to me that Abu Garcias are very hard to keep tame. Just dump it and get a Shimano.

 

Another shimano fan boy, dont get me wrong shimano makes a great reel but so does Abu Garcia and plenty of others. I have owned plenty of revos including the stx, sx and my actual favorite of the bunch the revo s (cheapest revo they make but I LOVE mine) and have had no issues in "taming" my reels. I have owned a few shimano as well including the chronarch e series, an older greenie bantam, and a g series curado (did not like this one at all) and they are great too.

[Washout]

I really appreciate all the input. I'm going to try the magnetic brake trick first, if it doesn't work I'll tie on braid under my fluoro line and if that doesn't work, I have an expensive pitching reel. I would have tried it out today, but we had some serious wind to contend with today. Needless to say, the sx stayed at home. I don't trust that bugger to try it out in 30 mph gusts.

[ww2farmer]

Sounds like the issue I had ... Seems to me that Abu Garcias are very hard to keep tame. Just dump it and get a Shimano.

Let me translate this for everyone...................." I don't know how to use a casting reel with magnetic brakes, so I say silly things on the interwebz."

 

I have, and have had both Revo's with mag brakes, and Shimano's.... OP....to set that SX up right...set the spool loose, and the mags on HIGH....back the mags off and the tighten the spool .....both TWO CLICKS at a time....till you find the "happy" place....works every time. And if it still gives you trouble, you can SLOW the bearings down with a few extra drops of oil....yes more oil will make them run slower, and I have seen it help many many times.

[Washout]

So, to clarify the last reply: I set the spool loose. As in free-spooling?

Set the brake at max and make a cast or just release it and see how fast the lure is falling? I hate to sound stupid, but I want to clarify before I blow this thing up.

[Tywithay]

So, to clarify the last reply: I set the spool loose. As in free-spooling?

Set the brake at max and make a cast or just release it and see how fast the lure is falling? I hate to sound stupid, but I want to clarify before I blow this thing up.

Loosen the tension until it's extremely loose. If you grab the spool with your thumb and index finger, you should be able to shake it back and forth quite a bit. Now start tightening the tension knob until that side-to-side motion stops. Once I get to that point, I usually add a bit more tension to be safe. Now set the mag brakes as high as they'll go, then go throw a few casts. Make sure your thumb is ready to slow it down just in case, but the brakes should do their job. If you're using heavier lures, you may need to add a little extra to the tension. If the brakes are doing their job and you got the tension set, start backing off the mag one click at a time until you start to flare the line up, then click it back up one and you're set. I do this with all my magnetic reels and it has yet to fail me. I'm not a fan of centrifugal brakes at all and get much more distance out of my magnetic reels, so I have just stuck with this process.

[ww2farmer]

No not loose as in ZERO tension, but a little looser than normal. Turn the mags up ALL THE WAY. Make a cast, if it's not the distance you want (And I doubt it will be), turn the Mags DOWN 2-3 clicks, and add a TINY bit more spool tension....keep doing this until you are casting as far as you want with the least amount of "issues"....your still going to have to use your thumb, it's just a fact of life for most casting reels.

[Washout]

Got it. Thanks for the clarification fellas. I would have gotten that wrong. This reel is just so strange to me. It's smoother than the others so I figured there was something I was missing. It sounds like I have some more learning to do with it. It would have been nice of abu to mention one or two of these tips in the manual. I'm looking forward to getting this thing dialed in. I really want it on a different rod, but I was gunshy about it. It can cast a mile and do it with ease, but it just always flared on me right in the middle of long and short casts. Never really bad, just about two or three feet of loose line I had to pull out. At any rate, thank you guys for the advice.

[Delaware Valley Tackle]

Let me translate this for everyone...................." I don't know how to use a casting reel with magnetic brakes, so I say silly things on the interwebz."

 

I have, and have had both Revo's with mag brakes, and Shimano's.... OP....to set that SX up right...set the spool loose, and the mags on HIGH....back the mags off and the tighten the spool .....both TWO CLICKS at a time....till you find the "happy" place....works every time. And if it still gives you trouble, you can SLOW the bearings down with a few extra drops of oil....yes more oil will make them run slower, and I have seen it help many many times.

Yup, modifying the viscosity (thickness) and amount of oil in the spool bearings is one of the ways we fine tune reels. Very slight changes make a noticeable difference.

[aavery2]

I think to set up any reel correctly it is important to understand the equipment that you are using and how it operates. Magnetic braking reels apply braking force differently and are most effective at a different point in the cast than their centrifugal counterparts. Magnetic reels apply a magnetic resistance to the spool that is varied by moving the magnets closer or further away from the spool surface they affect. Magnetic brakes are most effective at lower spool speeds, or towards the end of the cast as the spinning of the spool has less ability to overcome the magnetic resistance. Magnetic reels are more likely to have overruns at the beginning of the cast when the spool speed is at its highest and the brakes have the least amount of affect on the spool.

In my opinion setting the spool loose on these reels is not a good method, this only perpetuates the ability of the spool to spin even faster at the beginning of the cast. Instead, my preferred method and one that works well in my fishing is to set the magnetic brakes at their lowest setting, we do not want them to be a part of the setup at this point. I then set the spool tension high enough that the weight of the bait will not move the spool while disengaged. I then adjust the spool tension to a setting that just barely allows the weight of the bait to pull line off the spool. Setting the spool tension this way will slow the spool down at the beginning of the cast. Now set your magnetic brakes to a med high setting, 5-7 is a good starting point, and begin casting, adjust the brakes higher or lower as needed, if you have the brakes backed all the way off, then you will need to loosen the spool tension slightly and then set the brakes back at a medium high setting and start again. This method works, it may not be the best or fastest way to prevent overruns but I guarantee that if you follow this procedure it will greatly reduce the number of backlashes you will experience.

I prefer magnetic based reels for pitching, or any other technique where the spool does not reach very high speeds, I find this braking more effective than centrifugal for these applications because centrifugal braking is dependent upon spool speed to actuate the brake blocks. Also try to make smooth casts, whipping or snapping the rod during the cast increases spool speed greatly and can cause overruns at the beginning of the cast.

hope it helps

[Delaware Valley Tackle]

Good points. Horsing a cast with any reel is the surest way to make a mess of things, maybe even more so with mag only brakes.

[Smallmouth Hunter]

With the way I have it set up, I cast 1/4 oz walmart spinner baits with no problems.

a 1/4 oz spinnerbait is not really a 1/4 oz. With the weight of the blades, hook, and wire it comes out to over 3/8 oz easily.

[Washout]

All good points aavery, but my issue with this one in particular was the mid length casts. I can toss this one, I just can't get it to settle down on the twenty five to thirty footers. Again, nothing was terribly wrong, just kind of fluffed up at that point. If I didn't have other things I have to do tonight, I'd be out testing these tricks right now. I'm sure I'm not perfect casting a b/c but I can do it on my other two, even in the wind, but this one has given me fits. Even after reading the manual, I was sure I was missing something. I'll report back in a couple days to see what helps out on this after all of the input I received. Which, I am very thankful for.

[Washout]

Had time to play with it. Tried a few different things and ended up with a looser spool by one click and adding two clicks from where I was previously. Casting feels exactly the same as before, but got rid of the fluffy line. Thanks guys!

[Diggy]

a 1/4 oz spinnerbait is not really a 1/4 oz. With the weight of the blades, hook, and wire it comes out to over 3/8 oz easily.

Good to know for reference. I also cast 1/4 oz rattle traps on it and worms with a small bullet weights without probs.

[ShimanoDobynsGuy]

Sounds like the issue I had ... Seems to me that Abu Garcias are very hard to keep tame. Just dump it and get a Shimano.

The only thing a Shimano has that I will use their spinning Reels.. Other then that hands down Abu Garcia. don't understand why people feel they need to come into threads and say something that has nothing to do with the topic..

Sorry for ranting I have a couple gen 2 SXs and have not had any issues with them but I do tend to throw heavier baits. And mainly use my premieres... Sorry couldn't be of more assistance. . GL when you get it set rite she will cast great. .

[Washout]

I was using a brush hog and a 1/8 oz bullet weight on it. Any smaller and I use my spinning gear. I've thrown this combo on my other two using traditional set-ups and they did it with ease. This one just was much more finicky and I didn't know if it was something simple (which it kind of was) or it was a different way of doing it altogether. I thought I was close with it since it only did it at a very specific distance. Any closer to me and it was fine, another five feet and beyond it was just as good. Even if it was something I was doing it's fixed now. It worked out great yesterday, so I'll see if it holds up as well in the wind like the black max does. The only issue I've had on that reel was when I clipped the weeds with the lure fishing off a dam from the bank. That was a mess. Entirely my fault, but I got bass blinded. Fish have been biting like crazy lately!