Balancing Combos .

[Elwood aka Ted Striker.]

You alright fellas.

My new daiwa tatula type r came this morning and being my first baitcaster and the first I have seen in the flesh I was quite impressed .

When I put it on my TBC610MLXF Drop Shot/Finesse 6'10" ML X-Fast 1 6 - 10 1/8 - 1/2 3.8oz the combo didn't feel that light and not very balanced .

Being my first baitcasting combo and as I only have my abu garcia veritas 7' 2" medium light / abu garcia revo premier prm20 spinning combo to compare the weight and balance to ......................

Should I return post the reel to the internet shop and get something lighter? Or is it that I'm just used to the weight of the reel hanging from the rod in my hand as opposed to sitting on the rod in my hand?

The st croix and daiwa tat combine a weight of 11.5 ounces when paired together so is that really that heavy or is it just not being used to the weight fixed on top of the rod?

What would be a nice weight to balance a 3.8 casting rod?

Like I have said before I can't see or try before I buy so I am buying blind ok.

The daiwa tat r cost me $212.55 including postage in the uk .

The shimano reels are nearly 2x that amount which I wasn't really wanting to pay for my first baitcaster Incase I didn't like them aye.

Should I send the daiwa tatula type r back and get the lighter shimano usual suspects or should I persevere with it and get used to the weight being on top of the rod?

What do you reckon fellas?

[Elwood aka Ted Striker.]

Is there anything I can do to make the daiwa tatula type r lighter by at least 1 - 2 ounces?

[Tywithay]

Making the reel lighter will only make the rod less balanced.

[TetraFish'n]

 

As far as the balance is concerned, if the setup is tip heavy you can simply add a little weight to the butt of the rod to balance things out. I regularly do this with all of my setups. I wrap hollow-core lead around the butt of the rod. With a little experimentation you will be able to achieve the desired balance. This allows for a much more efficient combination. The arms will experience less fatigue and depending on the weight of the lure, you may increase your casting distance by a small margin.

 

I will also wrap electrical tape on top of the lead to prevent it from getting on my hands.

 

[John G]

Most of my reels are on the heavier side and all of the rods that I use are lightweight IMHO. To be honest, an 8 oz reel on a lightweight rod is something I don't even think about. Maybe if I fished for a living I would think about it, but I have never understood or cared about how a combo balances.

[jbsoonerfan]

My guess is it has something to do with the way you are holding the rod. If you are palming the reel then it should balance very well. If you are holding the rod and not palming the reel, then I would imagine that is where the issue is. If you are new to baitcasting, it make take some getting use to.

 

This is what I mean by palming. BTW, that type R only weighs 7.6 oz, that is not very heavy.

 

[.RM.]

Here is my take on when (from my website), and why you should attempt to add weight
to the butt (for a neutral balance) of your bass rods.

"WHEN: Only if it will enhance the performance characteristics (usually sensitivity) of the rod for a particular technique".

Tight Line Moving Lures
Blades, Cranks, Buzz baits, etc. The rod is always loaded when using these lures. There isn't any amount of weight you can add to the butt that will neutral balance the weight and pull of the lure with these techniques (I would add weight ONLY for a requested balance point other than neutral).

Flippin Sticks
These long bass rods (7&1/2 & 8 ft) are always tip heavy and could use some weight to make them feel better. I would NEVER add weight to a Flippin Stick, they are already heavy enough.......

Jump Lures
Jigs, Worms, Spoons, etc. These are slack line techniques and tip heavy rods can be made more sensitive by adding weight to the butt.

NOTE: If your using high end/high modules rods (GLX, SHX, RX8, SCV, etc.) for these techniques, there is little advantage to adding weight to a lightweight high-performance rod to enhance it's sensitivity.

 

Just an old rod builders .02¢

 

Tight Lines!

[hatrix]

What is it that made you go with the Type-R over the normal tatula? They are both excellent reels but did it have some features you wanted that the normal Tatula did not provide?

I only really ask because with it being your first setup if Iunderstand correct there is no real significant difference in the 2 except for price. I only say this because that is another $100 you could put towards a amazing rod or another rod/reel for another setup.

[Elwood aka Ted Striker.]

Cheers for your replies fellas .

Keeper I think your spot on there fella aye.

Feels a lot different when you hold the the rod like in the picture doesn't it. Lol .

I will be checking out some videos on YouTube later as when I received the reel the excitement followed by disappointment over ruled common sense and logic which should have prevailed really aye .

What made me get the type r hatrix?

It's limited in the uk for baitcasters unless you want abu garcia blue max - revo .

The type r was the only one in stock in right hand retrieve most over here that do fish baitcasters are left hand retrievers .

The seller I bought it from knocked $20.00 off of the original price and if I wanted the standard version I would of had to wait 2 weeks + for it to be imported from the states and still would have cost me $178.78 which when converted into sterling doesn't look as bad as it does in dollars no what I mean.

So it sort of picked its self aye.

We pay a lot more for baitcasters and and bass rods over here in the uk .

The shimano chronarch 51mg in only left hand retrieve are $398.07 .

The shimano core 100d7 in left hand retrieve only are $516.16 .

As most freshwater fisherman in the uk fish for coarse fish with float or ledger tactics most hold the rod in there right hand for casting and use open spool reels like your spinning reels and reel with there left hand so it's even harder to find a right hand retrieve baitcaster outside of abu garcia in the uk .

So that extra $100.00 to you guys is actually $200.00 to us aye.

.RM. Any recommendations on modifications, upgrade parts or tuning That can be done to the reel to maximise casting distance, smoothness and shedding any weight fella?

[Elwood aka Ted Striker.]

Adding weight also sounds good if I need fellas aye.

Why don't rods come with removable butt caps with various balancing weights to be added if needed or a selection of various weighted butt caps? Has it already been done or do I smell money. Lol .

[John G]

We pay a lot more for baitcasters and and bass rods over here in the uk .

Can you import from Japan? If so, have you ever considered buying JDM reels (Japanese Domestic Market)? Japan Lure Shop. Com has new Shimano Aldebaran MG7's for under $300.00 USD. I have bought a couple of reels from them recently and everything on their end went smooth. BTW, the Aldebaran MG7 is basically the same as the Core 50.

[Tywithay]

Adding weight also sounds good if I need fellas aye.

Why don't rods come with removable butt caps with various balancing weights to be added if needed or a selection of various weighted butt caps? Has it already been done or do I smell money. Lol .

There's been a handful of different designs on the market for balancing kits.

[Elwood aka Ted Striker.]

Can I import from japan JohnG? I checked out jim and also importing from you guys but didn't want to wait for it to arrive .

The jdm daiwa tatula type r is like nearly 2oz lighter than the the American version isn't it? What's with that?

When I get my g loomis nrx or st croix legend elite/xtreme which will be imported from you guys ,

I will get an imported reel to compliment it depending on my decision of a casting or spinning rod aye.

This baitcaster I purchased is for a st croix legend tournement bass rod which I got over here brand new for a third of the average price it costs over here ,

An absolute steal aye.

The sooner I get to grips with the baitcasting combo I have the sooner I can make my decision of what I want to get and the sooner I can buy the combo that I really want .

With import taxes, duty, international postage, shipping handling fees and so on it's still going to work out fairly costly isn't it and how long do they take to arrive. I think its upto 21 days or something isn't it. What can you do aye.

You alright Twithay.

How's you fella.

Them bass been biting lol .

So the balancing kit designs, are any really popular?

[Lendiesel22]

Go to a home improvement store and geta 4 pack of chair foot caps. Use washers to get the feel you want then elect tape over the cap. It hides well and allows for finding the right feel for you by adding and subtracting washers.

[John G]

I have been lucky in that I have never been hit with the import tax (import penalty). Japan Tackle charges me $20.00 and Japan Lure Shop charges around $14.00 USD to ship to Florida. Shipping is around 4 or 5 days to the U. S.

[Elwood aka Ted Striker.]

Lendiesel22 great idea fella aye but isn't there a way around using electrical tape? Butt caps with specially fitted weights from the rod designers as standard with all models would be a better way wouldn't it fella?

John G you fellas have got it good aye and the species of fish you have fella .

We got European perch over hear to just over 6lb ,

Pike like you guys have ,

European zander or walleye as you guys call them and chub , which are in rivers only and lure fishing is no way near as popular here .

There is a lot less of the species here in our rivers and they aren't stocked the way you guys have it either so you guys have got it awesome fella aye.

[Lendiesel22]

I experimented with elect tape and hockey stick tape. Most of the balancing kits in my area are for threaded bass pro shop rods and just would not work with most split grip rods. The hockey tape is more tacky, but peels up easily. The electric tape gave it a better look and does not peel up after a days use. It was the extent of my experiment bc the elect tape got the job done. I would assume there are 100 other ways to do it, but this way hide well and looked fine. Now I am moving to *** black rods, I will see in a few days if this approach will be needed to balance them. I hear great things about balance with these rods. 

[Delaware Valley Tackle]

Here is my take on when (from my website), and why you should attempt to add weight

to the butt (for a neutral balance) of your bass rods.

"WHEN: Only if it will enhance the performance characteristics (usually sensitivity) of the rod for a particular technique".

Tight Line Moving Lures

Blades, Cranks, Buzz baits, etc. The rod is always loaded when using these lures. There isn't any amount of weight you can add to the butt that will neutral balance the weight and pull of the lure with these techniques (I would add weight ONLY for a requested balance point other than neutral).

Flippin Sticks

These long bass rods (7&1/2 & 8 ft) are always tip heavy and could use some weight to make them feel better. I would NEVER add weight to a Flippin Stick, they are already heavy enough.......

Jump Lures

Jigs, Worms, Spoons, etc. These are slack line techniques and tip heavy rods can be made more sensitive by adding weight to the butt.

NOTE: If your using high end/high modules rods (GLX, SHX, RX8, SCV, etc.) for these techniques, there is little advantage to adding weight to a lightweight high-performance rod to enhance it's sensitivity.

 

Just an old rod builders .02¢

 

Tight Lines!

X2 Couldn't agree more. 

[SirSnookalot]

I personally don't balance any rod and reel combination, I do take into consideration how well the reel feels on the rod and for me rod foregrip and rear butt are important.  I vary my lure weights on everything I use, I could never achieve perfect balance.

[deadadrift89]

This might be of use to you.

http://www.jannsnetcraft.com/butt-caps/023022100008.aspx

I use as Lendiesel22 stated above. Heavy duy chair leg tip protectors from hardware store. I use quarters for weight and no electrical tape. I only do this with my worm and jig rods