Brett's_daddy Posted March 4, 2019 Posted March 4, 2019 Well, I made the trek to the nearest BPS (2 hr. 15 minute drive) yesterday and checked out some of the reels. First off I got to check out the Shimano SLX. Let me say I'm impressed. For $99 that is one sweet little reel which brings me to the most impressive aspect...it's size. When I say sweet "little" reel It's no joke, that is one compact and dare I say tiny reel...I can easily palm it and I have average to small hands. It just looks and feels like a quality reel, nothing about it feels cheap IMO. Next reel I looked at was the Daiwa Tatula SV. Very impressive reel...it just looks sexy and feels very smooth and solid. By comparison to the SLX the SV is a giant. I would definitely have a much harder time palming that than the SLX but I could still do it. The next reel was the Curado DC. Very nice looking reel...very refined looking, not as sexy as the SV but still sleek and polished leaving no doubt that it's pure quality, not quite as large as the SV but definitely bigger than the SLX. The last reel I looked at was the Quantum Smoke S3 KVD Edition. That is one nice looking reel! Very sharp features with the red/black color scheme...it just looks really nice! Probably size-wise it's around the same as the Curado. I was impressed by the deep spool it has...that Smoke can hold a lot of line and with a 25lb. drag that would be a perfect big swim bait reel. The last bit of info I learned was directly from a knowledageabl BPS fishing staff, that the BPS Pro Qualifier is made of an Abu Garcia base with Abu brakes, bearings, level wind etc. Now some people here probably already new that so that's not the most interesting tidbit, what is more interesting than that is this years Pro Qualifiers are the last based on an Abu reel. With their acquisition of Cabelas the next generation of Pro Qualifiers will be made by Daiwa (Daiwa of course makes all of the Cabelas house reels). So, if you have an affinity for Abu reels and like the Pro Qualifier as it's currently constructed I would advise you to grab one of this years models because next year they'll be quite different! Quote
Super User Fishes in trees Posted March 4, 2019 Super User Posted March 4, 2019 Congratulations, you ran into something that I didn't believe existed, i.e. a "knowledgeable BPS fishing staff". Every so often, I go to the Independence, MO store, never ran into one there. In fact, they've mastered the art of instantly doing a 90 degree or 180 degree turn if they happen to be walking down some aisle that you're in. Excuse the rant, just over the years I've found BPS a frustrating place to shop. I like their aquariums though. I presume at the BPS store in Springfield they still have the monster Alligator Snapping Turtle in a separate tank. That beast is cool and it never gets old looking at that thing. 1 Quote
CrankFate Posted March 5, 2019 Posted March 5, 2019 Take a look at the Lews combos at dicks. The black rods with green grips with black reel with green grips. The rods are a bit heavy and rubbery. But the reels are tiny and unbelievably light. I was surprised by these. I wanted to take the reel off to weigh it. 1 Quote
Super User Jrob78 Posted March 5, 2019 Super User Posted March 5, 2019 Abu Garcia, Lews, Pflueger and some BPS reels made by the same company in Korea. They aren't Abu Garcia based reels, they are Doyo reels, that's why they're all similar and some even share parts. 2 Quote
Super User MN Fisher Posted March 5, 2019 Super User Posted March 5, 2019 34 minutes ago, Jrob78 said: Abu Garcia, Lews, Pflueger and some BPS reels made by the same company in Korea. They aren't Abu Garcia based reels, they are Doyo reels, that's why they're all similar and some even share parts. From a post back in 2014 "Abu's low-profile reels, Lew's reels, Pflueger baitcasters, and the BPS Pro Qualifier and Johnny Morris Signature Series baitcasters are all made by Doyo in Korea. Abu Garcia's round reels from the C3 on up are still made in Sweden." Quote
Scuba Steve Posted March 5, 2019 Posted March 5, 2019 My latest BPS experience... ”Sir just curious if I could check out the tatula SV in the 8:1. “Well do you have our credit card? You know-“ ”Bye.” But for real, I was looking at the SLX too. I probably would have bought one if they didn’t go with the big high school looking logo on it. Definitely a sweet little reel though. Quote
greentrout Posted March 5, 2019 Posted March 5, 2019 where is a source i can read and see other than some poster stating such and such without one ... facts as in a court of law ... good fishing ... 1 Quote
Super User MN Fisher Posted March 5, 2019 Super User Posted March 5, 2019 25 minutes ago, greentrout said: where is a source i can read and see other than some poster stating such and such without one ... facts as in a court of law ... good fishing ... Well, one confirmation here that some are made in Asia. My Pflueger President was made in China. Quote
Super User NYWayfarer Posted March 5, 2019 Super User Posted March 5, 2019 12 hours ago, CrankFate said: Take a look at the Lews combos at dicks. The black rods with green grips with black reel with green grips. The rods are a bit heavy and rubbery. But the reels are tiny and unbelievably light. I was surprised by these. I wanted to take the reel off to weigh it. I believe you are talking about the Lew's Mach 2 I have a Mach 2 size 100 reel for Trout and Panfish. Very light and durable aluminum framed reel. One of my favorites. Fishing for Bluegill I landed a 3 and a half pound Smallmouth using this reel spooled with 6# line 1 Quote
Rbunton87 Posted March 5, 2019 Posted March 5, 2019 I've been looking at the slx to put on my new squarebill rod, I just cant get past that giant ugle logo on the side. Quote
Brett's_daddy Posted March 6, 2019 Author Posted March 6, 2019 10 hours ago, Rbunton87 said: I've been looking at the slx to put on my new squarebill rod, I just cant get past that giant ugle logo on the side. I don't know, I think the logo looks kinda' sweet myself. Some people don't like flashy and prefer a more simplistic approach but to each their own :). Quote
Super User Boomstick Posted March 6, 2019 Super User Posted March 6, 2019 Funny, I went to pick up my girlfriend from her mom's house on Saturday morning and on the way there, I stopped at Bass Pro Shops too, in fact I believe it would be the same one in Hooksett, NH. You weren't there with your son and ran into a guy buying pink power worms talking about how sometimes the weirdest color soft plastics can be effective who pointed out that they had a half off sale on Berkley Trilene Flurocarbon by chance? That would be ironic if that was you. Quote
Brett's_daddy Posted March 6, 2019 Author Posted March 6, 2019 11 hours ago, Boomstick said: Funny, I went to pick up my girlfriend from her mom's house on Saturday morning and on the way there, I stopped at Bass Pro Shops too, in fact I believe it would be the same one in Hooksett, NH. You weren't there with your son and ran into a guy buying pink power worms talking about how sometimes the weirdest color soft plastics can be effective who pointed out that they had a half off sale on Berkley Trilene Flurocarbon by chance? That would be ironic if that was you. The same store but it wasn't us...lol. 1 Quote
Super User Boomstick Posted March 6, 2019 Super User Posted March 6, 2019 5 minutes ago, Brett's_daddy said: The same store but it wasn't us...lol. Too bad. That would have been an epic small world moment. 1 Quote
Super User Log Catcher Posted March 6, 2019 Super User Posted March 6, 2019 There are two BPS stores that I can go to. One is about 80 miles away and the other one is about 115 miles away. There have been many times in both stores they have asked if I needed any help. I usually tell the I'm just looking to see if they have anything I don't already have. Honestly when I have needed help with something they have been very good at taking care of whatever I needed. One fellow at the closer store does fishing demos and his recommendations about which baits to use have been very good. 1 Quote
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