Shimano Casting Reels

[WPCfishing]

I’m looking to buy 2 Shimano casting reels for Frog,Toad, Jigs.

i fish a lot of heavy cover so I need some power. I do a lot of bomb casting. Looked at the Curado 201 hg.

I like using 65# PowerPro, the reel doesn't hold much line.

 I need experienced opinion as to which reels I should be looking at.

Im not interested in any other brand. 

Only Shimano.

 

Thanks in advance.

[Alec McMillan]

I like Curado 70 for any heavy cover applications like frogs and flipping because I can palm the reel very well.

[WPCfishing]

3 minutes ago, Alec McMillan said:

I like Curado 70 for any heavy cover applications like frogs and flipping because I can palm the reel very well.

To small for bomb casting. 

I’m moving away from the Lew’s Super Duty reels. 

[flyfisher]

how far you trying to cast?  I mean the curado K will hold over 100 yards of 50lb braid

[Joseph Fang]

Go with the curado k. In my experience 2nd best all around whatever the application. I have mine paired with 65 lb power pro and the other 15 lb sunline, you would be able to bomb those jigs and frogs. 

[The Maestro]

Get a Bantam. You won't be disappointed but you will want another one.

[WRB]

65 lb Power Pro is .016 dia line! Most 100 to 200 series Shimano reels line capacity is about 80 to 100 yards of .016 dia line. When you say bomb a cast how far are you casting? I dought you can cast a frog over 50 yards, but let's say that is a long cast.

Casting off 50% of the reels line capacity radically impacts the IPT reducing it about 50% or around 16" IPT using gear ratio's around 7:1 with 30" IPT @ full spool.

So what's your budget and reel style preference; low profile? Tranx 300 series HG for example.

Tom

[Deleted account]

1 hour ago, flyfisher said:

how far you trying to cast?  I mean the curado K will hold over 100 yards of 50lb braid

Yes, and most serious froggers use 65 lb braid, which means when you bomb a frog, you will have 1/2 or less left of line on the spool, and your IPT will be quite low when you get a bite way out there. A 200 size reel makes the most sense for frogging with heavy braid. Buy hey, if a tiny reel works for you, have at it.

[hwright38]

The Curado is a good bet. I would highly doubt you'd cast off all the line off a 200 size reel, even with using heavy line. I can't cast all the 14lb mono off of my DC Curdado, with a tail wind, so I'm pretty sure you'll be fine with even more spool capacity. 

[bwjay]

Wow, we've got some professional casters here. I can't cast more than maybe 30 yards with 40lb Super8Slick V2 and I thought that was pretty good. Like BaitFinesse said, it would seem that too much further would make it difficult to detect strikes and get the right action on the bait. 60 yards is over half a football field... I feel like if I tried to cast that far with a 1/2oz frog/jig I would either fall over with the momentum, or backlash the reel, or both. Thumbs up to those who can actually do it and be accurate with it... maybe I'll get there some day.

 

If you're not trying to break the bank with the reels, the SLX is nice, but the spool is small so if you are a pro caster as I mentioned, it just might be too small for you. The Bantam is an absolutely fantastic reel, a joy to use, but the spool is small as well. I have not used any reels with a 200 size spool but it sounds like that is a hard requirement for you, so I would look no further than the Curado K. I would say XG to take up line quickly once you hit the strike zone, but you might want more torque for the heavy cover, so HG would probably be a safe bet.

[bwjay]

5 minutes ago, BaitFinesse said:

You don't need to be a pro caster to dump the spool with certain baits.  The 3 inch Terminator walking frog casts like a rocket.  That frog will dump the spool on even more controlled orientated braking profile like a Tatula SV.  It will insta-spool my TD Zillion with HLC spool.  

My Super Spook does bomb like a champ, so yeah with heavy baits I get that it's not that hard to reach the end of a spool. But I have never, not once, gotten close to that. Nor have I felt like I really needed to. But that may change.

[Jrob78]

11 hours ago, WPCfishing said:

I’m looking to buy 2 Shimano casting reels for Frog,Toad, Jigs.

i fish a lot of heavy cover so I need some power. I do a lot of bomb casting. Looked at the Curado 201 hg.

I like using 65# PowerPro, the reel doesn't hold much line.

 I need experienced opinion as to which reels I should be looking at.

Im not interested in any other brand. 

Only Shimano.

 

Thanks in advance.

If the Curado 200 doesn't hold enough line for you best I can tell your options are a Tranx 300 or a round reel if you want new. You can probably find some older discontinued curado models like the b or d that hold more line but I'm not sure how much.

[newyorktoiowa57]

Personally I think the Curado is too wide for frogging. I would recommend a Chronarch, as it is much more ergonomic, and still has brass gears unlike the Metanium. 

[jbsoonerfan]

50 minutes ago, bwjay said:

Wow, we've got some professional casters here. I can't cast more than maybe 30 yards with 40lb Super8Slick V2 and I thought that was pretty good. Like BaitFinesse said, it would seem that too much further would make it difficult to detect strikes and get the right action on the bait. 60 yards is over half a football field... I feel like if I tried to cast that far with a 1/2oz frog/jig I would either fall over with the momentum, or backlash the reel, or both. Thumbs up to those who can actually do it and be accurate with it... maybe I'll get there some day.

 

If you're not trying to break the bank with the reels, the SLX is nice, but the spool is small so if you are a pro caster as I mentioned, it just might be too small for you. The Bantam is an absolutely fantastic reel, a joy to use, but the spool is small as well. I have not used any reels with a 200 size spool but it sounds like that is a hard requirement for you, so I would look no further than the Curado K. I would say XG to take up line quickly once you hit the strike zone, but you might want more torque for the heavy cover, so HG would probably be a safe bet.

Nobody is throwing 110 yards of line off. These people have never been to a football field to actually see how far they are throwing. They may indeed be spooling their reel, but it's not 110 yards. 

[waymont]

If you want an excellent larger capacity reel the Tatula 150 is a fantastic reel.

[Gorris317]

I would get the Curado. Holds a lot of line. Mine has been really finicky when it comes to switching lures of different weights. If you use the same weight you should have no issues.

[Crankin4Bass]

I use a Chronarch 200e7 with 65lb power pro which works for me. I usually don’t throw anything more than 30 yards. Since you want more line capacity you may want to look at the Tranx 300 or Calcutta 300d. Both can hold 125 feet of 65lb power pro and have 30” ipt. I have a Calcutta 300d and use it for swimbaits.  The build quality on the Calcutta 300d is great and it’s super smooth. Still made in Japan. An old Curado 300e7 might also work for you but those are pretty expensive used. 

[FishTank]

I have both the Bantam and the Curado K and DC.  For the money> the K is great, for casting> the DC is the best and for power> the Bantam (think round reel but made in a low profile).  For the type of fishing you are talking about, I would get the Bantam.  I would also dial the line back to 50lb.  What are you going to do with 65lb that you can't do with 50lb?  You will get more line on the spool and still be able to pull in a tree stump. 

[Glaucus]

19 hours ago, jbsoonerfan said:

Nobody is throwing 110 yards of line off. These people have never been to a football field to actually see how far they are throwing. They may indeed be spooling their reel, but it's not 110 yards. 

Reminds me of people who insist they can throw a football 50+ yards until they're actually on a measured football field and it turns out they're only throwing 30 yards. 

[WPCfishing]

23 hours ago, bwjay said:

Wow, we've got some professional casters here. I can't cast more than maybe 30 yards with 40lb Super8Slick V2 and I thought that was pretty good. Like BaitFinesse said, it would seem that too much further would make it difficult to detect strikes and get the right action on the bait. 60 yards is over half a football field... I feel like if I tried to cast that far with a 1/2oz frog/jig I would either fall over with the momentum, or backlash the reel, or both. Thumbs up to those who can actually do it and be accurate with it... maybe I'll get there some day.

 

If you're not trying to break the bank with the reels, the SLX is nice, but the spool is small so if you are a pro caster as I mentioned, it just might be too small for you. The Bantam is an absolutely fantastic reel, a joy to use, but the spool is small as well. I have not used any reels with a 200 size spool but it sounds like that is a hard requirement for you, so I would look no further than the Curado K. I would say XG to take up line quickly once you hit the strike zone, but you might want more torque for the heavy cover, so HG would probably be a safe bet.

 

I bought a 201 and a 201 hg yesterday at Bass Pro. Still want 2 larger spooled reels. 

 

I cast 100’-150’ with Gambler toads. I bring them back through a lot of cover and look For a blow up in the openings. It’s a blast and I get some really nice bass. 

4 hours ago, FishTank said:

I have both the Bantam and the Curado K and DC.  For the money> the K is great, for casting> the DC is the best and for power> the Bantam (think round reel but made in a low profile).  For the type of fishing you are talking about, I would get the Bantam.  I would also dial the line back to 50lb.  What are you going to do with 65lb that you can't do with 50lb?  You will get more line on the spool and still be able to pull in a tree stump. 

I’ve been using 65... since I bought 2 of the Ks I’ll be doing exactly that.

 

4 hours ago, FishTank said:

I have both the Bantam and the Curado K and DC.  For the money> the K is great, for casting> the DC is the best and for power> the Bantam (think round reel but made in a low profile).  For the type of fishing you are talking about, I would get the Bantam.  I would also dial the line back to 50lb.  What are you going to do with 65lb that you can't do with 50lb?  You will get more line on the spool and still be able to pull in a tree stump. 

I’ll be checking out the Bantam tonight... 

[Shimano_1]

Apparently I dont put near as much thought into frog fishing as some of you guys and it's my favorite technique.  I'm currently using a high speed shimano slx with 50 lb braid and a 7'2 med heavy rod. I can bomb the frogs as far as anyone would need to and have had no problems of any kind with this setup. I used to use 65 but as noted above realized theres absolutely nothing I could do with 65 that I cant do with 50...plus the reel holds more line and for whatever reason 50 is cheaper at my local Walmart. You're gonna love the k's but the slx reels have blown me away. Got em all for 80 bucks a piece and one combo for 140

[WPCfishing]

On 6/28/2019 at 11:39 AM, WPCfishing said:

To small for bomb casting. 

I’m moving away from the Lew’s Super Duty reels. 

I have 2 of them. So far a disappointment. Maybe Mike can square them away with a servicing. 

18 hours ago, Glaucus said:

Reminds me of people who insist they can throw a football 50+ yards until they're actually on a measured football field and it turns out they're only throwing 30 yards. 

 

I generally bomb cast 100-150 with the wind behind me. I like the 65 in heavy cover.. it doesn’t find its way down between line layers. 50 should be good on the Ks. Although I wound them with 65. Wasn’t an issue. They cast great. I’m impressed.

[JustJames]

On 6/28/2019 at 7:51 PM, jbsoonerfan said:

Nobody is throwing 110 yards of line off. These people have never been to a football field to actually see how far they are throwing. They may indeed be spooling their reel, but it's not 110 yards. 

As @WRBmention 65lb pp is 0.016” diameter that around 17-20lb most of mono/copolymer or 14lb Trilene XT.