Best round baitcaster combos.

[bulldog1935]

@Phil77 and @redmeansdistortion

A little bit of hyperbole there, but you can make them perform remarkably for slave-spool level-wind.  Ambassadeur free-spool was a clean sheet of paper in 1950, and it took another 30 years for the next big design jump (separating the LW from the spool). 

 

When I received my 1500C from Don Iovino with polished idler gear and Avail LW parts, it would free-spin 2 trips across the LW - 1 full cycle. Switching to Roro spool bearings increased that to 1-1/2 free spin cycles (3 trips across the LW worm gear).  

Swapping in the BB skeleton idler gear increased to 2 complete LW cycles in free spin.  

The really big step was switching to Avail 1520 7-g spool, which doubled the cast distance with 3 g - 40 to 80'.   

 

If you take the same approach with spool bearings and shallow light spool in a Daiwa SV, it will send that 3 g past 130'

 

My 4600 that I showed above is getting AMO microcast spool, Roro bearings, Avail magnet, and Valleyhill and Kagawa LW parts.  

[redmeansdistortion]

50 minutes ago, bulldog1935 said:

@Phil77 and @redmeansdistortion

A little bit of hyperbole there, but you can make them perform remarkably for slave-spool LW.  

When I received my 1000C from Don Iovino with polished idler gear and Avail LW parts, it would free-spin 2 trips across the LW - 1 full cycle. Switching to Roro spool bearings increased that to 1-1/2 free spin cycles (3 trips across the LW worm gear).  

Swapping in the BB skeleton idler increased to 2 complete LW cycles in free spin.  

The really big step was switching to Avail 1520 7-g spool, which doubled the cast distance with 3 g - 40 to 80'.   

 

If you take the same approach with spool bearings and shallow light spool in a Daiwa SV, it will send that 3 g past 130'

 

My 4600 that I showed above is getting AMO microcast spool, Roro bearings, Avail magnet, and Valleyhill and Kagawa LW parts.  

This is my own 4500, nothing special outside of the drag washers.  These are the 25 year old spool bearings no less, shields removed and dipped in a solution of 1 part TSI 321 and 8 parts 99% IPA.  The worm gear, idler gear post, and axle were treated with the same stuff.  This is without brake blocks installed, I typically run one black and one blue, my pier reel I use when the salmon run comes up in the late summer.  Just good old fashioned elbow grease and choice lubricants.  It'll throw a 3oz meat rig out of sight on my 10'6" Lamiglas. 

 

My inspiration doing this stemmed from a heated discussion I had with a Japanese YouTuber.  He had a video of a red 4500CS Rocket that was outfitted with 7 bearings, I explained to him that he could achieve similar results by polishing the friction points.  I then shot this video to show him what can be done without emptying the wallet.  He and I still chat regularly 2 years later, really nice guy. Remember, tuning involves taking what's already there and making it perform better and requires a more nuanced approach than simply adding bearings.

 

 

[bulldog1935]

I improved on Don Iovino's good elbow grease and choice lubes - and after he told me that I wouldn't be able to.  

 

These reels certainly aren't dogs, but there's a growing amount of hyperbole on this thread.  

Mass and inertia are real and if you reduce either/both, you improve the reel.  

They offer parts that will reduce the mass of the LW by 80%

 

Imagine what you can do without a LW

[redmeansdistortion]

2 minutes ago, bulldog1935 said:

Mass and inertia are real and if you reduce either/both, you improve the reel.  

Exactly, and polishing along with a good lube reduces much of that inertia.  Generally speaking, buying up a bunch of bearings isn't going to improve an Ambassadeur much.  However, there are some examples, like your 1500C, where it does help since you are looking to throw really light baits.  For your average run of the mill Ambassadeur, it isn't necessary unless you're trying to put your wallet on a diet.  Svangsta builds a fine reel, their only downfall is that they tend to use more grease than parts which slows them up quite a bit.

[jimmyjoe]

6 hours ago, redmeansdistortion said:

Exactly, and polishing along with a good lube reduces much of that inertia.

 

No amount of polishing or lubricating has any effect on inertia. Inertia relates to MASS, either at rest or in motion, and the tendency to resist change. Polishing and lubricating have an effect on friction, which may sound the same but is totally different.     jj

  

[redmeansdistortion]

41 minutes ago, jimmyjoe said:

 

No amount of polishing or lubricating has any effect on inertia. Inertia relates to MASS, either at rest or in motion, and the tendency to resist change. Polishing and lubricating have an effect on friction, which may sound the same but is totally different.     jj

  

Thanks for the correction, I was thinking of it in terms of how friction affects inertia.

[bulldog1935]

Friction contributes to start-up inertia, because it's a force that has to be overcome to start the mass spinning. The less brake you have to use to limit start-up overshoot (the reaction to start-up jerk) the more of your cast energy goes into casting.  The other lesson learned on my 1500C, the centrifugal brake became pointless once the inertia was significantly reduced.  

 

Fishing 3 g isn't always the goal, and neither is casting to 130'.  These are measures of what you can gain.  In practice, what you gain is fishing whatever weight range with less effort and greater reliability.  

Of course you don't have to buy parts to improve a reel performance.  But the fact they're out there and add a measured improvement is worth communicating - it's also fun if you like the tinkering.  

 

I used to back up inshore with Tica Caiman until I had to try it fishing 3/8 oz one day (Lew's BB-25SW fell off the bad-match reel seat mid-cast).    

I found a great niche for the Caiman in offshore jigging, where it shines at casting 2 to 4 ounces (100 g).  While I'd rather have a Conquest, and might have one if offshore jigging was my go-to fishing, the $140 workhorse Caiman fills this niche pretty perfectly.  

 

 

 

[sculpinman]

Are there any combos that are good for salmon and bass? Rod and reel togather?

[bulldog1935]

Shimano Cardiff 300 and Ambassadeur 5600C4 both have the right line capacity.  

 

I would stick either on a Lamiglas X-11 LX 79 BC

 

This MH combo would fit your price range, and fish both.  

Could probably even take it to the surf.  

 

@sculpinman

I recommend 14-lb fluoro to cover both.  

Tough and forgiving with a learning curve.  

Set your drag to 4-1/2 to 5 lbs and land anything.  

 

Me, personally, I'd stick in a shallow spool and fish 27-35-lb X-braid, but that's me.  

Edited September 22, 2021 by bulldog1935
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[sculpinman]

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[sculpinman]

Are these the right one https://www.amazon.com/Lamiglas-LX-79BC-X-11-Fishing/dp/B00BG2ZTPM and https://www.abugarcia.com/products/ambassadeur-c4-round-reel-1315358?