What is your all time sleeper baitcaster?

[J Francho]

26 minutes ago, Tatulatard said:

I see.  The big core.  That one is a few years older and a metanium.  Same principal probably applies.  If you find your self hunting down a core of any size, check for the jdm reel under a different name and you may be pleasantly surprised by the prices you find.  This used to be the case.  I'm sure the word has gotten around by now.

http://www.tackletour.com/reviewshimanocore.html

This is the second time this millennium the Yen has been weak. For years, JDM meant paying a 40-50% premium over USDM. 

[roadwarrior]

11 minutes ago, J Francho said:

This is the second time this millennium the Yen has been weak. For years, JDM meant paying a 40-50% premium over USDM. 

https://www.digitaka.com/item/5/4/1/4969363040268

 

That's $145 USD

[J Francho]

13 minutes ago, roadwarrior said:

That's $145 USD

Exactly, that's like 2005 prices.  If I was buying, I'd be looking at JDM.  I have plenty right now though.

[Tatulatard]

24 minutes ago, J Francho said:

This is the second time this millennium the Yen has been weak. For years, JDM meant paying a 40-50% premium over USDM. 

Doesn't apply to these two reels in the used market.  There are simply more metanium mg7s available than core 100.  The exchange rate could be flipped the other way around and the metanium mg7 would still be cheaper.   Ebay isn't the best example but it illustrates the point.  If you want a core and don't like the lack of reels on the used market or the prices they want for them then you can fortunately get the same reel in a different name with different paint for cheaper.  This is what makes them sleepers in comparison to the core.

 

[J Francho]

You're making the same point. No one would pay that much, even for NOS with todays prices. 

[FrogInTheWell]

Thanks for all of the replies...some very interesting sleepers and some reels that are not remotely sleepers too!  

[FishTank]

On 8/23/2022 at 3:05 PM, Tatulatard said:

Doesn't apply to these two reels in the used market.  There are simply more metanium mg7s available than core 100.  The exchange rate could be flipped the other way around and the metanium mg7 would still be cheaper.   Ebay isn't the best example but it illustrates the point.  If you want a core and don't like the lack of reels on the used market or the prices they want for them then you can fortunately get the same reel in a different name with different paint for cheaper.  This is what makes them sleepers in comparison to the core.

 

 

I have an MG7, the Core 101 and the 51. The MG7 to me is not the same reel. It feels totally different than the Core despite looking identical. I looked for years for another Core and always was tempted by the MG7's but the more I researched I steered away from it. 

 

[Tatulatard]

6 hours ago, FishTank said:

 

I have an MG7, the Core 101 and the 51. The MG7 to me is not the same reel. It feels totally different than the Core despite looking identical. I looked for years for another Core and always was tempted by the MG7's but the more I researched I steered away from it. 

 

How does it feel different?  Smoothness?  Thats a variable even among the same reels although there may be a deffence in gear material.   With the 50 reel the core had hardened gearing to "better suit the harder hooksets of american anglers" and this was thrown around to explain why the core 50 was less smooth than the aldebaran 50 or so I have read .

[FishTank]

7 hours ago, Tatulatard said:

How does it feel different?  Smoothness?  Thats a variable even among the same reels although there may be a deffence in gear material.   With the 50 reel the core had hardened gearing to "better suit the harder hooksets of american anglers" and this was thrown around to explain why the core 50 was less smooth than the aldebaran 50 or so I have read .

 

Good question...I was thinking how to explain it when I said it felt different but I couldn't really explain it then. After giving it some thought, the MG7 I have is a limited edition so it's slightly different in of it's self, and the MG7 is not as smooth as the Core, it doesn't cast as smoothly, and in hand, it just feels different. Also, there is almost a geary feeling with the MG7 similar, but not as prevalent, to the Metanium 12 that everyone complains about. 

 

I am partial to the Core though as it has always been my favorite reel.  I lost the original one and the one in the pic I posted was purchased off of ebay, as was the MG7 but this isn't the first MG7 I have held in hand. I have worked on a few over the years for people and noticed the difference in each one.  I have done what I could to the one I own and it really hasn't changed. It isn't bad in anyway and I wish I could point to a part (maybe the aluminum gear but I am not sold that is it) that causes me to notice the difference.  When fished side by side, it's as though the frames are made of different materials and I am feeling the gears through the frame on the MG7.

 

Again, I am still not 100% sure what I am noticing but in the end they are still great reels even though they are around 15 years old. 

[hunterPRO1]

abu garcia black max, i have one that is 8 years old and still works fine, dvt did have to tell me to clean up the drag washers once when they started giving me issues, but other than that the reel has been beat up for years and never not done what i told it to do.

[MontclairDave]

Quantum Vapor PT gets my vote. You can get it new on eBay for $50 (retailed for $150 I think) and at that price it is an insanely good value. Bombs casts as far as my Quantum Tour S3, just as easy to dial in and rarely backlashes (when it does, it’s my fault, not the reel’s). 

[jitterbug127]

I bought 2 lews carbon fire reels from Walmart for like $50 bucks 7 or 8 years ago. They still fish like a dream and are every bit as good as my bb1 pro was. I swap the carbon fire and my curado reels out sometimes, and I’m not missing a beat 

[WRB]

I remember like it was yesterday, walked into Action Tackle for our weekly lunch at Millie’s in the early 90’s with the local anglers that included a teen Aaron Martens, Dick Trask and a hand full of top tournament anglers.

They were bunched in the back of the shop checking out a Daiwa bait caster by timing how long the free spool could spin with a stop watch. 

The reel was a HTSA105 shallow spool. We all went to lunch and returned to the tackle shop and ordered reels @$134 to get a volume discount. To this day that reel was phenomenal.

Tom

[dodgeguy]

On 8/16/2022 at 7:06 PM, Team9nine said:

For me, the original Shimano Bantam Castaic, CA-200…that thumb bar/flipping switch (“INSTAGAGE”) was the greatest. Down to my last one.

 

 

That was the reel I learned on. They were awesome.

[ATA]

Most of you might know I am Shimano DC kind, But I wanted something for my son to air with his 13Rod and he likes the color so I got inception 5Z and it was $100 off. Since my son not fishing as much as I do, I used it for casting for surf fishing, I am surprised how solid this reel is and I haven't get any backlash with it as well, Fully sealed and safe for saltwater. here is the pictures.

 

https://www.tacklewarehouse.com/13_Fishing_Inception_Sport_Z_Casting_Reel/descpage-ISZ.html?from=gshop&gclid=Cj0KCQjw48OaBhDWARIsAMd966DV-FC4lPEcgfhXerkbcpzE8zIjgqbeD-F9E7lUi9et5ijfpp3ueV4aAnrREALw_wcB

 

[QED]

Ryobi V-Mag Lite VM3G casting reel and Ryobi MGT1 spinning reel. Early graphite models that still function well to this very day, however these are noticeably less smooth than modern gear - not due to wear, that's just how they were!

[Delaware Valley Tackle]

Depending on how you define sleeper, Daiwa’s original Exceler was a good value that didn’t get a lot of attention. My only rap on Daiwa at that time was price so an affordable workhorse reel was a good addition. Second, the Curado G was not a bad reel at all. More in line with the simple workhorse design of the B. By that point in time Shimano had conditioned customers to expect a more refined reel carrying the Curado label so they bungled that from a marketing standpoint. The reel itself was a good value though.