Shimano or Daiwa reels for my Acolyte's

mikench

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I buy and use Shimano and Daiwa except for pins. I have a few Okuma for the sea. I had a Drennan reel and gave it away. Does anybody buy reels from say Preston Innovations or similar and rate them?
 

wetthrough

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Seems there are two Advanta baitrunners the FD...s which are £14.99 and MZ...s which are 9.99. Just been in and had a look at both. The Fds don't seem too bad, bail is a bit gritty but apart from that and a small amount of play in the handle, OK. The MZs feel cheaper and the drag adjustment doesn't feel good. That's just a cursory look though. They might be fine in use, didn't check the line clips.
 

S-Kippy

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I referred to this in post #34. Where on another forum a chap was saying that, for the minimal difference in weight, a larger reel gives you the benefit of a larger spool diameter.

On that basis, why would a lightweight 4000 reel not be okay on a 14ft float rod? I tried a 4000 ST Baitrunner on mine, just for size, and it still didn't over-balance the rod (it was still tip-heavy).

But hasn't Daiwa now gone to 'standardised' sizes with the LT reels?

Definitely more choice from Daiwa than Shimano. Too much choice, probably, and not always clear (for the uninitiated) as to the differences between products - apart from the number of acronyms :) .... hence the thread.
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Sorry….must have missed that. As for a 4000 reel on a float rod I really cannot see the point. The spool capacity will be considerably larger than a 3000 or 2500 size so you’ll have loads more line than you need to fill the spool for it to peel off properly. As for weight/balance the real test is how it feels after 3-4 hours not 3-4 minutes…..unless you are blessed with arms and wrists like a silverback.
 

Kevin aka Aethelbald

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As for weight/balance the real test is how it feels after 3-4 hours not 3-4 minutes…..unless you are blessed with arms and wrists like a silverback.

I've fly fished for 30 years and been renovating houses for 10... my wife says I have arms like Popeye. But seriously, apart from trotting, why would you be holding the rod for 3-4 hours float fishing? Serious question... especially as I bought a chair. (Hopefully not idiotic... I'm here to learn.) And, like fly reels, wouldn't you just use (cheap/heavier) backing to pack out the spool?
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markcw

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Seems there are two Advanta baitrunners the FD...s which are £14.99 and MZ...s which are 9.99. Just been in and had a look at both. The Fds don't seem too bad, bail is a bit gritty but apart from that and a small amount of play in the handle, OK. The MZs feel cheaper and the drag adjustment doesn't feel good. That's just a cursory look though. They might be fine in use, didn't check the line clips.
There is a sort of review on You tube showing the X5 50fd in action as a pellet waggler reel .
I have used mine a few times and can't fault it , it is slightly heavier than my Inception 4000 , I use both as either feeder reel or waggler .
Going to use it on Newlands gravel pit and Clattercote as a baggin Waggler reel and see how it copes with casting one of those every couple of minutes .
 

nottskev

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I've fly fished for 30 years and been renovating houses for 10... my wife says I have arms like Popeye. But seriously, apart from trotting, why would you be holding the rod for 3-4 hours float fishing? Serious question... especially as I bought a chair. (Hopefully not idiotic... I'm here to learn.) And, like fly reels, wouldn't you just use (cheap/heavier) backing to pack out the spool?
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Not an idiotic question - but I hold the rod throughout, even fishing stillwaters, with my arm resting on my knee to take the weight off. The only use for a rod rest is to put it down when unhooking a fish or feeding the fish or myself. Making a grab for a rod in rests only slows your reaction to a bite. Rods and reels have never been lighter, so it's hardly a strain to hold them.
 

Kevin aka Aethelbald

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Yep
100% down ,and no more to pay .

Hmmm... give me a week to get my finances in place.

Not an idiotic question - but I hold the rod throughout, even fishing stillwaters, with my arm resting on my knee to take the weight off. The only use for a rod rest is to put it down when unhooking a fish or feeding the fish or myself. Making a grab for a rod in rests only slows your reaction to a bite. Rods and reels have never been lighter, so it's hardly a strain to hold them.

Thanks. I often wonder if I'm missing something obvious. I guess if it was open season I'd be out there fishing, instead of asking all these questions. Having said that, I plan to get out on a local 'pond' this week and at least practice setting up, and hopefully catching some fish. Might even get the fly rod out and try a day of dry flies on the Avon... not the gin clear mountain streams I used to fish, but the stretch at Bidford looked quite clear and trouty as I went over the bridge yesterday.
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S-Kippy

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Firstly you said you’d only be fishing lakes in the close season so if you’re on a river and float fishing you’ll be trotting and holding the rod. Secondly….given how light the Acolytes are why would you want to put a 4000 size reel on one ? That’s a sizeable chunk of reel.
Personally I’d get Daiwas….model immaterial but a 3000 size for float fishing and 4000 for feeder fishing if you really think you need that much reel for feeder fishing. You clearly seem to think you do….but I don’t.
 

Kevin aka Aethelbald

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Personally I’d get Daiwas….model immaterial but a 3000 size for float fishing and 4000 for feeder fishing if you really think you need that much reel for feeder fishing. You clearly seem to think you do….but I don’t.

No, I don't 'clearly' think anything! 😉 Just asking for opinions, which do differ and give pause for thought, thankfully.

So, I just bought a 2500 Shimano Nasci, which is a 3000 with a shallow spool.

There's so much I have to learn about float fishing, I'm not even sure I want to bother with feeder fishing, at least for a while - I originally planned to just do float fishing, but got carried away in the tackle shop.
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mikench

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The Stradic C14 ra 4000 weighs 310g and the Daiwa TDM 3012 weighs 305g. I use both for float fishing. The Stradic comes with spool reducers which saves line. Both reels are excellent particularly the Stradic. Both pair perfectly with my 13´ Acolyte plus, various Normark 13’, Shimano Antares 15’, Marksman 14’ and Sphere 14’.
 
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Kevin aka Aethelbald

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I've also bought the Daiwa Exceler 3000. Need to scratch the itch, so for the cost of postage, I'll keep the one I prefer and send the other back.
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S-Kippy

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I have a couple of older Exceler 3000. Good reels but not as good as the current ones or my Ninja. A 2500 should suit the rod and I’d happily use a 3000 size for any sort of feeder fishing bar out and out fishing for lumps….simply because for lumps you’ll be using stronger/bigger diameter line and you’ll therefore need bigger capacity reels like eg a 4000 size.
 

Richard Bartlett

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I buy and use Shimano and Daiwa except for pins. I have a few Okuma for the sea. I had a Drennan reel and gave it away. Does anybody buy reels from say Preston Innovations or similar and rate them?
Following the fulsome recommendation of a long-time fishing buddy, a year or two ago I invested in a Preston Centris NT520 for my feeder work. Verdict?
Quite possibly the best reel of its type I've ever owned - & I've owned a lot!! Really really smooth, beautiful line lay, slow oscillation, & a titanium bail arm which, put simply, will not bend but simply flex & spring back into shape - great for those inevitable occasions when dropped or bounced off something unforgiving! A little research at the time indicated that they are actually made by Ryobi with suitable rebadging. They are so good I'm seriously considering getting another two (in 4000 size) to replace my Shimano Exage reels for float work.
Only downside - around £150 a pop :-(
 

markcw

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I buy and use Shimano and Daiwa except for pins. I have a few Okuma for the sea. I had a Drennan reel and gave it away. Does anybody buy reels from say Preston Innovations or similar and rate them?
I have a Preston Innovations Inception 4000 sadly now discontinued, retail price was around £140,
Brilliant reel, had it around 3 years , still as smooth , bail arm goes over the first time ,good cranking power if needed .
The Centris may be similar to it , going by the price bracket .
I had a couple of Okuma a few years back , one ended up sounding like a coffee grinder , binned that and gave the other one away .
I am still on the lookout for either a Daiwa 1657 or Daiwa 1657dm , old reels that have just been discontinued after around 30+ years but still going strong . I have one and it is a reel that has spools that take 100 yards of line with no backing or reducers .
 

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Such a lot of response good to see so here goes, you may want to "backwind" a fish if so you will need a reel with "anti-reverse" so check reels your interested in. I find it a very useful feature I use small baitrunners for tench and bream etc, no issues with them. The clutch or drag as our american friends call it front or back that's down to you as to preference personally I go for front . As for rods the two you mention are not cheap! but are good quality.
 
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