I honestly have to say this post surprised me...a lot. I've always thought it was pretty clear that Daiwa was much smoother than Shimano reels. Pretty much my whole Bass club which is close to 80 members have almost all agreed on that. Maybe it is just in my area but I need to look it up now becaus...

That Shimano bag sounds like the one I've used for my saltwater gear for years. The blue has faded to gray but the bag still works and hasn't failed yet. I've been looking at Shimano bags for if/when that bag fails. I've got 6 3700 boxes in the main compartment and 2 3600 boxes in the side pockets ...

While mine aren't Curado's, I absolutely love my 4 Citica 201 E's. Durability is fantastic even though I fish them hard. I break them down and service them about twice a year and that's it, never a minutes trouble. Great reels!

I'm still using my very first tackle bag from Shimano that I bought twelve years or so ago. It's been a great bag, it's faded badly but nothing else seems to have been effected. No stitching coming out or breaking and the zippers still function perfectly. It will hold 6 3700 boxes but I've always pr...

I change hooks on all baits except Spro or Jackall. I've just got way more confidence in the aftermarket hooks (and rings). I agree with keng8554, I want the absolute best chance to land that "fish of a lifetime" and I feel this will aid in that. I really became a believer in this a few years ago wh...

Phippy, NICE dude!

I know they are a little more difficult to find but a little company called Envision Lures makes the best buzzbait I've ever fished. Yes I've fished Cavitron and lots of others but to me they don't hold a candle to the Envision.

I prefer the weighted Owner Beast hooks for these duties.

I do a lot of cranking (square bills to 6XD's) with a 6:1 ratio Shimano so in my opinion the reels you currently have would do fine. I'm not sure if you can reel a crankbait to fast, I mean in certain situations they want it slower, but I'm talking more in general. As far as line goes I'd go straigh...

Nice Calais DC John Puckett. Must be nice to have such high end reels as shelf queens...good for you for fishing with 1. I couldn't buy reel without intending to use it on a regular basis when on the water. Thanks for sharing, what G.Loomis JBR model is that? Thanks man. I always intend to fish eve...

I hadn't fished my Calais DC in a few years so yesterday I decided to spool it up and take her out, didn't catch anything with it but it was fun fishing it again. I had forgotten just how much I enjoy the DC sound. http://i1127.photobucket.com/albums/l638/War44Eagle/538146ac-ab67-412e-a683-b1a5f1085...

Got out again yesterday for a few hours, caught 6. Most were in the same size class as this one with a couple smaller ones mixed in. Nothing really impressive but they sure are fun to catch.

I have no doubts about the reel's ability to perform this task, at least in a 6:1 gear ratio, but unless you stick to 10# mono/fluoro and under you might be looking a serious capacity issues. Could also go with a lighter pound test braid and solve this problem though. I have to say though this certa...

4 is what I've read as well.

X2 on Mark's Outdoors! I've blown a lot of cash in that place over the last 10+ years.