Peacock Bass Fishing

jungleexplorer · Post by **jungleexplorer** » Sun Oct 30, 2005 11:15 pm

Hi,
I am not a millionaire and I don't want to mortgage my house to buy fishing equipment, but I am going peacock bass fishing in the Amazon and would appreciate some advice on a dependable bait-casting reel. I am thinking that there is a company out there that still makes a reasonably priced quality reel. Abu Garcia used to make quality reels. I know this because I have one that is over 25 years old and has never been in the shop. I have caught 40-pound catfish on it and it still works like a dream. I bought a brand new Abu Garcia 6500 last year and it is already shot, the plastic line guide gear stripped out after the first 8 pound bass. What a piece of junk!

I have looked and looked for a good reel for about two weeks now. I even went down to my local Academy store and asked them to take some 100 to 200 dollar reels apart for me to see the gears. You know what I found? A whole lot of plastic! That' what! I guess Ford and Chevrolet have taken over the reel industry and have designed reel to spontaneously disintegrate after a given period of time just like their cars do.

I posted the same question on some other forums and have been told I need to spend $500 on a good reel. ThatÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s nuts! For that price, I think IÃ¢â‚¬â„¢ll go down and buy a complete computer system at Wal-mart that has a heck of a lot more technology it then a simple bait-casting reel. Or maybe a refrigerator!

As you can see, I am a little frustrated, and time is running out on my departure date. If you guys could give my some advice on where to find a dependable reel these days, I would really appreciate it.

Thanks

Post by **Nitroman77** » Mon Oct 31, 2005 6:45 am

Man you gotta post pics of that trip when you get back! Ive ALWAYS wanted to go peacock bass fishing. Not only bass, but all the crazy looking fish down there.

To this great site. I would get somethin with a strong drag, Put some powerpro on and a heavy action rod.

Post by **JIP** » Mon Oct 31, 2005 9:33 am

jungleexplorer

Check this thread... and you might want to contact MigueldaMata.

There are also so other fellow members from Brazil here that might be able to help you out.

Also, if you SEARCH for "peacock" you'll find threads on our forums talking about peacock bass fishing.

Lightninrod · Post by **Lightninrod** » Mon Oct 31, 2005 1:25 pm

I'd go with the Shimano Calcutta 300 reel. It's $160 'shy' of $500 and it will handle the heavier baits and those much heavier Peacocks.

Dan

jungleexplorer · Post by **jungleexplorer** » Mon Oct 31, 2005 2:21 pm

skeeterboy77 wrote:Man you gotta post pics of that trip when you get back! Ive ALWAYS wanted to go peacock bass fishing. Not only bass, but all the crazy looking fish down there. To this great site. I would get somethin with a strong drag, Put some powerpro on and a heavy action rod.

I have actually been to the Amazon before years ago with that old Abu Garcia 5000 reel. Here are some pics from that trip.

Picture of some piranhas. You can see my Abu reel in this one.

A couple of the over 100 peacocks I caught.

One night fishing for red fin catfish. These babies will drag you into the water.

All these fish were caught on the same Abu Garcia 5000 reel, that is now 25 years old and still working. I dare any reel made today to match that.

Wildcard · Post by **Wildcard** » Mon Oct 31, 2005 2:30 pm

to the forum. Peacock bass fishing huh? Man that is awesome. I would love to do that, my g/f wants too also.

I would say look into Daiwa reels. They have quite a few to choose from and I have had nothing but good luck with them over the years.

mhood · Post by **mhood** » Mon Oct 31, 2005 3:57 pm

Why don't you just take the old Abu again? Is there some reason it won't serve you as well as it did on the past trip?

SPAZ · Post by **SPAZ** » Mon Oct 31, 2005 4:26 pm

jungleexplorer wrote:
skeeterboy77 wrote:Man you gotta post pics of that trip when you get back! Ive ALWAYS wanted to go peacock bass fishing. Not only bass, but all the crazy looking fish down there. To this great site. I would get somethin with a strong drag, Put some powerpro on and a heavy action rod.
I have actually been to the Amazon before years ago with that old Abu Garcia 5000 reel. Here are some pics from that trip.

Picture of some piranhas. You can see my Abu reel in this one.

A couple of the over 100 peacocks I caught.

One night fishing for red fin catfish. These babies will drag you into the water.

All these fish were caught on the same Abu Garcia 5000 reel, that is now 25 years old and still working. I dare any reel made today to match that.

Nice pics. Man. I want to go out there now haha.

zoott · Post by **zoott** » Mon Oct 31, 2005 4:32 pm

I couldnt see the pics

didnt work for me.

Wildcard · Post by **Wildcard** » Mon Oct 31, 2005 4:36 pm

Yea me either, wtf

Boonethelunkerlander · Post by **Boonethelunkerlander** » Mon Oct 31, 2005 4:41 pm

LMAO.... WTF... LMAO

, i could not see pics either

Post by **JIP** » Mon Oct 31, 2005 5:50 pm

[Fixed pics]

Wildcard · Post by **Wildcard** » Mon Oct 31, 2005 7:03 pm

Ah, much better now.

Post by **Nitroman77** » Mon Oct 31, 2005 7:29 pm

NICE! Man that looks so fun although i dunno about the heat!

Those 3banded peacocks are so colorful. Im thinking about getting them in my fish tank.

jungleexplorer · Post by **jungleexplorer** » Tue Nov 01, 2005 10:02 pm

Thanks for all the advice. I decided to buy the new Abu Garcia Record RCN60 based on the review that JIP gave. The most important thing that he said (for me that is)

"The reel has nearly zero plastic components."

. That is what I have been looking for, No Plastic! I also bought a Shimano Corvalus as a budget back up in case I'm wrong. Of course I would never think of going anywhere without taking along old faithful (my 25 year old Ambassadeur 5000), just in case both of these new reels turn out to be less then I expect.

I think I should be set as far as reels go. I already have some good rods. I am taking an assortment of lures. Mostly 1oz spoons and crank baits. The last time I was down there the lures that got the most action were some quality built silver spoons I bought on the street in Manaus, Brazil. I mean I got a few hits on just about everything I took, but as for as consistency regardless of time of day, those spoons could not be beat. And talk about built well. I have seen nothing in the US that can come close. They sort of look like a Johnson silver spoon, but unlike the Johnson silver spoon that is soldered together with a fragile brass loop to tie too (these loops broke off both Johnson the last time), these spoons had an actual bolt and nut that held the single hook on and a heavy duty swivel to tie to. I sure hope I can find some more of those spoons when I get down there.

Extreme lure repair 101.
Just in case your out fishing with a Johnson silver spoon and the brass tie loop breaks on you like it did on me, here's what I did. I used a torch lighter to melt off the solder and get rid of the rest of the tie loop that was left. Then I used a sharp pointed knife to drill a hole through the brass near the top of the spoon where the loop had been and clipped a snap swivel through the hole. It worked great and I have never had another problem with it.

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