Shimano Reels

[jeanmelissa]

Could someone explain to me the difference between the Shimano Calcutta CT400 baitcasting reel vs. the Shimano Corsair CS400A casting reel?

I will be fishing for fluke, stripers, blues... off the jetty or a boat. I will be using live bait most of the time.

Thank you for your help!
Jeannie

[Zander]

Hi JeanMelissa,

Your looking at some big sized reels so I'm assuming you don't plan to be casting all day. They are good sized reels for trolling, or mooching. The Corsair is a entry level reel where the Calcutta is much higher up the spectrum. I have fished with both and the main difference is refinement. If your planning on dropping bait the Corsair will do fine, but if you plan on casting or are looking for smoothness and a better drag the Calcutta is more then twice as good.

The Corsair uses forged parts while the Calutta is well machined, so it s a much more rigid, solid reel. I reccommend you take a look at the Catala, as it is just 20 dollars more but has better drag, much nicer levelwind...and is a world smoother. (it actually has a very similar bearing config to the much more expensive Calcutta)

Tight Lines

[seasicknes]

The shimano calcutta is a nice reel, but I have found through experience that the metal body reels tend to need more maintenance/care.

I like the calcutta 400's, we use them for halibut, salmon trolling, rockcod and stripers.

Ken

[Gideon]

True, I think they require more care on the outside. But the feel of a rigid aluminum frame is a lot nice in terms of refinement then a graphite frame right? The Calcutta's are good reels, they arn't that expensive and the guts are decent.

Has anyone used the Daiwa Millionaire reels? How do they compare to the Calcuttas?

[seasicknes]

For sure the outside of metal reels you need more care and you must protect it from scratches. I feel that the internals needs alot more attention too. It could be that I fish SALT 99% of the time. The salt environment is alot tougher than FRESH.

I do tear my reels apart and my accurate twin drag BOSS that I use for salmon and albacore. It needs internal attention everytime I use her in salt. If you don't have the time to do it, it can be tediouse. Thats why I prefer the graphite models in the salty environment. Simply just rinse and your good to go on the next trip.

I tear apart my grahite reels once a year for cleaning and inspecting. If it needs new parts, then it gets it. If it don't, I put her back together and she is good to go again.

KEN