Best inshore low profile baitcasters?

Discussions focused on the pursuit of saltwater species
alex09
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Re: Best inshore low profile baitcasters?

Post by alex09 » Tue Jul 30, 2013 2:48 pm

pinoyboykev wrote:P.S. Are round baitcasters any good for this type of fishing?I have never used one before. If they can cast as far as a low profile, then some suggestions would be appreciated.
I have tried a Ryoga, Zillion, Calcutta Conquest, Curado, Citica, Millionaire Bay Casting Special, and Revo Inshore.

My vote is the Ryoga --1016 or 2020. 1016 for regular inshore duty (capacity is the same as a Zillion J Dream) 2020 if you want to go a bit offshore for bigger fishes (capacity is the same as a Luna 203 and Calcutta 200). For a 5-10kg inshore fish such as a barra or jakc/snapper, i think a 1016 is more than enough. I think the 2020 is too much for my kind of inshore fishing. They sit very low on a rod with ECS/ACS reel seat such that they feel like Low Pro reels. They are built for the salt. 12 anti-rust bearings. Sealed drag. And the all-aluminum body is anodized instead of painted. Lesser chance of the metal forming boils-paint chipping (my Revo and Zillion did that after some use in the salt.). And for an inshore reel, the Ryoga is a casting machine. Casts better than my Zillion and Conquest. Powerful cranking. Smooth drag.

The Zillion is ok but the drag and the cranking power is smooth but not enough when you tussle with big running salties. Also, since the drag is not sealed, salt crystals can form inside the drag stack. Because of that, you will lose more drag eventually. Also the paint seems to bubble over time due to prolonged salt exposure.

The Revo Inshore is also ok. Casting is so so. Cranking is the same as the zillion. Body is painted so you will encounter some bubbling after long exposure to salt. Salt resistant innards but parts are hard to come by. This is specially annoying since the internals are prone to failure - springs, kick lever, etc. Drag also is prone to salt crystals accumulating.

The Conquest is also a good choice but it's body and spool is not too resistant to corrosion. Long casting and powerful cranking. Stock drag needs to be replaced with carbontex and it's prone to salt intrusion. The stock bearings are also not the SARB-type so you have to replace all of them to get more protection from rust. In the end, your cost will be the same as the Ryoga. Might as well go straight to Ryoga and save you all the trouble.

Millionaire Bay Casting Special is my favorite. Great casting (light to heavy lures). The cranking power, drag, and line capacity is less than the Ryoga. Internals and externals are very rust resistant. Palms better than the Ryoga because it's corners are not sharp. Also sits very low on the rod. Salt may get inside the drag stack. And because it's an older model --- Ryoga's grandad, parts may become hard to find in the future.

Curado and Citica -- they did not really last in the salt.

Hope this helps.
Last edited by alex09 on Tue Jul 30, 2013 9:14 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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Mcyl
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Re: Best inshore low profile baitcasters?

Post by Mcyl » Tue Jul 30, 2013 6:43 pm

doublethree wrote:Does Revo LT have enough line capacity for inshore fishing?
Mcyl wrote:My "Best Inshore Low Profile Reel" rankings

1. Revo Toro 50 Nacl HS
2. Shimano Exsence DC.
3. no LP but small enough: Calcutta Conquest 50/51
4. Daiwa Zillion PE special.
5. Abu revo LT
Haha no not really! On 10lb mono 4lb PE top shot I get just under 130yds
Get fun however!

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Re: Best inshore low profile baitcasters?

Post by TravHale » Tue Aug 06, 2013 3:06 am

Curado and Citica -- they did not really last in the salt.
The curado has been praised as a great inshore workhorse reel.. I'm very surprised to hear someone say that they don't last long in salt. This has not been my experience, or the experience of many of the guides around here. What issues did you have with the Curado that occurred as a result of saltwater exposure?

alex09
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Re: Best inshore low profile baitcasters?

Post by alex09 » Tue Aug 06, 2013 9:14 am

The AR bearings and spool bearings rusted on both reels after a few months. These are the E series. The brake wall popped out on the first month.

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Re: Best inshore low profile baitcasters?

Post by btoups » Tue Aug 06, 2013 1:56 pm

I've tried the Revo STX, Zillion Coastal, and the Curado D series. I liked these reels, but ended up getting rid of them over time. My favorite is the Chronarch D7. To me it's a perfect blend of lightweight, power, and smoothness. I just got an Exseence DC yesterday and I like it so far. I plan to test it this weekend on some South Louisiana redfish this weekend.

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Re: Best inshore low profile baitcasters?

Post by Lawaia » Tue Aug 06, 2013 2:40 pm

My brothers and cousins have fished inshore, kayak and surf with the Curado E’s for the last 3 years in Hawaii. They do tell me they rinse after every use and do annual maintenance and they have not experienced any issues of rust or corrosion.

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Re: Best inshore low profile baitcasters?

Post by Lexy 123 » Wed Aug 21, 2013 3:07 pm

Lawaia wrote:My brothers and cousins have fished inshore, kayak and surf with the Curado E’s for the last 3 years in Hawaii. They do tell me they rinse after every use and do annual maintenance and they have not experienced any issues of rust or corrosion.
x2
All my fishing buddies and I have fished in the GulfCoast with all Curado E models since they first came out and have no issue with them at all.
Of course, we take very good care of our reels.

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Re: Best inshore low profile baitcasters?

Post by Jeffbro999 » Thu Aug 22, 2013 3:22 am

I also fish nothing but E series in the salt. Zero problems in the past 3-4 years with them. My main reel is a Curado 51 with Core 51 gears and have no corrosion on anything, gears look brand new still. My 201s with brass seem to tarnish quickly though. Also have used my revo Premier in the salt and it didn't hold up at all and I tried to service it more often to. The E series seems like a great workhorse reel to use in the salt IMO.

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Re: Best inshore low profile baitcasters?

Post by f15h1n6 » Sat Mar 08, 2014 12:52 am

Why not try the abu ambassador round baitcast reels. They perform really well on piers but may not hold up for tarpon. If you really want a low profile for saltwater then you should try the newest revo inshore. Ive heard a lot of good things about it but havent used it yet. You haven't said much how far you go out or whether you go boat fishing, but have you heard of the avet sxj? Its like the smallest conventional reel out there with 14lb max drag. Its worth looking into if you are familiar with the lever drag.

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Re: Best inshore low profile baitcasters?

Post by dragon1 » Wed Mar 12, 2014 1:15 am

f15h1n6 wrote:Why not try the abu ambassador round baitcast reels. They perform really well on piers but may not hold up for tarpon. If you really want a low profile for saltwater then you should try the newest revo inshore. Ive heard a lot of good things about it but havent used it yet. You haven't said much how far you go out or whether you go boat fishing, but have you heard of the avet sxj? Its like the smallest conventional reel out there with 14lb max drag. Its worth looking into if you are familiar with the lever drag.
IMO, most other RRs from Avet, Abu, Penn, Shimano and Daiwa would be better...esp. with the all-metal bodies. In this case however, they are looking for an LP.

Personally, I would wield a Z in LP for these type SW fishing techs.

On a budget: Daiwa HSTA, CU D 200s/300, CU E 300s

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Re: Best inshore low profile baitcasters?

Post by f15h1n6 » Wed Mar 12, 2014 7:03 am

dragon1 wrote:
f15h1n6 wrote:Why not try the abu ambassador round baitcast reels. They perform really well on piers but may not hold up for tarpon. If you really want a low profile for saltwater then you should try the newest revo inshore. Ive heard a lot of good things about it but havent used it yet. You haven't said much how far you go out or whether you go boat fishing, but have you heard of the avet sxj? Its like the smallest conventional reel out there with 14lb max drag. Its worth looking into if you are familiar with the lever drag.
IMO, most other RRs from Avet, Abu, Penn, Shimano and Daiwa would be better...esp. with the all-metal bodies. In this case however, they are looking for an LP.

Personally, I would wield a Z in LP for these type SW fishing techs.

On a budget: Daiwa HSTA, CU D 200s/300, CU E 300s
I dont do much fishing with low profile so I couldn't give a good recommendation. I only know about the revo inshore because its low profile and commonly used for saltwater. Maybe I am wrong, but low profiles' drag tends to wear out quicker if used in saltwater? As I was told its not a smart move looking into low profiles for heavy use in saltwater when there are actual saltwater reels that will do better for less than the cost of a good low profile like the 200/300 curados. Have you fished in saltwater with low profile? If so, how do your LP reels hold up?

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Re: Best inshore low profile baitcasters?

Post by Strewth » Wed Mar 12, 2014 7:52 am

I have fished the following low profile reels in saltwater (chasing large Barramundi) with no dramas: Calais 100A, Curado 200E7, Scorpion XT1000, TDS 105H. It is all about regular maintenance in saltwater, and that applies to any reel. It also pays to avoid reels with Mg components in my experience.

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Re: Best inshore low profile baitcasters?

Post by dragon1 » Wed Mar 12, 2014 4:14 pm

To clarify, I would prefer round reels for overall durability/strength of the body, usually lower gear ratio for more torque, and higher line capacity in general.

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Re: Best inshore low profile baitcasters?

Post by f15h1n6 » Sun Mar 16, 2014 12:31 am

dragon1 wrote:To clarify, I would prefer round reels for overall durability/strength of the body, usually lower gear ratio for more torque, and higher line capacity in general.
x2

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Re: Best inshore low profile baitcasters?

Post by white84z » Tue Mar 18, 2014 6:35 am

If your looking for a reel that will hold 150 or so yards of braid the zillion coastal is hard to beat for a 100 size reel. However I have a 5501 c3 with dual bearing levelwind, bearing idler and orange seals on the spool and it holds plenty of 30lb braid. Almost 200 yards if I remember correctly. It is however not nearly as refined as my daiwas but its tank tough and cheap as hell to fix.

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