TackleTour

I just received mine, can't fish till Saturday, my initial analogy is that it feels like when you put on a nice watch.

spookybaits wrote:

egore1 wrote:Is anyone else hoping for a deep spool for this reel? I saw mention of the shallow version but I am hoping to use the reel for heavy applications such as flinging medium sized swimbaits or maybe put one on my umbrella rig rod.

That is a deep spool, atleast in Shimano world.
You said you bought the 8.1:1 version. Not to be a buzzkill, but that ain't the reel for throwing a-rigs & swimbaits. Calcutta, conquest, tranx, etc are the right tools for that job. (Or maybe older 200 size models with slower gearing & bigger capacity).
That said, maybe Yumeya will make one?

I agree entirely, the XG is going on a heavy jig rod and will be used for pitching larger offerings into cover too. I was thinking about a slower ipt model for the other applications. I basically filled the spool with braid I previously had on a Core 100 so that leaves me wondering about capacity for swimbaits. I will try it next weekend to check capacity. The reel feels sturdy so It'd be nice to have the option for a deep spool too.

DirtyD64 wrote:

egore1 wrote:So it is different than the Chronarch and Metanium???

Certainly matches my Chronarch MGL and I haven't messed with my Metanium yet.

My bad, should have been more clear. I meant did the levelwind from the Bantam seem similar to that of the Chronarch MGL or Metanium MGL. I would be a little hesitant to break the Bantam down though, fishing is starting to get hot down here.[/quote]

The design is different. The levelwind passes through an opening in the retaining plate for the main shaft and is captured by that plate. The gear is held with a circlip as usual, the change is there is no circlip on the palming side of the level wind shaft.

Got my hands on one yesterday at the Shimano booth at our local sports show. I can see one in my future on my primary jig rod. Great ergos and very solid reel.

when will TT conduct a review?
Maybe I missed it but this is one for the ages I am sure..

Just received my Batnam PG from Japan as I desperately needed a dedicated cranking reel. Few pics mounted on Alpha Angler Rebound. Very solid reel.

Great looking reels, I saw a video with a guy holding one temporarily next to a Curado 70, but would rather see a picture comparing the 2 (for size estimation).

Has anyone heard anything else about the shallow spool supposedly coming for the Bantam MGL???

DirtyD64 wrote:Great looking reels, I saw a video with a guy holding one temporarily next to a Curado 70, but would rather see a picture comparing the 2 (for size estimation).

Has anyone heard anything else about the shallow spool supposedly coming for the Bantam MGL???

It's very small. It's similar in size to a 50 size just a tad taller....

Yumeya has a shallow spool available.

More intrigued by this reel than anything Shimano or Daiwa has offered up in at least the last 5 years. Truly looks like a do it all reel...it’s small, palmable, and powerful...and by all accounts should be bulletproof. It should cast down to 1/4 ounce with ease and with 150 sized spool should be capable of throwing small and medium sized swimbaits. I mean if you’re throwing 16-20# test you’re not going to spool it, and it certainly should have the power to do about anything. I personally don’t see the need for a 200 sized spool unless you’re throwing strictly large swimbaits on massive line.

Samuel_b wrote:More intrigued by this reel than anything Shimano or Daiwa has offered up in at least the last 5 years. Truly looks like a do it all reel...it’s small, palmable, and powerful...and by all accounts should be bulletproof. It should cast down to 1/4 ounce with ease and with 150 sized spool should be capable of throwing small and medium sized swimbaits. I mean if you’re throwing 16-20# test you’re not going to spool it, and it certainly should have the power to do about anything. I personally don’t see the need for a 200 sized spool unless you’re throwing strictly large swimbaits on massive line.

Or your a Salmon/Steelhead guy looking for a reel that will hold up

Kurt

Got mine today and proceeded to clean the casting bearings -
I personally do not like fishing my reels straight out of the box, so I always clean them with contact cleaner prior to applying my choice of bearing lube.

After removing the C-clip which retains the casting bearing in the non-handle sideplate, the bearing would not fall out no matter how hard i shook the sideplate facig down.
Had to resort to using the reel handle knob cap remover to reach under the bearing to pry it out as it was very tight fitting.
Once the bearing popped out, it’s kinda self-explanatory (see pictures).







This is something new to me though - O-rings on a casting ball bearing?
It kinda makes sense for the other casting bearing which is on the spool maybe to reduce water intrusion into the reel’s guts but my concern is what will happen if i swap the bearings out for standard bearings without this O-ring design?
Will the reel perform like it would as intended?

Anyone here swapped the stock bearings out for aftermarket ones and felt any difference yet?
Also, could anyone come up with some theories on why Shimano decided to include an O-ring on the casting bearings?

*this is also the first casting ball bearing I’ve seen from a Shimano reel that uses plastic cages to enclose the ball bearings. Almost like the Zpi Sic ball bearings cage design.



Cheers

My question is the opposite, whether those spool bearings can be put in other reels.

Maybe it's also to dampen the spool/bearing vibrations.

y2k88 wrote:My question is the opposite, whether those spool bearings can be put in other reels.

Maybe it's also to dampen the spool/bearing vibrations.

I’ve not tried to fit it on other reels yet.
I will get to fish my Bantam MGL beside the Metanium MGL in a couple of hours, so maybe I will get a better impression of the casting feel as well as the retrieve.
Yes it might actually dampen the vibrations emitted when casting.
I use 10-15lb braid on the Metanium MGL for casting 1oz topwater plugs and the reel does wail and vibrate a little when the spool hits optimum speed which is a little uncomfortable but its expected from a very hollow and lightweight magnesium bodied reel.

Might try to switch the casting bearings over from my Metanium MGL (Zpi Sic) into the Bantam MGL but not before I fish it in stock form.
Just hoping the Bantam will perform just as well as the Metanium in terms of casting despite the shorter distance between line guide and spool though.

By the way: http://fishing.shimano.co.jp/product/reel/5341

got my bantam from tackle trap the other day and put it on a expride 7'2 med hvy glass rod and have to say makes a great reaction bait combo. The reel feels so good in hand just a quality feeling reel im really glad shimano came out with this one. Casting is great and the dial is so much easier to use with the location on the side instead of lower part of the reel like the curado k. I have not caught a giant on it yet but have already caught 15 or so fish using a chatterbait and you can definitely tell the power is there my favorite reel so far this year. It feels as you can pass this one down to the grand kids when its time. everyone took care of the spec reviews thought i would just share a fish report with it. If you have or are around grass lakes this will be a great reel def strong enough for the task.