Fish-Hawk.Net

As the title states. I just returned a Cardiff 400a that imo performed well all season long until mid-November when the handle became loose from the reel body. After asking around Ive been lead to believe that for the amount of fishing I do throughout the season it would be better to spend more money for a higher end reel. I almost bought the Abu ambassador 6600C4 which is comparable in price to the Cardiff except I found the casting button awkward to what I'm used to so I held off. I'm a 95% casting type of guy so the button imo is key. I would also prefer that it has a line out alarm that can be switched on or off. Anyone have any thoughts or suggestion? I'm not against buying another Cardiff but do not want to have to repair or replace a reel every season.

Thanks, Avid

Edit: I spend a lot of time throwing big heavy baits but I use my thumb to stop the bait before engaging the reel.

I use a Abu Garcia REVO Toro 60 NaCl Gen 3. Haven't found a reel I like better. If your casting 95% of the time you will appreciate a low profile reel. I've used Ambassadors, Cardiffs, and Calcuttas but the Revo is my favorite by far. It comes with a power handle which is nice if you throw twin 10's or anything with a lot of resistance. Also, it has a clicker if you want to troll with it. Jon

Thank you Jon,

What sort of line are you running and how many yards are you getting on it? I prefer a braid myself in the 80lb range.

I use 65lb Power Pro Slick 8. 150 yards with a little room on the spool to spare. I have also used regular 80lb Power Pro and got about 125 yards on with it. Jon

I have been using a curado 301e and its been bullet proof for 2 years now.... I use it with 60lbs power pro.

Spend the money and buy a Calcutta 400, it'll likely be the last Musky reel you'll own.

I use two Curado 300's for casting mainly because I don't cast a bigger bait than a smaller sized Dawg. If I was throwing the really heavy stuff I'd jump up to a Calcutta.

80 LB Super Slick too.

RJ

I have to agree with RJ. I own a 300EJ and works great for smaller baits, but i'm not a big fan of it when it comes to anything above 6oz's.

I am looking to pick up a Lexa 400. I personally prefer the low profile reels for casting.

Just happened to see these on kijiji.
http://ottawa.kijiji.ca/c-buy-and-sell- ... Z570586300
http://ottawa.kijiji.ca/c-buy-and-sell- ... Z570584825
Edit: Sorry, I looked up the price of these reels after I posted this. Not much of a deal! I'd buy new over these ones.

Calcutta has been the gold standard for muskie anglers since their inception. Certainly if you're looking for very specific tools as you build your arsenal then you may consider the Tranx for burning big Cowgirls or possibly the Tekota 700LC for pure trolling applications. But as your 1-tool do-all, the 400 Calcutta B should get the first place in your muskie reel stash. Jim Saric, the godfather of muskie was on RBR a couple of weeks ago and I asked him the same question. Listen to his interview with Big Jim and myself. He speaks of rods, reels, tackle and techniques, really interesting stuff.


http://www.renegadebass.com/RadioShows/ ... estRBR.mp3

Interview starts at ~40:00 minutes.


Cheers

-Paul

Paul Shibata wrote:Calcutta has been the gold standard for muskie anglers since their inception. Certainly if you're looking for very specific tools as you build your arsenal then you may consider the Tranx for burning big Cowgirls or possibly the Tekota 700LC for pure trolling applications. But as your 1-tool do-all, the 400 Calcutta B should get the first place in your muskie reel stash. Jim Saric, the godfather of muskie was on RBR a couple of weeks ago and I asked him the same question. Listen to his interview with Big Jim and myself. He speaks of rods, reels, tackle and techniques, really interesting stuff.


http://www.renegadebass.com/RadioShows/ ... estRBR.mp3

Interview starts at ~40:00 minutes.


Cheers

-Paul

awesome inf Paul..thanks!

Thank you for the input. I'm going to have to take a closer look at the Calcutta 400 B for sure. I've got a few months before the first Saturday in June so I'll probably wait for the Valley hunting and fishing show. Who knows what kind of deals can be found "cough in the general direction of the vendors". Then again I'm a musky nut and would like to stand in my living room rod in hand for at least 2 months conditioning my arms to walk-the-dog 8 hours a day!