Seeker/Daiwa/Avet Choice for BTB WSB/Yellows (and a Lamiglas!)

[5-20]

Stopped by and saw the excellent people at squidco today and handled a bunch of rods/reels. Anticipating doing a little more BTB fishing sometime soon and I'm trying to build up the arsenal with a fairly decent first all-around rod/reel that'll be able to handle jigging and live bait fishing around kelp forests.

Picked up a few rods and the one that really stood to me was the seeker black steel 670. Too bad because I was hoping I could get by with a ugly stik tiger... but you know how it is once you start comparing rods and reels...

The sealine sl30sh felt really good to me, but the saltist reels felt even better. Any of you use the saltist black gold STTBG35h? How does that 6:4 retrieve work for you with irons? I will probably have most of that reel spooled with 65 spectra.

Question -- does spooling line on a narrow reel really make a lot of difference over a whole day? I've almost always used levelwind reels up till now. Kinda wondering if that's something I really should think about with the sealine's wider spool.

One issue, though... I have a crappy shoulder. I normally crank RH but I think the strain of those big fish I'm anticipating catching would be better handled with my right arm. Go figure, there's only a handful of LH reels, and those are made by avet and abu. I'm not an abu guy and would prob want to stick with avet if that's my only choice.

I handled an mxl lh reel and it felt really crisp and tight, but also a little "cold" to me. I liked the feel of the daiwas better. Was wondering if I'm missing any other good 30-35 class reel in a LH retrieve?

Last thing -- I also handled a lamiglas as TFX 7040 CT and wow, I was pretty impressed with how light and powerful that thing felt, like it'd be a totally awesome calico swimbait rod with a curado 300e on it. The rod's rated for 20-40 lbs. and 4-10 oz. Felt like one of the most fun and well balanced rods I've handled in a while.

Thanks for all of the advice. Really appreciate it!

[YakDout]

I have 2 bg35h. Easier than wide spools in my opinion. Don't have to guide line as far. I also have an avet mxl, and while harder to cast a jig, I like the lever drag when trolling. With star drag in free spool and clicker on, line still comes out a little too easily for me. I don't like making 3 clockwise rotations with a star to set hook on a big fish. Lever drag gives you ability to go from free spool to max drag in a much shorter time.


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[LDO10]

I just got a Saltist 35H with 65# PowerPro (at Squidco). I haven't fished with it yet, but I used a similar sized reel (Saltiga 35H I think) a few weeks ago and the narrow spool makes it a little easier to wind in the line neatly. Fished bait with it but the narrow spool would help with the iron, if it has enough capacity for you. P.S. I borrowed the Saltiga from the Sea Samurai, so I'm sure it holds up well). I've a Saltist 40 on my surface iron rod, but that's because it's spooled with 40# and I wanted the capacity. Les

[bubblehide]

I have Saltist's, Saltiga's, and Penn Fathoms, they are all top notch reels, and for star drags, it's difficult to chose one over the other. If you want a jig rod, I'd suggest a star drag reel over a lever drag for tossing iron or live bait; any choice of the above would not be a mistake. What I did not see pointed out about the narrow reels, is that they are supposed to cast better/further. The theory makes sense, but I have never actually tested it in the same exact reel with the narrow version vs the normal/wide version.

As for lever drags, there are also many very good lever drags on the market, Avet, Okuma, Accurate... just match your reel to the rod you want it on, and the way you intend to fish it.

As for what really makes the biggest difference at the end of the day, is the lightest rod/reel combo that does the job very well. What I mean is that if you intend on slinging iron all day, then you want a long rod, minimum 8'. But keep in mind that the longer the rod, the more the fish will beat you up, i.e., that shoulder will be feeling it (you might want to think about getting an MRI of the shoulder as you likely have some torn muscles).

Personally, I like the action of a glass rod over a pure carbon rod, especially fishing short topshots. But a hybred rod, or composite rod, (carbon glass mix) is so much superior to either, for a variety of reasons. And, at the end of the day, your shoulder will appreciate a hybred rod more than any other type.

Lastly, clearly your now addicted, and this set-u, is just the beginning.

[taggermike]

The weight of a rod is not a big deal if you're trolling and its in the rod holder most of the time. If it's a jig stick or heavier plastic out fit light weight is nice. Sealines are good reels and have been good reels for decades. The Saltists will definitely be better, maybe not at casting but more torque and power when fishing fish. High gear ratios are over rated in my opinion. For bait and surface iron 4:1 is fine, if you can evenfind a reel that low. For yo-yo iron a bit faster retrieve is helpful. I find mending the line on a narrow reel to be easier. I have only used avets a few times. For lever drags they cast well but I would stick with the star drags for casting and keep the lever drags for trolling and fishing live bait. A lever drag allows you to put more tension on the line when trolling larger baits. Having my star drags clicker buzzing and chirping the whole time I was trolling a big lively mac drove me crazy. Mike

[5-20]

Thanks, really appreciate all of the helpful responses/advice!!!

[YakAttak]

If you're looking for LH Daiwa reel in those sizes, the Daiwa Saltiga 30L a nice left handed reel. The Long Fins has it 30 or 40% off last couple months that I checked. I'm not sure if it's still on sale though