My Lew's TP is very smooth I don't think you will find much smoother reels in that price range, mine is every bit as smooth as my Metanium HG and has more torque & that's not to shabby! It also cast very well, the bang for your buck quotient is very high with Lew's reels I'm finding, for two bills y...

Yep Charcoal with tiny metal flake only seen in good light.

Kurt

That being said, I feel like it does have a bit of an identity crisis. It's a big, bulky reel with relatively low line capacity. If it had a little deeper spool (on the slower version at least) I could see it filling more roles.[/quote] I use my HG for Salmon and the Line capacity is perfect for my ...

I just picked up a Antares HG last month from Rakutan for $425.00 + shipping so the $600.00 USDM price is a joke and a Met.13 HG for $340.00 shipped. The US price means nothing to me, I received my reels in less than a week packaged much more carefully than you would get them from any US retailer I ...

No noise from my Met. yet but I dumped the Red weights in favor of the lighter weight Whites , It cast better as well.

Kurt

My Met HG has an Aluminum Drive gear and a Brass Pinion, I purchased it about a month or so ago.

Kurt

I will give that a shot thanks! I have pulled the magnet out to see if the ring was clocked correctly and it rotates all the way to the stop on Zero but I will take another look at it!

Thanks, Kurt

My Lexa 300HSL Magnetic control is to strong, set on 0 it slows the spool very quickly feels like it is set on about 3 or 4 you can really feel it pull on hard cast, is there a way to tone down the magnet? I would like 0 to be Zero ;) I have lubed the bearings with Bantam oil and I run the spool ten...

Top that lefty up with line and give a field report!

Kurt

My 301E Cast much better than my Lexa 300HSL does, I added extra Bearings to the Lexa Handle but Curados will only allow for one on each knob. I Also added Abec 7's to mine but it performed very well right out of the box and is probably the smoothest reel I own. So far I really like it.

Kurt

Excellent! I will order up some Cal's, I have several types of Shimano Grease, But I will gives Cal's a shot first, Thanks! I love this reel it just feels a little grainy.

Thanks, Kurt

For those of you that own them which is smoother the HG or XG? I have a new HG lefty that I have used about three times and it is smooth but for lack of better terms the gears feel gritty and it bugs me! I want to get an XG but if they are the same way maybe I will save for an Antares? I really love...

Every fish is different, but you can do yourself a big favor by Bonking the fish and bleeding it as soon as you have it on the bank, then get it on Ice. In Sac with the warmer water and hot temps the flesh can turn for the worst fast and Chinook can be fishy tasting at times compared to some other s...

You will be fine with the setup you are looking at and 10lb P-Line CXX, it breaks real close to 20lbs and is very abrasion resistant, you will be able to lean on a King and still have fun with the Coho. Just remember if you have a King smoking you pop the bail and most of the time they will turn aro...

I voted Chronarch E but I have a Lews TP1SHL and it surprises me each time I use it, Great reel and a killer deal. I would have voted for both if I could have. The Lews is Faster, Smoother, cast better out of the box and has more cranking power. Lews also has killer Customer service. I think the Lew...