I would get a Bantam MGL for the 894 and an Aldebaran MGL for the 842. Both of these reels should balance those rods perfectly and fish better than the Met. Why do you say they would fish better then a met? I’ve heard really mixed reviews on the aldebaran h50/51 and nothing on the mgl version so I ...

I replaced the plastic bushings with stainless steel bearings. When I tighten the screw down the knob gets tightened down as well. What am I doing wrong or am I missing a piece? It happens to both knobs. I upgraded the bushings to bearings on my 2018 100 Tatula and the knobs spin freely.

The Tatula 100 is a nice caster, good ergo, and somewhat light. One would need to move up to a Met MGL or Steez to get a better combination, in my opinion. The Bantam MGL is a hell of a reel if you don't care about weight, but if you do then you're looking at a $400 msrp reel.

I would get a Bantam MGL for the 894 and an Aldebaran MGL for the 842. Both of these reels should balance those rods perfectly and fish better than the Met.

I ordered a ZPI PG yesterday from the Tackle Trap. I can't wait to test it out before the lakes freeze over.

Was at a seminar earlier this year that Seth Feider was giving. Someone asked him about line and he said he uses 30 lb braid on all of his baircasting setups and 10 pound braid on his spinning. I went that way this summer and liked it. Cuts down on costs with only using flouro leaders.

Check with Gary to see if he can get you into a IMX Pro 843c CBR for $200. I have the old E6X 843c CBR. I like the taper, but hate the guides on it.

I have the following finesse spinning rods:

Addermine
AGS Steez MML 7'6
GLX 820s
Legend Xtreme MXF

I use the GLX if I'm dropping directly down on fish. The Steez gets the rest of the work. Everything from Ned rigs to hair jigs. The other two rods barely get used.

Here's a few more pictures.

The regular Exsence came in the mail today. I'll let everyone judge the looks for themselves. Surprisingly they are both basically the same weight. On the smoothness rating the regular Exsence is a 10, Tatula LT is a 9.5, and the CI4+ is a 9.0. It will be interesting to see how the Tatula's hold up ...

I love my 844 GLX for 1/2 oz jigs. It's worth checking out.

Here's a couple of obligatory pictures.

The auction site and they had a 20% coupon recently. It's pretty smooth. Feels pretty close to a new Tatula LT that I have. I have a regular Exsence coming on Wednesday and I'll post my thoughts on comparing the two. The CI4+ version balances really good on the Addermine.

I impulse bought this reel a few days ago and it’s on the way from Japan. It brings along the matte gunmetal look of US Exsence, and looks to be a cross between a Sustain FI and Stradic CI4+. 6.8 oz for a 3000 shallow spool. Do you think it’s a good buy for $250? http://fishing.shimano.co.jp/product...

Honestly, I will probably use my cheapest combo the most because I live in a condo on the lake and the dock is on a flat with milfoil too thick for anything subsurface. The combo will be a Fenwick Elite Tech Smallmouth 6'9 MXF with a Curado 70 HG. This is a great setup for poppers. I picked up an Ad...