Curado 70XG first... And second impressions

[Frosty]

Stripped the gears and pinion in mine today. Anyone else had problems like this

[Phippy]

First trip with new 70XG today. Noticed right away out of box spool didn't free spin very well. Removed bearings to find one was completely DOA and other was so so even after I cleaned them. Replaced with some leftover Metanium stock ones made a night/day difference. Two brakes on ext. dial at 4 my Curado could match my Metanium tossing MB Vision 110s both spooled with 10lb InVizx. Overall very pleased with this new Curado.

[bronzefly]

My 71XG is going strong. I spent some more time with it over the weekend pitching to heavy wood cover with 16# Sunline FC and it performed like a champ. Stuck several quality fish, pulled them out of the trees, no problems whatsoever. The gears feel great, smooth, and surprisingly powerful. I'm still fishing mine bone stock, but I will change out the handle and upgrade the spool bearings eventually. I like to get a feel for reels out of the box before I start tinkering.

[metanium]

I've now got 2 weekends on my Scorpion 70HG. I've used mine primarily for senkos and 3/8 chatterbaits on a 72MH Zodias. The braking has taken me a bit to get used to, because I was used to having only 2 brakes on with the older VBS and other SVS Infinity reels (B, D, E, I series, CI4+, & '09 & '13 Met). I have found that for casting the 70's, I'm best off setting all 4 brakes on & relying on the dial to set for lure weight & wind changes. I actually don't mind this setup, as it's really easy to adjust for such a wide range of lure weights. I was skeptical that I could fling my weightless senko as afar as I can with 4 brakes on, but it casts as well, heck maybe better than my '13 Metanium.

[MediumHeavy]

Just got a good deal on a 71XG this morning and went out for a few hours. Like folks have said, four internal brakes on and use the dial. I got better distance over a range of weights, from 1/4oz to 1/2oz, with that set and 3.5 on the dial than with 3 internal brakes on with the same on the dial. I like this thing a lot, it casts like a dream and did well with small-ish unweighted plastics.

[Chode]

what's the absolute low end weight this reel will comfortably cast?

[Bootytrain]

what's the absolute low end weight this reel will comfortably cast?

With the right rod 1/8 the should be quite doable. I was casting 3/16th pretty easily on a non bfs rod. The spool is heavy but the braking profile makes up for it I think, and the spool is really shallow.

[MediumHeavy]

I was tossing an 1/8oz nano jig and zoom chunk jr. trailer with no issues at all. Next time I'm out I'll try to push it a bit further. Just flushed the bearings and gave them a drop of alchemy oil. That should help a little. Eventually I'll be putting in HH BFS air bearings.

[masterbass]

How do you guys like it compared to the 50e?

[Bootytrain]

How do you guys like it compared to the 50e?

It had some big shoes to fill but I think it does it quite well. Palms a little better, a little lighter, more gear options, and the brakes are more adjustable. It's more of an evolutionary step forward instead of a revolutionary change.

[metanium]

How do you guys like it compared to the 50e?

It had some big shoes to fill but I think it does it quite well. Palms a little better, a little lighter, more gear options, and the brakes are more adjustable. It's more of an evolutionary step forward instead of a revolutionary change.

I agree w/Bootytrain, in the sense that the CU70/71 is more of an evolution of the 50/51E. The braking on the E series was truly "set it and forget it", however it didn't allow the level of fine tuning that's available with SVS infinity. The downside of SVS infinity, of course, is more frequent maintenance in the form of brake pipe lubrication.

[cumara]

How do you guys like it compared to the 50e?

It had some big shoes to fill but I think it does it quite well. Palms a little better, a little lighter, more gear options, and the brakes are more adjustable. It's more of an evolutionary step forward instead of a revolutionary change.

I agree w/Bootytrain, in the sense that the CU70/71 is more of an evolution of the 50/51E. The braking on the E series was truly "set it and forget it", however it didn't allow the level of fine tuning that's available with SVS infinity. The downside of SVS infinity, of course, is more frequent maintenance in the form of brake pipe lubrication.

Thanks for the info guys. Are you getting more distance with the 70 vs. 50E? I imagine the 70 is also smoother than 50E?

[cndbasshunter]

Finally got a chance to detail strip the cu71 xg. very impressed for $200 it's damn smooth, compact, and comfortable. not as smooth as my metaniums but not much difference. i can see the met smoother under load with the micro gears but this reel shoudl stand up fine with the brass gears and carbon drag.

upgraded 5 bearings and spool bearings, can't wait to use it.

[metanium]

Thanks for the info guys. Are you getting more distance with the 70 vs. 50E? I imagine the 70 is also smoother than 50E?

It took me some time to get used to the braking on the 70HG, but yes I do get better distance than I did with the 50E. I've turned all 4 brakes on on the 70HG and use 2 brakes on with the 50E. As far as smoothness goes, the 70 does feel smoother to me than the 50E.

[Frosty]

Finally got a chance to detail strip the cu71 xg. very impressed for $200 it's damn smooth, compact, and comfortable. not as smooth as my metaniums but not much difference. i can see the met smoother under load with the micro gears but this reel shoudl stand up fine with the brass gears and carbon drag.

upgraded 5 bearings and spool bearings, can't wait to use it.

Did you upgrade with bearings from Hedgehog?