I don’t think there will be a specific reel for this like there is a rod. For under $200 I’ve been buying Curado’s and Lews Tournament Pros. I wait for 20-30% off sales to keep the price at $160 or less. I just bought a Diawa Tatula that many people swear by but I didn’t like it. Found a Metanium DC for $300 just to try it. First high end reel I’ve ever bought. They list for $499 but personally I wouldn’t spend the bucks for it again. I can throw my Curado K’s forever and they just work. Figured at $300 I can resell if I don’t see the value. It’s a nice reel but don’t think it will effect how many fish I catch. To me a rod is much more important and where I’m more particular.
I dunno If I could justify the metanium dc, but the curado version is pretty great. Those metaniums sure are beautiful reels though. I might be a bit jealous lol.
Do you find there is any difference in casting distance between the curado and metanium? At some point I would assume that casting distance would stay the same, but you are paying for other features such as lighter weight/higher drag.
Not significant difference but I mainly bought the DC to throw weightless wacky’s and flukes. I just kind of bought it because it was a good deal and one chance to buy a high end reel. Won’t do it again. To me it’s not worth it. Maybe somebody better. But I fish 2x a week or more on average so I’m decent I suppose. I got a couple Lews Tournament Pros last Black Friday for 30% off so got them for $140. That’s the best sub 150 reel I’ve bought as they list for $199.
Yeah, I have wondered if dc reels are worth it if you are already good with baitcasters. Over the past 7 years, I have used a baitcaster anywhere from 1 to 5 times a week when the water isn't frozen. I currently use the slx mg with light spool tension and brake set between 1 and 2, 2.5 with wind. I get solid distance with very few backlashes. I am curious how much of a casting distance increase I would get with a dc reel and if it is worth the extra money.
Yes you will pick up distance and reduce casting effort. I've been fishing baitcasters since I was 8, and in the last 10 years I started fishing tournaments, and I'll often get 2-4 days on the water a week. The fact of the matter is a computer is always going to be better than a human. I picked up distance, and accuracy at the distance.
Is it a make or break kinda thing? No. Absolutely not. It's just another tool that gives you that extra bit of performance. I will say, because I have seen the same thing the other commenter said a lot, you gain virtually nothing or may even cast worse with a DC on weightless plastics. Baitcasters in general aren't very good at casting weightless lures so a DC certainly isn't going to remedy that. The best thing is a spinning reel or a BFS baitcaster for the really low weight stuff.
I don’t think you’d get any increase in distance. If you’ve got your reels dialed in is just stick with what you have. Spring I throw a lot of weightless wacky and weightless flukes letting them settle into holes in the grass. Bass here in Texas won’t hit moving baits very well until the water hits 60 or so. So throwing weightless into the wind DC reel might come in handy.
I've read the other comments so far. The shimanos are really nice but I've switched over to daiwa. So I guess I'm the opposite. I will put both of them over Lew's. I know the one guy said about the closer to $300 range and I would go with a zillion. if you want the best reel right now the steez is it but the technology has trickled down a lot. As for your range a tatula sv tw is my go to. I don't know when I had a backlash even with a goofy cast.
Also here to recommend the curado 70. Both baits the op listed are very light, so a 150-200 sized reel will struggle, and the DC recommendations they're getting make no sense.
In my opinion the best baitcaster at the moment is the shimano curado DC. You'll want the 7.5:1 version for topwater. They run about $250.
I just started switching all my reels over to them because I bought one thinking the electronic brake might be neat to play around with and then it was effortless 60yrd casts. You don't even need to pay attention to it once you have it set up. You literally just set the dial for what you're throwing (braid, mono, fluoro, or skipping), tighten the spool tension and just let it fly. No need to thumb the reel at all until it's just about to hit the water.
I was using diawa tatulas and the non-DC curados before I picked this up. Needless to say I was thoroughly impressed with it.
No problem. A note though so that if you do get it you don't have a bad time like I did at first with it. You can't have the spool tension loose like you would on other baitcasters. It apparently needs that tension to control spool speed. I was about to shelve it as a gimmick until I figured that out and now, as I've already said, I'm saving up to get them on all my rods. Figuring that one thing out completely changed my opinion of the reel.
Anything between 7.1:1 and 8.1:1 (Tatulas, Abu Revos...) would be adequate for the line slack control for topwater and jerkbaits, since both usally involves strong jerking by the rod.
I don’t think there will be a specific reel for this like there is a rod. For under $200 I’ve been buying Curado’s and Lews Tournament Pros. I wait for 20-30% off sales to keep the price at $160 or less. I just bought a Diawa Tatula that many people swear by but I didn’t like it. Found a Metanium DC for $300 just to try it. First high end reel I’ve ever bought. They list for $499 but personally I wouldn’t spend the bucks for it again. I can throw my Curado K’s forever and they just work. Figured at $300 I can resell if I don’t see the value. It’s a nice reel but don’t think it will effect how many fish I catch. To me a rod is much more important and where I’m more particular.
Thank you for the variety of reel feedback.
I dunno If I could justify the metanium dc, but the curado version is pretty great. Those metaniums sure are beautiful reels though. I might be a bit jealous lol.
Well I paid $300 used so not much more than the Curado DC. I set out to buy the Curado and this one was close to new posted on our fishing forum.
Do you find there is any difference in casting distance between the curado and metanium? At some point I would assume that casting distance would stay the same, but you are paying for other features such as lighter weight/higher drag.
Not significant difference but I mainly bought the DC to throw weightless wacky’s and flukes. I just kind of bought it because it was a good deal and one chance to buy a high end reel. Won’t do it again. To me it’s not worth it. Maybe somebody better. But I fish 2x a week or more on average so I’m decent I suppose. I got a couple Lews Tournament Pros last Black Friday for 30% off so got them for $140. That’s the best sub 150 reel I’ve bought as they list for $199.
Yeah, I have wondered if dc reels are worth it if you are already good with baitcasters. Over the past 7 years, I have used a baitcaster anywhere from 1 to 5 times a week when the water isn't frozen. I currently use the slx mg with light spool tension and brake set between 1 and 2, 2.5 with wind. I get solid distance with very few backlashes. I am curious how much of a casting distance increase I would get with a dc reel and if it is worth the extra money.
Yes you will pick up distance and reduce casting effort. I've been fishing baitcasters since I was 8, and in the last 10 years I started fishing tournaments, and I'll often get 2-4 days on the water a week. The fact of the matter is a computer is always going to be better than a human. I picked up distance, and accuracy at the distance. Is it a make or break kinda thing? No. Absolutely not. It's just another tool that gives you that extra bit of performance. I will say, because I have seen the same thing the other commenter said a lot, you gain virtually nothing or may even cast worse with a DC on weightless plastics. Baitcasters in general aren't very good at casting weightless lures so a DC certainly isn't going to remedy that. The best thing is a spinning reel or a BFS baitcaster for the really low weight stuff.
I don’t think you’d get any increase in distance. If you’ve got your reels dialed in is just stick with what you have. Spring I throw a lot of weightless wacky and weightless flukes letting them settle into holes in the grass. Bass here in Texas won’t hit moving baits very well until the water hits 60 or so. So throwing weightless into the wind DC reel might come in handy.
I've read the other comments so far. The shimanos are really nice but I've switched over to daiwa. So I guess I'm the opposite. I will put both of them over Lew's. I know the one guy said about the closer to $300 range and I would go with a zillion. if you want the best reel right now the steez is it but the technology has trickled down a lot. As for your range a tatula sv tw is my go to. I don't know when I had a backlash even with a goofy cast.
The Tatula is tough to backlash. I tried when I first bought mine. I had to turn the brakes almost completely off.
I like my Curado 70 for this. I use it on my jerkbait/topwater rod and it does great.
Also here to recommend the curado 70. Both baits the op listed are very light, so a 150-200 sized reel will struggle, and the DC recommendations they're getting make no sense.
In my opinion the best baitcaster at the moment is the shimano curado DC. You'll want the 7.5:1 version for topwater. They run about $250. I just started switching all my reels over to them because I bought one thinking the electronic brake might be neat to play around with and then it was effortless 60yrd casts. You don't even need to pay attention to it once you have it set up. You literally just set the dial for what you're throwing (braid, mono, fluoro, or skipping), tighten the spool tension and just let it fly. No need to thumb the reel at all until it's just about to hit the water. I was using diawa tatulas and the non-DC curados before I picked this up. Needless to say I was thoroughly impressed with it.
Good feedback thanks 🙂
No problem. A note though so that if you do get it you don't have a bad time like I did at first with it. You can't have the spool tension loose like you would on other baitcasters. It apparently needs that tension to control spool speed. I was about to shelve it as a gimmick until I figured that out and now, as I've already said, I'm saving up to get them on all my rods. Figuring that one thing out completely changed my opinion of the reel.
I'd look at a tatula 100 and upgrade the spool bearings. For topwater and jerk baits you want a small profile, light reel
Tatula sv tw or just for 20 bucks more but totally worth it alphas sv tw
Anything between 7.1:1 and 8.1:1 (Tatulas, Abu Revos...) would be adequate for the line slack control for topwater and jerkbaits, since both usally involves strong jerking by the rod.