Baitcasting - Tackle Porn

Back in stock

Goldrod — Thu, 13 Nov 2025 17:45:49 +0000

Just got confirmation that two rods I paid for one was back in stock

man it’s been so long I forgot I ordered a raven

Getting down to the nitty-gritty rod-wise

BlitzDR — Tue, 21 Oct 2025 22:11:49 +0000

I was a Daiwa (JDM and USDM) rod guy for many years, in between and alongside, Megabass, Evergreen and RAID Japan. I'm down to the final choices (for now, at least) and it stands like this:

1. RAID Japan Baltoro "Heat" - 7'2", MH+C

Length:7.2ft
Power:MH+
Taper:Fast
LureWt:MAX1,1/4oz
Line: MAX20

Probably will keep. Great versatility

2. RAID Japan "Engrave" - 7' M glass

Rod Length: 7'0"
Number of Pieces: 1
Rod Power: Medium
Action/Taper: Regular Fast
Lure Weight: 1/4-1.1/2oz
Line Weight: 12-20lb

Will be leaving the roster. If it were a MH, it probably would have made the cut.

3. Daiwa JDM "Real Control", C73H-SV/ST

Rod Type: Baitcasting Rod
Item Length: 2.21 m
Number of Pieces: 1 and Grip
Folded Length: 190 cm
Item Weight: 107 g
Rod Power: Heavy
Rod Action: Extra Fast
Lure Weight: 3/8-1.1/2 oz 11-42 g
Line Weight: 12-25 lb PE MAX #4

Still undecided, limited oppotunities in my locale for pitchin'/flipping/punching

4. Daiwa JDM "Real Control", C70MH-LM (Low Modulus Carbon)

Rod Type: Baitcasting Rod
Item Length: 2.13 m
Number of Pieces: 1 and Grip
Folded Length: 183 cm
Item Weight: 95 g
Rod Power: Medium Heavy
Rod Action: Fast
Lure Weight: 1/4-1 oz 7-28 g
Line Weight: 10-20 lb PE MAX #4

Undecided BUT likely keep, Casts well for accuracy and distance, excellent action performs under pressure. Crankbaits, Jack Hammer, spinnerbaits

5. Daiwa JDM "Real Control" C611MH-SV, 6'11"

Rod Type: Baitcasting Rod
Item Length: 2.11 m
Number of Pieces: 1 and Grip
Folded Length: 181 cm
Item Weight: 91 g
Rod Power: MH
Rod Action: F
Lure Weight: 7-28g(1/4-1oz)
Line Weight: 10-20 lb PE:MAX4

6. Daiwa JDM Steez "Top Gun" 7'4"

Rod Length: 2.24m
Number of Pieces: 1 and Grip
Folded Length: 190cm
Rod Weight: 123g
Rod Power: MH+
Action/Taper: RF
Lure Weight: 5/16-1.1/4oz
Line Weight: 10-20lb,PE Max 4

Has great distance casting, performs well on fight, very good hookset BUT doesn't pin fish as well as I would prefer, one barb of 2 treble hook set. Will see for spinnerbaits, Jack Hammers

Got to use my new Steez Top Gun cranking rod

BlitzDR — Thu, 28 Aug 2025 23:13:31 +0000

It's just what the doctor ordered. Pics and info soon.

Cleaning Inside the Reel Seat

triple_illusion — Mon, 25 Aug 2025 05:02:47 +0000

I saw these at the auto parts store and thought they might be useful. They work good to clean the gunk out of the inside of the reel seat. Hope this helps you all with maintenance and cleaning of your gear.

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Sedition

Goldrod — Sat, 23 Aug 2025 18:22:10 +0000

Sedition SDC-702ML Cristobal Limited - JDM Fishing I must have read this like I was studying for an exam.. Anyone else own this rod?

Rod Wrapping (Not What You Think)

triple_illusion — Wed, 13 Aug 2025 01:33:24 +0000

I find it so annoying that JDM rods do not come with hook hangers, and I am not overly fond of the Fuji hook keepers that we all resort to adding to our sticks. I have made do with these over the years, but I always felt there had to be a better option. What's worse, is that the rod itself becomes subject to all kinds of hook rash. I mostly accepted this as the reality of real world usage of my tackle, but deep down I was always bothered by this.

So, a few years back, I decided to try wrapping electrical tape on my rods to see how well it would protect the blank from structural damage, as well as to test how good it was at keeping scratches from marring the graphics:

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The concept was effective. However, there are two main drawbacks: the electrical tape's adhesive tends to work its way around and makes things feel a bit tacky, and it also covers up the rod's graphics.

So I got to thinking, what if there was such a thing as clear electrical tape?

Well, I searched online and there is no such product. Not quite. But, to my delight, I came across a comparable product made by 3M. They market it as paint protection tape, and sure enough, it has the same flexibility as electrical tape, but comes in clear vinyl just as I had hoped for.

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I decided to give my Steez rod a cleaning to prepare it for the upgrades. Here is a look at the process...

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Masking tape helped measure out the portion of the rod to be covered, and also kept the locknut out of the way...

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With the blank protection achieved, the only problem left to solve was the need for a better hook keeper. Thankfully, I learned of the Pro-X zip tie hook keepers, and these did it for me. They cinch down really tight on the rod blank, and do not have to be flipped into the open/closed position constantly. I was finally able to achieve the functionality I needed on my JDM sticks.

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It is critical that these be cinched super tight. I also have a pair of cutters made specifically to cut zip ties without leaving a sharp edge:

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Here is the end result...

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I went ahead and did this upgrade to my White Python II as well...

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Here are links to the 3M paint protection tape, I used 1/2":

3M Paint Protection Tape (Clear)

3M Paint Protection Tape (Carbon)

Note: wrap from the bottom up.

Any questions, please hit me up. I will post more photos as I do this to more rods...

2025 Daiwa Black Label 74H

dragon1 — Sun, 10 Aug 2025 18:18:36 +0000

Does anyone have any input on the 2025 Black Label? This 74H peaks my curiosity for 1/2-1 oz jigs, it's rated for 3/8 - 3 oz and is regular fast tapered, which I assume is moderate-fast in USDM speak? I want a more powerful rod for setting hook on bigger jigs on long casts but don't want a rod that's overly stiff, like the Luxxe Efreet 74XH Fast I used to have that was rated 3/8 - 2.5 oz fast action, but would overpower even 1 oz jigs...I even snapped 17lb FC fluoro on that Efreet on a good hookset at a short distance of 10 yards...I'm trying to avoid the same type taper with this 2025 Black Label 74H.

TIA.

Any opinions or owner feedback on the Zenaq Blackart B4.5-72 Biwa Spec ?

Damascius — Thu, 31 Jul 2025 20:33:05 +0000

I’m thinking about ordering it to use as a heavy versatile rod. Especially how does it feel with larger sized jigs?

I have the Zenaq Blackart S66 Skippin’ Frog coming too which I’m very excited for. Thoughts on that one as well?

Okuma X-Series 7'3" Heavy Fast

dragon1 — Fri, 18 Jul 2025 19:49:05 +0000

Gonna get some time on the water with this rod...in hand it's impressive and definitely a fast action and heavy powered backbone. It feels like it should easily handle 1.5 oz on the high end with underhand casts.

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JDM Daiwa Steez Real Control 6'11" casting

BlitzDR — Thu, 05 Jun 2025 22:44:16 +0000

pix to follow