I have a few of Max's pieces at the shop and thought I might be able to add some insight to other comments based on my manufacturing experience.
I'm not claiming to be an expert by any means, but I have been doing this for over 50 yrs and I can assure you I've been around the block at least a couple of times.
These days, everything seems to go to the cutter. Absolutely nothing wrong with that as its an efficient method of cutting shapes and saving money. The results are very good but can be varied. It usually requires another operation, most likely tumbling to smooth out the edges.
The Max assembly is CNC machined and far superior to just about anything the cutter can supply. I'm not at all suggesting that anything the cutters can produce is not good, its just saying that the CNC method has the ability to produce tighter tolerances, straighter cuts, and smoother finished surface's which is the case here.
His assembly is nicely finished. All aluminum parts are Anodized including the ones that have a natural finish. These are done in clear. The main shaft, although I don't know what series, is Stainless Steel. The balance of the materials used are 6061-T6.
The fitment of the handle to the gear sleeve is tight but not objectionable. I found the best way to install it was to grease both the handle and the sleeve and work it up and down along its length until it seated properly. This took a few times but without a doubt, I'd rather have it that way than loose. I took the arm off, removed the excess grease from both and reinstalled it. Just about perfect. Almost forgot to mention the fact that the attachment point of the handle is .155 thousand's thick. I have quite a few Pro Gears and they varied from .160 to as much as .175. So this will tell you that the Max assembly will have as much thread engagement on the handle nut or slightly more than many of the Pro's. No problems here.
Because the handle nut fits into the recess, one must be careful when using the wrench as not to scratch the surface of the arm. I put a few pcs of masking tape on the edge's and removed it after tightening.
Testing should be done when the reel is attached to a rod. This allows you to put pressure and all the loading you feel necessary to mimic its intended use. And this is how it was done here. I moved it up, down, and all around and did my best to put some serious forces on the assembly trying to simulate a load.
Picking up the rod and reel, the first thing that came to mind is, ... this is a big grip and feels comfortable in the hand! The knob is much longer in length than the 251's and 255's, Slightly longer that the 4 and 500 series, but larger in diameter, so if you like those you'll be happy! It should fit the majority of people unless you have really tiny mitts.
There is NO one size fits all. Impossible.
The handle on the gear sleeve is secure and shows absolutely no wobble whatsoever. Moving down to the knob itself it seemed as though their might be a little more play than needed. Checking against my own, it was almost identical. At times I have fit mine on the tighter side only to find that if dirt or corrosion gets in there, I'm in trouble. The fitment here is more than acceptable.
Its been in the shop on display now for a day and a half. At least a dozen or more people have picked it up and played with it. Some of the comments were, Hey this is really nice, I love it, and how much did you say this cost?
I have a serious group of fisherman that frequent the shop. These gents are the real deal. No weekend warriors or wanna be's. Most fish several times a week and many fish with me. There is also a bunch of commercial rod n reeler's. These are some of the ones who get involved with my testing and have given me a great deal of input for which I have the utmost respect.
I am no way opinionated or biased but thought this might be a way to offer a methodical approach as to how things are made, how we evaluate them, and are they suitable for our type of use.
This assembly meets the 3 categories when evaluating a product. Fit, form and function. What I see here is a successful attempt to make a very good product at a reasonable price. Actually, competitive with its Asian counterparts. Its obvious that no one considered making a profit when this was designed.
Can anyone make a better mousetrap? Anything is possible. Can it be done in the US at this price point? Possible too, but one might have his hands full trying to make it happen.
I apologize in advance for being long winded but it can be difficult to get a point across. What I've tried to do here is deal with and present the facts.
I appreciate comments or criticisms from anyone, and for those of you that have purchased these, I welcome your thoughts and feel free to add pictures as well. Thanks so much for taking the time to read this.
Regard's, .. Lou
Spoiler Alert! How do you like me now!
Holy Cannoli Lou! That purple is off the charts...what a jewel! I agree on all the tech aspects too, my results were just about a mirror image. The handle blade/gear sleeve fitment is exactly how ya want it. 8)
Thanks Lou, great review.
I'm going to install my Ted special later this week at will add my $.02.
Steve
When I put my Cortez Conversion 349H together the only handle I would put on it was a Red Maxed Out one.
I put the reel on a rod, put the rod in one of my boat's rodholders and cranked up a 10# downrigger ball several times. The handle fits and is comfortable, no deflection on the shaft or blade. A silver and blue one will go on my 113HNN T4N1.
I build things and can see potential problems and so far these are first class, 4 more months and it will be "halibut approved".
Amen!!!
We are indeed fortunate to have Ted as a member.
He is a gentleman of the highest order, as well as extremely knowledgeable about serious angling in the Pacific Northwest.
Ted's knowledge of Penn, and other tackle — is off the charts as well as legendary.
The product upgrades that he shares with us are unique, spot-on, and flawless...
Best,
Fred
I mounted one today on a 113H. I wish I had these 20 years ago when I was fishing Cabo and the East Cape a lot. They would have saved me some blisters and sore mitts. I would like more of these for my Pro-Gears. I never really cared for their 2-piece EVA.
-Mike
He handle nut on the left is from a Penn jigmaster and the right from a ProGear 255. They are the same length. The ProGear are are thick aluminum. In fact, of similar thickness to Maxed Out handle arms at the recessed handle but area. But the overall handle arm is thicker and feels more ridged than the OG ProGear handle arms.
As I stated before, my concern was with the amount of threads on the handle nut but I know many have used the ProGear handles on not only ProGears, but PENN reels, without any issues, and therefore, my concerns have been addressed and have been proven to be more than sufficient securement of the arm to the gear sleeve.
Maxed out makes a great product. Fit and finish.
I wish Ted the best in his new business adventure as he develops his new website for a more convenient direct sale.
I have one commercial rod and reel guy who is fishing cod at the moment. This gentleman is a diehard and part of my testing group!
Plans are to get one to him for a field test. There's absolutely no doubt in my mind that it wont get anything but a serious workout.
It may take a while but I will be posting the results.
Thanks to you all for your comments and have a great day, .. Lou
Quote from: STRIPER LOU on February 13, 2018, 12:14:28 PM
Plans are to get one to him for a field test. There's absolutely no doubt in my mind that it wont get anything but a serious workout.
Good, I won't be able to test mine until the first halibut opening.
Good to know. I have guys lining up to purchase his handles...
I don't want to give out his personal information without his authorization, and he has been silent to my texts.
Thanks Lou for your insight.
Joe
One of the problems on the internet are too many quick posts that are not well thought out — not realizing how they may be taken — or affect other's perceptions about what we are trying to say...
I guess a lot of this has to do with smart phones, abbreviated texts instead of well thought through useful responses, and the busy world we live in...
Sometimes reactions to criticism on both sides leave bad feelings, misinterpretations, and issues that cannot easily be resolved without a face to face or phone conversation — and apologies by both parties.
And none of us really know what others are dealing with — serious health issues, spouse issues, family problems, loss of loved ones, work & business pressures, injuries, financial problems, legal problems, or a thousand other possibilities.
We should all learn how to RESPOND instead of REACT to others.
We all have a right to be proud of our skills, our niches, and our finished results.
In many cases, major investments of time and money are required just to bring an improved product to our members and others. We all need to recognize, appreciate, and honor that Ohana commitment to each other.
Typically, modest & humble members who offer upgraded products to our members that they have manufactured — prefer to let the final users be the judges of how well these upgrades perform on the water.
And in most cases, these products are offered to us at prices way below retail — or even given away freely.
One of my grandmothers, born in Ohio in 1884, and who passed on 50 years ago this year — always had some good advice to share with me. I recall one time when I was offering my opinion or bragging about what I thought on a certain subject, she just patiently waited for me to finish spouting off — then calmly and quietly told me that "well...you certainly have the talking part done, Fred".
Ted is not responding, and just letting his products do the talking as they are used by our members.
IMO.
Best,
Fred
"One of the problems on the internet are too many quick posts that are not well thought out — not realizing how they may be taken — or affect other’s perceptions about what we are trying to say...
I guess a lot of this has to do with smart phones, abbreviated texts instead of well thought through useful responses, and the busy world we live in...
Sometimes reactions to criticism on both sides leave bad feelings, misinterpretations, and issues that cannot easily be resolved without a face to face or phone conversation — and apologies by both parties."
"Quote;
Ya Think! But things are better not said at all.
Joe
Great review S.L.
Really, if you ever wanted a career change maybe that'ed be one thing to consider?... "Striprer Lou's Reviews".
I have no real machining or fabricating experience to speak of. Sensory-wise though there's something about those 2 eccentric shift levers from Maxed Out I have, that say to me "form & function-perfection". Not to mention that you can't even tell they're a diffrent product than the C.C. side plates they're attached to.
Gfish
Great review Lou!
And if you ever wanna get rid of that "Purple Haze" reel let me know.... I'd have to get a loan but I'd love to buy it ;D :D ;D :D ;D :D
Thanks All!
This one is called Eye of the Tiger. Installed it earlier and seems pretty much the same as the others, a nice tight fit. A light coat of grease on the handle and gear sleeve, worked it up and down along its length until seated, removed the handle and grease, then reinstall.
The orange/black combo is quite a contrast to the green and looks really sharp. The shop has been very busy with customers for the past several days and I wanted to get this out for the weekend in order to get more feed back.
We had a slight break in the weather and a bunch of the guys went to the Housey. They didn't catch a ton of fish by any means but one of them did manage a 40 inch striper and a few of the guys caught some small schoolies.. Someone said the big bass was caught on a 3/4 oz white pearl shad. Doesn't look like the weather is going to hold for the weekend though as they're predicting around 8" of snow.
I'm heading to R.I. towards the end of the month. My buddy Chas is one of the commercial guys and He's doing the Cod thing right now. Putting a 4/0 together with the Maxed Out handle arm for him to test, so we'll see how it goes.
Have to bring some supplies and thought I might want to pack a rod just in case!
Again, thanks to everyone for the comments, they're appreciated, and please by all means share your experiences.
Have a great evening, .. Lou
The Maxed Out handle/knob assemblies have been on display at the shop for a few weeks now.
All the comments have been positive so far. One of the guys wife's is an ardent bottom fisherman (oops fisherwoman). She played with it for a while and was surprised to hear her say, ... nope, its not too big for me!
When we bottom fish for tog, flounder, and sea bass, this gal makes us really look bad. The lady has the touch.
I put this one together for the weekend shop crew. Tom's plates, Tib yts frame and spool, steel main gear, shop made custom drag assembly, and Ted's handle arm and shift lever.
The color match on the arm is about as good as it gets. Nice fit and it surely makes for a handsome reel. The red handle in the background is the one that's going out for field testing at the end of the month.
I'm glad I have several of these as its nice to actually see some of my reels with handles on them for a change. If you have some of these babies installed, please post them up and lets see what ya got!
All have a great day, .. Lou
Great report, Lou!
Ted's cranks, and actually all of his upgrade products combine form, function, strength, superb attention to detail, in a unique and attractive design.
Can't ask for more — and all at a very fair price.
Ted is a modest and humble guy, who knows what it is all about — no drama, just perfect results.
Best,
Fred
I have a red one on my CC 349H and as soon as they are finished I will have a silver and blue one on my
T4N1.
I have six with more ordered from Ted. They are sweet! Lou, I need those plugs. Seriously.
"OHANA Silver Bullet" with matching arm and grip. She's a stunner! :o ;)
That one is over the top...fantastic! 8)
(https://i.imgur.com/VCFTIrn.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/o3f8Bga.jpg)
Lou,
Great review. You should take up writing for a sport fishing magazine.
I've been away for a while and haven't posted about these modern reel handles. I think they compliment our modern star drags. As well as make them 21 century reels.
Besides that, they are nice to look at (awesome) and made well. I like the size of the handle and arm length on both the 2/0 and 4/0. The size of the comfy knob is perfect for my hand.
Anyway Lou, thanks for the review. You covered everything and more.
Lou, if possible, I was hoping you could make a custom knobs for one Ted's handle arms?
Ted, I PMed you this morning for a few complete handles and some levers.
tt, well that's a nice looking group you have there. Very sharp and I'm partial to Adam's Ocean City style stars too.
I've been swamped with work here and I haven't had time to put one of my knobs on Ted's arm.
Its on the list though. A lot of people checking Ted's goodies out at the shop this weekend. His shift levers have been a big hit too! I'm completely sold out.
Thanks for the comment's, and have a great evening, .. Lou
Thanks for the good words Lou! I can't believe Penn never made shifters that nice.
The handles and shifters are nice.
Joe
Teds handle/arm assembly is being tested by Chas, one of the commercial guys. He's been using it for almost 2 weeks now and so far its all looking good.
I'll keep you posted on any of his feedback as it comes in.
................Lou
UPDATE
I have spoken with Chas on several occasions and they are up fishing on Stellwagen Bank at the moment for haddock.
After around 3 or 4 weeks of use, the foam loosened a bit and he glued it and no further problems occurred since. Both him and his partner gave it great praise. Light weight, good meaty grip, and comfortable in the colder weather.
I hope to get the assembly here when they get back as I'm anxious to get a look at it myself. I know it got a good workout.
The testing was done on the first version assembly and Ted has made some changes to improve its durability. A different material is available and its glued in place. The metal end caps have been removed and it certainly makes for a comfortable and affordable grip.
Nice work Mr. M and thanks for making these available to Ohana!
Will keep everyone posted as I hear more.
All have a great day, .. Lou
They look great and comfortable Lou!! 8)
Marc..