2500C freespool

[JasonGotaProblem]

I replaced the ball bearings on the levelwind with hybrid ceramics and my freespool has climbed to 14 seconds with the magnet still installed. (I didn't have a magnet glued in yet in my previous rounds of testing)

That $20 was a drop in the bucket considering the sunk costs already in this reel.

My 8# braid arrived I need to put it on. Prior to the new bearings just for a point of comparison casting I put a yum grub on a worm hook (I wanna say 3/8oz with hook), got spooled on the cast, and realized why the arbor knot was so noticeable. I only had about 100' of line on there. I'm sure when I fill the spool with 8# I won't notice it as much.

Now I just need to catch a fish on the damn thing.

[JasonGotaProblem]

I wanted to circle back and give an update on this reel. It casts 1/8oz way further than I would have ever expected. I use it with a 1/16oz jig head with the tiniest soft plastics I've ever seen and I get it plenty far out there. But what's more, of I'm stopping to hit a lake or the creek on the way home. Which unfortunately is most of my fishing, this is just about always what I'm using, so I'm getting a lot of use out of this investment. It is just so much fun, especially now that that I've gotten really familiar with using it, and the parts have gotten broken in a bit. It was worth every penny.

[oc1]

I wanted to circle back and give an update on this reel. It casts 1/8oz way further than I would have ever expected. I use it with a 1/16oz jig head with the tiniest soft plastics I've ever seen and I get it plenty far out there. But what's more, of I'm stopping to hit a lake or the creek on the way home. Which unfortunately is most of my fishing, this is just about always what I'm using, so I'm getting a lot of use out of this investment. It is just so much fun, especially now that that I've gotten really familiar with using it, and the parts have gotten broken in a bit. It was worth every penny.

Don't be getting complacent now.  Time to upgrade to a 1500C. 

[Gfish]

ABU Ambadsedur reels do not play well in saltwater.

Yep, but a light coating of grease inside the side plates and where they mate to the frame can help out some.  Grease the screw threads too.  As long as the reel is serviced frequently, it should be ok.  I did a 4500C for a guy down in Texas that never had it serviced.  It wasn't as bad as I thought and actually came out pretty nice.  A bath in white vinegar removed all of the salt deposits, but unfortunately, there was pitting in the areas where the brake plate and head plate attached to the frame.  He's still fishing with it.  The brake plate is usually the first part to succumb to salt, specifically the area where the clutch button is located as it's most open to the elements.

Bob, what do you think about the extra 3x10x4 in the tail plate under the spool cap? Are others doing that?
[/quote

Don't think it's too pertinent, but I did that on an old Bantam 100, and it didn't seem to have any noticeable effect. Can't see from the picture, but are the ball bearings internal, or external to the spool?

[tincanary]

I wanted to circle back and give an update on this reel. It casts 1/8oz way further than I would have ever expected. I use it with a 1/16oz jig head with the tiniest soft plastics I've ever seen and I get it plenty far out there. But what's more, of I'm stopping to hit a lake or the creek on the way home. Which unfortunately is most of my fishing, this is just about always what I'm using, so I'm getting a lot of use out of this investment. It is just so much fun, especially now that that I've gotten really familiar with using it, and the parts have gotten broken in a bit. It was worth every penny.

Surprising little guys aren't they?  I remember when I first started acquiring parts for my first build, I fully expected to be disappointed.  Now they're my favorite reel. 

Nothing wrong with creek fishing.  I was out chasing trout Friday morning; spent the day in waders and plodded a good two miles upstream picking off brown and rainbow trout from the pools.  They were loving the UV green firetiger Rapala CD1.  Bagged this 16" brown on my Daiwa SS 700/Major Craft Finetail Glass combo, the big fish of the day.