General Avet Question

[Ron Jones]

I know this is a bit of a hijack, but I keep hearing negative things about Avet's. I have never fished one and am just wondering if they are all Bling and no Back Bone or do every owner fish them that hard?
Ron

[Keta]

Glued on drag washers and the wrong type of bearing used for the pinion are the only negatives I see with Avet reels, other than these two fairly minor issues the Avet reel is a simple and rugged reel.  Fish within the recommended drag range, adjust the drag properly (only when free spool) and don't drop the reel with a load on the pinion bearing and the pinion bearings are usually a non problem.

Yellowtail on an MX,



258lb cow YFT on a SDS 50

[Jeri]

Hi Ron,

I agree in part with Keta's observations, however for what we are doing down here in Namibia with our surf fishing, the Avet LX & MX are some of the finest reels for distance surf fishing that I have found – if used within the boundaries of their design.

As a surf reel that is going to spin forever, with near zero start up friction, and then offer superbly smooth drag – they are the tops. I have personally been using one for 4 years now, and it still has all the original bearings – I can't say that for any other model of reel that I have used or seen. It has been fished hard, and landed a good number of heavy fish, and consistently puts baits well beyond that of fellow competitors.

In our shop we were looking for a very top line reel to stock, one that would be the ultimate in surf reels, and found it in the Avets, however as is fairly common knowledge, when they are used beyond their design they fail in the pinion bearing, and this is probably their only weakness. We have sold a great many to top line anglers that are still using them, and enjoying the extreme levels of engineering that go into this reel. We have also sold a few to anglers that have used them beyond their design levels, and these are the ones that have failed.

I have two big fishing events coming up in the next few months, and I would certainly not entertain going without at least one of my Avets. One is an international event, where pure distance is going to be a paramount need, and the other is a long range trip, that is more sporting with large fish on lighter tackle that need a superb drag to defeat – in both cases in my opinion the Avets are the top reel for the job.

When compared in our field, they are head above everything else on the market, bearing longevity is one of the big failings we have with reels, and nearly all the other top contender for surf fishing have issues with bearing life. Other reels have additional issues which should never have got past the design engineer' desk, while others need a heap of 'after market' components to bring them close to the casting performance of the Avet, though none ever quite get to the same level.


Hope that helps.

Cheers from sunny Africa

Jeri

[Ron Jones]

Great, I appreciate it.

Like I said I don't own any, and I really am happy with my hot rodded Penns. I was just wondering.

Speaking of wondering, Jeri, I am starting to plan a trip to lake Tanganika within the next year. Know anyone with fishing experience?

Ron

[jonathan.han]

Never use anything out of spec; a good methodology to adopt. You'll find all the things you own will break/fail with much lesser frequency.

[JGB]

Been talking a little with Avet on their Raptor series. They have been very open on questions regarding issues and their design philosophy.
Here is my 2 cents worth after servicing and using a few Avets.

The standard (non Raptor) series of reels are a good value and are all CNC machines with a 1 piece frame (not incl right side plate) and screw on reel foot. The drags are dry and are all glued to the spool now (supposedly to reduce salt migration under the drag). They sport a single dog that is silent and seems to be very reliable. With that said I just replaced a worn dog that resulted from no maintenance (3 years) and the grease thickened and slowed the dog enough to 'chip' the leading edge of the dog. A well maintained Avet seem to do well in this regard. Avet bearings are getting better but are considered a wear part by Avet that needs to be replaced regularly when the reel is used near it's drag limit (left spool bearing and pinion bearing).

When properly Tani-ised they cast very well by skilled casters (they have an integral sleeve already). For those less skilled (like me) the Mag cast control makes casting a breeze even into the wind.

The Raptor series is designed and built for braid and very high drag settings in a compact reel and all Raptors come with Mag Cast Control. The Raptos use a floating carbon fiber drag disk with 2 pressure plates and the drag is dry with no protective cover. This is a good thing as many owners of standard Avets using braid are damaging their reels by exceeding the design drag limits which are low for reels sporting braid line.
The drag on the Raptors has a very steep ramp and is difficult to use at low drag settings. This can be redeemed by grinding the cam (easy to do since there are no detentes on the cam (detentes are on the lever guide instead).

There is a significant gotcha with the Mag cast control - The magnets will rust easily and need to be looked after with a periodic cleaning and coating with grease to keep it under control (maybe TSI will work here)- If you don't the rust will begin to drag on the spool. I did speak to them about this and they responded that they tried everything from plating to ceramic coating and non  of the possibilities would last.

To date the Avets I have seen (latest production) now have greased screws and more grease in the bearings. Avet now charges more for serving and no longer replaces the bearings as part of the service. This is partly due to improved bearing quality (jury on the bearing is still out).  If you Tani-ise the reel and keep it rinsed and dry it will be a reliable reel.

I have used the HXJ Raptor with wet drags and ground cam jigging for 50-65# white sea bass with 80# leader. I was pleasantly surprised  that it easily over powered the fish (5 min to gaff) and the higher gear ratios were not a problem with the extra long stock handle. The high retrieve rate worked well for deep jigging YT in 200' of water.

To bad we were unable to get a MK16 Sea to test side by side. The MK Sea has a smoother gear feel due to helical gears vs the Avet Spur cut gears. Avet feels the Spur cut gears are stronger and last longer.

It is also my understanding that Avet has reduced the price of the Raptors (was almost the same as the MK and SVX series of reels).

Hope this helps,
Jim N.

[Bunnlevel Sharker]

Will they replace old bearings on old reels? If not that will be my final straw, avet customer service has treated me like I have no worth. There went me getting a 30w and 50w from them. Probably gonna go with tiagra when I get the money

[jonathan.han]

Hey Jim,

Why not have them enclose the magnet in a plastic coating of some sort; seal the thing. I believe the steep drag curve comes into play due the cam being originally used for their single disc reels. Since the engagement of the dual drag surfaces increases the drag much more rapidly, the cam ramps it up faster than one would expect.

-Jon

[JGB]

I think the spacing from the magnet to the spool is very small to maximize the spool control. It is a clever design but requires the use of 2 pole pieces made of magnetic iron ( plated with nickel I think). The small gaps are tight enough to trap water (capillary action) and there is the problem. Current solution is to fill those gaps with grease ( hope the user does not constantly twist the control  and push the grease out) and keep the spool free of salt.

Jim N.

[Dockside]

Winter bump on the Avet HX.
I fish a couple worked 12T 2 speeds I really like the feel of.  I also enjoy the Tiburon SST 12 for a small 2 speed.  So I had to give the HX 5/2 a try.
I like the cast control for casting jigs and bombs.  Initially, the reel free spooled very well right out of the box.  I enjoyed the function of the reel. 
The tackle took a soaking on the way back from a longer trip.  I dropped off the HX at Avet because I work a few miles from them.  The service charge did go up a bit to about $30, and the bearings were replaced as "wear items" even though the reel had only one trip, a nice hoo, several beefy yellows, and little wear IMO.

After the service, the free spool was much less than when new.  I'm assuming due to new greased bearings.

I also noted the reduced price on the Raptor, and picked one up to replace a 12T that walked away with a friend.  The HX 5/2 Raptor with MC also did not spin well out of the box, however, after a bit of spin time on the spool it appears to be improving.  Still not enough to cast a sardine.
Yesterday, I had a new HX 5/2 in my hand at a tackle shop, and the spool spin was great on it, like my HX was prior to service.

It seems they are using more grease and yes, the Raptor reels are presently discounted so more folks will get them in their hands (I was told).