An Old Skool 3/0 Hot Rod

[Darin Crofton]

What a cool little reel you built, Mike, inspiring work to say the least!

[mo65]

What a cool little reel you built.

   It's a misunderstood reel too at times. Compared to a Jigmaster...yes...it's slow. But for what I intend to do with it, it couldn't be better. River fishing is so shallow the slow speed isn't painful like when Saltwater bottom fishing. Looking at this reel from a catfishing point of view is much different. Another popular cat reel, the Ambassadeur 5000, has a 3.5:1 gear ratio. Makes the 3/0's 2.25:1 sound mighty slow.
   Now put things into perspective. The Ambassadeur 5000 pulls 18.5 inches per turn. The 3/0's much larger spool pulls 17 inches per turn. The #5-66 main and #13-49 pinion in the 3/0 are massive...way stronger that the Ambassadeur's drive train. And the drag power difference...no need to even go over that...hee hee!
   So for shallow water fishing the ol' Moonshiner 3/0 is nearly perfect for trophy class Blue/Flathead catfishing. I'll still go with that tiny 5000 for 5-15lb. channels though. Thanks for the kind words fellows.
   

[Gfish]

How about the "Mo-jo Moonshiner"! Looks like one strong reel Mo.

[mo65]

   Just an update on the painted spool...it still looks like it was painted yesterday. No chipping or corrosion at all. This is still one of my favorite creations.