Red

G'day Raiders, I still cannot believe what happen to me last night. An truly unforgettable and unbelievable experience. Something was urging me to go for a jew spin so i made a few calls and got managed to lure my brother in law (Gabe) and my great fishing buddy and good luck charm Jewie James (JJ) away from their heated lounge rooms. The plan was to try a "hardbody only" jew session. JJ has had lots of hardbody jewfish success over the years but Gabe and i had never tried it. So off we went to a local bridge in the Georges. Whilst Gabe was rigging up, JJ fires his first cast and i follow with my first cast as well. Three turns of the handle and i feel an unmistakable bump followed by BANG!! I completely lost my mind and could not believe what was happening to me. My first ever cast at jewfish on a hardbody and i'm on big time! This fish was in control early, screaming line off the Chronarch and my Daiwa Battler rod was bending hard under heavy drag. This combo is definately getting buried with me when my will gets updated i can assure you Gabe abandons his rigging and bolts over with the torch and after a 5 minute slog, JJ carefully grabs the fish from the gill cover. WOO HOOOOO! High fives and hugs allround. The fish measured 115cm and estimated at somewhere around 12-13kg. Not our biggest jew but its one that i will never forget. I always dreamt of one on a hardbody and my dreams came true in the most extra-ordinary fashion. JJ reckons my ass is so big, a semi trailer can do a U turn on it Thanks for reading this report. I just wanted to share this with you and i hope a similar miracle happens to you. Its the most special feeling i have felt since the birth of my first child. Bloody amazing night Regards Red

G'day Cap3, i bought the reel along with a high quality Strudwick TPS rod for only $150 which made the upgrade justifyable. The upgrade was also a lot cheaper than you may think. Anyhow, my thread was aimed at the Curado owner who was looking to get the most out of his/her reel. I did not encourage people to go out and buy a new reel at around $240 and then do an upgrade. That would be silly These reels can be bought for less than $100 used and are exceptional value at that price IMHO:thumbup: NT Barra guides love them for their dependable performance and durability. They may not be as good as an Alphas or Pixy but they are better than you may think when upgraded. Particularly when you take the price into account. The upgraded Curado cost one third of the price of an Alphas and i have a spare spool to boot You are welcome to have a play with it. Cheers Red

Ben, i'm hearing you. Boy don't those new Steez rods look special? Can't wait till they get superseeded in Japan, so the can dump them on our shores at near giveaway prices Regards Red

Edaw, the Metanium XT is quality. Can't speak highly enough about it. I run 20lb braid on it and it casts real well. I'm not a great fan of drum reels for casting and working lures but each to their own. I just find low profile reels a lot more ergonomic in design and comfortable to use cast after cast. That video sounds hardcore! Cheers Red

If you are near the Clemton park area, drop in and see Artie at Fish Therapy. Very competetive prices and also a nice guy. Cheers Red

G'day Funda, that sure is a hell of alot of drag. You must be using some pretty serious rods to handle those loads. I can see why people love those Daiwa's, especially that Black Sheep......she looks a ripper Cheers Red

Hi matey, do you have a preference for low profile reels? How does your Quantum perform? I was very close to buying one but opted for the Shimano Metanium XT (very similar to the Chronarch). Personally, i prefer the comfort of low profile, so out of your impressive list i'd go for the Saltist or Chronarch. Good luck Red

What an awesome fish! Congratulations! Thanks for revving the fellow Raiders up on the Marine Parks issue. It's been my pet hate since Jervis Bay was demolished Ladies and gents, we really NEED to pull our heads out of the sand on this issue. My prediction is that Sydney Harbour will be their next target and it will be the easiest of all fishing havens to screw, now the pros are gone and the fishermen have abondoned the place in droves. Time to wake up ppl. Regards Red

I'm missing my baby badly Been totally obsessed with tackle for 20 years now and that Daiwa Battler "Flanker" would easily have to be the best rod i've ever owned. Its an absolute delight to use. Chris, i knew you'd love it and this made me somewhat reluctant to lend it to you because there was little doubt you'd go out and buy one. In the meantime you are always welcome to borrow it whenever you please. If only Daiwa sold these superb blanks and reel seats They'd sell truckloads! Thanks for testing the gear on tough opponents in such harsh terrain and i'm happy that it didn't let you down. It makes the small cost of the Curado upgrade all worthwhile Happy days! Regards Red

Well done Loomy. You've kicked butt again. Make sure you leave some for us Cheers Red

Great fish......Great report! Well done guys Cheers Red

Little Flattie, unfortunately i won't be making it to the social day as i'll be drooling over the new boats at the Boat Show. Had a good look at a Pixy a few days ago and talk about impressive Does the level wind operate when you cast or does it dis-engage? I'd love to cast one. Cheers Red

Now there's a sweet little reel I'd have one of those if they were more affordable. You are welcome to borrow mine and do your comparison. I'm curious as well. Cheers Red

Cheers guys, I'm absolutely delighted with the Curado's new ability. As a bonus, i now have a spool for ANSA line class fishing (2kg) and a spool for casting light plastics/hardbodies. Changing spools on the Curado is a 30 second job as there are no tools required for the task. Rick, i haven't attempted a Chronarch handle on a Twinpower, however if it can be done on the Stella, there's probabably every chance it will fit your reel. Might be worth giving Dunphy's a call on that one as it would be a sweet little upgrade For those Curado owners who are interested in the upgrade, i will call Shimano on monday for the individual prices on the parts i changed. You are welcome to drop me a PM after monday for these prices if you wish. BTW, I'm after a few more of these reels if anyone wants to sell theirs? Waiting patiently for the results of this weekend's field test. It's in capable hands so i'm confident there will be a glowing report. Regards Red

I asked the seller if it comes with a spare spool . No reply as yet Cheers Red

If you can afford a Stella 20000FA then go for it. My mate has 4 x Stella 20000's combined with T-Curve 400's and has taken some enormous fish, including a 400lb Blue Marlin, 60kg Doggies, huge Sailfish etc. He absolutely loves the outfits. Although i think the Stella or Saltiga would be major overkill for Sydney jigging.......they would be a better option if you plan to also do some trolling for lineburners like Tuna or Marlin. I'd have no issues trolling a Pakula for big Stripes off Sydney with a Stella/T-Curve combo. Cheers Red

Will you guys stop outbidding me

G’day Raiders, Here’s a bit of info on how to tune a Shimano Curado 100B. My Curado has had a new lease of life, thanks to some simple yet effective modifications. If you are lucky enough to have a Curado 100B, you’d be almost mad not to upgrade it…lol The reel’s appearance is now far more impressive than the standard model and it casts light lures as good as the expensive Chronarch 50 Mg. As a bonus, the reel has now shed at least 25 grams, thanks to the ultra light spool and drilled out handle. If you have one of these reels and are thinking of doing the upgrade, DO NOT buy the components from Japan Tackle, unless you are feeling rich, because their prices are severely over-inflated. I was somewhat surprised to find Shimano Australia (Dunphy’s) sells the componentry for much less and this made the upgrade justifyable. Initially I just changed the spool and this is all you really need for the improvement in casting ability…….. but I couldn’t stand the “cheap looking” black plastic star drag and the crappy plastic cast control knob, so these were also borrowed off the Chronarch 50 Mg, as was the handle which i think sets the reel off ! I now love this reel. Two of my mates have seen it and they want me to do one up for them. This smart looking Curado performs like its expensive cousin yet won’t have the potential corrosion issues of the 50 Mg in salt water because to my knowledge, the parts I have changed are not made of Magnesium. The next and final upgrade will be a set of ABEC 5 or 7 bearings and that’s if I get the reel back off Chris, who is doing a field test with it at the weekend….lol So there you have it guys. If you want the performance of a Chronarch 50 Mg but can’t afford one, why not buy a used Curado 100B and do the upgrade. You’ll be surprised just how cheap a high performance reel can be. Sorry about the order of the photos. The original curado should have been at the top. Cheers Red

Grant, congrats on a top little session. Great fun on the light stuff Hope the sambos hang around for a while yet. Cheers Red

Congratulations. Hope both mum and bubs are doing well. Regards Red

G'day Mondo. My brother and i bought these combo's from a Sydney tackle store for $399. All good tackle stores know their competitor's pricing. They all know the $399 deal because its been out since last summer. Tell them to match it or take your money elsewhere. Cheers Red

The high end Daiwa reels are great but spare parts are extremely expensive . You can buy a new Stradic for the price of one Daiwa Airity spool and the price of an Airity bail arm would buy you a new Symetre plus Fireline How can these rip-off merchants justify their spare part prices? Maybe the ACCC should launch an investigation I will stick to my beloved Shimano in future, purely because the staff at Dunphy's are a great bunch and they really look after me like no other. Mr Dunphy sure knows how to choose the right staff and for this i give Shimano their products the big Cheers Red

You guys are a rare breed Anyone that fishes for jew or hairtail in winter deserves my full respect. I'm lucky if i can get 10ft away from the heater . Congrats again guys Red

Have bought a few items from them and their service is faultless. They offer express post too. That $399 deal is available at several stores in Sydney so why buy from interstate. Just shop around here mate. Keep in mind that you will pay around $30 for delivery on top. Regards Red

They're all good reels mate. I'd go the Stradic. You get a Japanese made reel with 10yr warranty and a spare spool Cheers Red