Confused

[snookboy]

Hi all,

Just like to say hello to everyone first as i have been a member since the 15th of March and am now making my first post.

My question i guess is targeted mostly towards surf/rock fishos.

For casting distance which in your own opinion will cast further the Alvey or say a bait runner reel

and why im thinking of purchasing an alvey reel willing to spend $250 max but for that price i can get a nice bait runner.

please give me your feed back.

Snookboy

[snag]

Hi Snookboy,

IMOA id say an alvey would cast futher than a baitrunner because the size of the reel. Anything comming off a smaller reel head.

But the one bad thing about Alvey reels is that are a one to one ratio reel, which just means for every turn you make thats all you get back where as a baitrunner has a 6:1 or 5:1 ratio which means for every trun of the handle you get 5 or 6 rolls back.Also baitrunners are great for palagic's off rocks..eg kingies and salmon.

Hope ive explained it well enough and id go the Baitrunner, prefer Okuma or the older 6500B Shimano.

[snookboy]

cheers Snag

Thanks for the info just what i needed to hear

[henryinnis]

Hey,

I have played around in sessions with both, and I definately prefer my Alvey. It takes getting used to, but is easier to cast, and in my opinion, does cast further. The eggbeaters can be more complex to use and when you are on a beach, you want simple and effecient.

There will be miixed opinions on the site, I would go speak to one of the great site sponsors and they are sure to sort you out!

Happy fishin and hope this helped,

henners

[brett a]

hi snook boy

I'd prefer the alveys over the eggbeaters the alveys can handle more punishment theres nothing there for'm to go wrong .If it falls inthe sand or water it doesn't matter.

I do alot of rock & beach fishing & thats all i use.

Cheers Brett

[shane87]

I own both and use them for different situations. The alvey 650e5 that i use has a spare spool and i use it for drummer and groper fishing where low down grunt and a 1:1 ratio is great and i also use it for slow spinning garfish for kings. The 6500 baitrunner gets a go every now and then but i rarely use the baitrunner function and generally go with an 8500 spinfisher.

[kingpig]

If you are serious about using an alvey than to get the best performance you need a rod that is matched to the reel.

A rod for an alvey is different from one for a eggbeater (threadline reel).

The reel seat shoud be low on the rod butt. The first stripping guide needs to big in diameter high from the rod blank and further up the blank than a rod designed for overhead or thread line.

The reason is that the line coming off the reel when casting is in big loops and if the first guide is to small the line creates fricton, if the guide is to close to the rod blank than the line will hit the blank during casting and create fricton, this is called rod slap. Both of these will have a big affect on casting distance.

Avley are a good low maintenance reel, just match the rod to them.

Another tip, if you have problems with line spin, put a second swivel in your rig if you are not using a swivel then you may need to run the line off the reel and let the spin unwind.

Good Luck

Kingpig

[bolan]

I must admit, I do love a baitcaster and would prefer that to an alvey, although most of my assumption would be based on ignorance as I have been out fishing with alvey owners but never used one myself. I do know that the Alveys are bullet proof.

My problem is that I have destroyed 2 baitrunners so far and although I'd like to replace them, I have no bloody idea what will last. One died on a PB bream that I nailed up the Hawksbury, and the other crapped itself with no real reason! One being a shimano (older one) and the other being a new Mitchell. I am hoping to pick some brains at the entrance social.

[southerly]

Depends what you want to use them for.

Alveys are bomb proof and I use them exclusively for bait fishing the rocks and beach, they cast light baits for drummer or ganged pillies like nothing else can. And the amount of brute force you can put on the direct drive of the alvey would destroy a baitrunner on the first fish (it would even freak out a Tiagra). Mine are the old sort with no star drag etc to cause trouble. They are 30 years old and I am sure they will outlast all my kit including anything I buy today. I have used threadlines for drummer occasionally but they cast can't compete with the alvey.

However alveys are subject to line twist and are no good for spinning or repeated casts where there is no chnace of getting the twist out (when drummer fishing I make losts of casts but each time i bust off on a fish or snag the twist gets a chance to unwind).

For spinning definately go the baitrunner or overhead. If LBG is your poison go an overhead. Agree with the posts on rods but assume you will match an appropriate rod.

They are also a vey competent snapper option off a boat as well.

Cheers,

Southerly

[snookboy]

Thanx for all the replies,

It looks like you cant go wrong with an alvey however this means if i was to run with the alvey set up

i would need a new rod.

i only just purchased a new one last week.

however i didnt realise that the first guide had to be so high up on the rod.

would having a custom blank made allow me to use both setups and also what about the guides higher up

would the need to be changed

[hottyscotty]

another point to add, because of the 1:1 ratio, alveys are no good for lure fishing if high speed retrieve is required.

Edited April 30, 2007 by hottyscotty

[arpie]

Hi Snookboy

As a little nipper in Qld, I used to use an Alvey (all Qlders use Alveys!) & have fond memories of them - so much so, I bought a couple (small for bream/estuary) & larger for beach ....... basically used them twice & went back to eggbeaters!!

When it mattered (got a good fish on), I found the line on occasion would wrap around the handles instead of the spool & stuff me up! Seems, when winding in a fish with an Alvey, (or just winding in) you need to feather the line across the spool with your finger (like a fly fishing reel) to lay the line evenly on the spool. An egg beater does this automatically, as does an overhead. With an Alvey, if you don't do this, you build up a hump of line in the middle of the spool, then the line slips down the side, to get caught between the line laid on earlier. This causes a tangle. When you cast, your sinker & bait can come to an abrupt halt/snag & Bang - all gone! Worst still, you lose your good fish when it wraps around itself & stuffs up!

I will try them again at some stage & overcome my obvious difficulty, because I don't like it getting the better of me. But there is nothing worse than turning up to the beach & everything stuffs up on you & you don't have a backup. The best advice I can give you is to TRY BEFORE YOU BUY. See if you can have a go on someone else's Alvey and put it on your rod for a whole session of fishing (at least 2hrs) before committing yourself to buying one without using it! They are bullet proof, so you can't hurt it. You will know by then whether it suits your existing rod or not! Don't forget, Alveys sit at the bottom of the rod with a very short butt, not up further (like an eggbeater rod) or even up further still (lfor an overhead rod.) Each rod has a totally different set of runners - an overhead road usually has all small runners, right from the start, as the line does not loop at all when coming off the reel. The spinning/eggbeater rod has a larger first runner, similar to the Alvey rod, but the reel seat is further up, away from the butt. Go to a reputable tackle shop & get the salesman to show you all of them. He should also be able to explain the difference better than me!

Good Luck!!

Cheers

Roberta

[snookboy]

Thanx Roberta

that is probably my best option ill press on with my egg beater for now, ill try and get my hands on a alvey

setup

cheers

[Mondo Rock]

I'll be the one to go against the grain here and say that I reckon Alvey's are a pain to use, a pain to cast, a pain to retrieve, and tangle heaps more than eggbeaters. I predominantly do beachfishing and always use eggbeater reels - must have caught hundreds of whiting and tailor on the current model and it shows no signs of weakening.

I know that there are those around who are loyal to Alveys - and they are definitely the toughest and longest lasting reels out there - but I personally think they are inferior to a good quality threadline. $250 will get you a bloody good eggbeater (go the Shimano baitrunners - they're an awesome reel) that will last for years. Like Roberta I tried the Alveys out again recently, having used them a lot as a kid, and was just horrified by how difficult they were to use compared to today's eggbeaters.

But everyone is different - the best advice you've received in this thread is to try before you buy.

[arpie]

..... I tried the Alveys out again recently, having used them a lot as a kid, and was just horrified by how difficult they were to use compared to today's eggbeaters.....

Hi Mondo

Yeah - I must admit, I look at mine from time to time & then pick up the eggbeater. I have one rigged up with 30lb braid for Jewie fishing & have only used it once!! I'd just hate Snookboy to pay fairly big $ for a new one, just to hate it!! At least all mine came from garage sales, so no real pain to the hip pocket!!

I (for one) have plenty of 'useless' stuff in the garage that I just can't quite get rid of yet ..... haven't used it yet ...... but, when hell freezes over, I'll consider getting rid of it, just in case it comes in handy!

Cheers

Roberta

PS Is there such a thing as a Compulsive Obsessive Keeper of Things that May come in Handy??

Edited May 1, 2007 by Roberta

[Flightmanager]

PS Is there such a thing as a Compulsive Obsessive Keeper of Things that May come in Handy??

Most definately , I suffer from the same complaint !!

Ross

[henryinnis]

I must disagree with all you heretics ! Seriously though, this is an age old department. I had to have expensive training to use my ALvey, and very nearly lost my PB 80 odd cm Salmon! However, I found that with time, they were fantastic. A rust egg beater can have so many problems. A classic example would be when I was on the Hawkesbury River recently. I had what felt to be a fish on a light eggbeater setup and the drag ect. wouldn't release well. Then the bloody thing wouldn't wind properly. I also lost a GT lure in a cast on hols because the beater snapped over and the lure came smahing into the side of the metal boat!

However, keep to Roberta's advice to try before you buy. Maybe even ask someone of you like it to teach you!

Henners

[livo]

Probably the most important thing to remember with the Alvey sidecast is to get the line onto the reel properly in the first place. There are several different and somewhat conflicting theories about how to do this. I'd be interested to know if any of you have any info.

Some say to put your new line spool on a spindle thus allowing it to spin as the line comes off as you would do for an eggbeater ( ie no twist). Others say to pull the line off the side of the spool in the reverse direction to the reel which puts an inbuilt twist into the line which then counteracts the twist produced by the reel.

Care also needs to be taken in applying tension to the line as you spool up due to the actual amount of line held on them. Too much tension and the top layers will cause deformative pressure on the inside line and possibly cause embedding where the line actually clamps onto itself. Too little tension and the line will birdsnest off the side of the reel when casting and create a terrible mess. These problems will obviously affect casting distance.

I used to work with a guy who competed in long distance casting competitions with Alveys and those guys took it very seriously (followed by ) Hurling snapper leads around on football fields to see who could go the furthest in different weight classes. He told me that he would immerse his new line in a tub of hot water (not too hot of course) for a couple of hours before spooling up to improve the way it sat on the reel.

I have to admit that in the past I have had some trouble with getting the line on the Alvey reel properly.

[mcownage]

But the one bad thing about Alvey reels is that are a one to one ratio reel, which just means for every turn you make thats all you get back where as a baitrunner has a 6:1 or 5:1 ratio which means for every trun of the handle you get 5 or 6 rolls back

yeah thats right but the alvey has a much larger wheel so 1 full circle is probably close to 5 baitrunner circles anyway... if you know what i mean