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Blackfish Alvey 455BXL - Is it good or bad?


JamoDamo

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Hi Raiders,

Sorry that I haven't contributed much at all to this forum besides questions, my question is that is the Alvey 455BXL good or not. I have only used it once and had quite a bit of trouble getting the line not wrapped around the top half of the reel. Sorry if this isn't really relevant to anything or helpful I just need a little bit of input on the reel if any of you have it because I can't find anything like a review about sorry. I will try to contribute a fishing report soon as I am going for blackfish or whatever is around on Saturday. The reason I am asking is because it was a little strenuous to gather the sinken slack line to hook the fish and to reel in the rig after a 30-40 metre drift.

Thanks heaps , JamoDamo

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Mate use either Vaseline or Mucillin floating line dressing to keep your line on the surface. Your reel is fine also. You don't need to wind in too fast either. Floating your line will make striking a down heaps easier and when you hook up to a fish, you won't be racing it in either, slow and steady wins the race

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Like rickmarlin62 said.

Give yourself time.

 His advice re tucking rod butt under your left arm with the palm of your left hand under the reel is spot on.

 I also use my left middle finger, slightly bent at the top joint, to support the line just above the reel and guide it evenly on the spool when retrieving; this helps stop the line going behind the reel and around the mount.

After a a while you will be doing all these things automatically.

Keep at it. See if you can go with an experienced blackfish fisher who uses a centre pin. I just taught a mate and after a few months of frustration, now loves the centrepin for the feel and control it provides.

KB

Edited by Koalaboi
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  • 5 months later...

Interesting- have just purchased one of these ( alvey direct wind blackfish reel model No. 455B) at my fishing club’s auction. Unused. Have yet to even put line on it.....might need to do more research though 😜 any recommendations on YouTube maybe?.... I’m bit of a rookie 

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Hi jecaseka, 

Spool it up and start practising. I find that you need a reasonable weight at first to help you learn how to cast. Later, as you are familiar with the things you need to do, you can use a lighter weight.

If using a float, a running float is better than a fixed float when learning as the float stays near the lead when you cast.

When I first started using a centrepin (Steelite bakelite reel...and they are pretty good) I would hold the rod back over my shoulder and let the spool just start to freespool and then swing the cast over my shoulder. Later, you can swing the rod back and then forward in a smooth continuous motion and really work out just when  to take your finger off the spool to get in a good cast and when to to stop the reel to avoid a line overrun.

Advice above re vaseline is crucial to your hookup rate. I grease my mainline every time I go fishing, retie knots, put on a new trace and hook every time. You'll save a lot of fish and gear this way.

I'd suggest a 10 or 12lb mainline with a 6 or 8lb trace below a swivel or ring. Lead on the mainline above the swivel.

I find that the commercial rubber stoppers perish very quickly and on a line that's been greased do not hold their position well, the line is just too slippery. Much better to use a stopper knot tied with 20 to 30lb line above the float. I use the knot in the image attached and have found it an excellent knot.

All the best, I'll use a centrepin whenever I can as the control and direct feel they give is a great way to fish.


KB

 

Capture.PNG

Edited by Koalaboi
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I have the older 475B Blackfish Special reel, very similar to the new one that is now available. I would highly recommend it as a halfway towards a true centrepin. When you first hook up to a nice fat one and feel the spin of the spool in your fingers and palm as the fish starts to lunge you will see why this style of reel is so popular.

Also makes drifting the float out along long drifts and ocean rocks much more smooth.

You will get the hang of it!

Edited by Mike89
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@jecaseka The 455bxl is useable depending on the current you are fishing. The reason it doesn't spin as smoothly as other blackfish reels is because it is on a spindle that doesn't have ball racers so it isn't "fingertip control". I now use my 455bxl blackfish alvey reel for stillwater float fishing it is a good little reel just the inertia isn't great so the line won't peel off with the current with that being said it is a entirely useable for whatever you want to do with it I just found it a pain to have to peel the line off constantly. I recently was given a Snyder Glas and a Alvey 475CP by @luderick -angler and it is flawless as a set up, I was very very lucky to get given this marvellous gear to cut my teeth on the blackfish for years to come I finally have a "dedicated" blackfish set up that I so badly wanted to have. Alvey is starting to roll out its blackfish reels into production so if you aren't a fan of the 455bxl there is always a chance that you can get your hands on the 475A, 475B and all the other models! Good luck in your search and I hope this helps you somewhat.

JamoDamo

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