This is a great discussion topic. Living in South Orange County, literally miles from Shimano's HQ in Irvine, you'd think I'd be all about Calcutta's and Curado's and Calyxes (sp?) After buying a Calcutta 250 the first year they came out, like 92-93ish?, I had troubles with that reel. I still have problems with it. I'm a freshwater bass guy! I'm not talking about intense drag issues. I would be out fishing and like every 100th cast the reel wouldn't re-engage, the handle would spin and not catch. Then the problem started occuring every 50th cast, 25th and so on down. Ridiculous! Not to mention the side plate screws do back themselves out! Suddenly you'll have super free spool because your spool is literally free from any magnetic spool control. Not good if your throwing a bulky bait into the wind!

I have it repaired like 5 times and it still isn't fixed! I keep it and basically have been thrashing it in the saltwater lately. I keep it clean and oiled, and now it's got a great squeak to it. This has become my reel for my off my surfboard excursions. And the sad part is, it's not even reliable enough for that!

I have another newer Calcutta 250 ( A high school graduation gift)! It performs much better than my older one, meaning the gears engage the spool every cast! However, the sideplate screws always need to be checked.

I talk to all these saltwater boys around the Dana Point Harbor. They love Shimano. For the bigger, wider, two speed, big game reels I guess Shimano is solid. However, in the bass world I beg to differ.

I use a ton of Abu Garcia 4600C4 reels. 6.3 to 1 gears, smooth enough drags, and priced right! Although I'd like to get into some higher performance low-profile reels, I don't think I'll go with Shimano. I hear the Curado is good. However, when Shimano floods the market with reels like the Corsair, I sort of have trouble with that. Corsair's are serious junk, team Mickey Mouse! They're priced where you could get a solid Garcia or Quantum reel. Yes Quantum makes some solid reels at a reasonable price.

Shimano has a weird business model approach to competitive bass fishing. They seem to help some guys out, but you'd never know it from their lack of presence. John Murray, a personal hero of mine, I know is backed by Shimano. So I know Shimano must have some good to them.

I try to be open minded, but I have a hard time with Shimano's products!

southernswimbait.com
BigBait Fishing in the South