This is a good thread. And just when I got rid of the tackle board =)
Well I have owned a couple shimano reels and just quite a few other brands so I will share my opinions.
I have 3 corsairs, a 200 ,300 , and 400. I have a Calcutta 400, 4 curado 6:3 to 1's, and two symmetry spinning reels.
The corsair is, as mentioned above, basically a piece of junk. The two most common problems are when the handle spins backwards during the cast or when lifting a fish out of the water, and when the reel suddenly engages mid cast. I have taken my corsairs apart, every SINGLE piece to try to determine the cause of this and I know why it is. On a calcutta and the corsair there is a piece on the inside of the main side plate that is part of the anti-reverse system. On the calcutta it is forged as part of the frame. On the corsair this piece is a nylon piece attached with a screw coming from the outside of the sideplate in. If you take this screw out and put it back in, or if this piece is not PERFECTLY aligned the anti-reverse will fail intermittently which causes the two problems I mentioned above. So yes, the corsair is junk for that reason but aside from that it can be a very good reel for the money. My recommendation if you have them, keep sending them back to Shimano until you get a good one, then make sure to never un-screw this screw, that's what I did. If you don't have one, don't buy one!
As fer the curados, I have actually had only one small problem with the 4 that I own and that was that the drag just wasn't all that smooth. I haven't gotten around to sending it back in but the other 3 have been perfect and required little or no maintenance.
My Calcutta 400 has also been next to perfect. I did send it in for the dartanium drag upgrade after smoking up the drag on some small yellows at Catalina. Since then the reel has been perfect. Things to check are the bearings especially the one under the mechanical break. This bearing will rust pretty easily, so keep it lubed. Screw the reel together tightly but don't cinch it down really hard. I initially had problems with the screws backing out but now I have a better feel for the correct tightness and don't have that problem. Should the reel be that way? No, but for the quality of the reel I am willing to deal with that initial hassle.
On the subject of the calcutta 200's and 250's I have heard many problems, mostly having to do with the spool getting bent. I don't know why this happens, whether it's overtightening the screws or what, but I know that I would be leery of buying one after all that I have heard. If I wanted a reel that size for ocean I would probably buy a small newell (the 220 I think) and use that. Newells are sweet and very very tough.
That's my .02
Thanks everyone for posting their thoughts.

-Rob