Finally set the flytackle down for a bit and got around to fishing my new Shimano Vanford 500F. Said I would, so I did, and it was an easy upgrade due to it being absolutely free.
Got to thinkin’ my Shimano Symetre 1500FI (from eons ago) was a bit overkill on an UL rod and decided to go light.
Wow! The difference in feel a little 4.9 oz reel makes in the system even on a 9’ 3wt spinning build. The old reel balance was fine, but shave a chunk of reel weight off and feel of this stick takes a noticeable jump. Handles the PowerPro 1/8 very nicely, no problems with casting or reeling in which impresses me. The PP 1/8 can be a challenging line in that it has a tendency to wander into the wrong places on a reel not properly designed for UL braids.
Some slipbobber style F’n’F on the gravel pits, a bit of finesse dropshotting, and slinging some heavier beadheads with and without small peg-on floats. Handful of bluegills, nay on the Redhorse of adjacent creek, typical cookie cutter 12” LMs here and there with a bonus Channel Cat on the chamois dropshot.
First fish, third cast…
And a very pleasant surprise for April…
Full disclosure, this one was a freebie as stated thanks to those accumulated Cabela’s points over the years. Purchase price of this toy looks to be about $230.00 USD which makes it the most expensive spinning reel I’ve ever owned. That said, even if I paid full price for this reel I’d still be tickled by it’s initial quality and performance. I stayed at the 1500 size for years due to problems with the smaller reels in the past, they apparently learned how to design these mini reels for low diameter line use at some point in time and this reel certainly exemplifies it. Might be able to get similar performance out of some of Shimano's less expensive offerings, I just had to spend the Cab/BPS Bucks and see what the next level up was like.