Had the pleasure of rebuilding a couple of older Shimano Calcutta for a customer. They belong to a guide here on the Rogue River who uses these for salmon fishing, so these reels have seen their fair share of hard use and abuse. A little TLC and some new parts, and they are good as new! They may show their age on the outside, but inside, they are 100% ready for battle!
Spring is finally here, and with the weather getting better and warmer, the bass fishing is showing signs of improving. Got a decent smallmouth and a nice largemouth during recent outings. The fishing will only get better. Now I will be spending my time both on the rivers chasing spring chinook salmon and on the lakes bass fishing. A great place to live here in Oregon!
Well, after a couple of trips chasing these often “tough to get to bite” salmon, my Buddy Barry Filipone and I finally got a couple to bite. Both were native and had to be released, but awesome, powerful fish to fight. Barry hooked a real brute of a fish that he fought for a long time, took us down river. The hook pulled out just as it was coming to the net so we could not get a photo of that trophy. My fish was taken out of the net, quickly photographed, and sent back on its way to continue its final journey. Barry’s RGB (Really Good Bait) backbounced through the slot did the trick!
Completed my first Reel Tech custom fishing rods. What better choice for a custom jig maker than a pair of custom Float Rods. These rods built on Rogue 1063 10’6″ 4-8# blanks. I have fished with this model before and they make an AWESOME float rod for fishing jigs for steelhead. The beauty of building a custom rod is that you can put the handle right where you want it, choose the guides you want, and the colors you want. These rods will be married to a pair of Shimano Stradic Ci4 2500’s. Together, they make a wonderful, pleasure to fish combo.
I chose REC titanium guides for these two rods. The guides are virtually indestructible and very light.
The seat is an American Tackle AERO comfort grip seat with carbon fiber foregrip and rear grip. I love the raised palm swell on the top of these seats. Very ergonomic and fits the hand like a glove.
Rather than make a full rear grip, I decided to use the split grip design. I personally like the way this grip design looks and feels.
These rods came out just as I invisioned, and I anticipate that they are gonna bring alot of fish to the net!!
Tight Lines, bent rods, and screaming drags to all!!
I have received many requests on how to rig your float/jig system. Through much trial and error, this photo represents my favorite and most effective way to rig a float/jig. I use either 10# Power Pro or 15# Power Pro for my main line. The braid manages easily, is easy to mend, and floats better than monofilament. Most of the time, I like using a 1/4 oz West Coast Type float (Danielson actually makes a similar float, as seen in this photo, that is inexpensive and fantastic as well). I would recommend on super gluing the ends of the clear plastic tube where it exits the float, this will keep the clear tube from coming loose from repeated casting. This process is not necessary with the West Coast Floats as they are fully coated and the tube cannot pop out.
Under the float, I add a 3/16 oz sliding weight, a small bead, and then the #10 barrel swivel. The added weight really helps with keeping the line between the float and the jig vertical and down in the strike zone. The 1/4 oz float and the 3/16 oz weight is the perfect combination for throwing 1/8 oz jigs, as well as the smaller barbel type jigs. The float will ride straight up while drifting down river when using either jig.
Tight Lines!!
Wierd fishing year this winter. Lots of rain kept the Rogue out of shape for most of the season unfortunately. The days we went out picked up a few fish here and there. Wrapped a couple of custom float/jig rods…..photos to follow!
Tight lines.
A good word of advice to prolong the life of your drag washers, be they a wet drag system or a dry drag system. Always back off the drag tension when you are done fishing for the day, it doesn’t take long to reset the next time you use them.
Here are some examples of my Reel Tech Barbell Steelhead Jigs. These are tied on a smaller size #2 or even a size #4 premium hook. Most often, I use both plated and plain lead barbell eyes because I like the weight they provide over brass. The hook shanks are then wrapped in .035 lead wire for added weight. Sometimes the fish want something a bit smaller than the standard 1/8 oz jig, and in the darker colors, they make great clear water buggy looking jigs! The fish LOVE EM!
Here is an orange/white/chartreuse barbell jig with orange chenille head:
The ever popular pink/white whith hot pink chenille head:
One of my favorites–The Volcano tied in dumbell fashion:
Hot pink/shell pink with shell pink chenille head-Metalhead Magnet for sure !!!:
Here is one tied with brass dumbell eyes-pink/shell pink- shell pink chenille:
These are examples of some fantastic clear water options:
Here is one of my favorite clear water jigs-Black/purple with purple hackle:
Another clear water favorite-Olive and black with black hackle:
Tight lines, bent rods, and screaming drags!!!!
Sometimes, something a little smaller is in order to convince a steelhead to bite. These Reel Tech Barbell Steelhead Jigs are tied using premium hooks and lead barbell eyes. Fished the same way as the traditional 1/8 oz jigs, they have a way of consistently bringing fish to the net when conditions call for a smaller offering. These small jigs are primo in clearer water, and the darker, buggier looking jigs can really shine under these conditions
Here is a Chrome Rogue River Winter Steelhead that fell for the pink Reel Tech Barbell Jig!!
Here is a pair of upper river steelhead held by Jon Geyer and myself, that couldnt resist this smaller Volcano Reel Tech Barbell Jig!
Here are a couple of upper river fish. This shows the effectiveness of a darker, buggier looking barbell jig in clear water conditions.
Tight Lines!!!
Here are some before shots of the Shimano Scorpions a customer sent me.
BEFORE:
Notice the dirt, grime, and solidified steelhead bait on the frame and sideplates.
Dirt and grime inside the worm gear and level wind system.
Front view with level wind guard removed. Dirt and grime gets in and under everything, affecting performance.
Excessive dirt and grime on the level wind system.
AFTER:
Nice clean, debris free frame and sideplates.
Nice clean worm gear and level wind system. Free of debris and ready to go!
Under view of reel with a nice clean debris free level wind system.
Its amazing what a thorough cleaning and lubrication can do for the performance of your reels. Send them to me and I will make them like new again!!
Tight Lines!