[alantani]

yeah, this was alot of fun. it really was a bit overwhelming. so much stuff to see. dean's new spectra has more strands than jerry brown's and it's supposed to be thinner. don't know much more about it than that. i got a sample to play with and it's very pretty stuff. everything is going to be spliced and served. i'm getting a "bow string " something or other to help do the splicing. all of this is totally new to me. i'm the guy that would spend have of my long range trip tying bimini's and albright's for all my friends on the boat. this new stuff is going to be different.

regarding the reels, i've only cracked open a couple of v series penn internationals. they are very nice. the first one was sent to me because the preset knob was stuck. i tore apart the whole right side plate to get it unstuck, and, seriously guys, it was not that hard. been so long, though, and i did not take pics, so i don't remember the proceedure. although i personally do not own any, i will always have a soft spot in my heart for penn gold. i consider it to be a traditional standard, and a product that this country should be proud of.

now, avet is another matter entirely. i seriously disagree with their dry drags and their choice of bearings (or rather, how they're installed). but it is their product, not mine, and they make the decisions, not me. so i've decided to give both of us a little breathing room and back away from avet. (um, did i mention that i can get 30#'s of drag out of an avet ex 4/0-2?) dig, dig, dig!