Fishing with Rod Discussion Forum
Fishing in British Columbia => General Discussion => Topic started by: Spudcote on October 31, 2004, 04:26:01 PM
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I just noticed them, they look pretty cool, anyone ever used one ? How are they ? and does lever-drag in a reel that size make much difference ?
Just wondering.
Also, how does lever-drag stand up against star-drag ? Lever-drag seems to be on some of the larger reels, with the exception of the drag that's appearing on the Abus...
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I tried one and I really prefer the star drag - probably because I'm more used to the star. I got confused and felt awkward when it came to backing off the drag as the spool got smaller. I have bit hands and it still didn't feel right.
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A lever drag reel is vastly superior to star drags.Have a look at high end Big Game reels like Duel, Avet and Alutechnos-all lever drags.
More control, smoother and better engineered.
However that's for trolling or fishing live bait-casting is a pain because you have to put the thing in free spool every time-manually move the lever because there is no free spool button.
In BC lever drags are used for downrigging mostly-there is no better unit for trouble free downrigging than a lever drag.
I'm no fan of Abu products and have heard that their lever drag setup is something of a lemon.
(http://islamic-world.net/children/fruit/citrus/pic/lemon-pic.gif)
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In most cases, drag is a set and forget feature. I usually set mine a bit lower than required and use my thumb to be the extra bit of drag to slow the fish down.
Well I have to disagree, Try using your thumb to stop a big spring in a fast river. A severe lack of skin or at least a big blister WILL be the result. The lever drag has its place, just not for smaller type rivers, Bella Coola, Atnarco, and Skeena for example are very good places for a lever drag.
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I can see using a Lever Drag bar fishing because you cast it out and set the thing then leave it.
Then as Johnson says the smoothly adjusting drag becomes a big advantage.Plus you can see where the drag is when you adjust it-quite different from the 'set 'n guess' of the star system.