I'm thinking about buying one or two of the Shimano Calais DC reels. But I'm wondering...if they are so damn good why don't i see the pros use them?

Any ideas???????

I had one until recentally. Its a great reel..not $650 great but still great. Only problem I had with it and it was a big one--was that your spool speed on the reel seems to be so fast with the chip monitoring it that when a backlash does happen it is catastrophic. Which with a large lure usually meant a loud pop and watching your favorite crankbait fly farther and faster than you ever thought possible. Wasnt worth it to me so I took it back. The pros use the reels that they due mostly due to sponsor pressure and not what they really want to use. Plus it would imagine that the reels that they use have had work done to them so they are better than what you would buy at the store anyway but that is just a guess.

First, I do not own this reel, nor have I used one before.

My thought on the CalaisDCs is that they are best used for lighter lures. Heavier lures can be cast very long distances with other reels. I get great long range casting from my Chronarch BSVs, and BPV, as well as my St. Croix AC200, and AC250. The St. Croixs are Daiwa Millionaires in St. Croix livery.

I suspect that all the Shimano DCs are excellent for finesse applications. I would not consider using one for say large cranks, and certainly not for swimbaits.


MY two cents,
TFP

I own one. It is a great reel for light baits and small lures like Larry said. However the ratio is 7:1 and in my opinion that limits the baits I can fish effectively on it.

I may be the only one but I like to use the high speed reels for worms, Senkos, and jigs. I use the slower reels for crankbaits, spinners, etc. I have used my Calais DC for Traps but like Larry said there are a lot of reels that will throw a Trap a mile...

I also own a Calcutta DC250 and I love it for big cranks and spinnerbaits. It is the perfect ratio for them.

If your question is, "Is the Calais DC worth $650"??

I would say only if you want the best baitcasting reel on the market for throwing lures 1/4 oz and lighter.

The reason you may not see the pros using one is because they will use what their sponsors want them to promote heavily.

Shimano knows that the general public will not purchase a $650 reel but it may generate enough interest in their product line to get you to look at their Curados.

It is kind of like Ford building a $175,000 GT40. They knew that only about .001 percent of the population would even be able to afford one but if they could get you into the dealership to look at it they could sell you a $24,000 Mustang.

Even I fell victim to that and I don't even like Fords...


Ken

I have two that I have used for almost a year now. I pretty much use them exclusively for throwing unweighted soft plastics. Once you have them dialed in, backlashes are non-existent. I can throw an unweighted senko 40 ft into a 20 mph headwind all day without a backlash. I bought them off ebay new for $480 each. You can still get them for that price. I don't think I would have paid retail for one. Are they worth the money? Probably not. I have regular Calais and the DC is definitely not worth almost twice the price of them.

So Craig let me get this right---good fishermen don't need it and the couple of times a year fisherman don't need it so that would leave the rest of the anglers--middle of the road guys if you will--who probably wouldn't spend the $$ on them anyway. I am a little confused. Do you have one of these reels yourself? Really not trying to start anything just not sure where you are going with this.

Well, I ordered one last week should be here tomorrow or the next day. Got it for 500.00 even including shipping thanks to BPS. I belong to the Denton County Bass Club and we are sponcered by BPS. When I took the reel up to pay (@ 650.00 - 15%= 552.50 +/-) I was told by the supervisor, club members didn't get their 15% discount on reels or electronics. I had just bought a combo for a grandson two days before and got my discount. Anyway, I went home did a little research on the old internet and found one on ebay NIB for 499.99 shpped!!! And NO tax, so I figure BPS saved me around a 100.00 and they still have a 4 X 8 instock making it unnecessary for them having to reorder another one....

Bought a new rod (G Blanks custom) at the Arlington Fishing show and will be out with it as soon as the weather permits...

On the contrary, it is you rather than I that is given over to rhetorical flatulence.

I need not have used the reel to know that the greatest potential performance gain from the DC system is going to be with lures of 10 grams or less.

I offered an opinion which is based on:

A. Nearly 40 years of experience using baitcasting reels, and rods. So I've some practical experience with the beasts.

B. A very solid background in kinetics, and kinematics. Thus, the physics of projectiles is well know to me.

C. A fair background in electromechanical control-systems. So I understand the underlying ideas of the DC systems design.

D. My statement was that "I do not own this reel, nor have I used one before." I did NOT say that I've never used a Shimano reel with the DC system before. I have. So I'm not unfamiliar with the DC system.

Towit, you might wish to review the following video clip....


TFP