Avet LX?

[LQQKASTAR]

i want to buy one tomorrow before the price goes up,
is this the best avet for casting and livebait?, i allready got an EX wide, for big fish, but i need somthing i can cast, is this a good reel for casting 3/4 oz swimbaits?

i called charksomthing today, but their not anwsering their phone, as their doing inventory, im scared of the JX because of the little screw issue, as brought up in another post.


I'm all ears

thanks in advance.


Jack.......... Its beer wagons fault!!


Keta, Hoggemin?

[treegolfer]

The JX and LX are identical except for the width. The screw problem was with the MX, if I remember right.

treegolfer

[Onokai]

I own 4 of the lx. They are good for trolling or casting iron. I;d go smaller to cast traps or bait. the mx or sx should work well. Mark

[crabbait]

No, this is not a good reel for casting light weight lures. I have two of them and have attempted to use them for casting heavier jigs. They cast well with enough weight but stopping the spool is very difficult (major backlash). I had no better luck with a JX.

I understand that some of the SoCal guys are hotrodding Avets by adding magnets inside the sideplate and that may be the cure.

For this year, I am going to try swimbaits with Calcutta 700 and 400 and a Tekota 600. I may even give a Abu Garcia 6500 a go.

My

[Salty Walty]

The MXL would be a better choice for the lighter jigs and live bait. With a good amount of practice you could get used to the JX. The Avets really spin well and when you get the larger diameter spool of the LX/JX going it can get a mind of its own and keep going when you want it to stop. It did work great with Megabaits and other larger (2-4oz.) jigs. I found that the MXL was easier to control due to its smaller size and smaller dia. spool with the swimbaits. It is all a matter of preference though. Look at the Newell 229 too.

[Zodiac-Fisherman]

Jack,

I picked up a Penn Intl 965. Its my new livebait/casting rig. Its very similar to a Calcutta, but its made out of a block of stainless steel vs aluminum. I can cast very far, the cast control knob is very sensative, so it took fine tuning to get it to work the way i like it. Check it out.

[KillerBeee]

I have the LX and cast some jigs with it. They were the bigger iron type and it worked well. I agree that the spool would overrun and backlash with a light weight lure.
I'm liking the look of the Shimano Torium. Several of my friends have them and they worked well for trolling and casting. They are just like the Tekota without the levelwind.
Beeeeeee

[Zodiac-Fisherman]

Beee,

I have a Torium 30, You've probably used it. No complaints so far. Smooth and has a killer retreive ratio. 6-4-1.

[Metal Manipulator]

The SX in my opinion is too small even though I had no problem landing Tuna. The MX would be a better choice and that is what I will be buying, unless of course there is another real in the same price range.

[Mark Mc]

Ditto....ditto.....ditto...

Although I do "OK" casting the JX with 1.5 ounce weights, it can be tricky. In the Avet line, the MX or SX would be much better for light weights.

You might also consider a Newell.....like a 229. The Newell is a lot more foregiving wrt backlashing. I can cast a 1 oz weight the proverbial "country mile" with a 229.

[treegolfer]

Mark Mc, I notice that Charkbait has a couple different models of Newell 229, the P series costing considerably more. Which do you recommend?

Thanks,
treegolfer

[Mark Mc]

The the main difference is P series has an aluminum spool. In addition, more metal parts vs graphite.

I happen to like to "regular" version....it has a graphite spool, which is inert to salt, is lighter, and casts great.

I'll be bringing a few for "show & tell" at the convention...I'll have a table at the trade show.

Hope that helps..... Mark

[treegolfer]

Thanks for the info Mark.

treegolfer

[Paddler]

I took some gear Santa brought me to the park a couple of days ago. I test casted an MX on a Calstar GFGR 800L. The reel was spooled with 20# Trilene Big Game, and with a 2 0z weight it went 83 yards. This was the first time I ever used the reel, so this should improve. I also tried a 30 year-old Squidder on a new Calstar WC 270 7C. The reel is in decent shape, but the line is old, didn't fill the spool, and the lube could use replacing. It went 56 yards with the same weight.

The MX was notably smoother and quieter. I didn't have a lot of time, but plan to repeat the test after respooling the Squidder, cleaning and oiling it, etc. I will also switch off reels on rods. However, I really like the MX, as it is a very nice unit. Provided the line capacity is okay, it seems a better choice than a larger reel for casting lighter baits. The only thing I don't know about is that it seems there is no way to adjust the "bait", "strike" and "full" settings independently. On star drag reels, you can adjust the drag and free spool separately, which I like.

[LQQKASTAR]

well, thanks for all the help, since i posted this i sold my EX-wide, so im thinking about using the LX for trolling. and completly reconsedering my reel options for live bait.

rember to place an order before the 1st if your considering a reel from chark-B

THANKS AGAIN DOGS!!

[Mark Mc]

Just a note re Charkbait....I was under the impression that for the EXISTING stock of Avets, the price is the same. It is the new stock that will carry the new price. At least that's what Tom told me when I ....er....was talking to him about.... er.....hypothetically purchasing another reel. Yea.....hypothetically :grin:

For what you want to do
#1-MX
#2-JX

The MX screw problem was mostly due to overloading the reel. The MX is a 30lb class reel at best but a great 20lb class. The JX/LX work well up to 40lb.

[Onokai]

Talked to the owner (charkbait) today and all Avet reels will go up on the 1st. He said all backstock will be gone by then as xmas has been moving it out fast. Not sure if this is good or bad news to you. I bought a MX spectra backed with 20# topshot. Lets see must get another rod for that reel. Mark

[Paddler]

I talked to a tackle dealer in the LA area who is very familiar with Avet. He told me the screw problem was due to a few reels being assembled with the wrong sized screw. So there shouldn't be any further problems. I hope. He highly recommended the MX for what I plan to do (as Keta, above), and I think he's right.

[tomictime]

here are my votes:

MX and then the Calcutta 400 TE, lots of guys "trash" level winds here tho...more than the fish do I theorize, Albies anyway....My $.02, well I guess it's a fair bit more than that, seeing as how I voted with my wallet...

[Paddler]

Tomictime, the Calcutta only holds 260 yds of 14# line, which should be about 160 yards of 20#. Is that enough?

I cleaned my one of my old Squidders with WD 40 and compressed air, lubed the bearings with 10W oil, the main gears with Moly grease, and the drag washers with graphite (is this a good idea?). After putting it all back together, the spool now spins ~15 seconds, as opposed to ~6 seconds before. I wonder how that will affect casting ease and distance. It should be easier to backlash, anyway.

[Mark Mc]

Paddler, couple things:

- You might want to double check on using graphite on a "dry" drag. Ask ifish sponsor "Reelmeister."

- Over the last year I started using 20 lb spectra on my small reels (for things like shallow water rockfish), then I put on about 80 - 100 yards of 20 lb mono for tuna (drifting). This has worked great....I have not once gotten into the backing, and since I change the mono just about every tuna trip it saves $ .

[Paddler]

Thanks, Mark. You're right about the graphite. I tightened down the drag on that reel pretty tight, but only generated 3.8# of drag. I planned on replacing the drag washers anyway, so it's no big deal.

That's a great idea about the using the Spectra. That allows you to use a smaller reel, with less spool inertia, for albacore. Sounds like you could use an SX for that. But the smaller Newells (220 or 229) may be even better, as you noted above. If the drags would hold up, an Abu 6500 or even 5500 should do, and they cast very well. Think I'll take a bunch of reels to the park to try out.

I'll probably spool the Squidders and the MX with straight mono, as they're big enough to hold an adequate amount of line.

[tomictime]

Paddler:
lite tackle is part of the game for me. The MX just has a mono topshot, below is 30 spectra. I threw the Cal in there because it is a fab reel for many things, not just T-N-A !

JD

[Mark Mc]

Paddler, just beware of using Abu reels for saltwater, esp. albacore. They have a number of parts that will corrode. Also, the drags are minimal.

Yes, I use them on occasion for salmon mooching & shallow water rockfish......but they need a detailed cleaning...very unforgiving compared to a "real" saltwater reel.

[Paddler]

I use the Abu's 6500 series on St. Croix salmon/steelhead rods for mooching. It's pretty light gear for that, which makes it fun. I use Diawa Sealines for the downriggers, and they work very well.

The 5500's are fine for shallow rockfish, but I don't fish for them much. The first year we went to LA Push, our main interest was the rockfish. But they were too easy to catch, and we fell in love with the salmon instead. Besides, I catch enough walleye, wiper and perch here so I don't need any rockfish. Halibut sounds like fun, though.

I think I have everything covered now, with the MX and Squidders for albacore, and 330 GTI's for halibut. So, I don't need any more reels. How many times have you heard that one?

[Hanapa'a Time]

An MXJ will hold 300yds of 50# spectra and 60-70yds of 30# mono topshot.