It was my very first baitcaster. My brother and sister pooled their money to purchase this gift when I was about 11 years old and I still have it today. It is my "go to" reel. The one I use when times get tough. When I need that little confidence boost I pull it out and go to work. I usually keep it spooled up with 14 lb. Stren Clear/Blu Monofilament (also a back to the basics "confidence booster") on a medium action rod.
This reel has been with me through thick and thin. I learned to cast this reel in the front yard casting across the street. I remember my brother giving me instructions on "pin point" casting.
There are many, many memories with this reel and I would never give it up. This reel went on Family vacations and weekend outings in our family motor home. From Sunday afternoons at Guadalupe River State Park to Beaver Lake in Arkansas. My senior year in high school, I skipped out and went fishing for something like 23 days. This reel was there for all of them. I caught a 4 lb bass on Canyon Lake and a 5 lber on Sommerville. In January of 1990, I loaded up to cast across a cove on a 40 degree morning while the pistol grip rod I was using broke and the reel along with the rest of the rod took about a 40 yard flight and landed in about 8 feet of water, leaving nothing but the grip in my hand. I went for a very cold swim that morning.
There are many, many memories with this reel and I would never give it up. This reel went on Family vacations and weekend outings in our family motor home. From Sunday afternoons at Guadalupe River State Park to Beaver Lake in Arkansas. My senior year in high school, I skipped out and went fishing for something like 23 days. This reel was there for all of them. I caught a 4 lb bass on Canyon Lake and a 5 lber on Sommerville. In January of 1990, I loaded up to cast across a cove on a 40 degree morning while the pistol grip rod I was using broke and the reel along with the rest of the rod took about a 40 yard flight and landed in about 8 feet of water, leaving nothing but the grip in my hand. I went for a very cold swim that morning.
A couple years later, I went to visit a friend in Dallas. We went to Lake Ray Roberts, where I caught a 4+ lb Smallmouth. Years later, I found out that the fish I caught would have been close to if not the lake record back then. On that same trip, I again, lost that reel on a cast where the rod just slipped out of my hand. I went in after it in a heartbeat.
I caught my personal best bass in a stock tank near Bandera, TX with that reel. In about 1992, I decided that it was time to take this baby apart and give it a good cleaning. To my dismay, I couldn't figure out how to put it back together. I took it (in a box of parts) to Bill's Tackle in Leon Valley, TX to get it fixed. They ordered some new parts and got her all fixed up.
Some years later during 2001, I headed to Port Mansfield to fish with my brother. During this trip, I had some problems with it, so I took it off the rod and put it in my bag. My intention was to take it back to Bill's to get it all fixed up again, but instead, I think it was Devine intervention. When I rolled back into town, I went by a friends house. While there, all of my fishing stuff was stolen out of the back of my truck. Every rod, every reel, and a Plano Guide Series tackle box with every lure, weight, worm, lizard, spinnerbait, buzz bait, frog, hook, scale, and anything else you could possibly think of was stolen... except the old Daiwa Procaster. If it wouldn't have broken, I wouldn't have put it away and it surely would have been stolen too.
I took it to Bill's a week or so later only to find out they were closed... Out of business. After several years of searching for a place I could trust with it, I finally decided to give it a try once more. Success!!! Now I take it and the rest of my arsenal apart every year and give them a good cleaning and replace worn parts. Amazingly (and thankfully), I can still find parts for this 35 year old reel. If you need service to your reels, bring them by Twisted Oak and we'll get you fixed up!This old reel and I have shared some adventures over the years. Much like the bonding experienced with friends on these trips, this reel brings back a flood of memories when I hold it, cast it, and catch fish. Now, my 10 year old son is using it to learn to cast a baitcaster. I need to buy him one of his own. I wish I could find one I know would last as long as this one has.
Do you have a lucky reel, or rod or lure, or any other fishing equipment you would hate to lose? Hand me down? Inherited? What's your story? Let us know in the comments below or on our Facebook Page.
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