Thread: JDM lines relating to panfish

Friday I fished both the Tict IceCube and the Major Craft Triple Cross with Daiwa JDM reels and the Varivas Master Limited Ester (2.4# orange) with a Sunline Troutist Darkness 2# nylon leader. The Tict and Presso Limited was used to cast and work trout magnets with the Daiwa gekkabijin jigheads and the Major Craft Triple Cross and Daiwa Luvias setup threw zigjigs (local maribu jig made in Northwest Arkansas). Both sets were used on the Little Red River, a tailwater trout stream in Central Arkansas. I personally caught over 30 Rainbow Trout ranging in size from 10-16”. Including my two coworkers, we boated over 120 in 5 hours. We realized at the end of the day that we did t take a single picture. We were too busy trying to out do the other two! Nothing huge but it gave both setups a workout. Both setups worked great with the Varivas Ester line. Like others have pointed out, you need to make sure the line wears spooled properly on the reel. By the end of the day, I had noticed significant line twisting on the reels. I think this was mainly due to the action of the jigs and the way we were fishing them. I simply took 5 minutes to fix this issue by removing the jigs and feeding the naked line out into the current. After the line had sufficient time to unwind in the current, reeled it was in and will be ready for the next outing. I only broke off twice when I snagged a couple of logs. The Triple surgeons knot works great for attaching the Ester to the nylon leader. I am sold on the Ester line. It takes a little getting used to but man is it sensitive. I will be ordering more soon from Chris at Finesse Fishing!


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Originally Posted by Chris Stewart

I used the Varivas 2.3 lb ester line for the first time a couple weeks ago on my annual Maine smallmouth bass trip.

Quailtail - I would recommend flipping the bail or at least putting your hand on the spool as soon as your lure hits the water. That will prevent coils from coming off the reel even if you fill the spool to the same level you'd do with nylon mono.
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For the life of me I cannot understand why people have breakage issues. I caught numerous 14-17" smallies with it and the only time my line broke was when I got snagged and I had to break it on purpose. I was using trout rods (both Area and Native) rather than ajing or mebaru rods, and my drag was set about the same as I'd have it with a 2.5 lb nylon line (I don't have a scale to measure the drag setting). I used a 3-turn surgeons knot to attach the ester to 4X (5.1lb) nylon tippet for abrasion resistance. Obviously, I wasn't putting a lot of pressure on the fish with an Area trout rod, but the line certainly didn't seem to me to be any more susceptible to breakage than a nylon line.

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I don't have any issues with breakage if I am using the right rod. The right rod for me is either an area trout rod or a mebaru rod. It's rare for me to post bass pics on here but here is a pic of a largemouth caught using the ester with the Fine Tail 6' 7" Banshee....and he had me wrapped in a tree twice and the line performed fine. Here is a pic of a Smallie I caught using the ester in pretty good current that measured 20 inches. Once again I had the right rod...the Lunakia 6' 10". I cut my teeth on ester catching spotted bass in the 14-17 ich range last summer.....using the area trout rod. Decided to take the Blue Current TZ one day and first fish broke off.....I did not lose another fish the rest of the day....but....had to loosen the drag quite a bit. I continue to believe that ester line and ajing rods are not a good mix for larger fish. I flat love the stuff and here in about 5 weeks...after the hip is replaced....I'll head after the spots with the Lunakia spooled up with the Night Blue...the Fine Tail Banshee and a Tict Ice cube spooled up with the Varivas ester. I have also run across some ester that is rated 4# test...but right now it eludes me where I saw it.


Regards

Originally Posted by D10

Friday I fished both the Tict IceCube and the Major Craft Triple Cross with Daiwa JDM reels and the Varivas Master Limited Ester (2.4# orange) with a Sunline Troutist Darkness 2# nylon leader. The Tict and Presso Limited was used to cast and work trout magnets with the Daiwa gekkabijin jigheads and the Major Craft Triple Cross and Daiwa Luvias setup threw zigjigs (local maribu jig made in Northwest Arkansas). Both sets were used on the Little Red River, a tailwater trout stream in Central Arkansas. I personally caught over 30 Rainbow Trout ranging in size from 10-16”. Including my two coworkers, we boated over 120 in 5 hours. We realized at the end of the day that we did t take a single picture. We were too busy trying to out do the other two! Nothing huge but it gave both setups a workout. Both setups worked great with the Varivas Ester line. Like others have pointed out, you need to make sure the line wears spooled properly on the reel. By the end of the day, I had noticed significant line twisting on the reels. I think this was mainly due to the action of the jigs and the way we were fishing them. I simply took 5 minutes to fix this issue by removing the jigs and feeding the naked line out into the current. After the line had sufficient time to unwind in the current, reeled it was in and will be ready for the next outing. I only broke off twice when I snagged a couple of logs. The Triple surgeons knot works great for attaching the Ester to the nylon leader. I am sold on the Ester line. It takes a little getting used to but man is it sensitive. I will be ordering more soon from Chris at Finesse Fishing!


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I will do the same after 6-7 trips using the ester. I know my drag being so loose causes what line twist I get. The Luvias roller guide does a great job of helping to prevent line twist but the Presso Limited does a superb job of helping to prevent line twist. I'm hoping that I will be making several trips out to the Little Red this fall.

Regards

Originally Posted by Alphahawk

I will do the same after 6-7 trips using the ester. I know my drag being so loose causes what line twist I get. The Luvias roller guide does a great job of helping to prevent line twist but the Presso Limited does a superb job of helping to prevent line twist. I'm hoping that I will be making several trips out to the Little Red this fall.

Regards

I did notice that the Presso had less line twist.


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It looks like Plat has some more Presso 1025's https://www.plat.co.jp/shop/catalog/...-ltd-1025.html

Another line experiment.

This Summer I set out to test a couple new JDM lines for my specific applications of use. Last couple trips I have been weaning away from the shallow Gill bite and transitioning to the deep water bite. I tested the Varivas 3lb nylon on shallow and deep water fish and have decided it will not go back on my reels for normal use. A little too much stretch and lacks a little on bite detection. It’s out. Last couple trips I have been fishing 20+ deep for Specks that are buried up in the brush. The 3lb Unitaka Braid has been handling these chores, and doing a good job so far on both the Corto and the X Ride.
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Decent abrasion resistance, using it with no shock leader, it has faded a bit but still plenty visible. When sinking if a fish ticks it I can see the line jump and then set the hook. It still lays flat on the water and comes off the spool very smooth. Anyway, this morning I decided to make a change and use the Sunline 3lb Ester on the X Ride and vertical jig the same conditions for the same fish.
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The line is spooled on the Presso and it is a little small for the rod, but I put I to work anyway. I did like the bite detection when a fish hits, a good sharp tick when they suck the jig into their mouth, but the line does lack overall visibility of the yellow braid. I can see it just fine, as I am fishing straight down but I can not see if a fish hits it as the bait is sinking. Another observation, it has a tendency to coil ever so slightly after a couple hours of jigging, making it seem slow to sink. My conclusions, the Ester is a great line for the Corto and the Presso combination ....shallow water Panfish; cast and retrieve Trout Magnets, buggy lures and small jigs for shallow applications from the boat and bank is where the Ester shines. I will replace the nylon with the Ester and keep it spooled on two reels. The yellow braid will be my deep jigging line, and stay on the X Ride for the rest of the Summer. I have one more line to test, another Ester, a red one, but may just wait until the Fall to give it a ride. Content for now, happy with my choices so far, I think I have a better handle on line, rod, and reel pairings.


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What is the opinion on the SOS 2lb and 4lb line on these Japanese reels/rods? I've used the SOS 2lb line and it was ok, I think I needed to use it a little longer to get a better idea.

Originally Posted by redearhoosier

What is the opinion on the SOS 2lb and 4lb line on these Japanese reels/rods? I've used the SOS 2lb line and it was ok, I think I needed to use it a little longer to get a better idea.

Lines are as personal as the selection of a wife....LOL. I have used SOS 2# test for years...lost count of big smallmouth I have caught and landed using the line.....plus untold numbers of Gills and many other species. But it is not true 2# test line....and no I'm not trying to set a line class record. But due to the diameter of the line being the size it is you lose some sensitivity. I will always have it on one reel for white bass....Smallies. My main line for fishing now is going to be the ester....I just love the sensitivity. I also need to get off my rear and order some JDM PE line. As was pointed out to me by Chris, and Allsorts....many of these JDM ords are designed around a type of line and using the line the rod was designed for will give you the best performance.


Regards