advice please guys

[jomac]

hi guys i have managed to find a berkley air 9ft xh at what i think is a good price and am not sure yet what size sustain to put on it to get the right::balance: ,i havn't had a chance to put a reel on the rod yet but i think that it will either be a 4000 5000 or 6000 any advice/suggestions

Thanks guys

 

[Carlos Moran]

Ive got a 9 ft Composite Develepmont Graphcast 1 paired with a Sustain 4000,perfect combo,would prefer the 5000 though.The 6000 might be a bit heavy.
My 2c

 

[neilg]

6000 is fine, bit like said a bit on the heavy side.

why not just use the Stradic, much lower price and a very solid reel.

 

[werries]

I would say 5000 minimum. I had a Sargus 4000 on mine initially and its just to small to balance it properly. I now have a Stella 5k on it and its great but you can still go for a 6000. It will still balance quite well.

I know the guys from Blackfin had 8000 Sustains on their's which they caught some monster GT's from the shore at Kosi bay area... maybe a bit overkill but it worked very well for them.

All depends on your target species but I'd say 5000-6000 is perfect

 

[Nepptune]

I fish a Stella 6000 on mine... overkill a little maybe.... but it feels perfect... 5000 size would be perfect I guess.

 

[Marshie]

Fish the 5000 sustain on mine with 30lb sufix braid.  The balance is unreal. Reckon it is the 30-06 of reels - very versatile.  Spin in the surf with it in the Eastern Cape.  Have also managed a 12 kilo GT from the rocks with it as well. 

 

 

[neilg]

Like Nepps told me (and I checked)
The 6000 and 8000 is exactly the same reel, it's just the spool that differs. Because the 8000 has a deeper spool it's actually lighter than the 6000.
I fish a Soron 60 on mine, very well balanced.

I Would say 5000 Stradic ...

one spool with 14lb Fireline and the spare spool with something in the 30-50lb range for the monsters.

 

[jomac]

thanks guys i think the sustain 5000 is the one i'll go for i have found one for a little over 2k, the reason i am looking for a sustain is cos i have a  2500 on my crucial and would like to have a "matching" pair, by the way i like the 30-06 comment marshie, it put it into perspective nicely. language which i can understand

 

[Marshie]

hehehe, pleasure Jomac.  You should get two spools with it, I fish 30lb on one (spinning in the surf) and 50lb on the other (kingies, yellowtail and other nasties). 

 

[aquadementia]

Ah damn I only saw this thread now. I've got a sustain 5000 on my Ugly stick, basically same length and rating as the air, and it is the perfect size!

stradic vs sustain = torium vs trinidad (a matter of bearings)

 

[RR]

jomac wrote:

thanks guys i think the sustain 5000 is the one i'll go for i have found one for a little over 2k, the reason i am looking for a sustain is cos i have a  2500 on my crucial and would like to have a "matching" pair, by the way i like the 30-06 comment marshie, it put it into perspective nicely. language which i can understand

I think you made the right choice there.

I have the Stradic 4000 on my Berkley and it works for me, though if I have to choose again I probably would go for the 5000!

 

[Bosbok]

Jomac - where did you pick up the Berkley Air and @ about what price?  Did you consider the Shimano Aerocast XH at all?  Sustain 5000 locally available for about 2.1K, did you get better prices ?   

 

[Muffin Man]

I just had mine fixed and fished it with a Stella 5000 with 20 pound power pro. Used it in Mozambique for the past 10 days caught, GT, Yellowspot, Bludger, Blacktip, Greenspot, Bonnito, Snoek(Queen), Couta a truly amazing setup. I will do a report on the trip when I get a gap. Cheers Paul

 

[Muffin Man]

Another pic.

 

[Bosbok]

Muffin_Man - Good stuff!  Is that with the Berkley Air?  What lures & techniques did you use, info on colours of lures as well if possible please?

 

[Muffin Man]

Bosbok its the Berkley Air Extra Heavy. I prefer topwater action so I mainly threw white plugs. I got a few serious hidings casting Halco Rooster poppers ( toffee apple) 5 hook ups and no fish landed in a morning. Only one of those was while using the Berkley air for the rest I was using a Diawa Monster Mesh which is one serious pole. I will post some pics later in the week with a report on the area I fished.

 

[jomac]

got the air xh for 1400 zar me thinks it was old stock but still quite cheap and yes mm it bends beautifully got some snoek on saturday morning on ondas, the most fun one can have with ones pants on, put a 5000 sustain on it and a 2 ounce teardrop and measured 123 meters earlier on today,luckies have the sustain 5000 for 1999 but i haven't looked too hard::kznrls

 

[jomac]

oh by the way mm how much 20pound power pro did you get onto your reel, i had some 16 pound kingfisher casting braid lying around for spares so stuck that onto the sustain and lost 2 good fish on sutrday cos the stuff is such :cens it parted 30 meters from the nearest knot

 

[blue42]

i use a fenwick saltstik 9ft (similar to the air xh) with a saragosa 8000 to throw plugs, spoons and big dropshots up to 3 ounces and it balances 100%. reel holds just over 300m of 30lb tuffline xp so it'll handle most fish comfortably. 8000's are (imo) more versatile cos you can use them for jigging as well.

 

[Rory]

looking at a getting a dawia excellor 9foot xh it is going for under a grand is this a good price or not, they have a loomis xh which is cheaper what is the better rod