It took me a while to get the needed upgrades for my recently acquired Team Daiwa Advantage 4000A. It's not yet completely upgraded but it's almost done. 3 upgrades out of possible 5 is good enough for now.
I upgraded the Drag Washer to Smoothdrag's Carbontex. The set I ordered is Carbontex F62-7101 which cost me $9 per set excluding the shipping -- which is very minimal (around $2-3). The stock washer is some sort of oil impregnated felt fabric which is good, relatively smooth and strong. Because of the oil, it resists water from reaching the bottom of the spool. But after upgrading to Carbontex, you can feel the improvement in smoothness. Right now, I installed the washers dry and later on, I will put some Cal's drag grease to improve smoothness and water resistance.
After the drag washer, I replaced the plastic bushing in the spool shaft. High end Daiwa reels have ball bearings as stock component. TDA, Caldia, Freams, and other Real Four entry level reels all have plastic or aluminum washers instead of bearings. I got a bearing from a fellow angler. It's an SARB bearing from Shimano and fits the TDA spool bushing perfectly. The bearing in the spool really improved the smoothness of the drag. The Carbontex washer increased the drag range and the spool bearing will help in this increase in drag. The bearing is 12x8x2.5.
After the spool bearing upgrade, I also upgraded the lame knob to an all aluminum round power knob (Size M). I initially wanted the Tuna Max knob (Size S) but when we tried installing it, it would not fit. The screw was not able to reach the tip of the shaft. I visited Alex's Tackle and saw a couple of Sea Hawk knobs Size M. Matt, the owner of the store, convinced me to take the Sea Hawk knob to test fit it. It's a good thing I did. The knob has a replacement shaft and two stainless steel bearings and the price is less than half of the Tuna Max knob (no shaft or bearings included). The Sea Hawk knob was a perfect fit although I was only able to use 1 ball bearing because the TDA stock handle is designed for single bearing knobs only.
And here is what the reel looks like after the upgrade. The only noticeable difference is the cool round power knob.
In terms of appearance, it looks like a true light jigging and light popping reel because of the knob. The internals (drag washer and spool bearing) supports that look. I matched this reel with my DIY Okuma Sentara popping rod.
Next step is to upgrade the handle. I wanted a Caldia KIX custom handle so I can use an additional bearing on the knob (2 bearing knob). After that, I want to replace the bushing in the end of the main shaft. This will make the reel a double-bearing supported shaft. This will increase the smoothness even further.
The total cost of the three upgrades, around P1,800. The cost of absolutely manhandling a 2kg Mangrove Jack, priceless.
I can't wait to try it again this coming weekend. Hopefully, there are some GTs playing somewhere in Zambales. Who knows, maybe I will get lucky.
Dear Sir,
ReplyDeleteMy name is Miguel. I am filipino but attended school in the states where I began fly fishing and have been actively pursuing both fly fishing and tying for the last 10 years. I couldn't find another way to contact you than through these comments so please forgive the message.
I am dying to fly fish here. I have caught dalag and haruan on fly here from local ponds, but would love to gain some insight on other fishing opportunities, particularly inshore saltwater and brackish water.
Would you be able to recommend any areas which would be more accessible for wading in and fly fishing? Or renting kayaks and going out on the water. My goal is to pursue talakitok, mangrove jack, maybe small barracuda and tarpon, and especially barramundi.
Moreover, if you have any advice on flies worth tying, or patterns that have been successful for you in the past this information would be much appreciated.
Your blog is awesome! I really hope to have similar fishing experiences now that I have returned to the Philippines.
Thank you for your time. I appreciate any advice you can provide.
Sincerely,
Miguel
Hi Miguel,
ReplyDeleteThank you very much for the kind words. If you wish to pursue Jacks (talakitoks), Mangrove Jacks, Cuda, or local tarpon (ox-eye herring) in Northern Luzon, your best bet is Subic. You can also rent kayaks near the boardwalk. The area is filled with different big critters and I'm sure you can get them on a fly while paddling a kayak. Early morning and late afternoons when the tide is changing is the best time to fish there. Talakitok and Queenfish boils are regularly seen all over the bay and if you are on a kayak, your chances of sneaking on one of them is higher.
I usually see locals using clousers (mullet color) around 2-4inches tied on skip bunnies to catch the queenies, cudas, and kitoks. I think you should tie one if you want to fish the area.
As for Barramundi, it's really hard to find a wild fish here in PH. The only popular places where there are wild Barras are Negros and Palawan. There are barra ponds near Manila but fly casting in these ponds is a bit hard due to space limitations.
Let me know if you have other questions. You can visit FilipinoAnglers.org if you want to know more about what's other anglers here are doing.
Thanks again.
Dear Sir,
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for your reply. I have been reviewing your blog repeatedly and definitely will be planning a trip to Subic soon. Hopefully I will have my own encounters with some bruiser mangrove jack's!
A friend and I were hoping to make the trip up there this weekend but it can't push through. Instead, we will now be visiting Aling Nene's pond. My friend has never fished in the Philippines before and of course we will set out flaters and dough rigs for tilapia and bangus, however the real goal will be to catch the more predatory fish there on lures, the ultimate goal will be an apahap.
I understand Aling Nene's is essentially a man made pond which can be pretty barren when it comes to finding irregularities that hold fish, especially apahap. Do you have any recommendations on areas within Aling Nene's to pursue apahap and more predatory fish? We will have access to their small paddle boat which will help given I will be using a fly rod. We will also be set up in one of the kubos. Any information you could give would be sincerely appreciated. I plan on fishing wooly buggers, clousers, double bunnies, and some personal creations in the hopes of landing an apahap. Any recommendations on fly patterns or colors to incorporate when I tie?
Again thank you so much for your response. It is great finding a blog from an angler as passionate as yourself. The true obsession with fishing is something few people really understand. I like to believe I am one of the few, I believe you definitely understand sir.
Many thanks again and tight lines!
Sincerely,
Miguel
Hi Miguel,
ReplyDeleteANP is one of our favorite hangouts near Manila. The owner, Aling Nene and her family are excellent hosts. If you are a fan of local food, their canteen is a winner.
They always stock their ponds with Apahaps. There was one time where Apahaps reached 17kg per piece. My personal best there was 7.6kg and it was caught using a Yozuri 3d minnow around 3 inches.
The last time I heard, the Apahaps there are scattered on all their ponds --- before it was just one pond--- (the pond on the right if you are facing the ponds.) Currently, Barras there are over 4kg already but they are hard to catch on lures and even harder on fly. The reason is the abundance of bait fishes. They are so keen on live fish that they really ignore lures. Nobody has caught Barra in ANP using a fly. Maybe you will be the first.
Since right now, they love baitfishes and currently they are caught using live orange colored Koi (2-3 inches in length), I guess a clouser in orange color would be a shot.
But if you ask me, I would rather target Milkfish (bangus) on fly. They are 10x stronger than Barramundis when hooked. If you manage to get hooked on a 2kg fish, it will be a fight of a lifetime. Besides, I would not get your hopes up in catching barra on flies that much.
Milkfishes in ANP love bread so bread fly in white or coffee color would be a good choice. To entice them on a feeding frenzy, you have to chum them using stale bread. ANP has plenty of them. Before getting on the dingy, get a bag-load of stale bread and toss them in the middle of the ponds to chum them into feeding. Once they congregate on the bread, cast your bread fly over the frenzy. It's hard not to miss their strike.
If your gang would like to target Bangus using conventional or spinning gears, bring some raw pandesal dough from a bakery near you. They are deadly on bangus. Use a double-hook #8 hook paternoster under a small float.
Good luck on you hunt.
Alex
Hi.
ReplyDeleteI have recently bought an Advantage 4000a and am keen to upgrade it. I can find Carbontex washers no worries, but having trouble tracking down a high performance replacement for the plastic bushing in the spool shaft. Can you provide any more detail on the one you used?
Also you mention five possible upgrades for this reel, what others?
Regards
rb