my suggestion about a conventional VS is about having all of the qualities that the spinner has- water proof drag and gears... how hard is it to do this on a conventional reel?? imagine- a conventional reel you can dunk night after night, hose it off and have it work well all season-
Id buy one.

I can't see how you could ever design a waterproof conventional that would cast worth a damn--the spool needs some free play and you can't seal that.

Rinse it, your kidding right? you can't wash the Mojo off :pop: :pop: :pop:

Nonbelievers need not post :wave:

Had five failed VS's in one and a half seasons. Three from water intrusion, (seized bearings) one loose shaft that would rub, (and bind up) against the rotor while fighting a fish and one gear strip while fighting a fish. That is why I now use the bullet proof, totally serviceable, easy accessible seals and bearing, if needed, powerhouse of a reel, ZeeBaas!
All season long and not one glitch despite the fact that it is attached to my walking/wading stick and is always submerged with every step I take.

Sounds like somebody has an agenda...

It's gotta be some kind of record for wrecking Van Staals, at least. I think he even beat out Toby and cowhunter. ;)

This was between me and my fishing partner, MDM. Got to the point where we had to buy back up reels.
As far as an agenda! It wouldn't surprise me to know how proud you are of that spiffy boat photo your sporting at the bottom of your post.
When it came to buying it, I'm sure you didn't cheap out.
The Van Staal is a great boat reel as far as I'm concerned, but doesn't hold up to constant dunking like a ZeeBaas. I'm just offering my feed back here so buzz off!

the way I envision it, the spool and the shaft are sealed. but the difference is the spool does not spin on the shaft. the shaft fits into a housing on each side plate that is not water tight, but has seals to hold in a lot of grease to protect the bearings- I wouldnt expect it to cast a million yards, but i think distance casting is over rated when your fishing in deep water or skishing.

Another thought is that only the main gears and drag are totally sealed and the spool/shaft are not- so you would still be able to dunk it nightly and the reel would only need a quick break down and minor washing every night to keep it tr#^&#^&#^&#^&#^&g all season long. It would be nice if the design made it easy to break down with no tools too... not wing nuts, but knobs you could use with your fingers...

..how long have the zbass been out on the market and how many are out there? vs' have withstood the test of time imo..i submerge mine almost daily and no problems...know a BUNCH of swimmers who swear by vs also. i'm sure if zb's prove to be the bomb i'll someday own one.

i've had a vs250 for 5+ years now and it gets fished hard in the spring and really hard in the fall. i bought a second 250 last year.

my vs250 has never let me down. i have never had a problem with it and i did send mine back each year for the servicing, which i do not mind in the least. my reel is under water the majority of the time i take it out fishing as i wade to my rocks and the rod is used as a cane for balancing myself as i wade out between rocks. how many times have i gone night to night w/o rinsing the reel and fished it again the following night w/o an issue. i used to love my penn z's, but they cannot do that night after night w/o servicing the drags and cleaning the gear case every other week. that alone is worth the money to me and the reason why i bought one in the first place. it's all in what and how you value your time and fishing experiences.

i cannot comment on a zee bass. it seems like it may be a nice alternative, but the model i had in my hands 2 years ago was too small for my taste. i also didnt like the 2 rollers. maybe the new larger model coming out will be a nice option. time will tell. as far as i am concerned, the reel is still new to the market. the diawa saltiga hit the surf w/ high hopes, but i have seen several fail, break, or have some issue. those 3 reels are the only true reels that i have seen that can handle the extremes of serious surf fishing - wetsuitting, skishing, and a pounding surf.

no, you do not need a vs for the boat, but it does serve the purpose just fine. i know of many large sb and school tuna handled by the reels. if you think this is a lot of money for a reel, go check out the high end freshwater baitcasters.

Your "feeback" sounds like trashing one brand, and giving an infomercial for another. And your first post made it sound like you killed 5 reels yourself - you didn't mention that you were including someone elses experience in your stats.

As for my boat - Thank you. I am proud of her.

And am proud to own the toughest SURF reel available period....

Don't forget, this is a poll!
I still own two 150VS's (soon to sell them off) and sold a 200. That's a lot of cash to put out just to have a backup surf reel. The 200 held up great, but I didn't use it as my nightly reel as it is too big and not necessary for big stripers. At best, in the open ocean, the cows will run 100 yds and turn to the left or right before tiring.
I now put all my eggs in one basket after seeing how well built and sealed these ZeeBaas are. I took one apart and put it back together in under 10 min. I posted pics on SOL under "inside the ZeeBaas" if anyone is interested.

What is your actual affiliation with ZEE-BAAS? I mean come on now do you think we are really all that stupid or do you really just love the reel that much which is really disturbing given what it does as opposed to what it cost as opposed to what your fishing for.

And lastly can you get me a free one?

I could easily go online and say I wrecked 900 van staals. I need proof to believe stuff... hear say and speculation isnt tangible for me :rotflmao:

call me grumpy, non-social or whatever but I believe none of what I read or hear and half of what I see first hand. :D

Casting Zs - You may have had the worst luck with VS of anyone I have ever met. I know guys that have been fishing VS for so long that they have had them now allocated in their wills... I don't think I have met someone that has had as many problems with the VS as you have. Guys who fish really hard and abuse the crap out of reels and catch a lot of fish.

I think the ZB is a great reel (other than too small currently) and time will tell how it holds up. Biggest fish I've landed on mine so far is 24# so we'll still need to see how it stacks up on large fish.

It is hard at times reading your post on the ZeeBaas because you sound like you treat it with higher regard than your children (assuming you have some). You've sworn us up & down that you have no affiliation whatsoever with ZB, or any tackle shop or fishing entitiy, right? So why the hard sell? Why the VS Trash Talk? The ZeeBaas may be better than the Van Staal, time will tell, but we need to see the time - this reel has been on the market for about a year, it will take time....

When people say you sound like you have an agenda, it's because - about ZB - it sounds like you have an agenda... So in the words of John Winger, "Lighten Up Francis" :bl: - at least a little....

Thanks

wow I can't wait for this winter :lurk: :rotflmao:

I love this little private club you guys have here! A few individuals seem to run the roost. DARE NOT CONTRADICT ANY OF US HERE OR ELSE!
WE'LL :hang:EM HIGH!
I don't really see the need to prove myself to any of you. It wouldn't matter any way!
Here's my affiliation with ZeeBaas!

http://www.davidryng.com/flash.htm

Hehehe, no club, just a bunch of people that see a lot of snake oil salespeople come along. I don't think you are selling snake oil because you repeatedly state you have no fishing interests business-wise. BUT, you do come across as thick about pro ZB (you are now the standard barer :hihi: ) and as anti-VS as Flaptail (the current standard barer :hihi: ). Take an out of body experience for a little bit and look in your threads on how you ballwash for ZeeBaas. There is no question on how you like them and it is understandable, they are sweet reels - for some people. But you come across as a zealot, perhaps more so than even you think. I've been on this board for a while and was on web/BBS for longer and I say this with all sincereness, the tone you take Pro ZB is like that of a fanatical salesman, no soft sell at all.



That's just it, there is nothing to prove. Show your love for fishing, you r enjoyment. The ZeeBaas will take care of itself. You don't need to prove it's mettle by trashing it's principle competitor. Honestly, it does not do the ZeeBaas much good - as a sales tool - to be so fanatically for ZB and so flamatory against VS...

Very nice work remodeling (I don't think remodeling is the right word here), way out of my league for "Home Improvements", but very nice work :btu:

since this thread has already gone offcourse...
wow.. its nice to see a craftsman in the house- i love your website- did you do it yourself?? I am just about to re-do mine.. If any of your clients need custom glass pendant lights let me know :D
As for defending yourself, dont let these guys get to you.. they are very proud of their gear and get grumpy when they are told it isnt the best.

Does this mean I don't get a free one? :(

Bossman, shouldn't it be standard "bearer" not "barer"? Although baring the hype about VanZebco is accurate in my case and works for me!!!!!

BTW they are still in discussion about what we talked about last week at Plugfest here at work. If something breaks I will let you know, I did mention I had a guy in mind who could possibly fit the bill.

- Yeh, yeh, yeh - well, my editing skills (and spell check apparently) need a little bit of work :hihi:

Uhhh, yep.... Like I said, I would be happy to assist in a part time complimentary role :hee:

Good question?? Here's another one - why does he care what others fish??

Where and how I fish - there is no other reel that can handle the conditions. I have a scrap heap of Shimanos. What's left are boat only reels.

This is funny, I think everyone needs to get a life :gorez:

raise the bridge we've got another troll :rotflmao:

were haveing all this fun and #^&#^&#^&#^&#^&#^&'s not in on it

I like to thank the people who voted in the poll this z bass thing if u got issues start a thread and the people who r interested in your crap will enter and reply if the seem fit to. I started this thread to find information and you hijacked it NO ONE CARES ABOUT Z BASS ITS A VS THREAD the best reel in the world as I see it :wid:

Curious. A 30% failure rate in a reel you need to send back to be fixed hardly seems to be a great testament to the reel's value. Of course they are sometimes fished in conditions where everything else would have a 100% failure rate, and clearly people who use them like them anyways (which is probably the best testament to a product's value). Still, the poll results seem to suggest there is plenty of room for improvement in the product. Obviously what ZB is trying to do, though building something better AT GREATER COST is not exactly brilliant engineering.

Your right John! It's the craftsman in me. When I do or see something so well done, I want everyone to know that it's was created with a no compromise mentality. Only from a pure love of what someone is doing can produce the quality that is unmatched. I only push products I know are as good as the work I do. As for ZeeBaas, I'm trying to help out one of the last true 100% american built products from a man who really cares about what he offers to us.

I've learned you're the glass blower. You should see the four custom light fixtures one of my clients had made. They are between 24- 30" tall and shaped like olives, with different colors. 3.5" openings at the top and bottom. I rigged the wires with woven braided SS. sheath, ( the stuff like a chinese finger traps) and custom built hardware to retain the weight of 20# from twenty five feet above the floor. I'll try to send you some pics if I can find any displaying them.