zee baas
 

i would be surprised, but does anyone in this forum own one? if so please share. van staals get alot of bashing, but in my opinion they are well worth the money. no company, as of yet, has been able to match what van staal has to offer. especially with surfcasting. with that said, and if you do own a zee baas and you stand behind it let us know what you think of it.

WEEEEEEELLLLLL
 

Some say the bossman's got one...don't know how he got it.
Guess he got it engraved, too.
Saw him right after it happened at a Iron Chef Bomba party.
Hope it works good (I think that's what Brazillian Ballooner Santos Du Monde said before that guy who rode his airplane into the sun said).
OK gotta go,
Rick

And me and my disfunctional family got plenty of Van Stallz.
OK gotta go,
Mikey has none.
Rick

I bet its better than a Van Staal in some ways. From what I have seen & read, The finish looks superior, you can service it yourself, you can customize it to your liking, you can add stuff on as you need it & not buy an entirely new reel.

Knowing that the inventor of VS has thought it out it must have some improvements over VS.
If it were about the same price, I think it might be The Spinning Reel. I could never justify the current price tag of the ZB though.


Unless I hear its better than 2 VS's. Then I will need one.:wave: :D :kewl:

I'm almost afraid to admit that I have one here!
It's everything VS is and that much more, mechanically! But I haven't used it casting/fishing yet, so I can't report on it's fishability, comfort or discomfort.

To me the big question right now is that so few have fished it for an extended period of time.

I don't think we'll know it's "good" until 2 seasons from now after it's been in the hands of people who really fish 5+ days a week and fish hard. We'll know the real value then. Will the reel be shot and need lots of $$ of repairs or will it just need a cleaning? If it's just a cleaning then the reel is going to easily be successful despite the high price.

Future service and attention from Zeebaas itself will matter too, it's foolish to think a reel will never have issues. If parts have to be replaced, their availability and ease of repair by the owner of the reel will be another big test.

So, it could be great, it could be nightmare. Lots of questions will need to be answered. I don't know how it could possibly be considered better then anything at this point. There just needs to be some quality guinea pigs out there to give the reel a run more it's money. How much does the proprietary "Z-lube" cost...

Saw that coming with the ZeeBaas avatar. Is the name Casting Z's also a ZeeBaas reference?

Its everything VS is and that much more mechanically? But you have never fished it? I think thats a pretty bold statement. Reels hold up great in the living room. Its that bowl of spaghetti-O's you gotta watch out for.

I've fished one twice but have had nothing more than a few bumps. Intitially this reel feels really solid - vault like similar to a Mercedes. My one time using mono on it was not as good as the second time using braid... So far though - impressive

I'll write up a good review once I've gotten some nice fish and put it through its paces :btu:

I guess I don't get it. That's a lot of money for a fishing reel. Then again, I would never buy a Krieghoff shotgun either and they start at $5,000.00:shocked: :shocked:

If it enhances the enjoyment of your lesiure time, and doesn't bankrupt your family's future, it is money well spent. Most of us spend equivalent amounts on lesiure activities (vacations, trailers, kayaks, audio, TV's, auto extras, etc) ......so why be ashamed about splurging on a reel ? Very good chance it will outperform the VS, considering the same guy designed both. I also suspect it will be worth more than two used Van Staals in a few years if you decide to unload it (provided you care for it well). Thinking about it makes me jealous, and I don't even use spinning tackle.

I cant help but thinking tha spending 1200 bucks on a reel is ridiculous. But what do I know I am just a kid.

No more ridiculous than 50+ G's on a car... IF I had the coin, I'd buy one.

SO... 2011? :buds: :jump1: :jump:

I haven't justified the cost for myself to own either zbaas or vs. However, in the grand scale of hobbies, even the zbaas is relatively affordable. It is cheaper than a harley, a sail boat, a fishing boat, a vacation, and about the same as alot of tv's or golf clubs these days. You'd have a hard time buying new diving equipment for those prices. Heck my brother spends that much on a pair of pipes for his bike and doesn't blink. If you want it, can afford it, and will use it... why not? Also-it is much much cheaper than an engagement ring and alot of us bought them :spin:

I don't have one but I understand (only a rumor) that he is comming out with a larger size which I would like better. A complaint I heard is that it is physically small in size and your knuckels can hit the roller when reeling. Also it may come without the fancy box as some point - That may bring down the price to under a grand. Still alot of money but less than a boat.

Raise your hand if you own 1299.00 worth of Plugs.

I agree JFig, but even if I had the money to buy a zeebass I wouldn't even consider it. Just because I am able to buy it does not mean I need it. If the reels I use now were not doing the job, then I would consider it, but they work fine and are all under 200$. Fishing is more than just a hobby for me so I don't consider buying reels or plugs as collector items, I buy them to use them.

My main reel is a Penn 704z, it cost me $109 new, and has never failed me. I've even submerged it on many occasions with still no problems, so to me spending 10X what I paid for my 704 on another reel, doesn't make sense.

Did I not say, "Mechanically"? What's so bold about that?

My only other thought about all the high-end reels is I sure wouldn't bring them out on my boat. Drop one over the side and I might shoot myself!

If you got the dough, spend it, does no good in the grave.

That being said, I'm S.I.C.K. (single income couple kids). So for me spinners will be the Shimano Baitrunner 3500 - 6500 or the clicking workhorse 704z.

Just curious how you know it is mechanically superior to a VS having never fished it.

I'll be giving anyone here, who's interested, my full opinion on how well these reels function, as well as hold up to constant use. Rob @ ZB, is looking forward to any and all pros and cons.
This thing will see action every single morning for five hours of constantly casting artificials from mid May to mid Nov. It'll be swimming, dropped on the rocks, making 30-50 cast per hour, cranking in big fish, washed across the rocks in the surf and dropped in the sand.
I have a lot of faith in this reel, as for all the semi-professional sport fishermen I herd of, (not claiming to be one here) who have spent enough time with this reel, report all positive feed back and no failures.
I feel really lucky to own one just as I feel lucky to toss $25 plugs.
It's all part of my only hobby.
If anyone here would like to know a little more about the feel and size or other stuff that makes this reel different from VS, your more than welcome to send a PM so you can call me. I hate this typing crap!!!

:hihi: 1200 for a reel
not ! rofl!
i know i lived on this side of the bridge for a reason

Let me ask you, how well do you know your VS inside and out?
What do you know about the seals?
What do you know about the drag?
What do you know about the clutch bearings?
What do you know about the line lay of the spool?
What do you know about the crank?
I am not up to sitting here all night and type the differences. I offer you this. PM me and we'll talk on the phone within the next couple of days.
Then you will either learn the differences or teach me something.

Dredey, I'll try to answer some of your question.
VS did get a lot of bashing initially but its less and less now that so many guys fish them. They've sold quite a few reels and the sticker shock has worn off. Now there is ZeeBaas.
Rob Koelewyn ,a surf fisherman and original designer of the great (IMO) Van Staal
reel has designed the ZeeBaas reel. They are a small operation out of Milford, CT . Rob has made quite a few changes from his old design
in terms of materials ,gaskets,gearing,finish, and the ability to change spool size while keeping the main frame the same. You can get a longer handle with a bigger knob is you have big mits or like the extra torque that a longer handle provides. It is self servicable and comes with a small set of simple tools to do this. It comes with a life time warranty. Its about the size of a VS 150 mabey a little bigger.
Rob is passionate about surf fishing and designing reels and spent the better part of 2 hours explaining the hows and whys of his reel when I met him.
I liked the concept behind his reel and think the workmanship is top notch. It lays line straight and the drag system is linear (smooth with no jumps) and precise in its adjustment. Its very waterproof.
I'm looking forward to fishing mine hard every night come spring. I've used VS 150's up untill now and look forward to comparing the two. I like the fact that ZeeBaas a small business and the product is made 3 hours from my door. I also like the fact that I can speak to the owner by picking up the phone.
To be honest, the price didnt bother me that much. I can appreciate the quality of the reel and while I can't afford Range Rover Defender or a Porshe 911 Turbo or even a new Toyota Tundra I can afford a ZeeBAas and I like fishing better than driving anyway!
These threads usually come down to the old why get a Rolex when my Timex works just fine argument and thats all just personal . Seems like guys get their panties in a bunch over fishing reels for some reason. I'm not sure why. I guess I'm from the other side of the bridge.

So, how does one become a ZeeBass tester? I know I would be interested in something a bit larger than the original model I saw last winter.

i have no problem spending money, if you have it, on things that are of interest to you. i was just wondering if people have the zeebass and what they think of it.

Not to defend VS here, but since you have not fished it, you don't really have a leg to stand on. It might look and feel great, but then again, you haven't fished it. I'm pretty sure the Edsel looked good on paper too.

I'm sure after a season or two of hard use we'll know where this reel stands.

Your probably right. Lets not acknowledge that the designer of VS has anything to do with this reels design and its just happens to sit exactly as a VS does on the rod. So now what does it come down to?
Many far better fishermen than you and me have been using this reel for a couple of years now without a problem.
What are you trying to say here? You need me to justify a purchase?
What's up with that Avatar?