Update and question:
Well, I put the squid through its paces last night at Breezy Point and the squid put me through my own. Boy did I get humbled by this reel. We get to our spot and the blues are slamming and stripers are right under them as well. Friends are catching both as I get ready to whip out my first cast.
A nice toss that ends up as a bird's nest of a lifetime. Even with mono I had to eventually cut the main line in 50 different spots to clear it out. The bite's still on, so I try to throw what I have left in my spool but realize it's not enough line. Didn't have a backup reel last night so I had to splice on some more line to my main.
About 35 mins later, as I prepare to cast, I realize my reel has slipped off where I was supporting it and has been sitting in, yep, sand.
ARRRGGGHHHHHHH. The bite is on and I'm f*cking around with a 30 year old reel!!!! I was about to just jump in the water and die.
After another 10-15 mins of trying to get the sand out, I just said "f*ck it " and dunked the whole damn reel in the water to get the sand out. I swirled it around for a min or two and finally got back in the water after what seemed like an hour since my original bird's nest. I ground the remaining sand and finished out the night.
So my question(s):
RE: Sand - Could you dunk a squid into the ocean to clean off sand as long as you wash it out promptly with fresh water (not too much water pressure I know).
RE: Backlashing - I had the backlash screw tightened all the way and still had to thumb the spool. Is this the same for all you squid owners/users? I thought with the backlash screw completely tight, I wouldn't have to worry about it. Is this also because of my drag washers being worn?
Man, I wanted to kill myself last night. I guess I'm learning, but this is painful at times.
The good news is although I got skunked, I did learn a lot about fixing nests in the dark, casting the squid in the dark, splicing in the dark, and lastly,
How to keep your friends away from you. I was so pissed off that my friends didn't say anything to me for that hour when I was suffering.
longshot,
Grease the bearing and it gave you better drag to cast? I'm not sure I follow...maybe you can clarify?
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