Van Staal - Striper Talk Striped Bass Fishing, Surfcasting, Boating

Kadywampus · 10-29-2005, 09:41 PM

Is a Van Staal really worth the money ?

BigFish · 10-29-2005, 09:52 PM

My VS pliers were.....just ask Afterhours...more importantly ask Riverrat2!

Kadywampus · 10-29-2005, 10:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BigFish

My VS pliers were.....just ask Afterhours...more importantly ask Riverrat2!

How ? There must be a good story behind a 350.00 pair of pliers and i can't wait to hear it .

BigFish · 10-30-2005, 12:52 AM

I paid $250.00 for mine...the large pair...7 inch I think they are. Anyway, after losing many a pair in the surf or having them rust beyond use I decided a nice, durable pair of VS was just the ticket! Leather sheath to hold them to my wader belt and a lanyard to keep me from losing them in the surf if I should drop them in rough water......they are always there when I need them to cut line, remove hooks from the fish or, as in Riverrat2's case....remove a hook from his hand one night a few weeks ago. I showed up to meet him and Slingah coming off the beach which I thought was odd given that we just arrived....well as they approached we could see Riverrat2 had one of the treble hooks on his mambo minnow deep in his hand with the barb protruding out......neither Slingah nor Riverrat2 had any cutters with them so I showed up just in time to keep him from having to drive home with a mambo stuck in his hand.....VS pliers cut the barb off with ease, backed the hook out and he was good to go and the VS remain sharp as the day I bought them! Many may say its too much money but in my opinion, for me they were worth the money.

Kadywampus · 10-30-2005, 02:46 AM

Great story Big .
I knew there had to be a good one there .

Backbeach Jake · 10-30-2005, 05:59 AM

What are they made of for $250? I just can't work that thru my head. I'm sure I'd pay 10 times that if I had a hook in my hand though!

Slipknot · 10-30-2005, 08:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kadywampus

Is a Van Staal really worth the money ?

IMO no
there are other reels that do good enough for alot less money
it just depends on what you have to spend and are willing to give.
They still need maintenence.

afterhours · 10-30-2005, 08:21 AM

to me they are worth the $$. i use a 150 and a 250 and think that they are a precision built and very durable reel. i view them as an investment in quality fishing tools. i wade alot of dangerous spots and it's nice to dunk your reel when you use your rod butt as a wading staff and not worry about getting your reel wet. there are alot of other reels on the market for less $$ that do a very good job, but for me the vs' does it all. btw- they maintain their value pretty well.

spence · 10-30-2005, 08:55 AM

I don't think you can answer the question until you've used one.

But you can't really compare them to the price of other reels alone. Factor in total costs of ownership in context with your lifestyle and it may not be quite as dramatic...

There are a lot of people who fish hard enough to really get the value out of them. But for most of us, there are probably a hundred other things someone could/should be putting their resources into

-spence

libassboy · 10-30-2005, 12:32 PM

Afterhours hit it. It a great thing to be able to use the rod as a walking stick, espeically on slippery rocks wading far from shore. Also its the piece of mind that goes along with having one. For a long time i swore i wasnt going to get one cause of the sticker shock, now that ive had it for a while i cant imagine not having one. I dont use it all the time, only in extreme places like M, and some of the points in Orient. The rest of the time lately ive been using a sustain and its a great reel. Ive dunked,dropped,beaten etc that reel and it refuses to quit. I would say if ure not gonna be basically swimming out to ure spots consider that reel, less than half the price of a vs too.

Clogston29 · 10-30-2005, 12:51 PM

While the answer varies for everyone, for me it is definately worth the expense. I have not lost a fish this year because of a sticky drag which I did several times last year which alone is worth it. But for me the main thing that makes it worth the money is not having to take the reel apart and clean it every week, gives me more time for fishing since the wife does not consider the time that I used to have to spend cleaning my reels as quality time with her. I'm buying a second one this winter. I don't see how anyone could use one and ever go back to a penn or shimano after, they are just a joy to fish and not have to worry about.