Curado G series info- I'm not trying to step on toes

[jaynay71]

Internet rumors strike again! Sorry guys but I am going to vent. I have been seeing these same statements in emails and on other boards. I even had dealers tell me this. I just got back from Kentucky where I took a couple of tackle store employees fishing with the Curado G. Exact words from the store manager "Wow I have to say my opinion of the Curado has completely changed. I had no idea they were this nice. I believed all the complaints on the internet and refused to try one. Now I am glad I did. I think I am going to order a few for my tournament season." Hmmm...

The Chronarch E is built on the same tooling as the Curado E. The same parts that have been plastic for years are still plastic. Idle gears, clutch cam, yoke and worm shaft shield. The main gear and pinion gear are still brass alloy. The drive shaft is still metal. The handle is still cold forged aluminum. When I was working the Holder show earlier this year I had a guide tell me that the main gear in the Curado G was made out of plastic. I asked him where he heard that. The internet and other "guides" of course. I reminded him that we are Shimano and we stand behind our products. Why on Earth would we change to plastic without telling the world why it was better? He couldn't answer that and then realized that we did not have plastic gears in our reels.

Strikehook-Where exactly are the plastic internal working parts that you speak of? Have you fished the new reels? Have you taken one apart? How do you know they are less durable? The reels have been out exactly one year now. Did you perform long term durability tests on the gears and drag washers like we did? Oh wait the reel is made in Malaysia! That must be the reason! Asian Muslims are building the reels in a state of the art factory that is built by Shimano and run by Japanese engineers and QC teams. The reels must be junk since they are made in a country that most Americans have never heard of. All the while we are secretly changing the materials to plastic because plastic is terrible material! Its light and strong with reduced waste of excess materials.

We should stop all use of modern polymers in everything. Better rip that intake manifold off of your new vehicle. Like that polymer framed pistol? Everything should be metal! I want my reel, engine, car, truck, boat, TV, cell phone, sunglasses...to be made out of metal. Plastic has no place in modern society! The Ford Model T had its time and place, but I prefer good fuel mileage, fuel injection and air conditioning. Get over your fears of plastic and catch up to the modern world.

The reason for the price increase is because of the weak US Dollar vs. the Japanese Yen. The Curado E would have seen a price increase. For that increase we changed the drag material to improve performance to try and offset the additional cost. Hopefully the economy will turn around and we can make some changes.

Curado G is lighter and slightly less expensive since we removed 2 bearings from the reel (handle paddles). It has the same amount of drag and cranking power. The reel actually casts better in my opinion. I prefer the shape for my hands.

We did not drop the quality of the products or change materials to reduce quality of the reels. We change our products often to take advantage of new technology. This is very obvious in the spinning side. I'm sure we will see some changes on the low profile side in the future. We have already started in the conventional and round reel market.

And look at this
http://2coolfishing.com/ttmbforum/showthread.php?t=444623

[Fishwhittler]

If the new Curado G is just as good as the Curado E was, why is the Curado E now the Chronarch E and costs $40 more MSRP than the current Curado?  Something doesn't add up.  And, even on paper there's no way the G can match the Curado E.  It has 4+1 bearings instead of the 6+1 bearings on the E, so right there you've got yourself a noticeable difference.

The marketing ploy used to introduce the Curado G was poorly thought out, to say the least.  The Curado G may or may not be a perfectly good reel in its own right, but since it's under the Curado name OF COURSE it's going to be held up to standard set by the Curado E.  If it's not quite as good, a lot of people are going to upset that the new Curado isn't as good as the old one.  Never mind the price drop; they see "Curado G", G comes after E, so the G should be better than the E or at least as good.

Shimano could have avoided this whole morass by simply raising the price on the Curado E while giving it the same features as the Chronarch E has, and then calling that reel the Curado G.  The current Curado G should have been introduced as a completely new reel series between the Curado and Citica.  In that scenario you would have had complaints about the higher price on the new Curado, but the reel that is currently called the Curado G would have been given a fair chance to prove itself on its own merit.  Why?  Because people would know that it's not supposed to be the same reel as the Curado E and so they wouldn't expect it to perform exactly like one.  I've no doubt there would have been rave reviews about the new Shimano reel that's a step above the Citica but costs less than a Curado.

I've no experience with the Curado 200E or Chronarch 200E or any G-series reel.  My Shimano experience is limited to the Citica E and D as well as a Curado 50E that I recently had the opportunity of dismantling for a cleaning and super-tune.  All of them are quality reels and I'm sure Shimano wouldn't risk damaging their considerable reputation with a bad reel.  However, they still made a bad marketing choice with the Curado/Chronarch name mashup.

[bassmaster3541]

If the new Curado G is just as good as the Curado E was, why is the Curado E now the Chronarch E and costs $40 more MSRP than the current Curado?  Something doesn't add up.  And, even on paper there's no way the G can match the Curado E.  It has 4+1 bearings instead of the 6+1 bearings on the E, so right there you've got yourself a noticeable difference.

The marketing ploy used to introduce the Curado G was poorly thought out, to say the least.  The Curado G may or may not be a perfectly good reel in its own right, but since it's under the Curado name OF COURSE it's going to be held up to standard set by the Curado E.  If it's not quite as good, a lot of people are going to upset that the new Curado isn't as good as the old one.  Never mind the price drop; they see "Curado G", G comes after E, so the G should be better than the E or at least as good.

Shimano could have avoided this whole morass by simply raising the price on the Curado E while giving it the same features as the Chronarch E has, and then calling that reel the Curado G.  The current Curado G should have been introduced as a completely new reel series between the Curado and Citica.  In that scenario you would have had complaints about the higher price on the new Curado, but the reel that is currently called the Curado G would have been given a fair chance to prove itself on its own merit.  Why?  Because people would know that it's not supposed to be the same reel as the Curado E and so they wouldn't expect it to perform exactly like one.  I've no doubt there would have been rave reviews about the new Shimano reel that's a step above the Citica but costs less than a Curado.

I've no experience with the Curado 200E or Chronarch 200E or any G-series reel.  My Shimano experience is limited to the Citica E and D as well as a Curado 50E that I recently had the opportunity of dismantling for a cleaning and super-tune.  All of them are quality reels and I'm sure Shimano wouldn't risk damaging their considerable reputation with a bad reel.  However, they still made a bad marketing choice with the Curado/Chronarch name mashup.

How do you know the G series is so below the e series if you have no experience with either?     I think this was his point. Your assuming.
And I'm assuming you didn't read his entire post, because your bearing argument doesn't mean too much, unless you base how good or bad your new reels are on how fast the paddles will spin

[jaynay71]

Both of these threads I got from a fellow named Bantum1. He works for shimano.

[hootiebenji]

Both of these threads I got from a fellow named Bantum1. He works for shimano.

Thank you,
Up until now I was convinced that Shimano only made 2 good reels in the Curado G series,
and I got them both. Good to know there are actually more out there....lol

Hootie

[Pro Reel]

Dan Thorburn aka Bantam 1 is a shimano employee. Can you guess what might happen to a shimano employee if they publicly said the oposite of what he is publishing about the G reel? Anyway, all of this aside, I'm not sure where they have seen posts saying that the main gears were plastic or the other rumors about the parts bing drastically inferior, but the fact is, they drastically underestimated what the informed fishing public would think about thier name change ploy. And thats exactly what it was, a marketing ploy. The G reel is just as good as any othe reel with equal features and build quality. It is not as nice as a reel as the the E curado was, if it was, then it would still be the same reel. It's an improved canean that took over the Curado name. The same can now be said about the Chronarch. Those who were familar with the Chronarch D new of the design elements that made it a superior reel. The new version of the Chronarch E is the reel that we would have received a year ago if we bought a Curado E, but it's now white and is called the Chronarch E. The Chronarch E is drastically cheaper now than the Chronarch D was priced at. It should be, it's priced at exactly where the Curado would have been priced had they just left it alone and raised the curado price. They didn't do that, instead they tried a marketing ploy of name changes that had an unexpected backlash. In my opinion, the same thing would happen to Chevy if they tried to put Corvette emblems on last years camaro and then put the camaro emblems on a slightly improved chevette.

[hootiebenji]

Dan Thorburn aka Bantam 1 is a shimano employee. Can you guess what might happen to a shimano employee if they publicly said the oposite of what he is publishing about the G reel? Anyway, all of this aside, I'm not sure where they have seen posts saying that the main gears were plastic or the other rumors about the parts bing drastically inferior, but the fact is, they drastically underestimated what the informed fishing public would think about thier name change ploy. And thats exactly what it was, a marketing ploy. The G reel is just as good as any othe reel with equal features and build quality. It is not as nice as a reel as the the E curado was, if it was, then it would still be the same reel. It's an improved canean that took over the Curado name. The same can now be said about the Chronarch. Those who were familar with the Chronarch D new of the design elements that made it a superior reel. The new version of the Chronarch E is the reel that we would have received a year ago if we bought a Curado E, but it's now white and is called the Chronarch E. The Chronarch E is drastically cheaper now than the Chronarch D was priced at. It should be, it's priced at exactly where the Curado would have been priced had they just left it alone and raised the curado price. They didn't do that, instead they tried a marketing ploy of name changes that had an unexpected backlash. In my opinion, the same thing would happen to Chevy if they tried to put Corvette emblems on last years camaro and then put the camaro emblems on a slightly improved chevette.

I have 2 Chronarch 200E reels, 1 Curado 50E, and 2 Curado 200 G reels. In all honesty, I can't tell any difference in performance and function. I use them all, I catch fish, and they aren't broke or breaking or malfunctioning in any way. Am I missing something. C'mon guys, I want to complain too. I just can't find anything to complain about. Help me out here!! I don't know, maybe I'm just not picky enough. But BOY, am I HAPPY.....lol   
Hootie

[Pro Reel]

As long as you are happy with the G, then don't worry about what others think about it. My opinion of it is not very good, and thats based on the problems I have been seeing with them. If you do have one, I strongly suggest that you don't use it in saltwater or tanic water. They aproved it for saltwater use, but can't seem to explain as yet what is causing all of the very serious corrosion issues that are showing up in Curado G reels that are only a few months old. If you do decide to use them in salt, I sugest that you be very diligent about cleaning them imediatly after use.

[-Shawn-]

I had 1 G, that was so I could see the difference in Japan VS. Milasia quality and to see if I could tell a difference.  ALL I am saying is I sold the G and bought another E.

You know.............. There is a reason that you can buy a new G cheaper than a used E on Ebay. 

[hootiebenji]

I had 1 G, that was so I could see the difference in Japan VS. Milasia quality and to see if I could tell a difference.  ALL I am saying is I sold the G and bought another E.

You know.............. There is a reason that you can buy a new G cheaper than a used E on Ebay. 

I bought a NIB Curado 50E $40.00 cheaper than they sold for new.
Bought about a month ago.

Hootie

[-Shawn-]

I bought all my Curados E's on Ebay for 138.00 and now used E's are selling for 140.00

[BB]

In my opinion the curado has been on the decline ever since they discontinued the cu series.This is simply based on longevity in saltwater conditions with minimum maintenance.I've been through the every model except for the g ever since, while the others are in a black hole somewhere my cu,s are still running strong.That says it all as Im not real kind on my tackle.I wish they would go back to that basic design but I guess it was made too well.

[Pro Reel]

In my opinion the curado has been on the decline ever since they discontinued the cu series.This is simply based on longevity in saltwater conditions with minimum maintenance.I've been through the every model except for the g ever since, while the others are in a black hole somewhere my cu,s are still running strong.That says it all as Im not real kind on my tackle.I wish they would go back to that basic design but I guess it was made too well.

In shimano reels, the canean might be the reel for you. Low bearing count and graphite composite frame and sides. Very similar to the old CU reels in construction. I'm not saying it's built as tough as that reel was, but it's a decent choice for salt.

[LgMouthGambler]

As long as you are happy with the G, then don't worry about what others think about it. My opinion of it is not very good, and thats based on the problems I have been seeing with them. If you do have one, I strongly suggest that you don't use it in saltwater or tanic water. They aproved it for saltwater use, but can't seem to explain as yet what is causing all of the very serious corrosion issues that are showing up in Curado G reels that are only a few months old. If you do decide to use them in salt, I sugest that you be very diligent about cleaning them imediatly after use.

[LgMouthGambler]

I have 2 Chronarch 200E reels, 1 Curado 50E, and 2 Curado 200 G reels. In all honesty, I can't tell any difference in performance and function. I use them all, I catch fish, and they aren't broke or breaking or malfunctioning in any way. Am I missing something. C'mon guys, I want to complain too. I just can't find anything to complain about. Help me out here!! I don't know, maybe I'm just not picky enough. But BOY, am I HAPPY.....lol   
Hootie

Your welcome, lol

[Pro Reel]

Curado G crankshaft with a few problems. Now, I have no idea if this reel was dunked in salt or if it was rinsed off or not, but I do know this reel has not been on the market very long and i have seen many reels that were not cared for at all for many years with less issues than this reel has.

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[LgMouthGambler]

I don't own one, but I have used one. Do I think they are still a great reel, yes. Do I think they are a slight step down from the Curado E? Only due to not having knob bearings, and that does nothing for me to think negatively of the reel. The problem is the Curado E spoiled everyone. The G is built the way the Curado should be. I'm mean, come on, cry about knob bearings? What about the Core? The point is, people cried about the Ds, they cried about the Es, you can't please everyone. QC is still top notch, and I would put the G against any reel in its respected price point. I have a full arsenol of the E series from Citica to Chronarch, 200s and 50s, and a Citica G. I like the feel of the E series better in my hand, especially the 50s. Since I will be adding one more to my arsenal, its gonna be another Chronarch50E, since they don't have a 50 series in the G as an option. Also, if your so concerned about knob bearings, and I bet its all the Abu/Lews people(hehe), just get a HawgHandle and have a carbonfiber handle with 4 bearings. Have your opinions and fish what you want, I know what brand has always been good to me ever since I started with a CU-200.

[bassonardo]

I have been fishing Curados and scorpions for almost 20 years now. In addition to countless original curados and super free curados and scorpions, I recently (within the last two years) have purchased an E7 model and two G6 reels. I admit I was confused at first why they would change a good thing, but ignored the advice of a tech at a local tackle shop and went ahead and bought the G6's. Main consideration was price. I got them for $120 each new in box as opposed to the $180 ea. I would have had to pay to get the Chronarchs to match my E7. I was warned that the new curado was a downgrade from the E7 and I probably wouldn't be happy.
Well, I'm glad I bought the G6's. I have been using them for a year now with absolutely no complaints other than they probably don't look as cool as my E7. Casting continues to be smooth, perhaps slightly better than my E7. Retrieve is powerful and sure, the drag system is great. Like I said, they have performed flawlessly. I would not hesitate to recommend them to anyone.
I have to laugh at negative posts made by someone who has never even used them. Much like the flawed advice I got at the tackle shop, the tech had never used them. He had only participated in behind the counter debate and idea sharing with his co-workers and they had come to the conclusion that these reels were not good without ever using them.

[-Shawn-]

I have been a Shimano man for years.............  The D sucked and the Citica D outsold them.
The E was a great reel Both the Citica and the Curado...........  The G........  Don't care for it.  Don't like the way the Caenan frame fits in my hand...... Don't like the reel.. Don't care for the Mylasian QC.

There have been ALOT of problems with these reels............ PERIOD.  They are not near the reel an E was with or without the handle bearings.

[LgMouthGambler]

Curado G crankshaft with a few problems. Now, I have no idea if this reel was dunked in salt or if it was rinsed off or not, but I do know this reel has not been on the market very long and i have seen many reels that were not cared for at all for many years with less issues than this reel has.

looks like it was lost at sea for a year, that's not normal use. I wouldn't even consider that possible.

[hootiebenji]

There have been ALOT of problems with these reels............ PERIOD. 

I guess I was correct. I did get the only 2 good Curado G series reels Shimano made.
HOORAY FOR ME!!!!

Hootie

[LgMouthGambler]

I guess I was correct. I did get the only 2 good Curado G series reels Shimano made.
HOORAY FOR ME!!!!

Hootie

There gonna be worth ALOT of money, lol.

[JPD0144]

I have been a Shimano many for years..........was a great reel Both the Citica and the Curado.....Don't like the reel.. Don't care for the Mylasian QC.

X2

Ill gote myself on a previous post about the G's ...

" ... been a die hard Shimano user for years ... pretty much have owned/fished/tuned/serviced almost every model produced in USDM and JDM market since mid 90's. This new "G" concept of Malaysian made Citica/Curado is no where near the refinement and quality of past generations in my opionion. With the exception of the Citica D in the 200 platform which was Malaysian also (100 Citica was Japan as was all D platform Curados 100/200/300). The Citica 200 D had right componets but was wrong on tolerances (origin issues) ... I think that Citica was so so but still maybe better than the "G" platform (although G plams better/lighter) Just my experience with the "G" so far.


http://www.ultimatebass.com/bass-fishing-forum/index.php?topic=104220.0

[Fishwhittler]

How do you know the G series is so below the e series if you have no experience with either?     I think this was his point. Your assuming.
And I'm assuming you didn't read his entire post, because your bearing argument doesn't mean too much, unless you base how good or bad your new reels are on how fast the paddles will spin

No, I'm not assuming.  I'm going on what Shimano's pricing format clearly states.  I did read the entire OP, but apparently you missed my point.  I never said the Curado G is a bad reel; had you read my post completely through, you would have seen that I said nothing of the sort.  The Curado G is merely a step down from the Curado/Chronarch E, just as the Citica is a step down from the Curado.  Does anyone say the Citica is on the same level as the Curado?  Who thinks the Revo SX is equal to the Revo STX?  How about the Daiwa Zillion being compared with the Advantage?  In each of those cases the less expensive reel is perfectly acceptable in its own right, but the more expensive reel is clearly a step above.  Same with the Curado G and Curado/Chronarch E.

I'm well aware that a high bearing count doesn't necessarily equate to a better reel.  Handle-knob bearings are often used simply to jack the bearing count up, but they are an improvement.  The Chronarch E has them, the Curado G does not.  Therefore the Chronarch E has an advantage in that category.

The Shimano Chronarch E is the same reel as the Curado E, with a few minor changes.  Read this part of the OP:

The reason for the price increase is because of the weak US Dollar vs. the Japanese Yen. The Curado E would have seen a price increase. For that increase we changed the drag material to improve performance to try and offset the additional cost. Hopefully the economy will turn around and we can make some changes.

The Curado E is still being made with a different drag material.  I understand the price increase due to the weakness of the US dollar, but instead of just raising the prices they decided to rebadge the reel the Chronarch E.

I've heard it said that they changed the names to get the reels back in their intended price ranges.  The Curado has always been intended as the top workhorse in Shimano's stable in the $160 range.  The Citica is its lower-cost brother with fewer features but still a solid build.  The Chronarch has been Shimano's model that's a step above the Curado but not in Core territory.  The name-switcheroo in 2012 was supposedly Shimano's attempt to restore this balance due to exchange rate changes, but what Shimano failed to take into account was what people have become used to with the Curado E series.  Here's a quote from the Tackle Tour review of the Curado G:

The competition in this segment is more cutthroat than ever before, and we are seeing brands like Abu Garcia, Quantum and Okuma coming out with very aggressive offerings, and the rebirth of brands like Lew's providing anglers with even more choices. Is the Curado G going to continue to be the monster reel that it was in the past? Only time will tell. Why do so many anglers have a problem with this reel? It is not because it is a bad performer but because the previous reels were such good performers that they set the bar so high.

That sums it up.  That's why Shimano shouldn't be surprised that there are complaints about the cheaper Curado G.  Saying people should "get over it because the Curado E spoiled them" is a fallacious argument; people are not going to judge the Curado G by what Shimano thinks it should be, but by what they've experienced with the previous model.  Shimano could have avoided such complaints by accepting the legacy the Curado name has become associated with and leaving it as such.

[JPD0144]

  Shimano could have avoided such complaints by accepting the legacy the Curado name has become associated with and leaving it as such.