Van Staal C-Vex 9/12 thoughts....

[Samak]

I have searchedall the forums and it has been long time since anyone has posted a review or thoughts about the C-Vex. I am thinking of buying the combo 9/10 & 11/12 reel setup. Does anyone have any experience with the combo? Any complaints about the C-Vex? Any praise for the C-Vex? Appreciate all your thoughts.

[XBMX]

lot of discussion in the past month or two about the C/Vex and the 3-Tand as well. spend a little time using the Search feature.         

3tand versus VS fly reels

[mikemontauk]

I've caught small tarpon, bones, bass, albies etc. My spool popped off once, as I did not seat it correctly after cleaning. Do I think there are better reels in that price range? Yes. Has the reel ever let me down? No.

Mike

[teedee]

I've been using a C-Vex for over 10 years, like it and never had a problem.

[XBMX]

Just wanted to add I've been a C/Vex user for the past 13 years and now own four. Stripers-Albies-Blues-BoneFish-BlueFin-Weakfish, that first 7/8 has thousands of catches to its credit and as never been apart. Fresh water rinse after each outing and end of year cleanup only. The C/Vex drag is second to none, never a issue of any kind. Gone are my Vortex-my Tibor-my Hatch. I've beat the snot out of that 7/8, if you can find one buy it cause they're getting scarce. Once Zebco deemed them "not profitable to market" and stopped production, guys started to hord them.  Truly a fine reel.

[R-Factor]

I just purchased my third c-vex literally minutes ago. Like XBMX said, these reels are getting very sparse but still available brand new if you know where to look. While I can see the advantage of perhaps a much larger reel when chasing some of the tuna species, I'm not so sure there's ever been a better general-purpose saltwater reel produced in the 7/8 or 9/10 size range...yes, they're that good. With that said, if I needed something to mount on a 12-16 weight rod, I'd give strong consideration to a Mako...but that's a totally different ball game.

[Pungo]

Got 12 years or so on mine and love it. Bullet proof and the drag is good. VERY sand friendly. Got a 7-8 last year to back up the 9-12

[Samak]

Thanks for the feedback. I just bought a 9/10 black. Is there any maintenance needed for the drag like the VS spinning reels?

[R-Factor]

Is there any maintenance needed for the drag like the VS spinning reels?

Negative. Simply rinse off the reel with fresh water like any other reel after saltwater exposure. This is the beauty of a true sealed drag...congrats and enjoy!

[marchese12]

I think those reels are beutifull and have a design far supperior than many reels that were around 12 years ago. The desing on the knob, palmering surface, the dimentions and the drag system... all outstanding in my oppinion. I heard many people bragging about the qualities of many of the top salt water reels in the market but over time I found that many of those reels had some kind of flaw that people lerned to live with because those reels "were supposed to be the best". I think the Van-Staals have nothing of that... they have a good design, attention to detail and I could not find anything I would change on them over those years.

 

I own 2 C-Vex 9/10 with several extra spools including the 11/12 and I also have a 7/8 with a couple extra spools. They have been the core of all may last 10yrs salt water fishing - Tarpon, Snook, Dorado, Albies, Blues, Bonefish and Stripers have all punished the drag without a problem and nothing but water rinsing after every trip. As far as maintenance goes the only thing I would add is to "un-tight " the drags before storing it as this will keep your reel working flawlessly for many years - just "unscrew" it all the way and tight back half a turn to avoid forcing the drag in the wrong direction on the next use.

[XBMX]

Quote:

Originally Posted by marchese12 

I think those reels are beutifull and have a design far supperior than many reels that were around 12 years ago. The desing on the knob, palmering surface, the dimentions and the drag system... all outstanding in my oppinion. I heard many people bragging about the qualities of many of the top salt water reels in the market but over time I found that many of those reels had some kind of flaw that people lerned to live with because those reels "were supposed to be the best". I think the Van-Staals have nothing of that... they have a good design, attention to detail and I could not find anything I would change on them over those years.

I own 2 C-Vex 9/10 with several extra spools including the 11/12 and I also have a 7/8 with a couple extra spools. They have been the core of all may last 10yrs salt water fishing - Tarpon, Snook, Dorado, Albies, Blues, Bonefish and Stripers have all punished the drag without a problem and nothing but water rinsing after every trip. As far as maintenance goes the only thing I would add is to "un-tight " the drags before storing it as this will keep your reel working flawlessly for many years - just "unscrew" it all the way and tight back half a turn to avoid forcing the drag in the wrong direction on the next use.

A'men brother

[marchese12]

Another big advantage... it saves you a lot of time and money... I was able to run 4 complete systems with 2x Van Staal cores, 3x 9wt spools, 1x 11/12 spool, 2x 9wt rods and 1x 12 wt rod.

On those rare occasions when stars align, you could ride the boat off-shore from Montauk to fish the Canions and have a 9wt floating and a 12wt blue water outfit and on the way back, in 5 minutes could shift to 2x 9wt rods in full sinking and intermediate for cold water for Strippers and Blues at the point.

[flyvice11787]

I think those reels are beutifull and have a design far supperior than many reels that were around 12 years ago. The desing on the knob, palmering surface, the dimentions and the drag system... all outstanding in my oppinion. I heard many people bragging about the qualities of many of the top salt water reels in the market but over time I found that many of those reels had some kind of flaw that people lerned to live with because those reels "were supposed to be the best". I think the Van-Staals have nothing of that... they have a good design, attention to detail and I could not find anything I would change on them over those years.

 

I own 2 C-Vex 9/10 with several extra spools including the 11/12 and I also have a 7/8 with a couple extra spools. They have been the core of all may last 10yrs salt water fishing - Tarpon, Snook, Dorado, Albies, Blues, Bonefish and Stripers have all punished the drag without a problem and nothing but water rinsing after every trip. As far as maintenance goes the only thing I would add is to "un-tight " the drags before storing it as this will keep your reel working flawlessly for many years - just "unscrew" it all the way and tight back half a turn to avoid forcing the drag in the wrong direction on the next use.

 

Truth!

[MagnesiumJello]

They also have tremendous amounts of drag, I think around 20lbs.

[M]

*

Edited October 6, 2021 by TimS
We don’t allow buying or selling outside of the BST Forums - please see the Guidelines, thanks.