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Van Staal VR 150 --anyone use this reel bail-less and does it work?

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Rob greenpond

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Hi Everyone,

I've been thinking of getting a Van Staal VR 150 and trying it with the bail-less conversion kit.  I have always used bailed reels, but thinking it would be fun to try a bail-less reel. 

I handled this exact reel at a local shop and while I have no experience with a bail-less reel, my common sense tells me there may be a design flaw with this reel.  Specifically, my understanding is that to cast this type of reel, you want the line spool extended outward and the crank handle stopped and extending toward you.  In this arrangement, you can power cast hard without the handle rotating forward through centrifugal force and transposing rotation to the line spool (line pick-up could snag line pouring off of the spool--bad!).  Also with the spool extending outward, it's easier to "catch the line" with your index finger and pull it back onto the pick up roller.

 

The problem on the VR 150 is that when the spool is extended outward the handle position is "not pointing at the caster" but rather is almost straight upward and can easily move forward on a hard cast and rotate the spool.  Is this a problem?  There's no way that I'm smarter than Van Staal, so what am I missing here...maybe I'm over thinking or just don't have enough experience with bail-less reels.

 

It would be great if anyone with first hand experience with the Van Staal VR 150 can chime in here---does this specific reel work fine as a bail-less reel or not???  Thinking hard about buying one and it would be nice to know if it's really meant a regular bailed reel.

 

Thanks to all in advance that reply.

Rob

 

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I don’t own a VR series, and I realize you are asking about the VR series, but below is some background info, which may help you:

 

The VS/VSX series use brass circle shims inside the handle so you can align the handle  to the desired orientation.  In my opinion, the ideal alignment is with the spool extended while the handle is point down (not pointed at the caster). Owners need to be careful these shims don’t fall out when the handle is off. These shims come installed from the factory, but oddly are not listed on the VS/VSX schematic.  The only shims listed on the schematic are for adjusting the tolerances of the fit of the main gear meshing  with the pinion, which is not what we are looking for here.

 

 The ZeeBaaS uses an adjustable hex screw on the end of the main gear, which serves the same purpose of adjustment as the VS/VSX.

 

I’ll try to attach a picture of a VS handle with the brass shim at the bottom and a separate picture of these handle position shims.

 

 

 

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Thanks for the reply and pics.  That’s very interesting—the shims seat inside the handle reducing the depth of the threads so the handle ends up at a different orientation with each added shim.  Very simple but clever.

Also thanks for the clarification on best handle position when casting I.e., downward pointing handle.  Guess you use the shims to set the timing of handle and spool positions.

Would this work on the VR 150 you think?  Also wondering if the shims prevent the handle from screwing down and “seating” flush with the reel side plate 

 

Rob 

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People have been "timing" their reels since forever using a variety of techniques depending on reel brand and type for exactly that reason. I have no knowledge of that specific model or what would be necessary to do so on that model.

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Van Staal VR 150 --anyone use this reel bail-less and does it work?

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I use the VR's bailess and yes it works great!

5 cent shim/washer from HD will do the trick.

Excellent choice on the VR.

Edited by recoil
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Its not a skirted spool so i dont see why you need spool advanced all the way, as you do with a skirted spool vs , the vr is a good reel but has its limatations ! Dont expect it to perform as a 1k reel will because it wont ! There has been Ar bearing issues with the first few yrs now it seems like they fixed that issue.

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On 5/9/2019 at 2:42 PM, ChasingTales said:

I use my VR125 bailees  with duel pick up it balance  better than with the single

I didn’t know you could do a duel pickup on this. Did you just get a second kit and add to the other side or was there some machining involved? 

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I have the VR 175 bail-less and you have to be careful of handle placement or the spin will cause the pick up to catch the line.  If you plan to dunk or get wet heavily save yourself the frustration and get the VS.  Loved my VR the first season and have had nothing but issues since.

^^ I didnt even notice it didnt get censored, I guess anal is acceptable in SOL....
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