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Shimano Baitrunner DL4000-FAThe Little Reel Kicking Above Its Weight
When it comes to choosing a reel, anglers are now spoiled for choice but with the wide range available and the different sizes, some anglers are confused to which reel to buy for the given situations that they may find presented to themselves (as the forums suggest and chit chat in the shops). With the advent of commercial fisheries, the target fish became much bigger than the small silvers that were quickly bought straight to hand from the rivers, canals and drains, and anglers were also needing to become more proficient in methods in catching these larger fish. The reels available were just about up to the task of cranking in the bigger fish and limits on casting were being reached, so something needed to be done. Shimano (and other manufacturers) realised this and their consultancy teams started to push the specialist reels to the match anglers to do the job that was required, but this came at a disadvantage to the angler in that the rods were being outbalanced by the larger sized reels. Although smaller sized spool variants of the specialist reels were available, the reel body itself was still the same size as the larger versions. With anglers calling out for a powerful, small reel that could do the same job as its bigger brothers, the R&D team at Shimano sat down with the consultancy team and the answer was produced in the Baitrunner DL4000-FA.
Vital Statistics
The Baitrunner DL4000-FA has all the characteristics you would expect from a high quality reel from Shimano. The first time that you turn the double handle you notice that there is no wobble in the reel at all and that the gearing has been designed to cope with cranking in heavy weights without failing you when it is most needed. Anglers have come to realise that a front drag is more sensitive and smoother than rear drags which the anglers favoured for many years, and the multi-disc setup that Shimano have placed is as smooth as silk and adjustable through a wide range of settings to suit settings for the lightest lines through to the heaviest lines that you would use with a reel of this size. I noticed no jerkiness when the drag kicks in and when line is being pulled from the drag, the spool turning speed stays consistant with the pressure being placed on the drag. I have reels costing three times the amount that the DL4000-FA costs, and the clutch on this little reel matches the ones on the more expensive reels in every way.
To disengage the Baitrunner function, it is a simple procedure of turning the reel handle or flicking the lever forward to transition back to the main drag setting. Shimano have also placed a lot of thought into the positioning of the lever, and the Baitrunner is virtually impossible to engage accidentally when playing a fish due to requiring the lever to be pulled back to put into free spool mode. This is something that carp anglers found to be a problem in the past with reels using a similar lever arrangement. Inside the reel Shimano have fitted 4 bearings to the internal gearing. This may not sound a lot compared to some others on the market, but having more bearings does not mean that the reel is better or going to last longer than others. When it comes to bearings there are lots of different types and quality, and having 10 lesser quality bearings may mean that the reel will last for less time than a reel using 4 much higher quality bearings. It only takes for one bearing to fail to make the reel virtually useless or sound like a coffee grinder, and having less bearings of higher quality brings the odds into the anglers favour for having a reel that feels as good as new for longer. Shimano are world reknowned for their bearings in other areas such as cycling which means that the company know what they are doing when it comes to gearing and bearings.
Line lay is another factor that anglers look at. This is something that anglers overlook, but simply put, the better the line lay on the spool, the better the casting performance will be due to less friction of the coils coming off of the spool. Once again, the line lay on the DL4000-FA is up there with more expensive reels! The DL4000-FA is fitted with a double handle, and to some anglers this is a "marmite" situation. A lot of anglers still do not like the double handle arrangment, but I cannot fault it. With the double handle arrangement, minute adjustments to a quiver tip can be made without having to rebalance the handle should it fall in a forward facing position. With some single handles, the weight of the handle can cause the handle to move with gravity to the most downward position, which can pull light weights or floats off the area where you have cast. Also I have personally found that a double handle makes a reel feel much smoother and less wobble in the spool is present. Whether or not this is the case, but it feels like it to me and confidence is the key in anything.
Final ThoughtsI purchased the DL4000-FA to use on my 9' stalking rod as the venue I was fishing is completely overgrown and a larger bodied reel kept getting caught up in the bankside vegetation. I had people telling me that the reel was too small for the fish in the water, but I had full confidence that it would not let me down. After catching several hard fighting fish and keeping them away from weedbeds and other snags, I can honestly say that this reel will handle virtually any fish found in UK waters. I have even started to use this reel for surface fishing work with braided mainlines and had no problems at all. One thing for certain is that I will be obtaining another reel to match up for use during the winter for my Zander fishing. Even lure or jig fishing in the summer months will be easily handled by this reel. In short, this reel will handle all but the heaviest or longest distance casting situations placed in front of it. Over the year or so I have had the DL4000-FA reel, I have never found a situation where the I have used the reel in that I felt it was under-gunned. Obviously it is not a reel for casting to the horizon due to the size of the spool, but for 90% of angling situations, it is equally at home with other reels specifically designed for situations. You can use it all day fishing with a waggler for commercial fishery sized fish, then the next day go onto a river and fish for hard fighting barbel without the reel throwing a "sicky" and not wanting to do the job. Even if you don't want the Baitrunner function, you would be a fool to dismiss this reel from the choices available. The Shimano Baitrunner DL4000-FA reel can be purchased for around the £75 price point, which for the amount of functionality you are getting from this reel, it is a complete steal! For further information on the range of Shimano products, please click the image below.
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Match anglers out there may be thinking "what is the point in having a Baitrunner on my reel?", but there are is one big reason for having a Baitrunner lever, especially when fishing the bomb or feeder. As match anglers are generally using shorter lengths of line for hooklinks, the chance of a breakage is increased higher than using a longer length of the same material due to the lower amount of stretch in shorter lengths. If a powerful fish such as a carp or tench powers off at speed, there is the chance of a breakage if the angler is not fast enough in picking up the rod. With the Baitrunner facility, the lever can be pulled backwards to initiate the free spool mechanism and allow the fish to take line without a breakage or losing the rod off the rest. The amount of pressure required to allow the spool to rotate in Baitrunner mode can be adjusted by the knob at the rear of the reel. The adjustment range runs from almost no pressure through to the same pressure as a moderate drag setting. 
The Baitrunner DL4000-FA is supplied with a spare spool as standard alongside the one fitted to the reel itself. Both of these spools are identical in line capacity with the one fitted to the reel constructed from aluminium to keep the weight down without sacrificing strength. The spare spool is constructed from the composite material that Shimano are reknowned for using with their spools. Fitted to the spools is an oversized round line clip which is line friendly.