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Shimano’s Curado K Baitcaster :
More than Black and White (continued)
  Real
World Tests:
Over the last four months I have a spent a lot of time on the water with the
Curado 200K, fishing for largemouth bass in Northern California lakes and the
Delta, using a variety of different line types. During fall I was able to
leverage the reel for a lot of faster reaction bait techniques, even topwater
frog and popper action, but during the cooler winter months I had to slow things
way down, employing the reel primarily for jig and plastics work. I did have the
opportunity to fish the reel on a variety of different rods including Shimano’s
new Curado rods and G.Loomis IMX-Pro rods using mono, fluorocarbon, and braided
lines.
Underneath the swing down
sideplate is the casting brake system which is externally adjustable
Casting:
The Curado 200I was a very good caster and the 200K is slightly better. When it
comes to casting the new reel offers pretty much the same max casting distance
but seems to handle the light stuff and pinpoint short casts better. Spool
startup is quick and effortless and the SVS braking system offers precise
adjustment via the externally adjustable knob located on the lower corner of the
non-handle sideplate, a holdover from the last generation.
The new reel doesn't cast much
farther than the previous generation but it does handle lighter baits better
While it is great
that the Curado 200K offers external cast control adjustment the tiny knob could
be implemented better. I still prefer the larger and easier to adjust dial on
the Curado 70 which is positioned near the top of the non-handle sideplate. This
design makes it easier to make adjustments without having to angle or completely
flip the reel over. The tiny knob on the 200K is also a bit hard to read, and on
both of our test reels the knobs were also tighter than we would like, making on
the fly adjustments a little more difficult. I’ve experienced similar even on
high end reels like the Metanium, and luckily in both cases after extended use
the knobs did loosen up a bit.
Paired with a Curado rod during
testing the entire outfit is understated in design
Cast control knob
gripes aside the system is still among the most predictable and consistent on
the market. Changes in settings make immediate differences and for most anglers
setting the cast control near the middle or lower half of the range will likely
be the sweet spot. Once the SVS system is dialed in to your general casting
preference little adjustment will ever be necessary unless you switch up use on
opposite ends of the application spectrum, for example transitioning from
primary use with plastics to launching big baits.
The handle is swept and paired
with large and comfortable soft touch knobs
Retrieve:
The area where Shimano made the single biggest improvement over the previous
generation is in the retrieve. The new reel features not only more bearings but
a refined gear design that meshes better and translates into both smoother
performance and even more confident winding power.
The single biggest improvement of
the Curado K? A vastly improved retrieve
The Curado K feels noticeably smoother than
previous generation reels, especially during battles with bigger fish. It is
easy to take for granted just how smooth the new reel is, and it wasn’t until
revisiting the previous two generations did I realize just how much more refined
the new K Series feels. The Curado K may not be as smooth as the more expensive
Chronarch MGL but it does come surprisingly close.
During field tests
on the Delta I got my lure hung up on underwater vegetation a few times and was
pleased with much winching power I was able to apply on the line without having
to crank down aggressively. The same effect is true when fighting fish over four
pounds, and the well isolated micro module gearing and X-Ship pool together to
provide heaps of power to put the hurt on fish, and I even found that the high
speed gear ratio XGK version wasn’t lacking in the power department.
Featuring micro module gearing and
X-Ship the new reel feels much smoother than the previous generation
The Curado K’s
smooth and buttery retrieve has also held up months after initial use without
any maintenance whatsoever. The only ding to the Curado K’s retrieve is that
there is a trivial amount of backplay in the handle, but nothing significant
enough to detract from the reel’s otherwise stellar cranking feel and
performance.
Winding power is excellent, even
with the high speed XGK (8.5:1) model
Drag:
In the lab the Curado 200K delivered 12.1lbs. of drag pressure at maximum
lockdown. The good news is this is over a pound more pressure then Shimano’s own
max ratings, the bad news is that this is down from the 15.4lbs. of max drag
pressure we were able to achieve on the Curado 200I in our previous tests, and
is also down from Shimano’s own 200I rating was 14lbs. of maximum drag.
The new cross carbon drag is
refined but has a reduced surface area which affects max drag pressure
When comparing the
current and previous generation reel’s drags we found them to very similar when
it came to delivering consistent and smooth pressure both in the lab and the
field, but the new K reel offers more refined adjustment where turns of the drag
star are able to make finer drag setting modifications.
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