# Blue Yonder



## kingman23 (Feb 9, 2010)

Ok so on castawaylakes.com the blue yonder is advertised to be 179.99 but when I add it to my cart, it comes up as 189.99 and then that makes the total price 201. Problem is, I only have 200 on the visa card I just got so I cant buy it, but I was wondering which price is the right one?


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## SmoothLures (Feb 13, 2008)

They shouldn't be but ~150.


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## sinisterfins (Sep 20, 2007)

Check Catfish Connection for a better deal .


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## Jesse Lockowitz (Feb 13, 2006)

yeah dont pay 200$ for a blue yonder, even if its NIB. way op'd.


put that 200$ on a paypal account and get a mint/nib one from someone here for 150$ , maybe less..


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## Tracker16 (Feb 16, 2009)

Theres one on ebay right now NIB $100 starting bid


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## Orest (Jul 28, 2003)

*Since these reels are not magged*

how do they cast and what magged kit is available for them?


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## SmoothLures (Feb 13, 2008)

Orest said:


> how do they cast and what magged kit is available for them?


They cast as good as you can cast them. Lots of mags available for all Abu models, but for a fishing reel I'd get just get a factory magged one.


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## Oldmulletbreath (Jan 7, 2006)

Great casting reel.................... the drag sucks


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## Tracker16 (Feb 16, 2009)

Orest said:


> how do they cast and what magged kit is available for them?


Orest they cast really well without magging them. I will bring one of mine to the SpringFling and let you try it.


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## Orest (Jul 28, 2003)

*Great*

That would be great Tracker16.


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## DERFM (Jun 19, 2004)

> Orest they cast really well without magging them.


 the blue yonder is very easy to cast without mags 
long story i'll try to make it short ..
the only 6500 reels i used were mag reels . a friend of mine handed me his new rod with a yonder on it . i checked the spool play on it and decided it was too loose for me . handed it back to him . told him i didn't want to readjust his reel and didn't want to blow it up for him .
he handed it back and said 'don't worry about it' . well first cast , sorta just lobbed it out . reeled it in and he looked at me and said 'put some ass in the cast' . ok second cast put some more into it ,a little fluff . nothing to worry about . third cast i really hit it . only time i had ever seen the reel under what line was left . made me a believer !
bought one used that afternoon and never looked back 
the only time i use one on my magged 6500's now is plugging .
oh i have 3 and the wife has 2 
and all have upgraded drag washers


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## Fishbreath (Nov 11, 2004)

Kingman23,

You are probably looking at the newer model Blue Yonders with the V spool and the upgraded drag already in place. You don't need to buy that model. If you can find a used BY you can get away with a lot less cost, maybe $100 or $120 in great shape. 

Lots of guys have them on this site and like DERFM said, they're great casting reels and don't require magging. 

What you can do is get the carbon drag washers and SS Smoothies and redo the drag system. They cast great right out of the box but I would also take it apart, and clean off the bearings and add some red rocket fuel. You notice a big difference and the reel will still be under control (with the occasional 'professional' overrun  )

Orest, try out Trackers BY. You'll like it and prefer it without the mag kit.


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## eric (Oct 24, 2007)

i think helping out another member who needs $ and buying there nice used ones alot better.
not to mention cheaper. but id prefer a saltist 20 over it anytime. except for casting on the field.


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## kingman23 (Feb 9, 2010)

Ok well I called castawaylakes today and it turns out that the price from last year was 189.99 and they just had not changed it to 179.99 this year. I got it ordered and everythings good now...this will be my first really nice abu with hopefully many more to come


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## Tracker16 (Feb 16, 2009)

kingman23 said:


> Ok well I called castawaylakes today and it turns out that the price from last year was 189.99 and they just had not changed it to 179.99 this year. I got it ordered and everythings good now...this will be my first really nice abu with hopefully many more to come


Congrats, I know you'll enjoy it


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## Fishbreath (Nov 11, 2004)

kingman23 said:


> Ok well I called castawaylakes today and it turns out that the price from last year was 189.99 and they just had not changed it to 179.99 this year. I got it ordered and everythings good now...this will be my first really nice abu with hopefully many more to come


Congrats on the reel! Welcome to the world of ABU eye candy 

You still may want to clean the packing grease off the bearings and touch them up with a little red rocket fuel. Just a suggestion. Also, look at your brakes and adjust as you get used to the reel.

Enjoy! :beer:


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## fish123 (Aug 26, 2008)

Catfishconnection.com $127


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## csurp (Dec 12, 2010)

*Castaway Lakes*

Please report on your experience with this company...


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## SmoothLures (Feb 13, 2008)

fish123 said:


> Catfishconnection.com $127


That's where I got mine, but I don't see them listed anymore. Good service, high on shipping. (Like $12 to ship the BY  )


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## kingman23 (Feb 9, 2010)

Ive had great experiences with castawaylakes before. They ship very quickly and they have lots of stuff.


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## fish123 (Aug 26, 2008)

SmoothLures said:


> That's where I got mine, but I don't see them listed anymore. Good service, high on shipping. (Like $12 to ship the BY  )


I looked, you're right they're gone. That's a shame, but you'll do just as well with some of the other similar reel on the site.

Check this out.

http://cgi.ebay.com/Abu-Garcia-6500...677?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item5adf008065

If you're willing to drop a good chunk of change, this one looks pretty awesome. It looks similar to the Calcutta TE.

http://cgi.ebay.com/NEW-ABU-GARCIA-...sLeisure_Fishing_Reels_JN&hash=item5ade8b0543


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## kingman23 (Feb 9, 2010)

I've seen a lot of those abu recons on ebay and was wondering, what does recon mean?


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## dsurf (Aug 5, 2003)

Careful with Castaway Lakes....did business once...never again. I had several Problems with them as have many others......there's a posting about these on another popular website.


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## AbuMike (Sep 3, 2007)

kingman23 said:


> I've seen a lot of those abu recons on ebay and was wondering, what does recon mean?


recoditioned......


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## AtlantaKing (Jul 7, 2002)

Personally, I'd always check FFO first. Being that they're run by Pure Fishing, Abu Garcia's parent company (who also owns Berkley, Penn, and Shakespeare), their reconditioned items are very well done. They'll usually have a few CT's to choose from (they had some 7000I Mag CT's last year). For example, they have some 6500 C3 CT Mag for $118 and 6500 CT Chrome Rockets for $124; although they're reconditioned, it's mostly cosmetic and they function 100%.


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## fish123 (Aug 26, 2008)

AtlantaKing said:


> Personally, I'd always check FFO first. Being that they're run by Pure Fishing, Abu Garcia's parent company (who also owns Berkley, Penn, and Shakespeare), their reconditioned items are very well done. They'll usually have a few CT's to choose from (they had some 7000I Mag CT's last year). For example, they have some 6500 C3 CT Mag for $118 and 6500 CT Chrome Rockets for $124; although they're reconditioned, it's mostly cosmetic and they function 100%.


I believe when they get one with any cosmetic damage they just replace the frame/sideplates. So, to me I'd say they are 100% of any other Abu.


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## csurp (Dec 12, 2010)

dsurf said:


> Careful with Castaway Lakes....did business once...never again. I had several Problems with them as have many others......there's a posting about these on another popular website.


I had a bad experience too. He charged my credit card immediately and failed to ship the items...a set of orange seal bearings and a 6500 CT frame.

After three weeks of calling and emailing with no response, I filed a paypal dispute and after ten days of no response from him to paypal they refunded my money.

At some point, probably to throw me off, he printed an online shipping label that showed he was ready to ship...but he never did.

I really wanted the stuff, but with no communication it was impossible to deal with him.


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## SteveZ (Nov 30, 2006)

*castaway*

I ain't gonna try to deal with them again...


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## Drum Bum (Jan 12, 2004)

If I were you I would try to find the previous gen. that had the real rocket brakes and upgrade the drag, instead of the new ones w/the v-spool and 6 pin brakes. I think the 6 pin style sucks, more for LMB market.


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## yerbyray (May 18, 2010)

*Can anyone shed light on dating an Abu*

Is there a way to tell by s/n when an Abu was made?

Take for instance I picked up a Blue Yonder last week on consignment at a tackle store for a really good price. It looks brand new and was clean as a whistle on the inside. It has the two "bar" fiber braking system and is stamped "Made in Sweden" . Is that an older one?


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## AtlantaKing (Jul 7, 2002)

yerbyray said:


> Is there a way to tell by s/n when an Abu was made?
> 
> Take for instance I picked up a Blue Yonder last week on consignment at a tackle store for a really good price. It looks brand new and was clean as a whistle on the inside. It has the two "bar" fiber braking system and is stamped "Made in Sweden" . Is that an older one?


Yep. IMHO, those are the best (I don't like the new BY's with the V-spool). Older reels will have the drag stars that are rounded on the tips (instead of being pointed), spools that are the same diameter across the arbor (unlike the V-spools which are skinnier in the middle), and fiber brakes (instead of plastic). I feel that the fiber brakes provide a much more linear braking response than the plastic.


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## BentHook (Dec 22, 2002)

At the end of 1972 the system for lot numbers was changed. The revised system was for example”721200”. The first two digits are the year of make,the second two numbers were the month and the last two digits were the version number.
The style of the reel foot was also changed,it went from a smooth foot to one that had dimples.
This info is from The Ambassadeur and I Final Chapter Aug 2002
My blue Elite which I ordered from the UK with a mag conversion about 4-5 years ago does not have a serial number on the foot.If I bought a reel that went on the shelf to only look at,I would exam it differently as a lot of parts interchange making a normal reel into a collectors item.
I know there is a lot more information out there as I have some on another computer that crashed with a virus.
Ask in the distance casting forum about serial numbers and I bet somebody will step up.


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