# Avet SX MC 6/4 Test Drive



## dsurf (Aug 5, 2003)

I'm sure most of you are aware of the new factory magged line of Avet reels, labeled 'magic cast'.....I was fortunate to get my hands on an SX 6/4 and wanted to share my experience........especially since I owned a static magged 6/4....I was anxious to perform a comparison........ I believe most folks are aware of how well built, strong and dependable this reels are, but they did require some magging to get the most from a cast. I must admit I was skeptical of the five factory settings being able to accommodate most fishing conditions. Please understand, here's my preliminary findings, with more testing to come.............(Note: I usually use high performance spinning gear, so this is a temporary departure for me.)

Setting, equipment.
Fusion magnum rod, trigger reel seat, gold SX MC 6/4, eight oz egg sinker, 65 deg temps, slight wind at my back, gold SX 6/4 static magged, mild Hatteras cast (not with violence!)

Spin test:
Static magged: fast count to 9 secs (note, these counts are somewhat subjective, varying with the counter, me in this case.)

MC: setting 1: fast count to 12 sec
setting 2: fast count to 10 sec
setting 3: fast count to 8 sec
setting 4: fast count to 6 sec
setting 5: fast count to 5 sec
as you may know, a free spool spin with the SX is well over 60 secs........so even the 1 setting had significant braking.......humm......what would the cast look like?

MC: First few cast were just to get a feel for the braking.
Started with setting on 4-Considerable braking, no hint of fluff.
Setting 3-considerable braking, no hint of fluff.....distance approx 110 yds
Setting 2-no hint of fluff.....distance approx 115 yrd
Setting 1-still no hint of fluff.....had the wind been in my face, probably would have a different story...........distance approx 118 yrds.....
I made several more cast with the setting on 1, still no fluff......humm.......best cast around 120 yrds................

Being somewhat dismayed, I spoke with the folks a Avet (very customer oriented company), and they acknowledged with the SX model, unlike the others, there was so little space between the magnetic device and the spool, they were unable to engineer a complete free spool setting (and, of course, retain the same patent pending design for all reels).......there is more at work here in their design than just spool distance from the magetic device, hence their terminology 'magic cast'.

So I start playing around with the spool, lever and various settings and discover that if you put the lever in bait position (1st one up from free), the spool moves to the right away from the magnetic device a very slight amount. However, it was sufficient to get to a fast count of 15 on setting 1, whereas previously I only had a 12 count.......Now I was anxious to get back to the field and see if it made a difference.

Same rod, same reel, wind at my back. Threw lacrosse ball....and whow...got a bit of fluff...........changed to the eight oz egg sinker, and again got fluff that would settle down without a blow up........now we're making progress. Had there been a cross or head wind, the setting of 1 in bait position would have resulting in instant blowup..........I would then have gone to either a 2 setting in bait position or 1 setting in free position...........I was really encouraged with getting consistent fluffs......thought I try one more, attempting a smooth, steady hatteras style cast on setting of 1, bait postion. After the sinker was in the air for about 50 yards, you could feel/hear the reel release and go that extra distance, and with very little to no fluff.........unlike any of my previous casts on setting of 1 in free position.
Measured distance was 137 yrds, at least 17 yds better than previous....but the way you could hear/feel the reel release was amazing...........none of the other settings provided that sound/feel.

Summary:
With the magnetic control set on 1 and lever in the bait position will render the least amount of braking, and with wind at your back, few fluffs. Magnetic control of 5 in free position offers the most braking. I envision this position being used infrequently, perhaps with very light weights and strong head winds.

It is my opinion that the factory delivered magnetic control *will *perform very well in most all fishing conditions, and provide the flexiblity needed to fish all baits/winds. With the setting of 1 and bait position (137 yds) I was able to outcast my static magged avet (120 yrds), and my static magged Daiwa 30/20H (128 yds). Let me re-emphasize, the sound of the reel releasing to get that extra distance (setting of 1, bait position), was unlike any sound/feeling I'd experience with any reel and 8 oz, other than the 525 mag (where I manually released the slider mag device). I would be less encouraged with the MC if it were not for this setting, which I almost did not discover..........Can't wait to get back out there and power up the cast......... I can definitely see this reel becoming my favorite go-to drum reel.


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## D-22 (May 9, 2007)

Another excellent post man!


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## Sea Level (Nov 20, 2005)

An interesting operational evaluation report -- thanks for sharing.


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## huckfinn38 (Jun 13, 2006)

*D Surf*

I just ordered one...Did you take the bearings out and clean them before hand. From what I have seen on other posts Avets come with more grease in the bearings than a lot of reals. 

Also how many mags are in the MC system? Is it possible to remove a magnet?


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## dsurf (Aug 5, 2003)

Jebson38 said:


> I just ordered one...Did you take the bearings out and clean them before hand. From what I have seen on other posts Avets come with more grease in the bearings than a lot of reals.
> 
> Also how many mags are in the MC system? Is it possible to remove a magnet?


My understanding is that the patent pending solution operates on different principle.....not just a # of magnets moved towards/away from the spool..........unusual looking mechanism.........

I have cleaned bearings on previous Avets, but did not see any added performance....in fact, I started getting odd noises after one cleaning, even the Avet engineers could not solve. I decided to leave this one alone.....glad I did.


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## Newsjeff (Jul 22, 2004)

Very good review. 

I think I'll stick with my Daiwas.


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## dsurf (Aug 5, 2003)

*Avet SX 6/4 MC*

Wanted to provide an update after fishing with two SX 2-speeds for two weeks in all kinds of conditions, including a Noreaster at OBX (first week of November). I'm even more impressed with the magnetic control for fishing. Only had one slight blow up with Magnetic control on 1 and lever in bait position (my bad), which is the fastest setting. Got a fluff couple other times with Magnetic control on 1, lever in first position (free), second fastest position. I must add the 2-speed is a luxury, but certainly did perform well with big skates or dog sharks (40+ inches) in the wash with current in opposite direction....drop down to 3.8 and just crank.......I know you're suppose to use the rod to leverage the fish, and I would have had it been a big drum or other desirable species, but the lower speed saved energy and after snagging 15-20 big skates and dogs, it's energy well saved. Some of these big dogs actually ran, some taking drag.

I must admit my Saltists, Saltiga Surf30 and high performance spinning gear did not see much action.....in preference for the Avets.....I used them on both a WRI Fusion Mag and Daiwa custom Ballistic 40-405......don't underestimate the Daiwa.....the lightest custom heaver on the beach and throws well.......not as powerful as the Magnum, but can save energy and still achieve good distances.....and you can hold it and the Avet all day. (fully built Magnum weighs 31 oz while the 40-405 weighs only 19.9 oz).


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## PEEWEE (Jan 6, 2008)

Hey Doug, nice report.. That thing would look sweet on that 1509 I stole from ya.. Later Scott..


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## dsurf (Aug 5, 2003)

Scott, if you're feeling so badly about that 'steal', you can just anti up another $25 and buy my new in box Saltist 20H for $165......


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## PEEWEE (Jan 6, 2008)

dsurf said:


> Scott, if you're feeling so badly about that 'steal', you can just anti up another $25 and buy my new in box Saltist 20H for $165......


No Doug I don't feel badly about it at all, it was a great buy . I'm just trying to find the right reel for it.. Out of an Abu 7500, Abu6500(blueyonder), and PENN 525 mag, the PENN 525 works the best so far for me .. I thought the saltist would be history by now.. Let Santa get around the corner and we'll talk...Scott..


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## gundalba (Oct 29, 2006)

A belated thank you and a humble request on some close up pics on Mag control mechanism if you are willing that is...

Cheers


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## dsurf (Aug 5, 2003)

Gundalba...there is a close up of the exterior control mechanism in my original post....I believe someone posted a close up of the interior either on this site or another........search should be able to locate it.


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## ematsuda (Feb 9, 2009)

I have the MXL MC. Even on setting 1 (the supposed "fastest") I had way too much braking. Still went far but my static magged Sealine 40 SHA goes a lot farther. So I opened the reel up and looked inside. I noticed that the adjustment from 1 to 5 makes no noticable difference as far as the eye can see. I then proceeded to take the mechanism apart and saw that the magnet is HUGE. There's 2 of them that form a full circle - 2 half circles. I pulled out one half and glued the other half to the seat. I haven't tried it yet (this was yesterday). I'll post my findings but it should be better. However, the spin time against my Sealine 40 is still a lot slower but my 40 will backlash without proper thumbing. I want to get the Avet to the point it has light fluff while casting with the wind and let my thumb do the rest. If this doesn't work, I'll grind the mag down a bit to set it further away from the spool. I would've been better off buying the one without the MC.


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## eric (Oct 24, 2007)

its unfortunate. to get the mags to work correctly.
in the future , theyll need to machine the frame with the left sideplate. deeper to allow the travel.

cause if its a 9~ sec spin , with mags on or off.
your better off just glueing a stupid magnet with krazy glue on.


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## MDubious (May 10, 2008)

Very nice review; a lot of validity on that assessment. You should post another review in a couple weeks; I'm very intrigued as this is the first review I've seen on the SX MC and I love Avets.


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## ematsuda (Feb 9, 2009)

My 1st thought was to actually take out the mags and just do the same static magging as my Sealine 40. Then I saw that they were 2 pieced and decided to do otherwise. I love the reel in every other way however, I just don't see myself purchasing another MC. I'm looking to get the regular SX in the near future. BTW, I shaved the mag down a little and it still spins slow for my taste. These are great for beginners but not for distance casters looking to get maximum yardage. For the hardcore distance guys, save your money and get the non-MC, the difference in the settings (1 thru 5) is almost nil. I'll test it again when the wind calms down around here.


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## dsurf (Aug 5, 2003)

Emat....appreciate your input and would like to be updated on any future attempts to get more free spool with mag adjustments.

Keep in mind this was designed for fishing rather than tournament casting. I've now fished (bait and 6 or 8 oz) with the SX MC 2-speed quite a bit and have found the setting of 1 in Bait position to be more than sufficient free spool. Often I fish with a setting of 1 and lever in Free position which can be too much with a head wind. A very strong head wind could require a setting of 2 and lever in Free.........Don't believe I'll ever encounter conditions where I would use a 4 or 5 setting. 

Yes, I would have preferred a setting with more free spool, but believe Avet engineers would still agree they accomplished their mission. I would like to think that some day Avet would make a magnetic control just for the SX with less braking, but don't see that happening, not in this economic climate where economies of scale are more important than ever.

Keep us posted.


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## huckfinn38 (Jun 13, 2006)

Dsurf,
I have to agree with you on this. Yes I would like a little more variability, but my 2 avet sx's with MC stay in the 1-2 setting all of the time. Like you, I have noticed when throwing into the wind that the 1 setting may not have enough mag. It would be nice if the 1-2 setting were the 2-3 setting, but I love both of mine and they sure have butter smooth drags. I would like a little louder clicker. They sound like hummingbirds when a drum picks up the bait.


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## ematsuda (Feb 9, 2009)

If you're pretty good with taking things apart. These mags can be shaved down to sit a little farther away from the spool than stock. Taking out one mag helps but it's still really slow on my MXL. I'll test and make more adjustments today then post the results tomorrow.

dsurf, I do understand that these were made for fishing. I'm a fisherman, not a distance caster. However, I can tell when my distance is being held back - in this case, drastically. 

The mag sits VERY close to the spool and it's approx. 5X the size of a mag I use on my other reels of comparable size. As I've PM'd you, try taking them out and you'll see. Also, if you put those metal retainers back upside down, the 4 tiny screws won't go all the way in and the mag will scrape the spool. Forgot to mention that in the PM.


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## huckfinn38 (Jun 13, 2006)

ematsuda,
if you dont mind post pics of the disassembled mag unit.


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## ematsuda (Feb 9, 2009)

Jebson38 said:


> ematsuda,
> if you dont mind post pics of the disassembled mag unit.



You know I'd really like to but I'd have to disassemble the darn thing to do so. Basically, the magnet is in 2 halves - large halves.  Take an allen wrench to the dial and that'll free it. Be careful because there's a ball bearing and spring (for the clicking) on the outside. The mag unit is held by 4 tiny screws and 2 metal retainers. Undo the screws and press the sucker out. 2 halves, take out one - even that is too much if you ask me. PM me if you have trouble.


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