A Pleasant Surprise

"Nothing Ventured...Nothing Gained!" That is kinda been my M.O. for some time. I can honestly say I have never got anything in life by sitting back and waiting for it to fall into my lap. So having lived by this code it wasn't out of character when I approached Bill Shearer of Kingpin fame for an opportunity to field trial one of the New Kingpin reels. Bill is a stand up guy and was quick to offer up a reel for our up coming MI trip. I must say the folks at Kingpin reels should consider themselves very fortunate. Bill goes out of his way to represent their product and is a true ambassador for Kingpin Reels. I am not a bling bling kind of guy and was hoping for something with a classic look. I was pleasantly surprised when Bill shipped me the Imperial Prototype. I had only previously seen a picture of this reel from a distance and must say out of the box it is a very nice looking reel.
Very classic lines and attractive details. The handles are brilliant and compliment the bronze anodizing along with the polished stainless accents. The engraving is to the point and far removed from the flashy Kinpin monikers I've witnessed on other models. The ABEC 5 do their job well and is proven in the killer start up. For those that obsess over clickers there is no worry here. The location is brilliant and the mechanism is rock solid. All tolerances are very tight. The overall weight is relatively light. My out of the box general first impression is that this reel is a winner. It looks like no other Kingpin reel and that is a good thing IMHO. First it offers an alternative to those already die hard Kinpin fans and secondly it attracts those like myself that prefer cleaner simpler lines and styling to the Kingpin lineup. I can't wait to rig it up and put some miles on her. Stay tuned for the post fish report. The MI trip cannot come soon enough!!!