i have have my curado for 4 years and it has been used hard. i just recently had the drag replaced. when it went bad, man, it went bad. i also started to have the spool not engage on hooked fish and the handle start to turn backwards. lucky i always have my thumb on the spool, or i would had have a mess. i thought maybe i finally wore the reel out, but it sounds like a design flaw. the only other complaint is the thumb bar spool release, i hate it. i wish they still made the shimano bantam mag 251, that was the best reel i ever had.