Reels - Outta My League

[spears]

Reels can be broken into 3 sections ..cheap.medium and good quality.Picking the right one can be confusing for new buyers

[Flex]

Now lets get this right ..... the stella that you would use to catch bream costs only $700 ! Now > If I've told you once , I've told you a million times - - DONT EXAGERATE!

I will say .... you don't necessarily have to be filthy rich to buy high end gear ! ...... I will go without , till I can afford what I really want (+ I will search globally for the best possible price)........ I've simply replaced too many bits of tackle over the years .... for one reason or another ( false economy). Sure you can catch the same fish on much cheaper tackle .........
But catch it on seriously good gear ....... & the capture is enhanced IMO_ I like to fight the fish .... not the tackle!

Nagg

lol true

But I think I make a fair point. catching a bream on a new stradic is the same as on a new stella. only really worth buying a $1000 reel from a practical point of view is if the $300 doesn't perform and isn't fun to fish with.

Im all for buying the very best gear you can afford though. I went through the process 2 years ago of replacing all of my old crappy gear with mid-top range stuff.

The difference between a $100 reel and a $300 reel is significant I find. The difference between a $300 reel and a $1000 only really becomes apparent when you hook something that nearly pulls your arms out.

[NAGG]

(+ I will search globally for the best possible price)

Thats smart thinking.iv'e done the same.

I got burnt badly by a couple of local tackle shops 4 years ago on a Certate 3000 & Chronarch SF
today .... I will buy well

eg Steez baitcaster $450 Vs $680 local , Stella 2000 $400ish Vs $700 local , Zillion $250 Vs $450 local , Certate 1500 $340 Vs $520 local ....... all landed pricing ..... & some of those were when the Oz $ was @ US$0.72

This way ... I can afford top of the line gear @ mid range prices

Nagg

[leelee]

don't they all chuck some stuff in the water and hopefully wind a fish in

If it were only that simple the answer would be so easy.

Personally I own a lot of high-end reels but I'm not boating about what I own. I did heaps of research before buying each reel. I also used to do some work for a tackle store so you gain a heap of feedback from customers who use the gear and you get to hear the feedback, which is a good thing.

One thing is for sure, I always have tried to fit out customers with gear that fits their price bracket. There is no point selling a customer a $1500 outfit that is not suited to their needs or budget

Quality gear does come at a premium price these days. The real thing allot of guys have issues with is the cost of the gear. Now if you use the exy reel son a regular basis then you can justify the price. However there is no point buying a Stella 20000 or a Saltiga Dogfight, and complaining about the price if you are only going to use it 2 or 3 times a year.

Do some of you blokes study reel catalogues???

I do sometimes but also knowing what internally makes up a reel and how and where the bearings are used makes a huge difference. Also know that some internal parts from some high end reels are used in cheaper versions also makes a huge difference in choosing reels.

Allot of people used to hang crap on Okuma and early on in the piece there gear was not matching Daiwa, Shimano or Penn for quality control and or performance. But over the years they have produced some fine gear that is worthy of a wrap.

Just remember that Okuma, before producing their own reels, used to be a contract company that made and produced reels for Shimano and Daiwa.

Mate what it comes down to is buying gear that is comfortable to use and fits in your budget, not the budget of your mate or your next door neighbor. Listen to what everyone has said in this post but don't let people tell you that you need high-end exy gear to catch quality fish. You don't.

The high-end gear is great to use but it is not always required if the situation does not demand it.

Cheers

Lee

[Jungle Jim]

personally i can't afford to (or have any desrie to) throw good money after bad. so when i comes time to buy anything i will educate myself - study those catolouges, maufacturers websites and ask my local tackle shop's advice.

i try to buy the best i can afford and the best suited to my needs the first time hopefully to avoid replacing tackle that either a) didn't last or b) wasn't suited to what i wanted it for.

Jim

[For Steve]

It simply depends on what blows your hair back. Some people like to buy expensive wine, some people like to buy expensive fishing gear.

I buy the best quality I can afford and I'm happy with that choice.

Cheers
Brad

[castlemaine]

I'm with Pinhead. I can't understand the fuss.
I started of fishing in my early years with my mentor (father-in-law) with handlines and the heaviest of lines and sinkers and smallest of boats offshore. Bandaids on our fingers to stop line burn and cuts. Many a fish gave us 'curry' but not many got away.
OK so both my mentor and I have given in to technology. But I fought a manta ray for 25 minutes on an el cheapo Shimano FX4000 (12lb line). The shimano is still going strong with no service apart from a fresh water washdown after every trip. When it brakes down I'll replace it with another reasonable priced reel.
Sure I wouldn't tackle a marlin or a wahoo on it but 'horses for courses'.
It might also mean the day I hook onto a 10kg snapper the reel might give in but then I'll revert to handline fishing.
I went to a talk where a reel serviceman said that his pick of reels would be 1.Daiwa 2.Shimano. How many of you would agree with that???
Ends up I guess, if you think you're getting value for money, go for it.
My 2c worth.
Cheers8

[PinHead]

okay..lots of comments regarding buying the best you can afford..that is the easy part..could buy the most expensive BUT..they state number of bearings...less bearings of a better quality metal and better race is far better than a lot of bearings of poor quality material inside poor races. Now where do you go from there in determining which is actually the better??
Therein lies what I am trying to get at..quality of both the bearings and also the body of the reel and the drag. How do you determine that or is it just by trial and error??

Sure makes my Alveys look very simple..LOL

[2manylures]

Lets take a spinning reel for this example:
I can service and repair my reels.Strip then down and rebuild them .
Now if I had 100 reels in front of me and pulled them apart to see the workings and bearings I would find a lot use same size and type of bearings,open and sealed stainless steel.
The main gear may vary from alloy to stainless and so on.
In reality they are all very much the same.Many may want to argue that but I have been through many reels and seen them internally and nothing much changes.
If I wanted to buy a reel that would probably last me a life time I would have one ball bearing on the main shaft and all other areas with brass bush.Like the old diawa 4000c,not nylon bush.
Some people come onto forums and boast about some reels like a toy but have they owned 150-180 reels NO.I had a saltiga 4500 and sold it.Just not worth all that wasted money on one reel.What am I using now..okuma v-s.
I speak from experience and not rambling guess work.If you ever get to know someone working in a tackle store or who has they would give you the same storey.
Have a close look at some obvious things in one brand on how much parts look the same in handles, rotors,bail wires,body and they will be the same reel renamed and in a different color plus or minus bearings.

Well said digga! I still use my 1st release model Shimano Aero Stradics and Chronarchs. Yep i have all the advanced technology reels as well from both major stables and they are technology and that's all. My 15yr old reels will go another 15+yrs looked after properly.

More bearings and crap means more things to break.

I was amused to see Daiwa's flagship baitcaster boating an enormous ammount of drag for such a small reel. Any tiny little reel that can withstand such pressure would have to be made from space-age material with bushes not 8 -15 bearings. ### lot of cars don't have this many roller bearings-yet a fishing reel does} A day with 6Lb of constant drag would destroy any of these reels.

I'd also like to see the eggbeaters such as Saltiga or Stella under 30Lb of constant drag if an angler could hold them all day and see what happens to them. They'd look like beaten egs.

Although I'm not an ambassadeur fan we only need to look at the simplicity of those old reels and how well they have stayed one of the world's best for so long.

Bearings for casting distance, Bushes for ruggedness & endurance. If we fish from a boat & are more concerned about a few feet of extra casting distance when chasing trophy fish than we are of having a reel that will constantly allow us to catch & release bulldozers I'll take less larger bushes than 4 times more smaller bearings strewn all over the place, most of which inhibit rugged performance.

[leelee]

I'd also like to see the eggbeaters such as Saltiga or Stella under 30Lb of constant drag if an angler could hold them all day and see what happens to them. They'd look like beaten egs.

Go over to WA and go out on a charter jiggin for sambo's with Al Beavan when the sambos are spawning

You can watch all the cheap and nasty gear along with top of the line gear get fished over and beyond its limts and watch it all explode. This is where you see anglers fish 15kg+ of drag for long periods of time. Stella's, Saltiga's, Van Staals have all been destroyed on his boat.

Out of curiosity he does run saltiga spinners for his clients.

Cheers

Lee

[NAGG]

Go over to WA and go out on a charter jiggin for sambo's with Al Beavan when the sambos are spawning

You can watch all the cheap and nasty gear along with top of the line gear get fished over and beyond its limts and watch it all explode. This is where you see anglers fish 15kg+ of drag for long periods of time. Stella's, Saltiga's, Van Staals have all been destroyed on his boat.

Out of curiosity he does run saltiga spinners for his clients.

Cheers

Lee

Maybe I'm a little bit of a traditionalist , I wouldn't buy a spin reel for any up & down slugg fest fishing like the WA sambo sessions ....... it would always be an overhead!

Nagg

[leelee]

Yeah I tend to agree with you there mate.

Each to thier own and I love battling big fish on spin reels, but then again being able to use and get them on a good overhead combo is very rewarding.

Cheers

Lee

[2manylures]

Go over to WA and go out on a charter jiggin for sambo's with Al Beavan when the sambos are spawning

You can watch all the cheap and nasty gear along with top of the line gear get fished over and beyond its limts and watch it all explode. This is where you see anglers fish 15kg+ of drag for long periods of time. Stella's, Saltiga's, Van Staals have all been destroyed on his boat.

Out of curiosity he does run saltiga spinners for his clients.

Cheers

Lee

I did my apprenticeship outta Dampier some time back and have seen what happens to a lot of gear especially gear that isn't looked after.

Proven quality Overheads for this little black duck not manufacturers advertising hype of what they say a reel can do without any evidence which seems to be the norm these days.

Same goes for rods and all other associated tackle.

So often we see people with expensive rods & matching reels filled with Crap Line and El Cheapo lures & Terminal Tackle getting around in $100K boats. Sorta think it defeats the purpose myself.

[BR65]

Chris, this is starting to head down the lines of one of your old threads mate, something that starts with e and ends in litism???? I remember it well, very amuseing reading lol.
Each to their own fellas, Ive got a thing for reels, others do cars (boreing), others do the gee gees (can think of better ways to waste my money - buy more reels), etc etc etc
cheers
brian

[NAGG]

Chris, this is starting to head down the lines of one of your old threads mate, something that starts with e and ends in litism???? I remember it well, very amuseing reading lol.
Each to their own fellas, Ive got a thing for reels, others do cars (boreing), others do the gee gees (can think of better ways to waste my money - buy more reels), etc etc etc
cheers
brian

How do you mean Brian ??? ....... Traditionalist Vs Elitism?
I just feel that an overhead is better designed for high power pump & wind !.......

Chris