So I’m just dying to know. Since you guys all build rods and appreciate craftsmanship, which reel manufacturer is your favourite? Mine is Daiwa. In a very close second Is Shimano. In spinning reels I like the Tatula for finesse and for baitcasters I like the Tatula as well. It’s just a great value.

But I have a Jdm Scorpion DC that I love from Shimano. My favourite type of reel is a round baitcaster. I have the most fun with those. Calcutta B is my go to for that. I like Daiwa’s magnetic over the centrifugal brake from shimano. I find I have more control when casting in the wind with a magnetic.

I’m also really impressed with the Koreans. They make some fine reels.

I clean and service a lot of reels and I have learned that most reels are made by the same one or two companies. Some are spec models they make to a firm's request while other times it is really only the exterior cosmetics that are changed while the internals are identical. I won't spend over $100 on a reel these days. The higher priced ones just are not any better and usually the same as the $100 model with a bit more bling. Just pick out the one you like best and stick with it.

I prefer Daiwas. I have a couple Tatula spin and a Fuego at half the price. I can't tell the difference. I think a lot like Mike B, and take good care of my stuff and it lasts almost forever. I've read on other forums that the higher end reels have better/smoother gears. True? I have no idea. I can't imagine smoother than either the Fuego or Tatulas. I like how light they are, being of the "Light/Tough" series. I see no functional disadvantage to the non-metal frame (and rotor?) .

I won't buy Shimanos or Pflugers any more since they don't have anti reverse switches.

My favorite current BC reel is a Tatula SV 103. Casts great, nice drag , no issues.

Mike Ballard Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I won't spend over
> $100 on a reel these days. The higher priced ones
> just are not any better and usually the same as
> the $100 model with a bit more bling. Just pick
> out the one you like best and stick with it.


I am a believer in this also. I fish salt water mostly and nothing really holds up for more than a few years in heavy use. I'll break them down after a few years and clean them and replace any worn or broken parts with the crate of used reels in the bone yard. Use them until they give up the ghost. Added benefit is that I get to purchase brand new ones every few years.. Nothing like a brand new reel, at least for a few trips. Right now I'm on the $100 Lew's casting reel band wagon.

Lew's makes a quality product.

Other than the very first reel I ever bought, an Abu Garcia Cardinal spinning reel, I have bought nothing but Shimano reels. By far my favorite bait casting reel for cast and retrieve type fishing, is the Shimano Curado 150 MGL, I used to wonder what it would be like to have an Aldebaran or Metanium, but the 150 MGL is so good I no longer feel I have a need for a better reel. For me, it is the perfect reel for cast and retrieve type fishing. For flipping and pitching it is hands down the old Shimano Castaic reels. IMO there never has been a better reel for flipping and pitching. You just can't beat the double thumb bar action those reels have.

Choosing my favorite spinning reel is a little more difficult. I picked up a 2500 Vanford last year and if it weren't for one very annoying, at least to me, aspect of that reel. it would be my favorite reel. It's so smooth and so light weight and casts so dang good. It's an awesome reel. Turning the handle to reel in a bait is as effortless as it gets. At least in my experience. But ......... the handle doesn't fold, which makes it a royal pain in the butt to put it in, and take it out of my rod locker. My Saros and Ultegras you turn the handles backwards and they will loosen and fold over against the stem and body of the reel. Not the Vanford though. I consider it a major design flaw. As far as Shimano discontinuing the switch to turn off the anti reverse goes ... I get the disdain some show for them doing that, but to me it's no big deal. I don't back reel to fight fish. Other than that, I never saw the use in being able to turn it of anyway.

As far as there being no difference between a $100 dollar reel and one that is higher priced. I personally don't see it that way. At least not with Shimano. I have a couple of Shimano Sahara spinning reels, and they are no where near close to being as good as a Saros, Ultegra, or Vanford. As to their bait casting reels, I can't really say. I've never tried one of Shimano's sub $100 bait cast reels. I know there is a casting difference between the Curado 150 MGL and the Curado 200 K. And while the K and older I series Curados cast beautifully. the 150 MGL is a noticeable up grade in casting performance.

Anyhow .... I'm a Shimano guy. Always will be.

I began noticing that the internals of these various priced reels were the same when I started ordering parts for various reels sold by the same company. Most of the difference is in the outer cosmetics not the actual gears and guts. Not all companies maybe but a lot of them.

Shimano for me.

I too am a Daiwa fan (spinning) with Shimano being close second. Like David, no anti reverse switch is no big deal and one less thing to malfunction, also agree that the mid to higher end reels are superior. I have several Tatulas and Ballistic LT and one of the newer Ballistic MQ and for the extra cost of the Ballistic MQ, which I believe was 229.00 (same as the original Ballistic) as opposed to 199.00 for the Tatula, the Ballistic MQ is WAAAAAYYYYY nicer as far as being smooth to the point its better than my experience with my friends Shimano Exsense (twice the price of the Daiwa) Draw backs (to some) - Slower reel, has a lower gear ratio, to me it doesn't matter, I consider it something for finesse, plus I prefer a 3000 size which gets more inches per crank anyway. 2) Its heavier than comparable reels, again, to me it doesn't matter as I prefer a finesse spinning rod to be tip light (and yes I'm of the camp that will add tungsten to the butt to get to balance with three fingers in front of the reel stem) 3) you need a special tool to open the reel side plate, and the tool aint cheap. you can make one out of a choke tube and some skill with a dremel tool, but I think I'll just send mine to my Daiwa dealer for that (Maintenance) Just my opinions, and like they say about a specific part of the anatomy "everyone has one"

Daiwa is my favorite for baitcasters. i also have a scorpion DC reel that is amazing. DC technology is a big selling point to me. spinning reel favorites for 40+ years have been the zebco cardinal reels; not a single failure in 40 years says a lot. if it ain't broke, don't "fix" it.
but i have to say looks wise the new spinning daiwa and shimano reels are sure pretty and probably dependable. other brands frankly are not in the picture for me.
fly reels are a different country! open the wallet up wider. says the bait monkey.

Mike Ballard Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I clean and service a lot of reels and I have
> learned that most reels are made by the same one
> or two companies. Some are spec models they make
> to a firm's request while other times it is really
> only the exterior cosmetics that are changed while
> the internals are identical. I won't spend over
> $100 on a reel these days. The higher priced ones
> just are not any better and usually the same as
> the $100 model with a bit more bling. Just pick
> out the one you like best and stick with it.

I strongly disagree with this and other statements on this thread. I have to consider that some of the sources of such comments are not reel technicians and may never see the insides of a reel.

I see things a little differently as a now retired former reel repair tech at a professional shop and I repaired numerous brand name reels as a warranty repair tech and this simply means I had to learn reel repair to a level approved of and accepted by the brands. Our shop was visited yearly with some brand engineers around ICAST time. I was involved in showing those engineers the common failures and issues their reels had in a Florida salty environments so they could go back home and work on improvements of design and materials. Point is I know reels a little better than some maybe most. And it is from this perspective I have to disagree on some statements.

All reels are not the same. All brands do not adhere to the same standards or tolerances or quality. And because of my years of experience on the bench repairing reels I have come to some conclusions that help me make better reel decisions for myself.

For example, I will no longer buy any reels with plastic or composite frames. I now consider them as junk no matter how much they cost. They have issue I cannot live with. I have to replace bodies on two of my reels now a Penn with cracked body around AR dog, and a Shimano BaitRunner 6500. Both broken composite reels I acquired because of their condition the former owners could not deal with. All I have to do is come up with new bodies and I have new reels for cost of bodies. So today I only purchase solid metal frames and I prefer aluminum. If the reel is built on aluminum frame I will take a look at it. If not, won't bother. I shouldn't even have to mention the down side to plastic framed reels. Out of the question.

I recently picked up a reel from a relative new brand name Fishing 13. It retails for $89. I would not give you .02 cents for it. Pure junk inside and out. But I rebuilt, modified it and adjusted it for tighter tolerances. Now the handle does not move in and out sideways. I shimmed it out. And changed out drag washer and replaced some bearings. Now its smooth junk again. I'd give it to the kids only to play with. Its not a serious reel.

And for those who think $100 reels are as good as $500 reels in some cases would be sadly mistaken.

Shimano for example only put their DC technology into the top of the line reels and only recently began moving this top of the line technology down first into the midline Curado reels, and then down into bargain basement priced reels with the new SLX also with top of the line technology in it. But, the refining and dialing in of the DC technology is more sophisticated in the higher end reels and for the midline curado reel Shimano gave us only I think 4 settings for it and a noise was added I was told by engineers. Not sure if all of this made it down to the SLX as I retired.

Daiwa used to keep their magnetic fluid to the higher end reels and only trained techs could work on them and replace that fluid. End users usually could not do it and could not access the fluid to do it themself.

Now it is easier and cheaper in production costs for brands like shimano to make their reels at all levels share some similar basic technology cross matched parts and yes many parts in cheap reels are found in expensive reels too, but there are things found only in expensive reels not found in cheaper reels. And I can tell you that a curado is a good reel, but no matter what I do on the bench I can never make the curado into a metanium. There is a craftsman level difference not to mention technology differences. You can feel the improvements when going back and forth between a curado and metanium.

One thing that Shimano can give to most baitcast reels at all levels is a free spinning spool. My first experience with one came back in the 90's when Shimano released the green bean B series curado reels with a BSF model. Or, B series Super Free model referring to the newly created free spinning spool. I used to make these spin for days it seemed like and doing so made casting them a birdsnest nightmare! So shimano worked on the centrifugal braking next and improved that and kept it in the higher end models and slowly brought it down into curado lines and lower.

So all can have a free spinning spool now, but I can assure you that the more you spend the better your control over that free spin is what you will find in various levels of reels. I can make a tranX cast almost as well as chronarch, but I can never make a tranX feel as refined or as good as metanium. Not going to happen for a $100.

And this brings me to a point about performance. What is a custom rod? Art or performance? To me its pure performance. And I don't get the idea of having a NASCAR race car sporting a volkswagon engine. If I am going to build custom rods for performance and I have the skills to work on and even improve reels, then why would I aim for a performance rod and then turn around and put a $100 reel on it? Seems a bit mismatched to me.

That said, I have dialed in my preferences along the same lines as this comment but not as drastic. So rather than buy $500 reels all the time, I have learned I can beef up curados and chronarchs enough to have a more expensive reel feel and experience while still cheap enough to not break the bank.

And being a former reel tech for the main reel brands, now that I know them inside and out pretty well... I never pay retail new prices except for DC reels. I now buy only used and broken reels and rebuild them. So the reels other guys are throwing away I am buying up. So my curados cost an average of $30 to $50 in broken condition. And I get Shimano stradic reels all day long for $25 in broken condition. I have access to parts and can restore a reel in an hour or so. Nice to have midline and high end reels on the rods for less than the bottom of the line reels when new. Not all custom rod builders can do this.

I am nearly 60 now and have had years of using just about every reel made or had them come across the bench or bought and sold them over the last 40 years in the used tackle market which I have done quite well in because I can repair rods and reels and increase my profit margin because the acquisition costs are so low. Most are going in the trash anyway, so I get a lot of stuff for free like my most recent St. Croix rod I acquired. The man found it along with a rusted up salty dog curado. I agreed to rebuild the reel in exchange for the rod for free. This is what it looked like when I cracked it open... it had been used in saltwater for decades without maintenance of any kind and used until it stopped and tossed into a dumpster where my customer found it. And yes, this reel was rebuilt back to fully working condition, but it will never be as smooth as new unless a number of parts are replaced. But I rebuilt it as is and he can get many more years fishing out of it, but I have his St. Croix medium 7' rod in my collection now.




Some of you may not like this next opinion but it is what it is. Coming from the perspective of a former warranty repair technician for all the major reel brands and some minor ones no one ever heard of... I have formed a very definite opinion of what brand I prefer and I think you can tell it is shimano.

When our rod and reel shop was in the process of dealing with Daiwa to sign the papers to become a warranty repair place for them, I told the owner I was going to quit. I was not alone. It takes twice as long to work on Daiwa reels. More labor. Less profit. Shimano is much easier to work on. Shimano builds reels in ways that make sense. Other brands not so much. They copy a lot, but don't seem to do it any better and wind up doing it worse. So I am no fan of Daiwa baitcast reels but I am a fan of their older spinning reels built like tanks. I still have several.

Another reason I will not use Daiwa baitcast reels is because Daiwa uses magnets for spool braking. I grew up as a kid using reels with magnets. I hated it. Still hate them. I prefer centrifugal braking only. Nothing else will do. And for this reason Daiwa is out. I rebuilt more than I can count and I don't care for them. I know some swear by them and that is fine. They make a good reel. No question about it. Just not my flavor is all.

But the point to my comment here is I disagree that $100 reels are as good as $500 reels:

>"The higher priced ones
> just are not any better and usually the same as
> the $100 model with a bit more bling. Just pick
> out the one you like best and stick with it."

Really? Well Mike, if you would like to have it and pay for shipping I will give you the $89 fishing 13 reel I just rebuilt. Its yours for free just pay for shipping is all I ask. The reel is in used condition and needs new rubber grips. And I would replace the drag washer with something else. Its already got a new spool bearing and all bearings have been lightly oil with synthetic oil and good synthetic grease was used so it is ready to fish with again. And its yours for free + shipping. And its a lefty... an origin one 3. I shimmed the main drive handle and shimmed the line guide pawl. Much lower than shimano tolerances on this reel but to be expected of a near $100 reel. Send me an email if you want the free reel. Otherwise, its going to the 11 years old kids.




I'm sticking with higher quality reels for my custom rods.



Edited 4 time(s). Last edit at 10/03/2022 06:56AM by Kent Griffith.

Kent Griffith Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------

>
> I strongly disagree with this and other statements
> on this thread. I have to consider that some of
> the sources of such comments are not reel
> technicians and may never see the insides of a
> reel.
>

You are correct. Most guys have not taken apart and examined the number of reels that someone like myself has. I'd guess I've seen the guts of over 10,000 reels in my lifetime now and the advent of so many companies simply sourcing their reels from one of the maybe two major suppliers means that most reels are very similar if not identical inside. Remember the old DAM Quick reels? Or Zebco Cardinal (ABU) reels? They had proprietary worm gear drive systems that you will not see on any of today's cheaply made ring and pinion reels. At one time when Daiwa was building reels they also used a worm gear drive system, but that was a full forty five years ago now. Much cheaper to just source them from one of the actual reel manufacturers just as so many of the rod companies now.

Mark Brassett Wrote:
--------------------------------------------
> -----
> > I won't spend over
> > $100 on a reel these days. The higher priced
> ones
> > just are not any better and usually the same as
> > the $100 model with a bit more bling. Just pick
> > out the one you like best and stick with it.
>
> Mike Ballard Wrote:
> ------------------------------------------
>
> I am a believer in this also. I fish salt water
> mostly and nothing really holds up for more than a
> few years in heavy use. I'll break them down after
> a few years and clean them and replace any worn or
> broken parts with the crate of used reels in the
> bone yard. Use them until they give up the ghost.
> Added benefit is that I get to purchase brand new
> ones every few years.. Nothing like a brand new
> reel, at least for a few trips. Right now I'm on
> the $100 Lew's casting reel band wagon.


For saltwater reels I agree with the general thrust of the comment but not freshwater reels.

However, this comment hit me where it counts:

>"I'll break them down after
> a few years and clean them and replace any worn or
> broken parts with the crate of used reels in the
> bone yard. Use them until they give up the ghost.

As a former reel tech this is not the approach I would take. For one I do not leave corrosion protection up the brand. I do my own before the reels are ever used or put anywhere near saltwater.

The lubrication the reels come with from the factory will allow rust to develop.

I use a synthetic oil specially made for corrosion prevention and I prepare my reels ahead of saltwater contact.

I have Shimano Stradics, sustains, curados, and chronarchs I have used in saltwater for decades with zero corrosion or rust simply because of advance corrosion protection done first.

Another issue with saltwater reels is that you would not believe how many customers walked into the shop with their saltwater reels all locked up from rust and then stand there at the counter and tell us "but I rinsed it off after every use!"

Um, yeah, and what do you think caused this problem?

Shimano advises DO NOT rinse off reels used in saltwater. NEVER rinse them. All the person is doing is pushing the salts and water deeper and deeper into the reels. Shimano recommends simply wiping off the reels using a lemon pledge type of polish.

Just about every saltwater customer comes into the shop swearing up and down they rinse the reels after each use never knowing or realizing that is the problem. We had to retrain each customer one by one to the Shimano way.

My saltwater reels do as well as my freshwater reels simply because of advance corrosion prevention before any use near saltwater.

The one thing I have to watch out for is braid line holding saltwater on an aluminum spool for any length of time will cause corrosion of the spool. So that is an issue too.

But yeah, I hate to use my good reels in saltwater and will generally use lesser reels simply because of the environment. I don't take my best custom rods into salt either. I have some rods and reels I can abuse on big snook and redfish and not worry if anything breaks or goes wrong. i have no problem using old ugly sticks for 4 foot long redfish or snook- especially in some of the places I go to fish for them in rougher back country. Take the junk tackle out there, but all prepared ahead of time to prevent corrosion. Really helps a lot in longevity.

I agree with everything you posted, Kent. That being said I'm still going to buy, then replace those $100 casting reels.

BTW, good to see you are back and posting valuable info on this board.

When I was doing some research for a reel purchase a couple years ago, I ran across a You Tube channel where the host evaluated and compared reels. He took reels completely apart and explained and compared nearly every aspect.

In short, his conclusions were based on overall design, engineering, component quality aspects, and personal experiences. My eyes were opened. I could SEE the differences. Some were small, and some were big. For me, I began to understand there are reasons the higher priced reels are higher priced. He seemed to have no brand loyalty, but he often pointed out things like, "This is what brand X does better than anyone else," or "This model of brand Y is superior to its price point."

That's why I prefer Shimano reels. I am confident I am getting a quality product.

As an aside, I still have my Garcia Mitchell 308 ultralight spinning reel from decades ago. I remember at the time I felt like I was walking the cutting edge. Found that reel a couple years back and gave it a few cranks to relive old times. For some reason, my old memories of its smooth performance doesn't match my current experiences.

To the OP, I, too, really like my Calcutta B's (sizes 50 and 100). I wish I had bought a couple more back then.

My go to spinners for a while have been Spheros, just a lot of bang for the buck. I didn’t notice that much difference with the pricier versions.
Saltwater baitcasters, was a Lews bargain hunter, but they don’t seem to hold up, i tried a Curado DC, meh. I did hear the higher end jdm reels have much better electronics. Curado 70 and BFS are great. Recently got a Zillion for a Birthday present. Dang that thing is nice. Haven’t ventured to try the smaller Tranx models yet vs older curados. Calcutta’s, nuff said.
Now the old Baja specials ;)

Mark Brassett Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I agree with everything you posted, Kent. That
> being said I'm still going to buy, then replace
> those $100 casting reels.
>
> BTW, good to see you are back and posting valuable
> info on this board.


Thanks Mark!



Tim Scott Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------

> i tried a Curado
> DC, meh. I did hear the higher end jdm reels have
> much better electronics.


This is the second time JDM was mentioned in this thread. As a former shimano repair tech I can tell you JDM means squat. Japan Domestic Market. Simply put, those are reels made and designed for how Japanese fish. Apparently Americans fish differently and so Shimano tweaks the reels for U.S. market.

There is NOTHING "better" about any JDM reel. The only difference is that Shimano being Japanese will test market new technology in JDM reels first before transferring it to other markets.

However, the DC electronics for U.S. reels is different than JDM models. The Shimano engineers told me face to face the settings on U.S. models are designed for HOW Americans fish as compared to how Japanese fish with similar reels. Shimano is merely tweaking them for different markets is all. Nothing special to them at all except different colors.

Another issue I had to deal with was parts. Our shop won't take in JDM reels even though we were a warranty repair facility for Shimano. We refuse all JDM reels because Shimano will not supply any parts in USA for Japan reel models or JDM. The only way Shimano will service a JDM reel in USA is if you send it directly to Shimano so they can fix it and order parts from Japan for it. All JDM reels are handled out of Shimano main office in USA.

But for those that know... many parts in U.S. models will fit right into JDM models. No difference at all.

From an old Shimano tech... avoid JDM unless wearing a status symbol is important, it means nothing more than that.

Shimano did NOT make special reels just for Japan and then toss out that technology for all other markets. Quit the opposite. Shimano test marketed in JDM so you can find things in JDM that may never have transferred over and if so shimano had a reason for it. Shimano does not keep anything special for Japan markets. Engineers said the only differences are how reels are designed for different ways of fishing and nothing more.

Don't fall for the hype of the JDM trap.

Kind of funny to have two guys standing side by side fishing. One is using a green curado and the other man is using a red scorpion. Both men are fishing with the same reel, different color. The red reel carrying the JDM tag is little more than bragging rights on using a different colored reel.

Open up both reels and find most internal parts will work on both reels the same.

If you get into it, it will cost you more and you are not getting one thing better than any good U.S. models really. Just different. That's it.

I'm a huge shimano fan. I even worked as a warranty repair tech for shimano and I won't touch JDM. The guys who buy into JDM are mostly those reading forums in USA and hearing other people talk them up when not a single one of those people have anything to do with shimano or reel internals. Its mostly over the counter end user opinions and not much else. And a lot of the information claimed about JDM simply isn't true like the JDM electronics are better than USA electronics. Would shimano really put their reputation on the line like that? No. It don't work that way.

When shimano got started they made products for JDM and expanded out. They simply continued making products designed for how Japanese fish, and when they expanded to other markets they tried to conform their JDM reels to the other markets as best as they could.

About the only benefit JDM could ever really give someone would be to lay hands on new technology marketed in Japan first a year or two before it shows up in other markets. And that is about it. JDM is pure status symbol in USA for those who know- and for those who do not know- JDM are god's reels and better than anything out there and super tight tolerances and better this and better that.... and if god all mighty were to use a reel it would be a JDM- and I would be lying.

Shimano makes reels. Shimano tries to make the best reels in the world. They simply try out their newest gimmicks in their hometown local market JDM first and if it all works out well and is a success then shimano is confident to carry it over into other markets tweaked for those markets. If it does not work out and shimano does not transfer it to other markets, then you can get a reel with something unique, but something shimano discarded too.



Edited 4 time(s). Last edit at 10/03/2022 06:50AM by Kent Griffith.

I agree that JDM reels are not better. However, they have two advantages. First is a wider variety of retrieve ratios and spool depths. Want a stradic with a slower ratio? JDM is your only option. The other benefit right now is that JDM reels are way cheaper due to the current exchange rate. For 30-40% off I can deal with the service issues (although some independent reel repair places will work on JDM). But yeah, a scorpion is a red curado. I fish with my reels (and rods), I don't brag about them. Oh yeah, I think shimano makes the best reels too.

David Baylor Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Other than the very first reel I ever bought, an
> Abu Garcia Cardinal spinning reel...

I'm glad I bumped into this thread - I have no idea how Abu is doing with their spinning rods presently, but I bought my Abu Garcia Cardinal (I think SX30) like 10-12 years ago and I have never done any maintenance at all - but it is still my favorite spinning reel I currently use. Drag is still silky and reels buttery, I'm afraid at this point if I do any maintenance it will actually just cause damage. I'm gonna be totally lost the day it finally dies on me.

I got it on clearance and sale on top of that working at a sporting goods store - Its so hard for me to fathom spending more than like 50 bucks on a spinning reel now (My slightly newer shimano sienna is still doing great too).

I prefer Shimano over all other brands because they generally cast better and last a little longer than others. I do like some Daiwa spinning reels. I think that Daiwa did not get recognition in the past for their spinning reels. JDM Cheaper to buy, Shimano Curado DC is excellent for casting in the wind even with limited settings compared to higher end Shimano DC reels ( I own several). I only buy cheap spinning reels (sub $100 maybe a little over). I am using a Shimano Nexava currently and it does the job even after a few dunkings in saltwater. My higher end Penn spinning reels cannot take a dunking. They don't make Penn spinning reels like the SS ones from the 80s anymore. These thing were bulletproof. So what do you like for offshore casting or conventional reels?



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/22/2022 01:46PM by Lance Schreckenbach.