Need a replacement spinning reel <$100, suggestions? 2025
Neil McCauley reply :
My old Quantum SX3 finally broke down, no longer locks reeling backwards. It has been such a solid reel for me for almost 20 years I'm considering getting the same one, but it is on ebay for >$70 and I have a feeling bidding will be over $100, which is a little absurd since I think I bought it for $30.... Are there better modern ones anyone could suggest? In the $100 range... Should be light spinning, rear drag, trigger casting. Thing I will miss most about my old reel is the balance of the reeling handle and how solid it just was reeling against heavy resistance. I could use it with very heavy tackle if I wanted. I am afraid they "don't make them like they used to" in this regard. Hopefully I'm wrong.
JigMaster4 reply :
I recommend the Lews High Speed Spin.
http://www.lews.com/spinning-highspeedspin.php
basscrusher reply :
To meet your criteria...Shimano Spirex RG (rear drag). They go for about $60 retail, but I'm sure some of the discount sites have them for a little less. I'm not sure about now, but for years this reel had a really dedicated following.
Fishin' Fool reply :
Everyone on here seems to recommend the Pflueger President for $60. Shimano makes great spinning reels the Sedona and Sahara. I have a Daiwa Fuego too that is a nice reel for $100. Lots of good options. My suggestion is find something you like and see if you can grab it for less on Ebay or Amazon.
lakeannaangler reply :
Lews team gold carbon spinning reel on sale for $80 on tackle warehouse
Onvacation reply :
On 5/1/2016 at 11:19 PM, basscrusher said:To meet your criteria...Shimano Spirex RG (rear drag). They go for about $60 retail, but I'm sure some of the discount sites have them for a little less. I'm not sure about now, but for years this reel had a really dedicated following.
I agree that for the criteria you set forth, in particular the one hand casting, the Spirex is going to be hard to beat. I have an older model which is now on my loaner rod because it is very easy to use with the Quickfire system. It also gets used for everything from bluegill to catfish to 10 pound grass carp. Needless to say, it is used and abused and has held up very well over the years. It is the reason I had enough confidence in Shimano to spend the $$ on Stradic Ci4.
James Pondscum reply :
Pflueger Supreme at about one hundred dollars. I believe their is still a twenty dollar rebate on this reel? Alloy body very smooth. I do not think you will find anything better at that price.
JustinU1X reply :
Stradic FJ if you can find one.
Neil McCauley reply :
On 5/1/2016 at 11:19 PM, basscrusher said:To meet your criteria...Shimano Spirex RG (rear drag). They go for about $60 retail, but I'm sure some of the discount sites have them for a little less. I'm not sure about now, but for years this reel had a really dedicated following.
NOT bad...
Dan_the_fisher reply :
Shimano symetre
Vlad Val Yevdash reply :
Get the Shimano symetre FL they are amazing reels featuring xship. I own one for my dropshot rod. The reel is very smooth and durable even used it for surf fishing just a beast.
On 5/1/2016 at 11:20 PM, Fishin' Fool said:Everyone on here seems to recommend the Pflueger President for $60. Shimano makes great spinning reels the Sedona and Sahara. I have a Daiwa Fuego too that is a nice reel for $100. Lots of good options. My suggestion is find something you like and see if you can grab it for less on Ebay or Amazon.
Why are you guys leaving out the symetre FL it's $90 to $100 new on ebay. And it has xship.....
fvogel67 reply :
On 5/2/2016 at 4:47 AM, Dan_the_fisher said:Shimano symetre
Agree 100% A great reel.
new2BC4bass reply :
On 5/1/2016 at 10:45 PM, Neil McCauley said:My old Quantum SX3 finally broke down, no longer locks reeling backwards. It has been such a solid reel for me for almost 20 years I'm considering getting the same one, but it is on ebay for >$70 and I have a feeling bidding will be over $100, which is a little absurd since I think I bought it for $30.... Are there better modern ones anyone could suggest? In the $100 range... Should be light spinning, rear drag, trigger casting. Thing I will miss most about my old reel is the balance of the reeling handle and how solid it just was reeling against heavy resistance. I could use it with very heavy tackle if I wanted. I am afraid they "don't make them like they used to" in this regard. Hopefully I'm wrong.
Not many made today far as I know. The Shimano Spirex mentioned is the only one I know of offhand. The Shimano Syncopate FG doesn't have the rear drag. The Zebco Quickcast is also front drag, and at $20 I doubt it is anywhere near the quality reel you are looking for. Other than the Spirex, I think you are SOL. You may want to consider going to something like the Pflueger Presidet. A lot of bang for the buck. Good luck with your search.
Nick S reply :
I wouldn't pay 50 cents for a shimano symetre. The fi and fj had terrible binding problems if they got the slightest bit wet. Shimano STILL hasn't fixed the binding problem with the new fl, although they did cheapen it up by making the frame graphite instead of aluminum and replacing the main gear bearing with a nylon bushing.
Bluebasser86 reply :
Shimano and Quantum are about the only spinning reels out there with the casting trigger still. I hate the double handle on the Spirex, but it would probably be my choice if I ever really felt I needed a trigger to cast.
Pfluegar President would be my pick if you choose to ditch the trigger.
Bankbeater reply :
I have two Pflueger Presidents that have given me no problems at all.
burrows reply :
I use the new shimano Sedona FE can't beat that at 70$
CarolinaBoy4Life reply :
I bought my old man a Pflueger President for his birthday last year. He uses it saltwater and freshwater and loves it. Has caught some stud drum, trout, and flounder with it and it has not given one bit of trouble. I just bought the Trion as a cheap alternative gonna give it a try on a spinning set up I bought.
Raul reply :
There are several reels that fit the description, the problem could be finding them for sale since Quickfire mechanism and rear drag are not that favored:
- Shimano Spirex RD
- Shimano Sienna RD
- Shimano Symetre RJ ( it´s rear drag but doesn´t have the Quickfire trigger )
- Shimano IX
Nick S reply :
If you do decide to buy a front drag spinning reel the pflueger supreme and daiwa ss tournament are hands down the best reels under 100 bucks.
stfreed reply :
I am loving the Mitchell 308 pro models.
blckshirt98 reply :
I'm curious about the benefits of having a rear drag vs a front drag?
smalljaw67 reply :
On 5/3/2016 at 4:34 AM, blckshirt98 said:I'm curious about the benefits of having a rear drag vs a front drag?
The rear drag was easier to adjust while fighting a fish, anglers used to lock the drags down to set the hook and then adjust the drag as needed. This was before hooks were chemically sharpened and there wasn't any super lines and the mono was really stretchy. Shimano had what they called a "fighting drag" on the Aero, it was a lever like you see being used on saltwater reels but it was in the rear of a spinning reel, there was a lever that all you did was slide over with your thumb when you set the hook, this eliminated the need to turn the knob. The downside was it made the reels heavy and the drag system wasn't not even close to the smoothness of a front drag. A lot of anglers would lock the drag down on those reels and simply use the anti-reverse switch and back reel and it is still being done today even on front drag reels.
mrpao reply :
On 5/2/2016 at 9:11 AM, Nick S said:I wouldn't pay 50 cents for a shimano symetre. The fi and fj had terrible binding problems if they get the slightest bit wet. Shimano STILL hasn't fixed the binding problem with the new fl, although they did cheapen it up by making the frame graphite instead of aluminum and replacing the main gear bearing with a nylon bushing.
All my symetres always had binding issues and were not as smooth as other shimano reels. Even different generations.
On the other hand, I've owned spirex, Saharas, stradics and sustains with little to no problems.
smalljaw67 reply :
On 5/3/2016 at 8:28 AM, mrpao said:All my symetres always had binding issues and were not as smooth as other shimano reels. Even different generations.
On the other hand, I've owned spirex, Saharas, stradics and sustains with little to no problems.
The only reels I ever had fail on my were 2 Shimano Symetres and they each went in the same season. I know Shimano makes great reels but they are the only brand I stay away from and it is only because I was told by customer service I should have invested in one of the better reels even though the Symetres were $100.
Robert Riley reply :
On 5/1/2016 at 11:43 PM, lakeannaangler said:Lews team gold carbon spinning reel on sale for $80 on tackle warehouse
This is an awesome reel.
Dan_the_fisher reply :
On 5/3/2016 at 6:02 PM, smalljaw67 said:The only reels I ever had fail on my were 2 Shimano Symetres and they each went in the same season. I know Shimano makes great reels but they are the only brand I stay away from and it is only because I was told by customer service I should have invested in one of the better reels even though the Symetres were $100.
Where your reels the xship models?
DBL000006 reply :
Abu Garcia Orra SX 2 Spinning Reel
Vlad Val Yevdash reply :
On 5/2/2016 at 9:11 AM, Nick S said:I wouldn't pay 50 cents for a shimano symetre. The fi and fj had terrible binding problems if they got the slightest bit wet. Shimano STILL hasn't fixed the binding problem with the new fl, although they did cheapen it up by making the frame graphite instead of aluminum and replacing the main gear bearing with a nylon bushing.
I slipped off a rock and fell in the water and my fl got soaked worked the same didnt feel a difference....
Nick S reply :
On 5/4/2016 at 3:54 AM, Dan_the_fisher said:Where your reels the xship models?
On 5/4/2016 at 12:11 PM, Vlad Val Yevdash said:I slipped off a rock and fell in the water and my fl got soaked worked the same didnt feel a difference....
My symetre fl had the worst binding problems out of any of the symetre reels I've owned. X-ship is just a bearing supporting the bottom of the pinion gear, many other spinning reels from different manufactures have the same thing. The only reason I bought it was because I liked my fj stradics so well and figured shimano had fixed the binding issue, but I was wrong. I'm not the only person to have binding problems with the new symetre fl, just do a quick search on this site and I'm sure you'll find others who have had this issue.
Vlad Val Yevdash reply :
On 5/4/2016 at 12:38 PM, Nick S said:
My symetre fl had the worst binding problems out of any of the symetre reels I've owned. X-ship is just a bearing supporting the bottom of the pinion gear, many other spinning reels from different manufactures have the same thing. The only reason I bought it was because I liked my fj stradics so well and figured shimano had fixed the binding issue, but I was wrong. I'm not the only person to have binding problems with the new symetre fl, just do a quick search on this site and I'm sure you'll find others who have had this issue.
I dont know I've just never had this problem lol, my FL got soaked in saltwater and regular still works great had to clean out all the sand though. Maybe you guys just got a bad reel lol
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