Your favorite reel brand 2024
done reply :
Alright, when it comes to reels I am really just getting into it. I had thought my first couple were alright (they were mainly Shakespears).
Then I accidentally bought a Abu Garcia Cardinal reel. The difference in how this thing works compared to my others, night and day. Really smooth, easy to set drag, loved it. Became my favorite.
Then I was over my mothers house fishing her Bass pond and borrowed my step-fathers rig as I forgot to bring mine. He had a Mitchell on that. it was even better than my Cardinal. Just loved it, so I went out and bought one.
So all that being said, I obviously am just getting into this, I was curious, any specific brand names/models some of our more seasoned folks out there would recommend? I generally go open faced reels (I suck at bait casters, and get nothing but rats nests out of closed faced reels. I would love to hear some feedback on other reels out there though from folks who have really used them.
Anyone?
bilgerat reply :
Let the fun begin 
It's all personal preference. Personally, I like Pflueger. I've fished a lot of different brands over the years, I've settled on them for now. I find them extremely well built and durable. I feel you get more than you pay for.
Read product reviews, get opinions here, do your research. If possible, go to a store and play with as many different products as you can. That's the best way IMO to decide.
Beware of the "anything but a Shimano/Daiwa/Abu/Pflueger/ etc. is crap" mentality. The fish don't give a rat's back end what brand you fish with.
bigfruits reply :
anything but shimano is crap
depending on your budget i'd go for sahara, symetre, saros or stradic in the 2500 size.
i think the daiwa tierra is pretty good for the money too.
i have used all of these reels and highly recommend them.
chris fenk reply :
Shimano
cbreeze22 reply :
Starr see the board topic currently being displayed Best value reels. Lots of posts on that to get you going in the right direction. I like the Shimano Symetre 8-)
Maxximus Redneckus reply :
ABU garcia and shimano a close second
Sam reply :
Shimano.
ArcticCat500 reply :
l love my Curados but DAM my Flooger Supreme spinning reel is smoooooth.
bjohnson reply :
I think it is hard not to form a bias view towards one company when you get use to using that brand all the time you start to trust them. If you would have asked me 6 months ago I would have said Abu only. But now I have a Shimano, BPS, Shakespear (spinning) and I like them all. But the more you pay them better they feel up to a certain point.
I don't have much experience with Spinning Gear but I have played with some at BPS, and it seems after certain price point the differences get smaller between each model.
Also>.... I did get a BPS extreme baitcast originally that I hated, I then assumed all BPS reels were junk even though most loved the reel. I wanted to give BPS reels another chance so I purchased another one of their cheaper BPS baitcasters and loved it so much I now have two. I think I may have just gotten a bad extreme reel. So don't let one bad reel sway your opinion either.
But if I could only have one Spinning reel: Shimano Sustain SO SO SMOOTH
KYntucky Warmouth reply :
After getting my Patriarch, Pflueger is in the running...we'll see how my new curado works out though.
Daniel My Brother reply :
No favorite brand, but a couple of favorite models for the money.
Spinning: Pfluger President
Casting: Cabelas Prodigy
Jimzee reply :
I don't think you will go wrong getting Pflueger, Abu Garcia, Shimano, or Daiwa. All of them have strong points and weaknesses.
I use Daiwa.
FordNFishinLover reply :
Shheee-man-----ooo! I aint afraid of a diawa neither!
TrippyJai reply :
SHIMANO!!!
The Rooster reply :
For me, the only spinning reel out there is a Pflueger.
But I want to say that even though Pflueger is owned by Shakespeare, and you can sometimes see a lot of similarities in their products, there is a night and day difference in overall performance.
I got some cheap Shakespeares before and liked how they worked but they did not hold up any time at all, handles begin to come apart, reels made noises and actually had the anti-reverse fail in one of them, then the bail started not closing down all the way either. I loved the reel at first but in the end I hated it's performance and how short a time it lasted. So I wanted another one to get back to the way they were when they were new but also wanted to skip another experience like that as it was getting frustrating to repeat. I saw the Pfluegers and how similarly designed the were but was hesitant to pay twice as much for a Pflueger that was so much like the Shakespeare cause I thought it would be wasting money on another reel that would do the same thing all over again.
Not so at all!!!!!
I finally bit the bullet and got a Pflueger Trion and a Pflueger President the same day, paid $100+ for the two of them. Have caught dozens of fish on each of them and they are holding up extremely well. Solid construction, smooth operation, never fail to work and work tightly!! These might share the same overall design as the Shakespeares did but they are NOT the same. Pfluegers are the only spinning reels I will consider at the current time.......but again, that's just cause of me and not to say that a Shimano or Diawa won't be just as nice. I just like the current Pflueger design the best, that's all.
roadwarrior reply :
The Symetre is considered the "best value" by many Shimano
fans. The Stradic 2500FI was chosen by ICAST as "Best In Class".
Shimano's motto is: Strong, smooth, silent and reliant. Although
I have given reels away to friends over time, every Shimano reel
I have ever owned is still in use and performs as well or better today
than the first time out of the box.
I fish Shimano, I recommend Shimano. When you join the Posse,
this Bud's for you!
http://unattributed.net/html/whiskey.html
ChiCityBasser reply :
For me my Choice is Quantum with Daiwa/Cabelas a close second and third. I know some people often mention the weight of the Quantum spinning reels but for me they workout just fine.
burleytog reply :
There are reels other than Shimano?
bass wrangler569 reply :
QuoteThere are reels other than Shimano?
Yes I have heard of these "non-Shimano" reels. The best place to locate non-Shimano reels is the clearance bin of your favorite retailer, or if you watch patiently, a non-shimano reel may be commonly seen in the hands of a misguidedd angler waiting in line at the returns counter hoping they will take back his worthless non-shimano reel in hopes of purchasing an actual Shimano reel.
bilgerat reply :
Yeah, there are other reels besides Shimano. And believe it or not, people ACTUALLY CATCH FISH WITH THEM !! I know it's hard to believe, but it's true. It happened to me once
I guess George Perry's record is a complete fraud because it wasn't caught on a Shimano. Cut me a freakin' break. 
SPEEDBEAD. reply :
I have preferences with different reels.
Low profile: Abu Revo, BPS
Round: Shimano and Abu
Spinning: Shimano and Pflueger
I am not really brand loyal, just really like what I have.
roadwarrior reply :
QuoteQuoteThere are reels other than Shimano?Yes I have heard of these "non-Shimano" reels. The best place to locate non-Shimano reels is the clearance bin of your favorite retailer, or if you watch patiently, a non-shimano reel may be commonly seen in the hands of a misguidedd angler waiting in line at the returns counter hoping they will take back his worthless non-shimano reel in hopes of purchasing an actual Shimano reel.
firefightn15 reply :
RW, I am looking at the Stradic for this spring, are you inferring that I'm gonna get a beer out of ya if I do get one?
roadwarrior reply :
If you make it to the Roadtrip, you bet!
firefightn15 reply :
Now that's upping the ante. Now I'm gonna try harder for April!
burleytog reply :
QuoteI guess George Perry's record is a complete fraud because it wasn't caught on a Shimano. Cut me a freakin' break.
It woulda been a 30 pounder if he had been fishing with Shimano.
joeyd50 reply :
You get what you pay for, do all the reading you can on different reels and then get the best you can afford.
Good Luck
Joe
Btech reply :
Shimano is the best !
I have Shamino Symetree 2500 that is great ! Wont buy anything else now.
cart7t reply :
QuoteQuoteI guess George Perry's record is a complete fraud because it wasn't caught on a Shimano. Cut me a freakin' break.
It woulda been a 30 pounder if he had been fishing with Shimano.
He wouldn't have caught it at all since he'd have been too broke to go after over-paying for the fishing reel in the first place. Remember, it was the depression and all.
On a more positive note, he could come here and bragged about his Shimano boner with the rest of the posse.
Bassboss reply :
Have not payed much attention tot that in the last 5yrs. I've just used what I had.
Just in this last year I've been getting into brands. And I have used one reel that so far that I acknowledged the brand. It's a Quantum. I don't like it that much, it was only $60 for a combo anyways. Yesterday I when to BPS and got a BPS Johnny Morris Limited series baitcast reel, I think Shimano, Pfleuger makes them. I'm leaning more to Pfleuger though. Haven't used it yet, so I can't say if I like or not. But from what I've read, I like the sounds of Pflugers.
Bassoholics Anonymous reply :
I love Shimano...although I did have some issues with my latest Stradic. That should be taken care of soon, though.
The cheap Diawa I have on one of my older rods isn't bad, either. For the price... ;D
OK Bass Hunter reply :
Shimano
SJex reply :
Shimano.
Danny1991 reply :
Shimano. Got my first Shimano this Christmas and LOVE it! Quantum is good to but a little pricey
lubina reply :
For me.
Baitcasters LP: High end Daiwas.
Baitcasters Round: Shimano Cardiff.
Spinning: Shimano Stradic
done reply :
I may have to give a Shimano a try next time around. They have certainly got some serious following with the folks on here.
I got to test out my mitchell this weekend and it was freaking awesome. I actually casted with it much farther than I would even with my Abu Garcia. Did not make any sense to me how that was possible but I really was much more accurate and farther range.
sal669 reply :
DAIWA.
Although I have and keep buying other brands, most of my reels are Daiwa.
Stingray23 reply :
Quantum. Its all I use and NEVER had problems with them. I still have and use my Quantum Pro 2C that I bought new back in 1992.
tallydude reply :
Don't have a Pfleuger baitcaster for comparison, so:
Spinning: Pfleuger
Casting: Shimano
On an alternative note, Pfleuger is a LOT more fun to say.
KYntucky Warmouth reply :
PFLUEGER....tried my new curado and patriarch side by side and I pick the patriarch hands down....don't get me wrong.....I like my curado but put the patriarch and the president spinning reel together and it's all pflueger
-HAWK- reply :
Pflueger Supreme Spinning Reel is my favorite hands down. I own a Shimano Symetre, Pflueger President, Okuma Epixor, and a few older Daiwas and Quantums. None of these compare to my Supreme.
auburn bass man reply :
I remember when i was 12 or so I got a Curado and a Spirex. My dad got for himself a Quantum (cant rmember the exact one). At that time the thought of "taking care" of reels was a foreign idea to me. Nearly 7 years later the Quantum is long gone, the Spirex was given to a friend, and I just put the Curado on yet another rod ( cant seem to find a rod that will keep up with it ). Ive never fished with anything but Shimano, just got two more, and I probably never will buy any other brand. Whats most important to me is that when Im on the water, Im fishing with what I have confidence in.
BassinSoldier reply :
QuoteWhats most important to me is that when Im on the water, Im fishing with what I have confidence in.
That is probably the best answer to this question so far. That being said, I have loved every Daiwa baitcaster I have owned and I'll be giving the pflueger president a shot pretty soon here.
J Francho reply :
I've had many, and worked on many more. Shimano and Daiwa make the best product out there. I personally use mainly Daiwa, though there are some SHimanos in the stable .
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