whats a good baitcasting reel

[fish_fishburn]

I'm mostly Shimano myself. I would say the Curado is the best bang for your buck. There the workhorse of my reels. The Chronarchs are sweet as well but a bit more expensive.

[MCTFisher9120]

If you want a great low profile baitcasting reel for a ridiculously low price, look at the Rapala RType reel (10 bearing), about $100. I have been using them for over a year now pretty hard, and they are a really smooth, nice-looking reel that casts well. They are holding up well with no issues. You can buy two of these for a similar quality reel by another brand.

 

Even the Volt is a nice reel for $60.

 

Rapala Reels

 

Aaron

 

I agree, great reels. I own the r-type and i put it on a Rapala TS2 7'0 MH

[BITEME]

Quantum Energy PT!!!!!!

No question

[Guest steel'n'esox]

Shimano curado all the way, incredible reels, if you want something a little cheaper citica by shimano as well bullet proof Bass blasters

[Guest steel'n'esox]

Shimano curado all the way, incredible reels, if you want something a little cheaper citica by shimano as well bullet proof Bass blasters

[Whitespinnerbait]

Here Here ....

 

 

Curado.........Citica...............

[waynec]

If you have the money to buy an Ardent XS1000 baitcasting reel priced at about USD$289.99 then consider buying an Abu Garcia Revo Skeet Reese 6.4:1 baitcasting reel http://www.abugarcia.com/prod.php?k=132609...2584&u=REVO SKEET REESE. If you want the rod and reel colour scheme to match/compliment each other, the Revo SK reel, black with yellow trim, will match the black and mostly yellow coloured Wright & McGill SR Tessera rod better than the dark green coloured Shimano Curado reel. I have the Revo SR reel and like it. The Revo SR is an upgraded version of the 2008/2009 Revo Premier reel. Skeet Reese changed the Revo Premier reel from magnetic linear braking to centrifugal braking, which Shimano baitcasting reels use. The centrifugal brakes are easier to change on a Shimano than an Abu Garcia reel. I can live with it since I set the brake pins once and screw on the sideplate and rarely make any further setting changes. Reese added more ball bearings for more smoother retrieve and replaced the retrieve paddle with a bigger one for more torque power. Of course, Reese added his trademark black and yellow colours to the reel. The 2010 higher end Revo reels have the Infini Brake System which uses sealed centrifugal brakes and linear magnetic brakes. I bought my Revo SK on sale for about $280 from www.gagnonsports.com in Oshawa, ON. I think www.paddletales.com in Windchester, ON has them also.

Edited February 10, 2010 by waynec

[ryansusanna]

Obviously the wrong section, but i have 3 right handed Curado's for sale, used 1 season. 101D (small one), 300D (muskie model), and an E7. U2U me if interested.

[mepps]

Ive got a Shimano Calcutta and a Quantum Cabo CBC30PTs and I love em both. Both have seen heavy use in fresh and salt water and are a bit worse for the wear, but I still have faith in them both!

 

Cabelas has the Cabo on sale for 100 (usually 185) - CBC30PTs 270/14 5.7:1 - Sadly the only have right hand retrieves left...

[singingdog]

Just for a different perspective, I will suggest the BPS Rick Clunn reel. I have one that has been thoroughly abused for the past 3 seasons and it still works like a charm. If you watch for the sales, you can often pick them up for less than $100. The brakes are super easy to adjust and it is built very well.

[Jackie]

I generally like Shimanos better than Daiwas. I own the Curado and the Cardiff; both are fine reels for their prices. I have owned Daiwa Viento and Rojo and just don't find them as quiet and smooth as the similarly-priced Shimanos. Also fish a lot with my Revo SX and Premier. Both are fine but I find the magnetic brake control pretty useless (in the sense that I always have to dial close to "max" to avoid any bird's nest). Of all the above reels, I actually like my Pflueger Supreme the best: very smooth, quiet, and the UBS works very well. The only complaints are the thumb bar sits a bit higher than usual, and the paint can wear off quickly. Mine turned from green to brownish gold for some strange reason! Mechanically it's still like new after 3 or 4 years of heavy use. Highly recommended.

[bigbuck]

BTW, what type of fishing do you plan on using the reel for?? Us musky guys have piped up with our choices but musky reels and bass reels are different animals. Mind you, the Curado 300 is about the size of many bass reels out there and it will give you more choice as to the type of fishing you plan on doing.

[Garry2Rs]

For musky baits, reel size matters but so does gear ratio.

I once made the mistake of taking a Shimano Chronarch to the Moon River for Musky.

I had two St.Croix's with Calcutta's but thought it might make a good Bucktail reel on a heavy bass rod.

The 6.3 to 1 gears wore my wrist out!

These double bladed Cowgirls etc. also block a lot of water even 4 to 1 might be good with them.

 

Abu C3, C4 or C5 are all good reels at a low price. They need to be oiled often as the worm gear and pawl on the level wind tend to wear out fast if you don't do the routine maintenance.

7000's are okay, but they are never sold in saltwater stores. That tells me that despite their size, they aren't really built for heavy duty.

 

For cost efficiency, since you already have the Revo, I would again suggest sending it to Professional Reel Service. Get the spool bearings upgraded $28.00US and have it super-tuned $14.00US. The reel will then be much better than any Revo or Corado etc. and the cost will be under $50.00CDN.

Edited February 11, 2010 by garry2rs