What kind of reel to buy?

I have been using freshwater reels in saltwater not knowing there was a big difference and now i find myself with my antique mitchell all corroded and with stripped gears. i guess it was a freshwater reel..

i have been lookin on ebay for a new reel and some okuma plastic reels for saltwater in what they call "conventional" and "baitcast" reels look nice.

can you tell me what would be a good economical choice for a new reel? i only have about 40.00 to spend and would like something that i can cast and not have it go bad from corrosion.

my wife has an okuma with a line counter and it seems to be pretty good, never had any problems whatsoever, i rinse it after each use and just loosen the drag. she uses it to bottom fish. oh yeah, the counter is not that accurate though. i was diving at 50 feet and she had a reading of about 65 feet. but its within 30% error rate  if thats acceptable !

i might need a new pole too since the saltwater pole i have is a 17.00 one from sportmart and its solid fiberglass and after an hour or so i feel pooped. it feels so damn heavy.

thank you!

john

I like Abu's a lot and you should be able to pick up a 5500 or 6500 for fairly cheap. Take them over to the magical Alan Tani to get the drag upgraded and you have a great little reel.

thanks for the til bill. i'll see if i can track one down for a good price!

john

Oh stay away form the AB models, they have a crappy antibacklash system on them.

hi john.  keep an eye on the boards.  i'm going to have reel seminars in san jose, pacifica and san rafael before salmon season opens up.  you can bring it over and i'll take you through the tear down and rebuild.  the seminar is free.  all it costs you is the cost of parts. 

thanks alan! that would sure be helpful for me to understand how they work!

i appreciate it!

john

john,

there are a zillion choices of reels that work just fine.  you probably can't make
too bad a choice.

in terms of lbs of fish caught per dollar of reel paid, it would be hard
to beat erik kzreelrods with his handful of shimano tr-200 reels. but they don't
come in left handed models.

I was in your shoes 18 months ago. For local fishing, not including tuna,
the used/cheap abu garcia ambassadeur route is a reasonable choice.
it's an extremely common reel, perhaps the most common baitcaster of all,
as well as being the 'original' one.

This means you can find used ones, as well as parts quite easily.
You probably want to end up with 2 or 3 of these things so you always
have a backup.

also people like alan tani post great articles about how to service them yourself.

my average price paid was about $35 a reel. I paid $20 for a couple, but
I also paid $45 for a few others.  I did upgrade the drags and while it is
true they are now super smooth, that is not required.

using 30lb braid means you can fit a lot of line on them, but beware of setting
the drag over 8lbs, the gears may get stripped.

besides ebay, here are some places to get them cheaper, if not used:

https://www.ffo-tackle.com/  (abu outlet)

http://www.castawaylakes.com/AbuGarcia.html   (new, but big selection)

also see www.mikesreelrepair.com for abu parts and upgrades.

www.smoothdrag.com is a source for these fancy carbontex drag washers.

good luck!


john

FYI... outdoor pro shop has been having a sale on some new and refurbished Abu's.  Might be worth a look. 

I use. A line counter is something I never would've guessed I'd like so much

You should try a FFinnder you might like that too . No Blue I'm just kidding I think it's great you can
be so successful without one, I can only dream about that knowledge.
I have been eyeing the Okuma Catalina Line Counter you can only get them from Cabalas about $100.
They look solid.
Alan any opinions would be appreciated.

Hi John,

Here's a hot deal on Abu Garcia reels:

http://www.reedssports.com/main.taf?cat=1723

The Abu Garcia 6500 C3 is only 49.99 on sale here . If you go in with someone and buy two, shipping is free.  Load that puppy up with 30# PowerPro, Slap it on a MH Ugly Stick, and you're ready to rock and roll for years to come for less than $100.
 

For John M., Mooch, et al, there are lots of left handed models also on sale.  Papa Bill will probably want to pick up a couple of 5501 C3 LH to put away for his little girl - They're only $39.95. 

Have fun!

Randy

I just picked up a couple of the convector line counter reels off ebay and will be giving a review of them once trolling weather starts up.

That is a good deal on the abu's. Wish I would have saw that before my reel shopping spree.

-Brian

Randy found the best price for sure. It would be nice to have a line out alarm (clicker) tho,
I spent some extra effort finding some abu 5500 variants just so equipped on ebay.
same with thumbar vs pushbutton.

regarding the line counter,

I bought a shakespeare external line counter for $10 @ fisherman's warehouse.

http://www.shakespeare-fishing.com/products/accessories/counters.shtml

tested it yesterday @ lexington.

it works okay, but best if there's some tension on the rod, letting line
out behind the boat with little tension on it and slippery braid doesn't work
too well. Also it's best if it's mounted "above" the first line guide, which means reading it
is inconvenient.

wow THANKS ALL!!

Those links and tips are super helpful!!

I will see what they have and what i can afford. on a single income and married, it helps to have tips on where to spend less and get a little more!

thank you! 

John

Randy found the best price for sure. It would be nice to have a line out alarm (clicker) tho,
I spent some extra effort finding some abu 5500 variants just so equipped on ebay.

You can add a clicker to the c3 abu's. Easy and it takes about 5 minutes.

where do you get the clicker?