Best spinning reel for casting cranks

What’s your opinions on a spinning reel under $175 for bouncing rippin raps. What’s your favorites

Little more that 175 but the pfluegar patriarch is worth a look for a few extra bucks
Also have the supreme xt I believe which is smooth as well just a little heavier

I picked up a few okuma spinning $75ish from gander beginning of last season, been real happy with em so far. I shore fish quite a bit, especially during cold seasons and winter time and they have been solid. Grabbed a tatula spinning same time that I’ve been less than impressed with for double the money.

Last few years Shimano and pflueger have disappointed me, wanted to try some thing different.

I use Shimano Higher middle and lower end ,been happy with them . I know a guide who uses Piscifun reels and rates them very good .

Enlighten me here… I have always thought the rod was far more important than the reel in this scenario. Lipless cranks seem to sail beautifully off nearly any reel I’ve used. They’re a dream to cast. In terms of working the bait I would think the rod would be the key? Happy to learn something new today though.

It’s true tangler, but a crank rods reel will take alot more turns of the handle than say a vertical setup.

Daiwa BG 2500….you can probably get 2 of them for under $175.

I’ve made thousands of casts in the last few years on my crank bait rod and they are flawless.

I’d take a look at the Abu Garcia Revo Winch in a size 30. It’s designed and geared for throwing cranks. “Retail” is $159, but with some looking they can be found a little cheaper.

Shimano, the best there is.

crawdaddy wrote:

Shimano, the best there is.

Interesting thread.

http://www.in-depthoutdoors.com/community/forums/topic/shimano/

crawdaddy wrote:

Shimano, the best there is.

Now that’s the funniest thing I’ve read in months!

My stratics from back in the very early 2000s were pretty good. Wouldn’t be surprised if the guy I sold them to is still using them. All the Shimano I’ve owned since have been junk.

My quantum Tour Editions from the early 2000s are heavy, but still the best reels I’ve had. My quantum EXO and smokes are much better than average. I’ve had 2 EXOs crap out on me out of the 14 or 16 of them that I own.
The quantum PT series reels are still being made with higher quality bearing than most. They have cheapen up other parts, but the core of the reels are still very good.

Unfortunately it seems like all manufacturers took dramatic efforts to cheapen the quality of reels back around 2008. It was around then that price points stopped increasing. So to keep the price them same, they cheapen the components to maintain profits.

Randy, you’ve got to be kidding me. There’s no comparison between Shimano and Quantum as a whole. I don’t even know where to begin. I’ve fished with a lot of different people and there’s VERY few old quantums out there. They just don’t last. I’m not saying that all Shimano reels are perfect, no one company is, but as a whole there is no comparison between Shimano and any other freshwater reel company. They design and manufacture their own product. Quantum doesn’t own any factories, they just send the plans to a plant in china that makes reels for many different brands, I believe Okuma is pumped out of the same factory. It’s very hard to believe the quality control is as good at a facility that pumps out reels for every Tom, Dick, and Harry vs. a factory that is directly owned by the company that designs the reels as Shimano is.

Randy Wieland wrote:

My stratics from back in the very early 2000s were pretty good. Wouldn’t be surprised if the guy I sold them to is still using them. All the Shimano I’ve owned since have been junk.

This is pretty subjective. Have you owned one Shimano or a hundred? They’ve been “junk.” Junk doesn’t tell me much of anything, other than it seems like you have a predetermined bias. Shimano has had issues, one of the bigger ones being a “binding” issue that was common in reels roughly 10 years ago. This was caused by a nickel main gear reacting to the grease when it got wet. Sometimes it was also caused by the friction ring swelling underneath the rotor in wet and humid conditions. When this issue became known the metal used for the gears was switched and so was the composition and design of the friction ring. Other than that Shimanos have been relatively bullet proof compared to other brands. Look at tacklewarehouse under top selling reels, I have never seen a Quantum there, but always many Shimanos. I know a lot of serious fishermen, and a few have quantums…because they got them for free or at a deep discount. When people have to go out and buy a reel with their hard earned money, it’s not a quantum, unless it’s a zebco 202.

Daiwa tatula hands down. You can get them on amazon or ebay for around the $150 mark and they retail for $190. Great drag very smooth and super light. Got rid of all my pfluegers and abu garcias for daiwa reels. I do have two daiwa ballistics as well if you want to bump up to the $200 mark that i really like as well.

crawdaddy wrote:

Shimano, the best there is.

I’ve been hard and fast on Shimano Saharas and Symetres for a long time. I have a couple of the smaller Sedonas, too, that have been on rods for over ten years apiece and still are smooth and sweet working. While I have had this love affair with Shimano I have tried Okumas and Quantums and a bucket full of the so called ice reels including some high dollar pfluegers and basically do not have much good to say about them. Okumas you could not give me. Every quantum I have owned has had issues. The mid-price ranged Pfluegers were not too bad, but certainly not a Sahara or Symetre for the same $$. Store brands are another reel source I avoid and I could give a rip if ts Scheels or Cabelas or BassPro. I’d buy a Diawa of equal size if I could not find a Sahara or Symetre and Diawa let a taste in my mouth years ago, so that should tell what I think of the other reels brands mentioned.

I’ve long ago come to the conclusion that any spinning reel, regardless of cost or brand, will only be as good as the care given to the spool’s forward lip and the bail’s roller bearing. Scratches there were line out. Nicks create enough drag to effectively reduce casting performance. Protect the reel spool’s lip or rim and they’ll cast great for years. That roller needs to be checked to be sure sand or something else hasn’t stopped it from doing its job, but it doesn’t need a quart of lubricant either

Cast performance/distance is also dictated by the spool’s depth, from front to back….not how deep the spool is. A lot of high end reels have miserably shallow [front to back] spool depth which equates to line drag as line comes off the reel.

And don’t forget the line on those reels. If you’re set on casting cranks you need to match a LINE size to the LURE size, AND the reel size. AND the rod’s action. Braid may be a super good caster when it comes to distance, but try those 5/16 ounce cranks on a windy day with braid and you may change your mind when wind loops come to play with you.

Someone mentioned being able to get a couple of reels for under $175 bucks and that’s great advice. Spending more than a C-note for a reel is more ego and hormones than common sense. I have Saharas that are over 20 years old and cost about $49 new when I bought them and they are still on working rods today.

Shimano for me I have 14 stradics some C4 some regular love all of them and I fish 60-80 days a summer. I do a lot of casting and pitching especially in Canada and the river and my stradics haven’t let me down yet!

Tom Sawvell wrote:

. Spending more than a C-note for a reel is more ego and hormones than common sense

Cheaper reels are heavier, fact. Higher end rods simply won’t balance out well with cheaper reels, just bc they are too heavy for the rod. You go and state everything needs to be in balance but this pretty important equation gets left out?

2-3 shimanos I got this last decade crapped out. As did my pfluegers. Time will tell about my okumas, they put in alot of wet rainy cold nights so far.

Beads…he’s talking about casting crankbaits. The only thing a higher end rod will offer is maybe a bit of sensitivity for jigging walleyes or for bassers with worms/jigs in deep water.

A middle of the road rod will work for casting cranks too. And most of the time sensitivity doing anything can be had with a line change, not a way more expensive rod…or reel.

People thinking they need to spend big bucks for the imagined best are thinking too much.

No matter what tactic you are doing, lighter equals less fatigue.

I have slowly converted over to Shimano Saharas on 6 rods and spanning I believe 2 generations of Sahara reels.

Every one of the 6 I bought is going strong and smooth, the oldest is 9 years old. They cast well, good line management, close is smooth without a lot of effort, lightweight, just haven’t had any issues.

Every couple of years I strip and clean 3 of the fleet. Have never had them professionally cleaned, probably should do that at some point.

Serious question. I’ve wondered how much better does it get than the Sahara if I were to spend 3-4X the money? What kind of distance increase do I get, what kind of added longevity, lighter weight, etc?

Grouse

Dusty Gesinger wrote:

No matter what tactic you are doing, lighter equals less fatigue.

Yup. As well does a balanced rod. If you’re fighting, even a tiny bit, a butt heavy rod to keep the tip down while reeling in a thousand casts during the course of some night shore fishing it adds up quick.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m a big believer spendy is not always needed, or even better. Most all my reels are the $60-80 range, but there are clear advantages to lighter, more expensive ones.

crawdaddy wrote:

Shimano, the best there is.

Shimanos are fantastic.

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There are probably a half dozen good to very good mfg of reels out there….maybe even more. I mentioned I prefer some of the daiwa models. I’ve also had great luxk with Penn reels but they would never be “most popular” in a website listing.

My experience with pflueger and shimano has been the quality has been poor. I haven’t used hundreds of reels but my gear gets quite a bit of work.

I would listen to what the guys that guide say….they rely on their equipment as it’s their livelihood. My guess is most would only use reliable stuff.

Mike W wrote:

Shimanos are fantastic

Fairness in conversation act, you do catch a lot of big fish on those reels……

Mike W wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>crawdaddy wrote:</div>
Shimano, the best there is.

Shimanos are fantastic.

Haha. One picture of a broken reel doesn’t mean anything. I’ve got a shimano that did the same thing. I fell right on top of it with my full body weight in 27 degree weather. Mike I’ve seen how you treat your equipment, and not many do a worse job of it. You ride em hard and put em away wet. Like your last boat, it was missing hatches, ripped carpet, leaked like a sieve, scratched to hell. Now don’t take this the wrong way, you use your equipment like the tools they are, and I think that’s great. I’d rather see things used and worn out than collecting dust in pristine condition in storage. Besides didn’t you tell me that you just buy mid price reels and use them for a few years until they’re shelled out, then you toss them? Nothing wrong with this, but for me I do a little maintenance and have little problems with my Shimano reels. Now let’s hear what happened to your reel. Did it break on a fish, a snag? Was is stepped on or ran over by the lawnmower?

crawdaddy wrote:

Randy, you’ve got to be kidding me.

No, I am not. I haven’t owned hundreds, but enough. In the last 15 years I’ve bought, used and sold/given away, and thrown away about 40ish Shimano reels. I don’t have a bias and I buy all my own equipment. Reels with poop bearings that sound like coffee grinders to me are junk.

As for quantum, as i mentioned you have to buy the higher end to get a decent reel. Even then they have cheapen up parts too.

Personally I think penn has the smoothest reels. But try to find them in stores around here or parts without sending them in

That reel snapped setting the hook on a small white bass. My other 3 Sedonas are not far behind. They all flex like crazy in the same spot. My thought is the sun weakens the plastic on them over time.

Yes my $40 to $60 reels dont get treated the best. Pretty much use them up and toss them. Got a couple Ci4s now that get a little better care.

Rippin Raps are no problem on a baitcaster. Unless I’m throwing light stuff like ShapRaps into wind I don’t even bother with spinning reals for cranks. Nothing but line twist and low power. JMHO!

For casting distance – I find the Pflueger Arbor to be an excellent choice. The large spool diameter makes a difference. For $80 or so, they are pretty darn good.

My Arbors where pretty good for casting to but not without issues. One was the line not seating well and the bail flipping open on hook sets. Had to remember to pull the line over every cast. The rubber seal under the spool of the Arbors would swell also.

Diawa used to make a Capricorn reel similar to the Arbor with a over sized shallow spool. That one was pretty decent.

I have a Shakespeare Alpha XT reel and also a Shimano Stella reel. Both are like 20 yrs old give or take a few years.

That’s a $10 reel vs a $500 reel. Yes they are different in many respects but are still spinning reels. One takes more attention to detail for line management to prevent a rat’s nest, the other one I can almost virtually just cast and crank without worry. Sure one kind of wobbles a bit and the other one is almost like a well tuned engineered machine.

Anyway I’ve always settled for middle of the road so I go with Shimano Stradic. Better than my Alpha and reminds me somewhat of a Stella. Now the Stradics have push their price above $200…so I always buy clearance or on sale.

Reason I choose a Stradic even in an UL reel. Way more winching power than most other spinning reels. Put a five pound weight on the end of the line to your rod with a Stradic and winch away. Tried that with other reels and many cannot do it. Line management on the spool driven by a worm gear oscillation system. It simply puts line on the spool evenly or way better than most other reels. That’s something I don’t get with elliptical gears, S drive train, or simple round gears for the spool oscillation.