Spinning reels! A favorite subject of mine! I’ve read all the posts, and I couldn’t disagree with any of them. How can you argue with people that make their living by fishing. This is my very first post here, so hopefully I can add my input without losing the very little credibility that I have to start with.
Shimano makes fantastic spinning reels. They have an enormous range of spinning reels to suit any situation or budget. The Stradic is sooo smooth, and is a great reel if you don’t mind paying over 100$. I have also used the Sahara and Symetre 750 sized reels for pitching jigs for walleye. They are some of the lightest reels around, so when you’re fishing all day or night, you don’t start feeling the weight. Shimano=great product.
Quantum makes some dynamite spinning reels. When you try a Kinetic, Catalyst, or Energy, the feeling you get is SOLID. I owned an Energy 10(until my girlfriend took it) and it is TOP quality. Once, when I was jigging for walleye, I hooked the biggest carp I have ever seen come out of the Mississippi. This thing might of roasted most spinning reels that size, but the Energy didn’t give an inch! After that I realized that I could handle just about any fish, save for the big cats, with that reel. I think of all the reels mentioned, you would be hard pressed to find a more solid and powerful reel than the Energy, even if you paid an extra hundred dollars more. The ONLY drawback for me was that it is a bit heavy and didn’t balance well with the rods that I had been using. Other than that, fantastic.
Thank goodness for Pflueger! No other brand gives you the bang for the buck like Pflueger. For the price and the quality, the President is as good as it gets. It easily could cost more and people wouldn’t even blink. I own two of them and use them for everything! I had them for a while and neglected them because I had a few newer more expensive reels that I was playing with. When I went back to them, I realized what a fantastic reel it is. The wooden handle, while beautiful to look at, can be awkward to some, but I’ve never had a problem with it as far as slippage or anything. The spare spools are very easy and inexpensive to get, which is not true for some brands. If you use a variety of lines, this is a big plus. Two thumbs up!
I could go on and on, but really, all the reels mentioned are great. Because you are willing to spend up to 200$, you really can get just about anyone you want. Daiwa also makes a fantastic Sol reel that is rock solid. Fin-Nor also makes some great spinning reels. For 200$ you can also take a look at the Japanese import reels by Shimano or Daiwa that are just gorgeous$$$$$. If you don’t mind spending the dough for one reel, then get the best, but if you want reels that flat out do the job, you could probably get two maybe three reels for the price of one of those. As a spinning reel junkie, I have a collection of both(darn it!). Lately, for walleye jig rods, I really don’t mind sacrificing a LITTLE cranking power for a lighter reel. I hope this was helpful.
