Shimano Stradic, worth extra $40 over the Symetre?

Been looking at these two reels, the Stradic seems a bit smother, anyone used both, and is there 40 bucks worth of difference in the reels?

Thanks

Interesting question. I was wondering the same after fishing with my Symmetres all weekend, and having them get a little “sticky” in the cold, wet conditions.

Worth the money!!!!!

I had a interesting customer at Cabelas this past weekend…he bought two reels for ice fishing…one Shimano with the fluid drive and a Mitchell….Threw both of them in the freezer to see which one would be better for ice fishing….well long story short….he returned the mitchell on sunday….

With the fluid drive reels, you have to make sure to use some of the oil or fluid the give you when you purchase them at least once a season!!!!

Well worth it in my opinion. Maybe Deezee will pipe in. He use to be an aweful big fan of the stradics.

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Worth the money!!!!!

I had a interesting customer at Cabelas this past weekend…he bought two reels for ice fishing…one Shimano with the fluid drive and a Mitchell….Threw both of them in the freezer to see which one would be better for ice fishing….well long story short….he returned the mitchell on sunday….

With the fluid drive reels, you have to make sure to use some of the oil or fluid the give you when you purchase them at least once a season!!!!

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Calvin, are both the mentioned reels fluid drive?

What is the main difference between the Stradic and the Symetre? From the specs on the Shimano page, I can’t find many.

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Been looking at these two reels, the Stradic seems a bit smother, anyone used both, and is there 40 bucks worth of difference in the reels?

Thanks

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I am verrrrry biased on this….YES!Especially if you are a 4-season angler and fish alot.

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Been looking at these two reels, the Stradic seems a bit smother, anyone used both, and is there 40 bucks worth of difference in the reels?

Thanks

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I am verrrrry biased on this….YES!Especially if you are a 4-season angler and fish alot.

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I don’t fish in the winter, and the reel will be used as my primary finesse reel for bass fishing. I fish alot in the spring-summer-fall, but this reel wouldn’t be used everytime for sure, but probably get a decent amount of use.

Why do you recommend it so highly over the Sahara? (Just trying to convince myself why I should spend 50% more! )

well the mitchell reel was not fluid drive…

Your main difference from the stradic and a symetre or sedona is really spool size..you can spool more line on the stradic for open water fishing…I use the sedona 750 or symetre 750 for ice fishing…smaller profile reels that hold a fair amount of line…just less line when compared to a stradic!!!!
Another obvious difference is the size of the reel….not much difference but you can certainly tell!!!!

I think those are the main differences!!!! Also to justify the price change.. I have not done any research to see exactly what the difference in specs is on these reels…just a visual and expierence!!!

for me #yrs of heavy use….still rock solid…..brochures or specs dont measure longevity and customer satisfaction over time.I have yet to have a stradic customer remiss over spending $40 more.Just seems like every time I try to save a buck…..it costs me more than if I had done it right the first time.Good Luck

Having been a die hard Shimano guy for the past 6-7 years, I gave a Daiwa and a Quantum a try last year. I’ll never go back (on the spinning reels).

I would recommend the Daiwa Tierra if you’re looking in the price range of the Stradic. It’s a way better reel. Much better drag- waaaaaaayyyyy smmoooooooooth.

I’ve owned both and settled on the Symetre. It’s the best value for my money.

I fish a lot during the winter. I clean and lube my reels regularly with Quantum Hot Sauce oil and grease, which I think makes a huge difference.

Specs for comparison

Symetre

Stradic

I love stradics- well worth the money in my opinion. And they get fished hard, they never let me down!!

This is a good post as I have been a long time fan of the Shimano lineup of Stradics and Symetres. A few years ago I would say the stradics are far better reels IMO. But now it seems the symetres sure are a good bet for the money. I have had a few issues with my stradics getting “sticky” on me from time to time, but some of those have never seen an ounce of oil since the day I bought them.

Currently my arsenal consists of half Symetres and half Stradics reels. Overall I am happy with both now compared to my biased lean towards the stradic’s a few years ago. I tend to fish alot of braid pitching wingdams throughout the year and braid is hard on reels, so I have had several anti-reverse gears get over torqued and weaken. Overall I am pretty happy with the reels though.