Reel sugjestions

I’m looking to pick up a bait caster for mostly pike and some muskie fishing and just wanted some input on what i should get.

depends on your price range and what type of baits you are looking to throw.

I’m not concerned with price too much and the rod it’s going on will be a heavy action flipping stick like i said it’s mostly for pike fishing and since i’m not a die hard i’m not interested in throwing the high dollar huge lures. So a few buck tails chatter baits spinner baits that kinda stuff mostly. I was thinking about just picking up an Ambassadeur but if there is something that is close to the same quality for less than i’m interested

You might like one of the larger sized Revo reels.

Abu Garcia Revo Toro 60 Winch or Shimano Curado 300. Will handle all of the your Pike needs plus will handle most of your musky needs.

pick up a shimano cardiff 400 or 401. abu garcia has gone down the tubes in my opinion and i will never work with their company again after my phone conversations with their “HIGHER UPS”

shimano cardiff is about the same cost with double the value…

I personally stay away from all things Abu. I would second the Shimano Curado 300, it’s light weight and low profile which would probably match up nice with the rod mentioned. These reels look small but can handle a pretty heavy load, I throw a lot of topwater, small to mid sized bucktails (including double blades 8’s and 9’s) and some glides/jerkbaits with them.

One thing to keep in mind when looking at the Curado or the Revo, is gear ratio. Both reels have a low and high speed version. The curado high speed is the “EJ” …. great reel.

I was going to ask why avoid Abu but I see the comment “they have gone down the tubes recently”….glad I got mine years ago….I can’t kill them no matter how hard I try. I have 2 5500(silver) and a 6500(blue) and they have worked flawlessly but I have had them for probably 10 years.

Something to consider if you are looking for pike/musky you probably want a little more line capacity and larger reel handle. If you are going strictly for bass or even primarily for bass go low profile.

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abu garcia has gone down the tubes in my opinion and i will never work with their company again after my phone conversations with their “HIGHER UPS”

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AJ,
You didn’t tell them you were a ‘Natural Born Killer’ did you?

Curious as to what issues you have with Garcia. Product or Customer Service related, or both?

I’ve had several Garcias in the past (C3’s and 6500). I’ve had great luck with them. I bought a Revo Winch last year and liked it enough to buy the high speed model for this year.

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abu garcia has gone down the tubes in my opinion and i will never work with their company again after my phone conversations with their “HIGHER UPS”

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AJ,
You didn’t tell them you were a ‘Natural Born Killer’ did you?

Curious as to what issues you have with Garcia. Product or Customer Service related, or both?

I’ve had several Garcias in the past (C3’s and 6500). I’ve had great luck with them. I bought a Revo Winch last year and liked it enough to buy the high speed model for this year.

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Not sure about the Revos but the standard round reels I can not get more then a couple months on them with out buring them up. Dont seem to handle the 4-5+ days a week throwing ski baits. Probably wont be an issue with the lighter duty use and pike baits.

I’ve been running a pair of 6500 C3 ambassadeurs for 5 and 7 years respectively. These get used for pike but not very often, two week long Canadian trips per year. Bait sizes are generally 5/8oz cranks to 1.5oz bucktails. No big lures like Cowgirls yet on these setups.

I have had a couple issues over the years but these are “user” problems. When I learned to loosen up the brake for winter storage and break them down for cleaning at least once a season they’ve been great. I’m actually liking them more and more that they’re breaking in.

I’ve been very happy with these and would recommend them. As others have posted there may be nicer reels but in the category of bang for the buck these are a definite contender. If the quality is not as good lately, then others here will have better info than me.

Reels are probably the most debated piece of equipment in musky fishing. Some people get down right nasty about certain makes and models. I stated before that I “personally” won’t use an Abu any longer, so that doesn’t mean that there aren’t thousands of happy customers out there

So with that said, it is widely thought that Abu’s quality went down the tubes after they quit making them exclusively in Sweden. This was some 10 – 15 odd years ago. I haven’t had the best luck with the quality but the main thing for me is that they just aren’t that smooth and don’t cast that nice. I’m not sure what you will be throwing when Pike fishing, but I would assume the baits to be on the lighter side compared to most musky baits. The centrifugal breaking system on the shimano curado or calcutta (for round reel comparison) is going to be way smoother and you will be able to back it down to cast the lighter baits better.

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abu garcia has gone down the tubes in my opinion and i will never work with their company again after my phone conversations with their “HIGHER UPS”

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AJ,
You didn’t tell them you were a ‘Natural Born Killer’ did you?

Curious as to what issues you have with Garcia. Product or Customer Service related, or both?

I’ve had several Garcias in the past (C3’s and 6500). I’ve had great luck with them. I bought a Revo Winch last year and liked it enough to buy the high speed model for this year.

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haha thanks for reminding me why abu garcia hates me!

In all honesty i have burnt thru about 8 abu garcia round reels in 3years of musky fishing. They don’t stand up to double cowgirls for 18hour fishing days…..at least in my experiences.

I don’t mean to burn on the company but my experience when i was at my breaking point and on the 8th reel was not very good. I called and asked to talk to THE MAN in charge. After explaining my circumstances they told me to send the reel in and they would most likely replace it. I then got a bill in the mail a week later for a new reel

When I called back and chatted with a different representative the new solution was that I needed a better reel that would cost twice as much. So if i wanted to pay the difference they would be glad to ship me the new reel…

In my opinion I was just kind of jerked around and thrown into the gutter by abu garcia. I asked them what would happen if I was Joe Bucher??

Ryan and AJ,
I’m curious on what model Garcia reels you had your quality issues with. I agree that the C3/6500 series model seem to need to work extra hard to throw the bigger rubber baits and DCGs.

My Revo winch made retrieving DCGs effortless. I also think it casts much better than my previous C3/6500s. My only complaint is you have to reel like a mother because of the low gear ratio. I’m hoping the high speed model will address that. I have not heard any complaints from the other guys I know that are avid muskie fishermen and use the Revo reels (except the gear ratio on the winch).

Full Disclaimer: I have never owned a Revo Toro, so therefore have never had a problem with them. I have owned the 6500’s and for the most part this was years ago. I have had many clients bring Abu’s into my boat and when they use my Shimano’s they usually want to take them home with them!

I have heard mixed reviews on the Toro’s. I also find it very difficult to fish with such a low gear ratio (i.e. the winch), when I want to slow roll or night fish I usually have a calcutta that is only spooled up about half way. It doesn’t pick up as much line with each rotation this way, and then I just simply reel slower. I have taken a couple casts with the winch and hated it.

I think that the Abu Garcia Revo Toro’s are in a completely separate class from the round reels that they make today. My primary muskie reel is a Toro 60 with the 5.4:1 ratio that they discontinued and it is an awesome musky reel in my opinion. I also have 3 round Abu Tournament Pro models from about 10 years ago that were made in Sweeden that have been work horses.
If you are throwing big baits and double 10’s then I would agree that all of the current Abu 6000 series models won’t cut it.
If you aren’t going to throw anything over 2 or 3 ounces then I think you are good to go with either a Shimano Cardiff or a Abu Record 60 for around $150. If you want to bump up your price range a little then the Calcutta B, Curado 300 and the Revo Toro’s are all really good options. Good luck.

Well after doing some checking on some of the prices i’m glad i got my tax refund LOL

I would go Revo before Record… Otherwise most everything is spot on from all the earlier conversations…

Mark

IMO the Revo Toro is the only muskie reel Abu currently makes…I own 3 and while not perfect they hold up as well as my Calcuttas…Another reason I own them is I got them cheap or free on raffles and can get them worked on if needed and back the same day…The 5:4 is the best all around, like others I don’t care for the winch, and do like the HS for certain baits but not cowgirls…Soon the 5:4 will be back and we’ll have a 3rd choice again… Hopefully if they dump one in the future it will be the winch…

Daiwa Saltists have been golden for me!! But I also have 3 setups with 6500’s and have had a handle break off on a hook set, but that’s the only trouble I have ever had. And I called and sent a picture to them and recieved a new reel, and got to keep my old one as a “memory” piece

There is no perfect reel. That is for sure. I also use a the Daiwa Saltist for burning blades. I am addicted to this reel, it really brings in double 10’s. However I usually have to get it serviced twice a year because the clutch spring goes out. I finally had them send me a bunch of clutch springs. These reels are quite a bit different from shimano’s and abu’s when you take them apart, but you can repair the spring fairly easily. Good service from Daiwa too.