Since the boat is already packed away and I’m bored waiting for ice, thought I would throw up some questions to pass the time.
If you were to recommend an In-Line Reel, what would it be? Why? What do you like about it?
My favorite is the 13 Fishing 6061.
This is my go-to. Free Spools works amazing, I can drop a 1/100 oz jig with the free spool, so you can imagine how well it drops something like a 1/50ish or larger tungsten jig.
Reels super smooth, and the star drag is also very smooth. I only jig for panfish, and this drag comes in very hand when I’m fishing large crappies or tie into something like a bass / walleye / northern.
I’ve used quite a few in-lines, and IMO the 6061 is the cream of the crop.
If you’re looking for something more reasonable, take a look at the No 8 tackle CGI as well. I stumbled onto this reel toward the end of last season when I needed another one a whim for late-ice crappies. Didn’t realize it was made by the same company as 13 Fishing at the time. Its basically a non-aluminum version of the 6061 and I was very impressed with it on late ice last season. For $30 its a darn good inline.
My favorite is the 13 Fishing 6061.
This is my go-to. Free Spools works amazing, I can drop a 1/100 oz jig with the free spool, so you can imagine how well it drops something like a 1/50ish or larger tungsten jig.
Reels super smooth, and the star drag is also very smooth. I only jig for panfish, and this drag comes in very hand when I’m fishing large crappies or tie into something like a bass / walleye / northern.
I’ve used quite a few in-lines, and IMO the 6061 is the cream of the crop.
If you’re looking for something more reasonable, take a look at the No 8 tackle CGI as well. I stumbled onto this reel toward the end of last season when I needed another one a whim for late-ice crappies. Didn’t realize it was made by the same company as 13 Fishing at the time. Its basically a non-aluminum version of the 6061 and I was very impressed with it on late ice last season. For $30 its a darn good inline.
X2 on the 13 fishing Black Betty 6061 and No 8 tackle CGI, both reels have great feel when dropping jigs and a good drag. Have one of each and would not really consider any other in-line.
I have one of the newer Eagle Claw reels with the red aluminum spool and I also bought one of the 13 Fishing Tear Drop reels at the end of last year on clearance but have not used it yet.
The eagle claw works well for a cheap reel, the drag is a little touchy to get just where you want it.
The Tear Drop is better built with a much better drag system but I’m a little concerned about freeze up when fishing outside with it. I have not heard of any problems with the Tear Drop so maybe it is not an issue.
http://www.cabelas.com/product/eagle-claw-in-line-ice-reel/1646820.uts
Apparently Eagle Claw also makes a Magnum model that retrieves more line per turn than the premium or standard version.
13 Fishing Tear Drop
http://www.cabelas.com/product/fishing/ice-fishing/rods-reels-tip-ups|/pc/104793480/c/104735880/sc/104543280/13-fishing-teardrop-ice-fishing-reel/1674722.uts?destination=%2Fcatalog%2Fbrowse%2Frods-reels-tip-ups%2F_%2FN-1100502%2FNo-96%3FWTz_st%3DGuidedNav%26WTz_stype%3DGNP%26recordsPerPage%3D48
There are a lot of choices, I would definitely get a geared model unless you are fishing very shallow. The 13 Fishing 6061 Black Betty seems to very popular but a little pricey.
http://www.cabelas.com/product/fishing/ice-fishing/rods-reels-tip-ups|/pc/104793480/c/104735880/sc/104543280/clam-outdoors-trade-genz-ice-spooler-elite-ice-reel/1856765.uts?destination=%2Fcatalog%2Fbrowse%2Frods-reels-tip-ups%2F_%2FN-1100502%2FNo-96%3FWTz_st%3DGuidedNav%26WTz_stype%3DGNP%26recordsPerPage%3D48
http://www.cabelas.com/product/fishing/ice-fishing/rods-reels-tip-ups|/pc/104793480/c/104735880/sc/104543280/frabill-straight-line-371-ice-reel/1848035.uts?destination=%2Fcatalog%2Fbrowse%2Frods-reels-tip-ups%2F_%2FN-1100502%2FNo-0%3FWTz_st%3DGuidedNav%26WTz_stype%3DGNP%26recordsPerPage%3D48
http://www.cabelas.com/product/fishing/ice-fishing/rods-reels-tip-ups|/pc/104793480/c/104735880/sc/104543280/13-fishing-black-betty-6061-ice-reel/1866415.uts?destination=%2Fcatalog%2Fbrowse%2Frods-reels-tip-ups%2F_%2FN-1100502%2FNo-0%3FWTz_st%3DGuidedNav%26WTz_stype%3DGNP%26recordsPerPage%3D48
Does anyone know which of the No. 8 CGI reels have the handle on the left side of the reel, left handed or right handed? They have the same picture for both on their website.
I jig with my right hand and reel with my left.
Does anyone know which of the No. 8 CGI reels have the handle on the left side of the reel, left handed or right handed? They have the same picture for both on their website.
I jig with my right hand and reel with my left.
The “Left Hand” model means you reel with your left hand. Right Hand model, you reel with your right. Same as 6061.
Hopefully that helps!
Good info guys. I have a couple of new custom pan rods being built and I’m debating upon which in-lines to pair them with.
Keep the feedback coming… I rarely see anything about the Wright & Mcgill or the Frabil inlines.
Love my Black Betty
Smoooooooth as silk. A little tangling at first but as soon as the line is trained – Awsesome!
Guys what kind of backing do you put on your BB reels.
Steve, there is a lot of other forums on this topic if you want to read more, trust me I’ve posted on most of them, check out the Frabill 371 inline, it has two reel stem options, it’s composite with aluminum spool (super light), better drag than EC and IMO better than the BB as well. It has a 3.7:1 ratio picking up 22 inches of line per crank. Take a look I’ve had the Eagle Claw, the Black Betty 6061, and the Frabill, by far the Frabill is the nicest IMO. Good luck
My fishing buddy uses Frabil in-lines for pan fish and walleye and likes them, he’s tried the 13fishing, eagle claw and others. I also know he’s had one, maybe two, fail while fishing. I’ve tried many but not the Frabil models and have a pair of the Roach specials.
I enjoy using inlines, but really never found the drag acceptable and adjustable over a reasonable range on any brand, even after adding better inards. I’ve been tempted to try the teardrop, but only for trout.
Guys what kind of backing do you put on your BB reels.
I don’t back at all, but I also don’t use braid. If you use braid I’d back. But, the key, IMO, is to not over spool them as this is when you start to see issues with line jumping off, etc.
I put 60 – 75 yards of 3 lb Bionic Fluorosilk on my 6061’s (I use them for jigging for panfish) and it works awesome.
I’ve got the eagle claw inlines and have really enjoyed them! For the money they r really really nice. I catch primarily trout on them and they handle really nice!
I have the fishing13 BB and teardrop, my only complaint is they don’t back reel. And I’m a big fan of back reeling – (just in case)
If I loose 1 fish because of drag failure they are going to the bottom of the lake.
Tonka, yes I’ve checked out a number of other forums and searched past topics. I have a fairly good idea of which way I’m leaning, but wanted to hear the good, the bad and the ugly about all of the inline brands.
When it comes to panfish, I prefer fishing with mono/flouro in either 1# or 2#, so drag is important to my style of panfishing. I’m not a big bells & whistle guy and try to keep fishing simple.
I went back to an Okuma SLV this year because I didn’t care for how the 6061 felt so off balanced.
I bought into the hype 3 years or so ago. james had an okuma so I bought one. I’ve gone through all of them 6061’s, 261’s, the eagle claws, and to be frank, I’m done. they were neat but the only one that didn’t make me want to throw it down a hole was the 6061. it had a decent drag system and a decent free spool but it was nothing like my spinning reels.
my presidents and siennas are back on. my buddy and fishing partner never made the switch and I was always the last to get back down, would have to pull line off all the time. and re: linespin. I never noticed a difference. I put back on a spinning reel on my go to rod. if the fish weren’t biting obviously it was because of linespin! I’d drop the 6061 down on my back up and almost every time, they still weren’t biting.
so I switched back. like I said, about the only one I’d recommend is the 6061 if you have to have them. I’ll be keeping it on a rod JUST IN CASE but I can’t imagine it will get much use this year.
I like the 6061. I have two, both of which I have put different drag washers in to smooth it out. It’s still not perfect, but I enjoy using them.
I don’t let the free spool drop the jig, I pull line out like a fly reel, so I set the preload a bit higher to keep a backlash from happening.
For 1:1 reels in shallow water, the frabil straight line reels are pretty nice. smooth drag, nice option for the long stem.
I have a couple setups with fly reels as well, which I have a lot of fun using.
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