Looking at upgrading my spinning reels this spring. I have always been a Shimano spinning reel guy, but I’m wondering what people recommend in the price range of $80-$150. I mostly fish walleye and bass on the Mississippi. Anyone have experience with these new carbon light reels? I haven’t upgraded my reels in a long time, so I just want to know what other guys are using out their.
If it isnt broke dont fix it !!
Hard to beat Shimano pending which model you have now.
If it isnt broke dont fix it !!
Hard to beat Shimano
Not really, but every reasonable product line will have a dedicated following.
All manufactures will engineer a reel to as price point. The difference is what you get and what is most important for the $$
Models under $100. are so dang competitive, you could about do a coin flip and be about even. When you start looking at models that are in the 140-180 range, differences are more significant. Shimano has a stout turret system, Quantum has better bearings,…. and so on. If you are more careless with your equipment, look at what will withstand the abuse. If you put in long repetitive days…look at internal parts
Shimano makes great reels, no doubt about it.
I think all the major brands have a somewhat different feel though, so you have to find what you like. I for instance just don’t really like the feel of Pfleuger reels for some reason.
One reel I REALLY like is the Daiwa Lexa, check it out. Daiwa has the advantage of making 1500 and 2000 size reels, which fit in nicely between a 1000 and a 2500 size Shimano. I really like that in between size for some of my walleye rods.
All the Daiwa reels in that $100 – $150 range feel niiiiice.
I’m a Pflueger fan. I like the President series. The bearings seem to hold up longer than other brands that I’ve bought.
I used to be a Shimano guy until they stopped including the spare spool and I had 1 bad experience with a Symmetry out of the box. Tried the Pflueger Supreme XT and thought it was great. Also have a Patriarch but can’t tell much difference between these 2. I like both more than my Stradic though, lighter and smoother
For spinning I am a Shimano guy for me anyway I will not spend a lot of money on a spinning reel $50- $80 now rods we wont go there Ill take the money from a cheaper reel and buy the better rod in a heartbeat. For fishing Eyes the reel is not a big factor it mostly just holds line the only thing I want is a good drag but then I also back reel if the fish is that big.
I must say if I am pitching cranks I use a bait casters works much better and less tiring on the hands and arms.
I’ve just finally switched back to Quantum for my go to reels from Shimano. For the last 10 years I’ve purchased Shimano spinning reel as and have only been disappointed in their Saharas and Symmetrys.
10+ years ago I loved the Quantum Energy series. They seemed like the cats meow back then and somehow I got pulled away. They always seemed to be on the leading edge at that time.
I’ve just recently bought a Quantum Smoke Speed Freak. No experience with it yet but I’m really impressed just handling it. It also seems their cost is much more reasonable for their high end reels. I guess we’ll see this spring and summer.
If you want to improve the drag on spinning reels learn how to sand the metal washers in the drag set up. I have been doing this on all my reels for years and boy does it make them better IMO.
I used to be a Shimano guy until they stopped including the spare spool and I had 1 bad experience with a Symmetry out of the box. Tried the Pflueger Supreme XT and thought it was great. Also have a Patriarch but can’t tell much difference between these 2. I like both more than my Stradic though, lighter and smoother
I like both these companies reels but FYI, the last two reels Pflueger reels I bought, also came with only one spare reel.
What kind of issues are people having with Symetres ? I have over a half dozen and NEVER had a problem… also have a box FULL of spare spools.
I must have 20 Sedonas, Saharas, and or Symetres and have no issues whatever. I just added another Symetre 4000 to my Lake Superior gear but haven’t worn out the Sahara I bought it to replace yet and that reel is 15 years old. Not getting a spare spool isn’t something that will change how the reels perform and just like any of the other reels mentioned, an out of the box oops can happen but that doesn’t mean that every reel will come that way.
I won’t dunn any of the other brands, its just that my trust in Shimano has not been shaken and I’m not hung up on a spare spool.
Hey thanks for the great response to this post. What are people doing to up keep there older Sedonas, Saharas, and or Symetres in good working condition.
Looking at upgrading my spinning reels this spring. I have always been a Shimano spinning reel guy, but I’m wondering what people recommend in the price range of $80-$150. I mostly fish walleye and bass on the Mississippi. Anyone have experience with these new carbon light reels? I haven’t upgraded my reels in a long time, so I just want to know what other guys are using out their.
Look on ebay or other forums for used reels. Got a 1000 sustain for $170 two years ago. You never know. For your price range buying new I’d get a Symetre or Saros. I’m really impressed with my 1000 size Saros I recently purchased. 7.1 ounces and has x-ship. Sportsman’s Guide got em on sale for $129.99.
When you go to buy the new reel bring the old one that feels good with you so you can compare the 2 at the same time.
I was very disappointed with the new Shimano Stradic, it broke while reeling in a nice fish less than 3 weeks after buying the thing. Took Shimano > 3 weeks to get it back from Shimano so save your sales receipt.
When I went back to by a 2nd reel I bought a Shimano Symetre. Great reel for around $100, got it on-line for about $90 after examining it at the store. I don’t know how it will hold up over time, but I greatly prefer it to the Stadic at (too much money).
What kind of issues are people having with Symetres ? I have over a half dozen and NEVER had a problem… also have a box FULL of spare spools.
My Symetre was pretty much new and the friction disk would cause the reel to seize up, I saw this on 2 Symetres that were new. You could get a new friction disk from Shimano (for a price)
Personally, I feel the the Pfluegers are lighter and smoother (the Supreme XT and Patriarch) although I haven’t compared it to the black color Stradic
My Symetre was pretty much new and the friction disk would cause the reel to seize up, I saw this on 2 Symetres that were new. You could get a new friction disk from Shimano (for a price)
If you bought it new it they should have fixed it for free for 1 year after purchase? Why pay money when they can fix it for free?
I used to be a Shimano guy until they stopped including the spare spool and I had 1 bad experience with a Symmetry out of the box. Tried the Pflueger Supreme XT and thought it was great. Also have a Patriarch but can’t tell much difference between these 2. I like both more than my Stradic though, lighter and smoother
X2 on the Symmetry. Mine started randomly binding up after a couple years. Took it to a good reel repair guy who cleaned and lubed it and no change. Never ever had a problem with Pflueger President or Supreme.
In simple terms
Shimano, crank power
Diawa, smooth and shallow spool
Pflueger, best bang for buck
Abu Garcia, great value
Quantum, best bail
The line lay on the better Shimano and Diawa are much better. All reels will eventually bind up or slow down, after a season of use, rain, cold, whatever…some more, some not.
My cheap Shakespeare Alpha has outlasted all, made of graphite too. Clunky and unrefined in so many ways, lousy drag and weird uneven line lay. Belongs in museum.
If you bought it new it they should have fixed it for free for 1 year after purchase? Why pay money when they can fix it for free?
[/quote]
Got it over the winter and didn’t use it until the spring and lost the receipt. Who would have thought something new out of the box wouldn’t work the first time out?
Try Pflueger – President or Supreme… depending on what color matches your rod 
Seriously, they are the Toyotas of spinning reels. All they do is work and work well. Smooth, light, affordable.
And here’s the other reason – in the rare occurrence they do need fixing, they are one of the few reels you can readily get parts for any more.
I had several other high-end reels and found out the hard way … When they go, good luck getting them fixed and turned around. Can take months, some maybe never. shimano is about the second closest, but I’ve been told once their reels are more than 3 years old, the chances of getting replacement parts goes way down. Pfluegers, not a problem…
And they work great for $60-99. Can’t beat ’em…
I also like pflueger reels never have had any problems with any own at least 6 , l like the arbor for casting. You can pick them up with a 10-15.00 rebate at times.
do they also have “sudden random casting” issues at will ? 
Daiwa Spinning Reels are tougher and cheaper than Shimano and just as smooth. Get the ones that have the Hardbodyz feature.
I’m using pflueger supreme xts and love them. I had a shimano symetre and sold it within a month and bought another supreme xt. The higher end shimanos, the stradics and ci4 are really nice, but out of the price range. I held the new president limited yesterday and wasn’t very impressed.
Hey thanks for the great response to this post. What are people doing to up keep there older Sedonas, Saharas, and or Symetres in good working condition.
I pull the side cover once a year and give the reel’s indards a cleaning with some alcohol and a small paint brush. After wiping out the excess alcohol and junk that it loosened up I get out the Hot Sauce and lube it up good. Once the cover is back on I let the reel rest on newspaper for an hour to see if any of the hot sauce wants to leak out.
When the reel has dripped its last of the new hot sauce I remove the line and spool from the reel and give it a good scrubbing with warm soapy using a 1″ bristle paint brush. A quick rinse under real warm tap water and a couple shakes to get the water off I dry the whole reel with a soft towel and get the hot sauce back out to put a drop on the bail ends and where the shaft comes out of the rotor housing. I put a drop on the handle where it goes into the side cover and at the handle on the crank. Use the towel to wipe up any excess and add line and I am good to go.
On any new reel I buy, before it even sees the reel seat on the rod or line I pull the cover and remove all visible grease from inside and add my hot sauce. I’ve learned that the grease can create more issues than anything so it goes right off the bat.
X2 on the Hot Sauce treatment – I do it right after taking a reel out of the box.
Thanks Tom and everyone else. Im assuming your not using franks red hot sauce on your reels. Is this the stuff?
Screenshot_2016-02-18-14-48-16.png
Thanks Tom and everyone else. Im assuming your not using franks red hot sauce on your reels. Is this the stuff?
Yep,
Get 1 Grease and 1 oil….Good to go….
Thanks Tom and everyone else. Im assuming your not using franks red hot sauce on your reels. Is this the stuff?
Yes that is it. One small tube of grease and 1 small bottle of the oil will last you a long time.
You must be logged in to reply to this topic.
