New Spinning Reel - Thoughts please

[SalmonDaze]

It's the usual drill: what to get Dad (me) for Christmas. As usual, I'm little help to my kids, "just make a card." But my kids are grown and want to get more "substantial" stuff. They know the default option is always best: fishing, shooting.

So I can always use a new reel.

Has anyone used the new Daiwa Legalis? http://www.basspro.com/Daiwa-Legalis...1408290630221/

I like the all-metal body, retrieve ratio, weight; but I'm a "Penn guy." I've had pretty good luck with Daiwa, and I don't want my kids spending too much; and I don't want them to waste money on junk.

The reel will be "all-purpose" used with 6-lb line on the Caney with a 7'6" fast action rod and also on the lakes for multiple species.

Thoughts?

[bfish]

Cabelas Tournament ZX (which I believe to be a rebadged Diawa Exceller) is on sale for $35 for the 20 size. I have a couple of the Exceller and ZX in 10 size and they are great reel.

[jyet65]

Think I'll stick with the Abu Garcia 102! Good little spinning reel!

[nailman_83]

For the money, I think the Pflueger President is the best reel ever made. The are the only spinning reels I buy.

[XxthejuicexX]

Originally Posted by nailman_83

For the money, I think the Pflueger President is the best reel ever made. The are the only spinning reels I buy.

The President is a fantastic reel for the money, I have the Patriarch and love it too.

[riverhawkluke]

Presidents are great, and for around the same price is the shimano sedona that is quite similar. A little cheaper is the sienna, but it is still a good reel. Also another good option is the sahara which is $80, but I have only used the sahara for dropshotting bass. As far as the Daiwa goes, I have never used a Daiwa spinning reel.

[Alphahawk]

In the past ten years I have gone through a lot of spinning reels. Had a I known then what I know now I would have saved myself a lot of money and aggravation. A lot of times a question like this end up where someone gets into a heated discussion that so and so brand is better than another one. I will just give you some facts and let you decide. I have 3 different brands of reels on the shelf in my garage. I have Pflueger....Daiwa.....and Shimano. In spinning reels the price increments of 59....79....129....159....usually mean the tolerance of the gears and fit and finish are better than the lower priced reel. Amount of bearings doesn't necessarily mean it is a better reel. The Daiwa SS series in the smaller versions only have 3 bearings....yet it is one of the toughest reels on the market. The design has not changed in 35 years. It does not have instant anti-reverse and that is why I don't own one....it is just a head thing with me about that. Reels in the 59-99 dollar range will probably last a long time for the weekend fisherman. But if you ever start fishing 4 or 5 days a week you will find out real quick they will not hold up....no matter the brand. I have fished 4 days this week and have no clue how many times the bail spring has been opened and closed on my Shimnao Stradic FJ...but it is a bunch. Not to mention I caught 101 white bass on that reel on Tuesday and that was 100 big hits to the anti-reverse clutch. Years ago I found out the 59 dollar reels could not take that day after day. Many times in the summer I would find the whites in the jumps and catch 200 a day for weeks straight. My reels started falling apart ...literally. Only when I stepped up to a Shimano Stradic did my reels start to last. I have one on the shelf that is 4 years old...the finish is beat up....the bail spring is weak...but it is still as smooth as butter. Getting ready to send it off to Shimano in California to get a tune up. That reel caught thousands of fish for me...bluegill....Smallies....trout...whites, crappie...well you get the point. I tried to switch over to Pflueger Supreme XT...the newest version....just to save a few bucks. There are 3 of them sitting on the shelf I rarely use....just not the same quality as the Shimano Stradics. I saw the mention of a Shimano Sahara.......my advice is to stay away from that model. It has a binding problem and even though they put out a new model last year it still has the same problem....my son has one also with the same problem. If you need to confirm that check the reviews at Bass Pro and Cabelas. I have one of those on the shelf also for my girlfriend to use. As long as it does not get wet it works fine. If you are only wanting to spend 59 bucks on a reel you will not go wrong with a Shimano Sedona. It is a proven design that has been around a long time and I hope they don't change it as it works. The Saros is also a very good reel and then you get into the Stradic line. I would advise against the purchase of the reel you posted a link to. The reason is it is new...no reviews on it. I made that mistake with the Pflueger Supreme XT's. I bought it when it came out and I had all the problems with them that you read about in the reviews now. browntrout also tried those reels....on my advice.....and he has since gone back to all Shimanos. Doesn't mean that Pflueger makes a bad reel....just that model has some problems. I used some Penn reels fishing in Saudi but have not since I left there 13 years ago...good reels though. I have seen the difference in reel quality every time I made the next jump up in price. I am always surprised at the differnce each time I step up. I think "How much better can they get".....but they do. You don't have to spend a lot of money to get a good reel. The Daiwa SS and Shimano Sedonas are proven reels and you probably wouldn't go wrong with either.


Regards

I would simply echo what Alpha has observed about the difference between Shimano and other brands. I bought a Pfleuger reel when I had to have a rod and reel on short notice four years ago and the Wal-mart in town didn't have any Shimanos...and I never use it. I have not purchased a reel of any brand other than Shimano, other than that one emergency situation, in twenty years or more. To me there's no comparison even between their mid-range reels and the expensive reels of other brands. Just a better quality reel.

[tkwalker]

Originally Posted by tnpondmanager

I would simply echo what Alpha has observed about the difference between Shimano and other brands. I bought a Pfleuger reel when I had to have a rod and reel on short notice four years ago and the Wal-mart in town didn't have any Shimanos...and I never use it. I have not purchased a reel of any brand other than Shimano, other than that one emergency situation, in twenty years or more. To me there's no comparison even between their mid-range reels and the expensive reels of other brands. Just a better quality reel.

.,.

Definitely !! ... Shimano ... when it comes to spinning gear ... Now I have had some bad experiences over the years with Dawia ... But I never have owned a Dawia SS ... But to be honest after being bit 3 times with Dawia I won't try it again ... ... Now lets be honest !! No One on this earth will wear out a reel like Randy .... So take heed ... He's Da Man !! ... <'TK><

[goreds.king]

Thanks for posting alpha...good read!

[SalmonDaze]

Since it's my thread, I guess I'll add a couple thoughts . . .

First, thanks Alpha, and all for the commentary; really good dissertations.

I share the same perspective on price/value. My heavy gear is either Shimano (Tekota) or Penn (a few Daiwa SeaLine counters). Bronze gears, quality bearing surfaces, and full metal bodies designed to be maintained and fixed; not thrown away.

The new Daiwa spinning caught my attention for several reasons; but I think I come down in favor of my previous favorable opinions and will stick with the Penn Spinfisher or the new (improved) Battle.

[Fishaholic]

Penn Fierce combos are very affordable on amazon prime $80 or less and I have putthem to the test in both heavy duty saltwater and striper fishing here and they are flawless

[Saltwaterwalt]

Interesting topic here for sure! Kind of like the discussion between Chevys or Fords...(yeah, yeah, Dodge too).

Alpha's got the mileage on those reels, no doubt about that!

I think all the companies out there make a decent reel, and all have high end/low end in their models. I'm with Alpha ... I love Shimanos, that is, for my fresh water fishing.

For salt water series, I'm a Penn man all the way. I'm just too old school to switch from Penn for salt, it's worked too well for so many years ... I only wish they would've kept production here in the states.

As for reels.. I'm with "Saltwaterwalt" and "Fishaholic",
Shimano or Penn I use and like both.
For Shimano I would go with the 1,000-5,000 Shimano Stratic. And as for affordable and quality Penn I have really been impressed with the Penn Fierce reel rod combos, "none fold-down" only the one piece rods.
Hope this helps, All the Best...