Home Forums Fishing Freshwater spinning reels

I'm loving my Pflueger Presidents. After using one for a year or so I realized that they need a good cleaning right from the box and then they are excellent reels. I have been tempted to try some of their more expensive models but honestly the cheaper models I bought have done everything I could want them do as well. I'm not working the crap out of them with big old fish and 1000s of casts a day though.

I like Fireline but have PowerPro on a reel and I'm liking both. But yes they have some quirks and take a little getting used to. I'm trying some NanoFil that I got last year on a couple of setups i but didn't have the patience for it when I bought it. So far it's working fine but I decided to use a flouro leader because I just don't trust the stuff to hold a knot on a lure. So far so good but it's still early I suspect I have some more lessons coming my way.

My second favorite reel is the pflueger arbor. If you like florocarbon its awsome. It handles super line great too. I has a tiny body and huge spool diameter. Good reel for sure. The president put them on the map, killer little reel for a really good price.

I have two Abu Garcia Cardinal 3 spinning reels I bought with the Zebco brand that have served me very well for over thirty five years with minimal maintenance. The clean used ones on ebay generally bring well over $100 today and are very hard to find. These are the smaller versions of several models they made over the years.I think I own a total of four of these now.

Love my Pfluegers, but have no issue with Shimano, hear the older Jap made were better, materials if anything. Copolymer Flouro 6# breaks like 10 - P-Line CX, SINGLE X, Palomar knots. Also using some Braid, strong, but some wind knots on occasion.

Wind knots are what I hate about braid. The special knots you gotta tie don't bother me but wind knots pissmeoff. I also don't like the noise when it goes through the guides. And the fact that it wraps around your rod tip easily drives me nuts too. The pflueger Arbor is awesome if you like pfluegers and like super line and florocarbon.

Longest service? I've got my dad's Mitchell 300's that are older than me, and I'm 53. Outdated technology compared to today's stuff, but just about bullet proof, as long as you keep a spare bail spring at the ready.

As for the new stuff, I really like my Schimano's with the drag on the back. Darned good reels.

Nothing beats Shimano......

Not to throw a clinker in here, but last year I bought a Lew's SG 300 and so far, I'm REALLY impressed. A year is hardly a long-term service test, but it is extremely smooth running (10 bearings), has a very nice drag, and just feels solid. It was well under $100, too. I spooled it with Power Pro #10 and a fluoro leader.

Lew's may have a convert here.

A buddy of mine says the same thing about lews. Let me know how it is in 5 years.

My Daiwa Pro Team 2000 took a $hit saturday. Set the hook on a slab crappie and the handle spun backwards. The anti reverse was on but the roller bearing failed. Doesn't surprise me at all. Only the second season and failure, 100 dollar POS.