Shimano Calcutta 400 is my favorite. But I bought an Abu Garcia Black Maxx in the bargain bin at Cabelas and I have to say I've been impressed. It is a smooth and long casting little bass reel and the high gear ratio makes it worlds easier to fish some things like crank or buzz baits in comparison to my old Diawa MagForce reels that I have a bunch of.
The little old Diawas are about unkillable, all steel gears inside and an aluminum case on a steel frame. But they are rather low tech compared to the newer low profile baitcasters on the market now.
My surfcasting rod I now use for catfish has a Penn 320GT mounted on it spooled with about a mile of 80# Fireline. I use a 4' mono shock leader and if the reel is oiled up good and I'm slinging a 6oz weight it'll cast around 75 or more yards with me on it. I used to use it for halibut and lings on a short rod when I lived in Alaska.
