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I like Van Stahl reels a lot. I've also had great performance from the Fin-Nor Offshore spinning reels and they are priced well below the Van Stahl and Shimano Stella.


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Pretty much, any quality reel should do as long as you remember and adhere to ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,A REEL IS NOT A WINCH!,,,A REEL IS NOT< I SAY AGAIN< A REEL IS NOT A WINCH!
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Just bought an Okuma salt water reel at Cabela's

The salesman said they had never had one come back, and that it compared closely to $300. reels.

$75. out the door. Had 20 lb. bright green mono. put on it. Should show up good when casting in the surf

Anyone have any experience with one of these?

Thanks! Virgil B.

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Not only am I a professional fisherman, I also use to have a Penn reel repair business (that I sold). Penn design wasn't always that great. I got to test the 950ssm series before they hit the market. I helped them perfect it. I got a Stella 20000 and it was smoother than a Penn. Only problem is, just 8 years later the bail roller bearing got corroded and Shimano DOES NOT have the parts to replace it. They don't make them anymore.

You can get Penn parts for very old models but Shimano stops making parts in just 5 years on models that they have modified. I searched many places to find parts to fix it but at 8 years, I was just too late. Now I have a $1000 paper weight.

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Always thought the Stellas were way overpriced for what they delivered.


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The shop that has been cleaning/repairing/rebuilding my reels over the last several reels has a serious dislike for the Stella, not a good working tool in their opinion. They have also observed the decline in quality of most Shimano models over recent years.
They have been good about finding parts for older Shimanos, but, like Capt Jeff, I have been burnt by Shimanos lack of support for expensive reels that don't seem that old.
Current recommendations from them is to look at Okumas, Shimanos, and some of the Penns.
I'm liking some of the newer magnetic bail developments.
One of the better fisherman I run with has taken to using very good rods with low end (cheap) reels, simply regarding them as disposable. He might be right.


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Just bought a new surf reel two weeks back - a Penn Slammer III 5500. Fished it twice now, but caught nothing to really give it any work, seems well built and very heavy duty, looking forward to fishing it some more.


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Read Alan Hawks review on spinners.

Diawa BG spinners have most of the features found in their top of the line spinners and cost wwaaaay less!


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Originally Posted by Dixie_Rebel
Read Alan Hawks review on spinners.

Diawa BG spinners have most of the features found in their top of the line spinners and cost wwaaaay less!


I was going to suggest the NEW Daiwa BG line. Depending on fish size and style. Alan Hawks review is what made me get one. Corvinas in Peru fight hard in tough places (much like stripers up NE), people use Shimano Stradics (4 and 5k size), Saragosas, Penn Battle and above. Shimano's have a reputation for being finnicky in the salt/sand.

My Daiwa BG3000 is equivalent to my Penn Battle 4000, though the Daiwa is smoother and I would compare it to the Stradic FJs I've handled. Durability may be the difference, but I haven't used it enough yet.

For fish up to 50lbs you would need a size 5000 reel, and capability of at least 15lb of sustained drag, maybe more if fishing around rocks/lots of current.

Daiwa Saltiga, Shimano Stella, Van Staal, Zeebass, those I can't afford, but supposedly float on top of the top of the creme de la creme.

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My favorite is 4000 Stradic. It’s a beast in disguise!!


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I have always favored Abu Garcia baitcasting and spinning reels primarily for the quality and primarily for parts availability. Heck if you need parts for the 50-year-old Cardinal 4 series plenty of parts available on Ebay.

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Daiwa may be a rising star, but the ones I looked at for the size I use are heavier, which may help durability, but for most of what I do, I like LIGHT or UltraLight when it comes to spinning gear. In larger sizes the weight may be comparable to competitors I have not checked. Had a Penn Battle first gen, 3000, solid reel but heavier and too much for bass etc. Would be great on Catfish and Redfish, etc of modest size. A 4000 or 5000 would def be a top pick on size of any reel using for thru 50lb fish.

No doubt on the comment above, one might could run a cheap reel a season or 3 and replace, good rods do not get the same wear and last.

Not worn out a Pflueger or Shimano...yet.........but if I do, they will have landed many fish.

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I agree with 65 BR re Diawa. The 2500 Diawa BG I've got is comparable to a 3000 Shimano and the handle seems a little big for the reel.

From what I've seen spinning reels get better and better for the money. IMO It's hard to go wrong with most major mfgs. for the average non commercial user. A good example are my two $30 Shimano Sienna 2500s. They've been used in fresh and salt water over the past six years with minimal maintenance and are still going strong.

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I like the penn spinfishers have a couple 8500LL, like the live liner feature. use them offshore and in the rivers fishing for alligator gar.


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I have five or so of the Stella 4000’s I bought back between 2002-2004. Been fished pretty hard. Skiff , wading and now kayak fishing. Every weekend at least a day March thru July in Southwest Florida saltwater. A few drops of oil every year and they work great. Only one has been to the shop for a line roller bearing. I never bought any other reels after that as I never needed to. In my opinion they were a great value. I got no opinion on the new ones but I suspect they would be too expensive if I had to retool. So I would probably look at other options if I ever need new reels. Seems I paid $400 or so back when I bought them. If they break now any I cant get parts then I will consider I got my moneys worth over 15-17 years of trouble free use.


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1000.00 fishing reels?

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Penn Spinfisher V on close out sale directly from Penn at half price right now. Several local shops as well, bought a SSV3500 for $70 locally early this week.


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If money were truly no object, then I would have to try a Van Staal or a Zeebaas (both of those are spelled correctly, BTW.)

But since I don't want to spend the kind of money that will buy a decent rifle on a reel, my go to salt water inshore spinner for years has been the original Daiwa Black Gold, BG15. They are not elegant, but they are tough. I cannot say I use them as hard as some, but people I know who use equipment seriously, the late Billy Sandifer for one, speak highly of the original Black Golds. I keep thinking Daiwa is going to quit making them, but so far they have not. I guess they have a loyal following.

I have been getting into surf fishing and one of the more knowledgeable and still alive people I know, Nick Meyer of Breakaway Tackle Development, likes the newer Daiwa BG (confusing, I know) reels. They do have a lot of features for the money. I've a BG5000 I like a lot, but haven't used hard enough to recommend. That said, the Alan Hawk BG review mentioned earlier is as complete a reel review as you will ever want to read. I'm a PhD engineer, and I made a copy of it for my records. That said, I still bought a surf sized original Black Gold BG60 to put back in case Daiwa ever quits making the series. (I think I have enough BG15 reels to last me.)

If you want to learn from the folks that use stuff hard, read the surf fishing forums. The old Penn "Greenie" series and the almost identical SS series also have a following, and rightly so.

Finally, the first thing I do to any spinning reel is remove the parts that automatically close the bail. Learn to close the bail by hand and your spinning reel endeavors will go a lot smoother. Some remove the bail altogether, but I don't think that is necessary if you convert to manually closing the bail.

Hope this helps,
Gun Doc

Last edited by GunDoc7; 01/12/19.

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Nick Meyer is a good guy and knows his stuff.


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Originally Posted by GunDoc7
If money were truly no object, then I would have to try a Van Staal or a Zeebaas (both of those are spelled correctly, BTW.)

But since I don't want to spend the kind of money that will buy a decent rifle on a reel, my go to salt water inshore spinner for years has been the original Daiwa Black Gold, BG15. They are not elegant, but they are tough. I cannot say I use them as hard as some, but people I know who use equipment seriously, the late Billy Sandifer for one, speak highly of the original Black Golds. I keep thinking Daiwa is going to quit making them, but so far they have not. I guess they have a loyal following.

I have been getting into surf fishing and one of the more knowledgeable and still alive people I know, Nick Meyer of Breakaway Tackle Development, likes the newer Daiwa BG (confusing, I know) reels. They do have a lot of features for the money. I've a BG5000 I like a lot, but haven't used hard enough to recommend. That said, the Alan Hawk BG review mentioned earlier is as complete a reel review as you will ever want to read. I'm a PhD engineer, and I made a copy of it for my records. That said, I still bought a surf sized original Black Gold BG60 to put back in case Daiwa ever quits making the series. (I think I have enough BG15 reels to last me.)

If you want to learn from the folks that use stuff hard, read the surf fishing forums. The old Penn "Greenie" series and the almost identical SS series also have a following, and rightly so.

Finally, the first thing I do to any spinning reel is remove the parts that automatically close the bail. Learn to close the bail by hand and your spinning reel endeavors will go a lot smoother. Some remove the bail altogether, but I don't think that is necessary if you convert to manually closing the bail.

Hope this helps,
Gun Doc

Great advise on manually closing the bail. After you do it a while it becomes automatic.


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