10-12-2006, 08:01 PM
Hey there 829 and welcome to BFT! There are alot of great baitcast reels on the market, infact, almost too many to choose from. Like Gregg, you'll find that many hard core bass fishermen and women have thier favorites based on years of trial and error. Shimano is infact one of the best reels on the market, and has been since they started making reels.
I, however, prefer Abu Garcia over all others as far as quality and bang for your buck. You'll find that to be a contravercial statement once a few more bass fishermen jump in the mix. But none the less, i've put loads of abuse on mine, fresh and saltwater, and they hold up time after time. An Abu Garcia 5500 spooled with 15 lb Power Pro is a deadly tool in the hands of a willing angler. But not just for bass. They also double as the perfect flounder/fluke reel, trout, and any other inshore species in that size range, fresh and saltwater. The drag system is near bulletproof, and anyone that has used one can't contest how smooth a 5500 C3 or C4 is. If things haven't changed too much, the reels run right around 60 bucks, which isn't bad considering you'll never have to buy another reel.
One thing you need to be aware of is that Walmart sells a cheaper version of the Abu's. Don't be fooled by that. Make sure it's a C3 or C4 model that you're getting, and you'll probably have to buy it somewhere like your local tackle store or bass pro or something. The ones walmart have a still good reels, but only half the reel that the higher end models are.
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I, however, prefer Abu Garcia over all others as far as quality and bang for your buck. You'll find that to be a contravercial statement once a few more bass fishermen jump in the mix. But none the less, i've put loads of abuse on mine, fresh and saltwater, and they hold up time after time. An Abu Garcia 5500 spooled with 15 lb Power Pro is a deadly tool in the hands of a willing angler. But not just for bass. They also double as the perfect flounder/fluke reel, trout, and any other inshore species in that size range, fresh and saltwater. The drag system is near bulletproof, and anyone that has used one can't contest how smooth a 5500 C3 or C4 is. If things haven't changed too much, the reels run right around 60 bucks, which isn't bad considering you'll never have to buy another reel.
One thing you need to be aware of is that Walmart sells a cheaper version of the Abu's. Don't be fooled by that. Make sure it's a C3 or C4 model that you're getting, and you'll probably have to buy it somewhere like your local tackle store or bass pro or something. The ones walmart have a still good reels, but only half the reel that the higher end models are.
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