Help choosing a reel

[Alex The Angler]

Hi guys, at the moment I have a Jarvis Walker National 7' GP combo and I'm looking to upgrade the reel to something of better quality. But I don't want to spend a fortune. I was thinking maybe a Shimano Alivio 4000FA or something. What do you guys reccommend?

[metaloid]

G'Day Alex,

It's a bit difficult to recommend anything without knowing what species you're after and what class of line you're using...:-/

But assuming that your budget is under $100, imo you have two options:
1. Go to _Mart (or other similar shop) and buy another plastic reel.:'(
2. Go to EBay (or other online classifieds) and try to find a cheap second-hand quality reel.:)

Unfortunately "quality" and "cheap" rarely go together, which is why new reels are usually in the $200-$400 bracket.

Fortunately, a lot of people love to upgrade their toys, er, tools from times to times, and that means that with a bit of patience you can get really good reels that have been well looked after at affordable prices!

If you answer my two questions (species and line class), I'm sure you'll get plenty of advice.

[Horse]

For inshore fishing there are plenty of good reels under the $150.00 mark and a few even under $100.00.
I am yet to see the fish that can tell how much a reel is worth;)

Tell us more about what you want to do with it and what's your budget

Cheers

Neil

[gumb01]

Hello Alex, If it is a general estuary reel you are chasing for recreational fishing, then i suggest anything that you can afford from the shimano spinning range, purely because it will come with a ten year warranty. I fish on average twice a week, and have not been let down with shimano equipment. Im not saying that shimano is better than the other reel makers products, but they have a proven track record for producing the goods. Just for the record i intend to purchase a diawa hrf for plastics and hardbodies( cast and retreive) to suit my diawa Procyon baitcasting rod, I currently use a calcutta 100b. If you are fishing more often than twice weekly or chasing a baitcasting reel, i would step up to the diawa range. Diawa seem to be all over the low profile baitcaster scene. I have used other brands over the years such as penn, jarvis, surecatch but have found myself coming back to diawa and shimano. Good luck with your purchase and future fishing.

[Alex The Angler]

I should have said this in my first post. We don't have a boat so all my fishing is done on jettys & rocks etc. I normally go for Gars, KG & Yellow Whiting, Tommies, Mullet & Sqiud. My reel at the moment is spooled with 12lb line. I'm only 14 so I haven't got much $$ to spend (thats why I bought the Jarvis Walker combo), so nothing over $130.

Edit: I do have access to an eBay account

[banshee]

Mate for $130 you will find quite a few reels that will give good service for a good period of time,providing you look after them (clean them down after each trip and service regularly).My first choice would be the Daiwa CY,it comes in sizes 1000 through to 4000,failing that any of the Shimanos in that price range (nothing wrong with the Alivio your looking at) will be a huge step up from what your used to.

[reidy]

Good on ya Alex,
As Banshee said any of the cheaper Dawias or Shimanos should be ok.They may not be as refined as their big brothers but are solid and dependable and with a bit of tlc will last for years.
Have a look at a shimano Spectrum plus,good rods for the money.You will have to give it a wash after use (as you should with all rods cheap or not) as the guides are not fujis and could be prone to rust if unkept.A shimano Catana with fuji runners would be a better option but is worth a few more dollars.
Hope this helps mate
Good luck and get a few
Cheers
Reidy

[Cheech]

Alex, I am with Banshee and reidy. You really do not have to spend a lot with Shimano and Daiwa to get a good reel.

I tend to spend a lot on my reels now, but I can aford it. But some of my inexpensive reels still do the job nicely for me.

I have a Shimano aernos xt3000 that I still use today. I think I paid about $65.00 for it. I use it alongside a $300.00 Shimano twinPower and really do not care which line the fish hits, as they will both do a very similar job.

Any of the Shimano range in your price bracket will be fine. Unless you have the spare cash, don't over extend yourself to the $130.00 reel (that would be a Symetre. I have one of them as well and it is also a terrific reel).

The best bit of advice is what Banshee said in always cleaning your reels. I clean mine every trip by giving them a light spray with fresh water and then spray a little Inox (from supercheap) into the bail arm moving parts, and any other part that looks like it could rust or needs a thin spray. I know Shimano say not to use water, but I do. I think they may say not too in case you have too high pressure and force water in where it should not go, but a light pressure to dilute any salt water does the trick for me. And back the drags off after they are dry.

I would not sugest ebay because there are too many ripoffs nowdays and I would not want to be responsible for you loosing your money on my recommendations.

You may want to check out Campbells online store. They have good prices and evenif you do not buy from them you can check out the different ranges.

Cheech

[Alex The Angler]

Thanks for all your help guys. I'll probably go with the Alivio.:)