Abu Garcia - Line Counter

[The_Lee]

I am looking at purchasing an Abu Garcia Abu Ambassadeur 6500LC Line Counting baitcasting reel. I have never used one before, so I am looking for someone who has experience with line counters... Are they accurate, how well do they work? And are they reliable enough for the money?

[PierBridge]

I know many happy Abu line-counter owners including Borch, Hanson and other FMer's.

There are lot of other affordable options also like Cabelas depth master and Diawa line-counter reels.

Here is line-counter discussion thread!

http://www.fishingminnesota.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/topics/1554022/1

[hanson]

I have a Garcia 5500LC on my trolling rod. Love it!!

I plan to get another one for another trolling set-up and a 7000iLC for muskie trolling as well.

[MuskieJunkie]

Are they accurate

That depends on how much line you have on them. Any line counting reel doesn't count the line, it only counts the revolutions of the spool. I would guess most of them are calibrated for a full spool of line, so the more line you let out (or if you don't fill the spool to begin with) the more your gear ratio changes. It will overestimate the amount of line out.

Compare it to putting tires on your truck that are half the size, your speedo will read twice your actual speed.

If it's accuracy your after I would measure off 50' or 100' in your yard with a tape measure and compare that to your reel.

I've done this with mine (yes you get some weird looks from the nieghbors) and 125 on my reel = 100' of actual line out.

[PerchJerker]

Are they accurate

I periodically check my line counters, I have 4 of them, all Sealines. They all read within 3-4 feet of each other at 125 feet of line out. I have checked others though that are not very accurate.

The most important thing is to be able to repeat your distance back when catching fish, or have a point to reference off, and a line counter will do this for you whether it's accurate or not. The accuracy comes into play in trying to position your baits at a specific depth, especially if it's for suspended fish. I figure if they're within a few feet of each other and the actual measurement it's close enough.