Old topic, New Reel

[TrophyEyes]

I am looking for a new reel. I am looking for something that can handle pulling some double cowgirls from time to time, but mostly pulling spinner baits, small bucktails and some super humpers. I currently have a C3 and a C4. I am looking to spend about $150. My first thought is an Abu Record RCN61hc. I also am thinking about another C3 for a cheeper option. I actually had a C3 and it broke on the first outing, I don't have a lot of confidence in the C3 and my C4 can't handle the workload of the double cowgirl, bulldogs and others. Any thoughts would be appreciated.

[DHanson]

I would really consider a shimano curado 300DSV. I have 2 of them. They retail $249.99, but I got mine for $190 and $185. You could probably find an even better deal on HSOList or I know some stores have them on sale at times. This reel is perfect for everything you requested as far as lures go. Just my 2 cents.

Side note: couldn't agree with you more about the C3 and C4. They sit on my desk at home while my curados are in my boat.

And do yourself a favor by not buying another C3. JMHO

[b1gf1sh1]

since you have $150 and a few months or even more really to save go for the gauntlet. i think that's a phrase, lol. and get a 400 TE. your arms and wrists will thank you. it's $350 but IMO worth three times that. perfect all around muskie reel. i'd say get it only if you fish a fair amount. i can fish all day pulling muskie baits and go home ready for more. my old abu's left me tired after just a few hours. yes... the difference is really that dramatic. now my abu's are for lead lineing. and if i can get the downrigger's i want this year, barring another loooong string of disasters like last year, they'll be for that.

[JRedig]

Another vote here for a 400TE, save your money and get something worth while, especially if you know you'll be pulling double 10's at all.

Not to say the curado would be a bad choice, I have three of them, but I don't feel it's the most versatile setup being a 6.2:1 gear ratio. Double ten's wear on me with these reels and I can only imagine they wear on the reel as well, especially over the long term. Two of my three had to be sent in for major overhauling this winter.

[TrophyEyes]

Does anyone like the Luna? I have heard mixed reviews. I also reel left handed, which limits my options slightly.

[b1gf1sh1]

Quote:

Does anyone like the Luna? I have heard mixed reviews

i never owned one. or the millionaire. so personal experience is nil. i did read an in depth reel comparison (400 TE vs. Luna) on another site last summer and the 400 TE won almost every catagory. if i recall correct, the luna 300 had the same line capacity as th 400 TE, was cheaper and i think lighter. the rest was a landslide by the 400 TE. basicly the Luna was givin the thumbs up as a winner because matched against the 400 TE they said was ''just unfair''. the Luna casted as good or even smoother than the TE because of the different set-up inside, BUT, after a month of hard use by these pro's the Luna stopped being so smooth and the TE stayed the same the whole test period. power was hands down TE with the oversize/offset gears.

another little tid-bit. i was buying a trolling rod and a line-counter reel. the clerk was a guy in his late 20's early 30's and was talking up the Luna in it's first or second year, not sure, about how he loved it. i said i have a couple 400 TE's and a 250 TE/DC and i would'nt need one. he told me he had them too before he sold them all off for the Luna. said he sold them for 75-100 dollars ( where was i? ). right away i'm thinking this guys got issues, or it's a sales pitch.. i remember him saying how smooth they were casting and had plenty of power, so on and so forth. i was in the next year spring and got talking to him again and asked how the Lunas were doing. he said he went back to TE's in the fall. i'm sure you can guess why. anyway this got longer than i was expecting, lol. HOLY!!! hope this helps.

[10,000 Casts]

It all depends on how hard you fish. The Record and Lunas are great reels but they won't stand up to the abuse that a TE will. I have a couple Calcutta 400Bs that I like and a Calcutta 400 that I like even more. The record is a great reel but they can have problems with the handle having some play after a while. The Lunas have been known to have a little play in the anti reverse but like stated above, they are really smooth casting and a great reel all around, I plan on getting one for my smaller bucktails. Someone here will recomend the Okumas, I have heard good things but never used them. It is worth the extra $$$ if you plan to fish alot, if not then save it and go with a cheaper reel, you get what you pay for and if you think about it, an extra $100 would have been well worth it when you are using your buddies back up reel on the vacation that you have been looking forward to all year!

[Esox_Magnum]

We ran Shimano 400b Calcuttas, 300 Curado, 400 Corsair, 400 Corvalus, 300 Lunas and Okuma Induron 400's this past season. Both Lunas had to have the anti reverse fixed on them and 1 is going out again after limited use both were new at season start. The 400B's were also new at seasons start and other than drags backing off no other problem. Induron blew a bearing, sounds like a freak thing after talking to Okuma abaout it. They fixed it and had it back to me in about a week. The Lunas took 4-6 weeks to get fixed. The rest are used reels picked up on the cheap, the Corsair being the oldest at 4 years of use on my rod no clue how old it was when I got it and no problems there either. Corvalus reels are all 2-4 years old and of the 4 one had a bad pawl out of the box that was fixed under warrenty. Rest are still going strong.

We use and abuse all these throwing DCG's mag dawgs ect. I do nothing to my reels as far as cleaning or anything untill they break. My 2 go to reels are the old beat up Corsair and the Curado. I run blades on the Curado. We have used the Abus but in our boat they just don't hold up. I will be trying the new Toro since I can get it 1/2 price just to give them another shot and the fact I like my Revo I use for walleyes. IMO if you want the best there is its a Shimano followed by Okuma, Diawa and only a Abu if in an emergency.

[Dano_the_jigasaurus]

the okuma induron and the lunas are both great reels closer to your price range with proper maintenance at the end of the seasons. these babies will continue to work great for you, in my experience.

dan

[TrophyEyes]

My price range ironically just went up. I happened upon 4 Vikings tickets this morning and went down and sold them. My share was $150, so now my budget it in the $250-$300 range. The concensious seems to be the Shimano Calcutta 400TE, is that correct? I use it inconsistantly, but when I use it I will be fishing for big pike and muskies. I do go to Canada and I would hate for a reel to puke out again (I have had 2 reels break on expensive fly-ins).

[b1gf1sh1]

with your new reel, any TE or TE/DC by Shimano, you get three years of free maintenance. i think the first year is free everything. when i got my first i opened up the side plate and disengaged all the tabs in there. this helps a reel last longer. just takes getting used to into the wind. that's one reason i got the TE/DC. for into the wind with the smaller lures/lighter lures/bucktails. good luck, you'll never regret it. GO VIKES!!! a guy can hope.

[cjac]

I have several Lunas and really like them, especially since I got a deal on them. Good reels, but they need maintenance and will wear eventually, like anything else.

Low-profile: I have a Curado 300DSV and really liked it, long casts with lighter lures and the right rod. Based on what I hear though, the Abu Toro is even better. I'll be adding one this Spring.

That said, I can have 5 rods rigged up and primarily use one all day. Spend what you can and get a couple really solid set-ups, and build from there.

Chris

PS: Look at the Abu 7000's too, some guys that fish a ton use them almost exclusively for heavier stuff, and with good reason, they are tanks, heavy, but built like a tank.

[TrophyEyes]

From what I can tell they don't make the Abu 7000 in a left handed version.

[guideman]

I have 6 Records, all with the power handles and they work very well pulling the big blade baits.

My customers have been using them for a couple of years now and they all seem to like them very much. They cast like a dream and so far no issues with the reels, and they get used every day.

On the other hand I too would own nothing but 400te's if I could afford to do so. I have 2 of them and they have held up well after about 5 years of heavy use.

I have owned several of the lower priced Shimanos and the Okumas and they just didn't hold up under heavy use throwing muskie baits.

"Ace"

Ace guide service.

[TrophyEyes]

Ace, I think I have now changed my mind back to the Abu Record 61hc. I found them for $129, and able to use a $20 off coupon, which is about $70 lower than most places. For $110, I can bye 3 records for the price of one 400te. In my mind I would rather just buy a new reel every 2-3 years if need be. I only use the reel about 20-30 days out of the year if I am lucky. I also found that [PoorWordUsage] has a replacement policy that for $26 if anything is wrong with the reel, it can be returned no questions asked for 2 years.

[mroyten]

Where were you able to get the decent price w/coupon for the record?

[Rebel9921]

Trophy... I thought like you do now... and two years later, I've given up on Abu Garcia... To me, they're not just like the older ones everyone was talking about anymore... blew out 2 6600C3 last year so I upped to 7000iC3... and somehow I managed to blow them out three times in just couple months... Abu replaced them all but still the time on water I miss while waiting for my reel to come back from Abu sucks...

After Im all done with remodeling my boat, I'll be going after Shimanos, especially 400TE's and Trinidad's

Hope this helps...

[TrophyEyes]

Mroyten, Dickssportinggoods. com has all the records for $129. I had a $20 off $100 coupon that someone gave me. You can also use any Wild Hockey ticket and get $10 off.

[JRedig]

I've been down the same road with Abu's, nothing sucks more than when the reel breaks and you're down. I've got different reels for specific style's of baits. If one breaks, that lure style is done for the day. I'd rather spend the coin on 1 reel that won't break, than having to have a back up.

[MUSKY18]

The 7000's are absolute awesome for throwing the big stuff. I have no idea how guys are blowing them up. Never had any problems with mine and it is going on 3 years old and gets used alot. Never really thought abou them until [PoorWordUsage] Pearson got me to start using them. He uses them almost all the time, and he puts a few hours in on the water during the year. Also, think about the new Garcia reel that is coming out. Low profile, low gear ratio and built like a tank. Very nice reel.

[10,000 Casts]

The c3's and c4's are the same but the 7000's were redesigned at the beginning of last year. They especially had issues with the HSNs. I like my 7000 for double 10's but it didn't get used that much last year.

The Toro is going to be awesome...

You'll like the records, I have one that is bulletproof, great reel, you'll think it feels like a much more expensive reel and $110 is a great deal, must shops sell it for $149.99, we always sold it for $134.99. The middle of last summer I started seeing guys come in with some play in the handle. The first guy I talked to, brought one in and I assured him that it was unusaul and gave him a new one and he took it straight up to Plant, he managed to do it again within a day, I still can't figure out what happened to make it loosen up that fast but since then I have seen a few with play in the handle.

No one beats Garcia's customer service, no one...

No muskie reel is bullet proof, everyone has a preference, you get what you pay for. Just keep them maintained.

[b1gf1sh1]

since i got my TE's and TE/DC i've forgotten what it's like to have issues. i'm kind of lucky really in a way that i'm still mostly an old school guy. it limits the amount of rods i need a reel on for casting. three has been enough. But i'm going to do more WTD ( new rod ) this year so i'll need another reel, DANG IT!!! also i'm not a ''must fish muskie'' type crazy man anymore so they get a break here and there. which i'm sure helps. i also send them to california every winter for cleaning and a tune up. they normaly replace drag washers and assorted other doo-dads every year, so that helps too. parts are never outrageous, compared to reel price, usually less than 150 bucks for all three re-habs and shipped both ways, and i get like new reel's everytime they send them back. so yes i agree, take care of them and they take care of you. now i just gotta decide on the right reel for less than 600 bucks. am i nuts or what? maybe i should take up bowling, or join a chess club or something. nahh, to much work or thinking involved.

[Tonka Boy]

Bottom line, unless you're using saltwater gear the DCG's are going to ruin just about every reel eventually. Guaranteed. Some will last longer than others (and many of the reels mentioned above are great reels) so you should definitely take customer service into consideration as well.

Personally I like Records and/or 7000's but Abu has been good to me for over 25 years now. That keeps me coming back.

[JRedig]

For those interested, Cabela's in Rogers has a few reels in the bargain cave for cheap. Couple saltwater reels with no levelwinds, 3 shimano models. Also 1 abu record for $95, looks brand new never used, let the race begin!

[TrophyEyes]

I was there yesterday, however my wife was with me and would not let me spend the money on fishing gear. I may have to head back up tomorrow without her. Do you remember if you saw any Shimano Calcutta 401TE's?