Okuma Fly Reel

[Nighthawk]

a friend is trying to convince me to try the Okuma cascade graphite fly reel. very inexpensive and tough. has anyone had any experience with these reels? thanks, Russ

[Ham]

I don't have that one, but I have a couple of Sierra's that I'm happy with and a larger one (Magnitude maybe?) that I haven't fished with enough to have an opinion. Okuma is pretty good value for the money IMO.

[fishinwrench]

Cabela's Prestige series reels are built by Okuma, I have 5 of them, plus a Seirra One, I like them alot, they are smooth, the drag system is satisfactory, and I have never had a problem with any of them.

[Buzz]

I have no complaints with my OKUMA fly reel. I'm gonna look into their line of spinning reels next.

[strangercreek]

I've owned an SLV, a Vashoon, and a Helios. All of them use bearings which make the real very smooth (more moving parts though) but the drag systems were decent. The drag adjustment knobs on the Vashon and SLV were a little difficult to operate with cold hands but I think those are the only two reels that use that specific design.

[Paola Cat]

I fish a Helios and like it a lot. I think the Okuma reels are a good value. PC

[Chief Grey Bear]

I agree with all that these are great reels. If you do indeed purchase one, you won't regret it.

On a side note, is there anyone here that sell Okuma parts? I broke the reel seat/foot, and though I have looked at numerous sites, most of them are very hard to navigate and finding pricing can be even tougher. Or if you know of a site that you won't get lost in, I would appriciate it.

[Terry Beeson]

I'll bring mine in tomorrow and let you see what they are like...

[FlyFishinFool]

Cabela's Prestige series reels are built by Okuma, I have 5 of them, plus a Seirra One, I like them alot, they are smooth, the drag system is satisfactory, and I have never had a problem with any of them.

The Cabela's Prestige reels do have a smooth drag, but there are two big issues with the Prestige line of reels; they are really heavy and they have a really limited warranty! I looked at a Prestige Plus 5/6 reel a couple of days ago with a friend and it weighs 6.1oz., this is heavier than my Orvis Battenkill Mid-arbor III 5/6/7 reel at 5.6oz., and a lot heavier than the Orvis Large Arbor 5/6/7 at 4.4 oz.! Now I realize that the Prestige reels are much cheaper than the Orvis reels; but you can get a Ross Flystart large-arbor reel ($55) for almost the same price as the Prestige ($50), and the Ross weighs only 5.0oz in a 4/5/6 weight; and the Ross comes with a lifetime warranty, while acording to the Cabela's Fly Shop guy the Prestige reel is only warranted for 90 days. Lighter weight, lifetime warranty and only $5 more - my friend bought the Ross reel!