A follow-up baitcasting reel report

[Al Agnew]

A recent discussion of baitcasting reels got me thinking, and I decided to take every casting reel I own, put it on the same rod, and cast the same lure out on my pond, just to see which reels did best.  The lure I use most in the winter, my homemade hair jig made on the jighead that Mitch Fields designed, in 3/16th ounce, on a medium power Majorcraft Nanoace jig and worm rod. Note that this is probably a lighter lure than most people typically use with baitcast tackle.  I would also note that I took the time to adjust each reel to best cast this lure on this rod.  And one more note...it was a very windy day and I was casting into a quartering wind.  I suppose I should have also tried casting a more wind-resistant lure, something like a small buzzbait, in order to get the best evaluation of my rods, but I didn't...maybe some other time; it's too danged cold to do it today. 

The other problem, as you'll see when I list the reels, is that I don't have a lot of NEW models.  In fact, some of these are 20 year old reels, models that have long since been replaced.  So don't consider this a really good review of what you can buy these days.

 So, here are the reels I tried, ranked in order of how well they did, from best to worst:

1.  Diawa Tatula SVTW--taking the time to really dial this reel in for the lure and the conditions made it tied for the best.  It got the most distance, and without having to ride my thumb on it in those windy conditions.  The reel I've ranked number 2 got the same amount of distance, within a foot, but I'll tentatively rank the Tatula number 1 for reasons I'll discuss below.

2.  Kastking Stealth--this one will probably surprise you.  When I bought this reel a couple years ago, it was on a whim.  I couldn't imagine that a reel that you could buy on Amazon for less than $70 would be all that great, but I'd heard SOME good reviews on it.  It seemed that people either loved Kastking reels or hated them, and apparently one big problem was quality control; there seemed to be a lot of lemons.  So I wasn't expecting all that much when I bought it, and indeed, the first couple times I used it, I was not impressed.  But the problem I was having was a spool that was simply TOO free.  I couldn't cast it without backlashing, unless I really rode my thumb on it.  I was in the middle of trying to fish, not standing in the yard, so I adjusted around on the spool tension knob and magnetic cast control until I could cast the particular lures I was using it for without backlashing, and called that good enough.  However, I finally took the time to really fool with it and try to get it dialed in properly.  I wasn't using it for the hair jig until I tried it for this report, and it took a little more adjusting, but once I got it, the reel cast beautifully.  It certainly was comparable to the Tatula.  Of course, I don't know how durable it will be compared with the Tatula, but just from my experience with the reel so far, it seems to be a little better able to handle inconsistent maintenance, something I'm known for.  So the only reason I'd rank it slightly below the Tatula is that it is definitely more persnickety about getting it adjusted just right.

I have no idea whether this model is still available; I didn't see it in a quick check online.  It appears that Kastking decided to produce several more expensive models, prices comparable to other companies, in the $150-170 range, though they do still have some really cheap ones.  I'd thought originally that Kastking was a Chinese company, but it is an American company.  So I'm going to give one of the high end Kastkings a try--got one ordered and waiting for it to come in.

3.  Shimano Citica 200G6--this one was about 3 feet less distance than the first two with the 3/16th ounce hair jig, but I can tell you that it will cast the crankbaits I ordinarily use it for a mile.  The other day I was fishing a Spro RK Crawler 55 crankbait, and it was casting the thing about as far as I've ever cast any lure anywhere when I wanted it to...and it wasn't until after I got home that I realized I'd missed a guide when I was stringing up the line, so my outfit was operating at far from peak efficiency!  The problem with reviewing Shimano reels, though, is that they seem to change models every year.  If what I'm seeing in Tackle Warehouse is correct, the whole Citica line has been discontinued.  And while most Shimano reels I've owned over the years have been very good, you can't depend upon that; there was one year that they produced a Curado model that was pure crap.

4.  Abu Garcia Revo STX--this one was a cut below the top three, still a very good reel, casted without backlash and without riding my thumb too much in the wind, just didn't get quite the distance.  I've had this reel several years and have really mistreated it, but it is still going strong.

5.  Lews Mach 1 MH1Sh--this is the cheapest of the Lews reels I own, but handles lighter lures the best of them, surpisingly.  A good, tough, workhorse reel.

6.  Daiwa Tatula CT100HS--this was on a par with the Mach 1 and the Revo, really.  You could probably rank the three of them even.  It's a good, smooth reel.

7.  Bass Pro Shops Prolite Finesse--you can forget about finding this reel; it's from at least 8 or 9 years ago, the bright gold-colored one that lasted for a year or two in their line-up before being replaced by another gold colored Prolite, which lasted for a year before they changed it completely.  The newer ones were pretty bad.  That first gold one was the best, the second gold one was as good but not as durable; I wore mine out in a couple years.  This one is still going strong, and when it was new it probably ranked even higher in this list of reels.

8.  Lews Laser Pro LP1SH--a decent reel, got less distance than the Mach 1, but it's been tough and serviceable.

9.  Shimano Curado CU200--this is the REALLY old full size green model, hasn't been available for probably 15 years.  It's a heavy reel compared to many I own today, but casts light lures surprisingly well, and has to be the toughest reel I've ever owned, which is obvious since I have owned 2 of them for probably 20 years and used the heck out of them.

10.  Shimano Curado CU100B--this is the smaller, lighter model of the old green Curados.  It doesn't really get any more distance than the bigger model, and requires a bit more maintenance, but my two of them are also still quite serviceable after all this time.

11.  Shimano Scorpion 1000--this one is a Japanese market reel from probably 15 years ago.  At the time it was THE reel for casting light lures.  It's still pretty good, and comparable to the reels I've listed at 4-6, but it was not a super durable reel, always required a lot of maintenance, and is now pretty rough, which is why I downgraded it in my listing.  But it still casts well.

12.  Lews BB1 SHZ--well, there had to be a reel coming in last, and this one is it.  Funny thing is, this is the reel I've been using this winter so far on the rod, and using the hair jigs, that I used in the test, and it came in dead last.  One of the reasons I did the test, though, is that I KNEW it wasn't working all that well with the 3/16th ounce hair jig; I just wasn't getting good distance when I wanted to.  I did everything I could to dial it in, but in the end, it got a good 15 feet less distance than the top reels, and 2 or 3 feet less than even the old Curados.  So it's now on one of my less used all purpose rods.

So I don't know how much this will help anybody in choosing a reel.  Every one of these reels will do the typical baitcast job of casting 3/8th to 5/8th ounce lures well.  Maybe it's more a matter of evaluating companies and assuming where any reel in the line-up will fall in relation to similar reels with other companies.  But since every company probably produces lemons now and then, you have to take even that with a grain of salt.  And of course, every one of these reels is under $200, or was when I bought it.  Could be the high end reels of various companies are far better than any of these.  Or maybe not; I've always asked myself whenever I was contemplating buying a $400 reel, whether it would prove to be more than TWICE as good as a $150 reel.  So far, I think the most expensive reel I've ever owned was a Shimano Chronarch from a number of years ago that I paid just over $200 for--and I kicked it overboard in a fast, deep riffle on the Meramec.  The second most expensive is the Tatula SV.

[Mitch f]

Very surprised to find out KastKing was made in America. I thought it was Chinese as well. Great info Al!

[timinmo]

Al, appreciate you taking the time to test your reels.  Consider this a follow up to Mitch's above statement.  Is KastKing made in US?  As opposed to it being a US company with product made overseas.

Hope everyone had a Merry Christmas and best wishes for the coming new year.

 

[tjm]

Kast King is international with products from China, Korea, Germany, USA, Japan, Italy etc. - a video & article on them here

[Al Agnew]

Kastking was started by a group of American guys, is still headquartered in the U.S., and makes products in China like just about every other reel company, along with some products in other countries and some products that are still made in America.  TJM's link is to a good article on them.

 

[fishinwrench]

I'll give you another heads-up on a rod/reel company that continues to blow MY mind. 

Piscifun.   

Unbelievably good stuff for the price.  

[timinmo]

Thanks for the link tjm.  Found it very interesting.

[Al Agnew]

On 12/26/2020 at 11:27 PM, fishinwrench said:

I'll give you another heads-up on a rod/reel company that continues to blow MY mind. 

Piscifun.   

Unbelievably good stuff for the price.  

I've heard that.  Piscifun IS based in China.  I don't know how anybody feels about using Chinese products, but the fact is that every reel company either has reels manufactured in China, or at least sources parts from China.  Even Abu Garcia, who manufactures in Sweden, gets parts from China.  I guess everybody has to decide whether any of it makes any difference.

[fishinwrench]

2 minutes ago, Al Agnew said:

I've heard that.  Piscifun IS based in China.  I don't know how anybody feels about using Chinese products, but the fact is that every reel company either has reels manufactured in China, or at least sources parts from China.  Even Abu Garcia, who manufactures in Sweden, gets parts from China.  I guess everybody has to decide whether any of it makes any difference.

It used to make a difference, back when Chinese made stuff was JUNK. 

That isn't necessarily the case anymore.   

[Mitch f]

I’ve had some stuff made in China. More of a one and done thing. You need to be very specific and have assurances well documented before the deal is made. Let them know that you will not pay the remainder until approval. I’ve had very good luck with that. The devil is in the details and the shipping and taxes can ruin the deal.