What ultralight spinning reel (trout) do you use?

Macchina

Macchina

Gold Member
Joined
Apr 7, 2006
Messages
5,169
I have really gotten into trout fishing this year, and it's time to upgrade my setup. I've been using the 1 ball bearing Shakespeare UL reel that came with my 5'6" UL Uglystick pole. I really like the pole, but the reel stinks. The biggest problem is it doesn't cast well with light tackle when all I want to do is flick it 5 feet, the line just won't come off the reel.

I'm looking for something under $100 that is smooth and durable with fast retrieval. I use 6 lb. fire wire.
 
My Lightest and best value is an Abu Garcia Cardinal 101. I have it spooled with 4# test and is my favorite for panfishing on ultralight tackle. Reel about $28.

Another fun inexpensive option was the Zebco 11 I just got for my daughter. She loves it...caught fish at the same rate as I last time out, and she's only six. maybe $15.

Or you can get a Pflueger Triton for closer to your $100 option.
 
I use a Shimano Sahara 1000 that I picked up at Dick's, loaded with P-Line CX in 6lb. test. My rod is a 2-piece 5'6" Ugly Stick Lite from Walmart.
 
Last edited:
Hombre Secreto said:
I use a Shimano Sahara 1000 that I picked up at Dick's, loaded with P-Line CX in 6lb. test. My rod is a 2-pice 5'6" Ugly Stick Lite from Walmart.
Click to expand...

That is the EXACT rod I have and really like. I was just looking at that reel as I was Dicks picking up the Abu Garcia Cardinal 101 + 5'6" combo at Dick's for $40 tonight for Father's Day!
How do you like that reel? It appears to be plastic, but advertises 4 bearings which I found to be no gimmick and a good way to tell if a reel is smooth.

I don't know much about fishing equipment, as I've always just used the cheapest combo at Walmart. Now that I'm fishing a lot more, I'm starting to be able to tell that my current setup just doesn't cut it. Is there an equivalent to Savage in the fishing world (inexpensive, darn accurate and reliable, butt ugly)?
 
Holy Crap!
There are SO MANY reels out there... I don't even know where to begin. It might just be easier to go to Gander Mountain and buy the smoothest one I can find ;)

I have narrowed it down to wanting either a Shimano or Okuma (I think).
Is the "Paladin Gear" worth anything in a Shimano or is it just advertising?
Is there a solid line between where the cheap Shimanos end and the nice ones begin? They have about 20 styles in their current lineup :confused:

Okumas appear to be a little cheaper than Shimanos for what you get, is this true?

What size should I get for running 4-6 pound line for trout? I rarely cast more than 10 yards as most of my fishing is done in relatively small streams and rivers.
 
My lightweight trout reel is a Plueger President matched to a Bass Pro Shop MicroLite with 4lb line. Does it work? I dunno, haven't used it yet. :eek:

I think this is the same model reel:
http://www.basspro.com/Pflueger-Pre...nning-Reel-Model-6720X/product/97000/-1207982
And rod:
http://www.basspro.com/Bass-Pro-Shops-Micro-Lite-Graphite-Spinning-Rods/product/10204875/-1645709

The boy was only four years old and needed a fishing rod, so I selected for him an inexpensive Quantum Snapshot 10 rod and reel combo. It works very well, especially considering the price. Wish my Plueger had a one-hand casting lever...
 
shimano sahara first garcia cardinal close second. i have both reels in different sizes and they last. for the $$ they are hard to beat imo... good luck
 
michaelmcgo said:
Holy Crap!
There are SO MANY reels out there... I don't even know where to begin. It might just be easier to go to Gander Mountain and buy the smoothest one I can find ;)

I have narrowed it down to wanting either a Shimano or Okuma (I think).
Is the "Paladin Gear" worth anything in a Shimano or is it just advertising?
Is there a solid line between where the cheap Shimanos end and the nice ones begin? They have about 20 styles in their current lineup :confused:

Okumas appear to be a little cheaper than Shimanos for what you get, is this true?

What size should I get for running 4-6 pound line for trout? I rarely cast more than 10 yards as most of my fishing is done in relatively small streams and rivers.
Click to expand...

its really hard to beat a shimano in any price range. of all the shims i have owned i only had one dink and it was a bait caster that was known to have issues. it got tossed in the trash. i use okuma some when fly fishing but if i needed a reel, the shims is my first choice more often than not.
 
>>> How do you like that reel?

I really like the reel, but I wish I had gotten the Symetre. It seems a bit smoother, in the store anyways. But any of the following models (in order of cost) - Sedona, Sahara, Symetre, Saros and Stradic, should be good choices, depnding on your budget. For size, you might want to look at the 500, 750, 1000 and 1500 sizes.

I suggest getting the largest spool size that comfortably fits your needs. Small spools tend to put more coils in the line, while deep spools offer more line resistance when casting, so minimizing those factors helps gain casting distance. On my setup, I picked up a lot of distance just by switching to P-Line.
 
the shimano sahara or symetre are both really nice reels to use they both offer a 500 or 1000 size depending on what you want to do, personally i would get the 1000 size because it makes the reel more versatile. The shimano reels have a thing called the propulsion system or something, which basicly is a small angled lip on the spool, when you cast it allows the line to come off the spool much tighter so there is less line whipping around resulting in a further, more accurate cast with less line twist I like the shimano reels alot because they have one of the best customer service available.

the shimano reels are going to have a much better cast then Pflueger

(i work at real fishing store, i help customers with things like this everyday)

dont pay to much attention to how many bearings the reels have, they are 99% sales pitches, a well built reel with 5 bearings is much smoother then a cheap reel with 12 bearings
 
Hombre Secreto,

P-line is a good line, its tough but the problem i find with the line is that its thicker then most other monos of the same rating and it has alot of memory.
i would highly recommend Izorline XXX, it is IMHO the best casting mono on the market, super soft low memory
 
I use Shimano Sedona 1000s on my ultralight setups. IMO any Shimano 1000 or 500 size reel will work great.

I recommend a Sedona or Sonora 1000. I still have a Shimano Syncopate 1000 thats 20 years old, it still works just as good as the day I got it.
 
How 'bout the Shimano Spirex rear drag? Anyone use the lightest model in that series with an ultralight rod?
I notice it's quite a bit heavier than the Plueger President Micro, but the Quick Fire feature would be a huge bonus, as well as the rear drag and Fightin' Drag.

My most-used spinning reel is a Shimano TX120Q and I've really gotten to appreciate the one-hand casting and rear drag features, which don't seem to be common on the 'nicer' reels or ultra-light reels.
 
>>> i would highly recommend Izorline XXX, it is IMHO the best casting mono on the market, super soft low memory

Thanks, I'll check it out.
 
For $40 or less you can pick up a Mitchell 308xe. I fished a 300xe for a few years and loved the reel. Very smooth and dependable, no slop. The 308 is simply the ultralight version of the 300. Very solid for the price in my opinion.
 
How 'bout the Shimano Spirex rear drag?

alot of people dont like the quick fire because the rotor will rotate all the way around to reach the "quickfire trigger thing" so when u reel and stop the rotor can roll back to that one spot kind of a cheap reel feel
 
minorng said:
alot of people dont like the quick fire because the rotor will rotate all the way around to reach the "quickfire trigger thing" so when u reel and stop the rotor can roll back to that one spot
Click to expand...
After you reel the line in, you have to reel backwards a bit until the trigger stops in the top position to be ready for the next cast. I'm not sure how else it could work.
It doesn't affect the reel or action at any time that the line's in the water.

kind of a cheap reel feel
Click to expand...
The Spirex feels cheap, or the QuickFire trigger?

I was just in a Cabela's store (first time). Should have paid more attention to the reels, but I was a bit overwhelmed. :(
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top