Reel recommendations

[huntnphool]

if you are a fairly serious fisheman, especially a steelhead fisherman, is to upgrade to a baitcasting reel.

I agree, a baitcaster for tossing corkies and.......................well um, bait .........and use your spinning combo for bobber/jig fishing.

 I have found the Curado to be a very good real and have the Asian cousin model (Scorpion) just because the color matches better to my Sage rod and also use the x01 models, or left hand retrieve. A few years ago I was talking with a Shimano rep at one of the shows and asked why more companies didnt produce left hand baitcasters, it seemed a no brainer to me and I am always amazed when I watch the fishing shows on TV that most of the guys cast with their right hands then swap hands so they can reel, it has always seemed silly why they simply didn't buy left hand. He told me, now again this was several years ago, that more than 90% of their left hand reels, the x01 models, were sold in the NorthWest and that their just wasn't enough of a demand for companies to re-tool to produce them, it was not cost effective. NorthWest he explained being Oregon, Washington, Alaska and British Columbia. As you can imagine this gave Shimano a distinct advantage in sales for quite some time in this region, and a one reason why you see so many Shimano owners on the rivers around here.

 Shimano makes my favorite reels and I use their spinning reels as well, for bobber/jig fishing I use a Sustain and find it works very well. 

[Curly]

+1  on the left hand baitcaster recommendation.

[Huntbear]

Left handed baitcasters all the way.  Either Abu Garcia or Shimano.

Spinning reels - Shimano hands down the best.  I tortured 2 over a 2 year period on Large Mouth in Georgia.  Never cleaned em, nothing.  They were still as smooth as the day I bought em.  Oh, and I used em for pitching jigs under docks with braid on em.  Draggin big bass out, drag set so tight, the line would cut you.  They never failed.

[snocohunter]

I really debated on getting a lefty when i bought my 300E, but I thought since most guys i see use a right handed reel there must be some reason why. I don't mind switching hands, but maybe some people don't like it. I love my shimano spinning reels too, even the old rear drag models I have. Can't wait to buy a new spinning setup when I get back to work. Hopefully soon.

[MtnMuley]

Stricktly preference on left or right hand.  For me, left hand spinning and right hand casting.  I've tried to use the left handed casting reels and can never feel comfortable turning the tighter handles.  It would seem that by casting right handed that it would make sense to reel with the same hand as you would using spinning gear (left hand).  For me it's just not the case.

[fisheral87]

Symetre       +1

[87Ford]

Never have used a spinning reel much.  For a baitcaster, I love my Curado with a left hand retrieve..

[Intruder]

my primary steelhead reel is a 4500C.  30 years old and you can still get parts for them, try that with a 5 year old shimano...

Good point!

[Intruder]

I agree, a baitcaster for tossing corkies and.......................well um, bait .........and use your spinning combo for bobber/jig fishing.

Funny.... I'm just the opposite.  I use the baitcaster for bobbers and the spinning reel for corkies.  I like being able to feed line w/ the baitcaster better than have to flip the bail on a spinning reel. 

[87Ford]

I gotta have a baitcaster for pitching bait or corkies/yarn.  Without thumb pressure control I'd be in the trees a lot..

[whacker1]

Can't go wrong with Shimano or ambassador reels.

[jordano]

Pfluegar spinning reels... especially the President..... Abu Garcia 5500C baitcasting... only ways to go

[fisheral87]

Funny.... I'm just the opposite.  I use the baitcaster for bobbers and the spinning reel for corkies.  I like being able to feed line w/ the baitcaster better than have to flip the bail on a spinning reel.

Whole nother thread there dude.

[uplandhunter870]

thanks for all the input guys.

after alot of shopping and research i went with a pflueger president xt.  looked hard at the shimanos and quantums but when i picked up the pflueger something just really felt right.  i dont know about the rest of you but when in the past when a piece of outdoors equipment "speaks" to me it leads to good things.  now the wait for the springers to come home.

once again thanks a ton guys
Steve

[Curly]

Thats cool.  Glad you found one. I've never even looked at a Pflueger......I might have to give them a look someday when I need a new reel.