[RobM]

Currently have a reel mish mash of reels on the boat for guests, most of them getting on and am thinking of replacing them with a standardisd reel.

For guests I use bog standard 6ft fladen 20lb boat rods - probably not the best on the market, but perfectly adequate for basic mackie and rough ground drift fishing and at 6ft they fit in the cabin in 1 peice.

What are your thoughts on a good value multiplier reel to take braid to go with these rods.

Must be robust (ie: last a few years)
Light weight
Lever drag preferred

Ta

 

[ollie.thfc]

Currently have a reel mish mash of reels on the boat for guests, most of them getting on and am thinking of replacing them with a standardisd reel.

For guests I use bog standard 6ft fladen 20lb boat rods - probably not the best on the market, but perfectly adequate for basic mackie and rough ground drift fishing and at 6ft they fit in the cabin in 1 peice.

What are your thoughts on a good value multiplier reel to take braid to go with these rods.

Must be robust (ie: last a few years)
Light weight
Lever drag preferred

Ta

Difficult to find a decent VALUE lever drag reel, obviously you wont want top end reels for just anyone to use.

Dont go near the okuma lever drag reels they are a complete bag of [email protected]!t in my opinion.
Abu have gone downhill in recent years aswell.

Only makes id recommend are shimano or diawa but probably overkill for guests to use,
sorry i cant help more, good luck.

 

[PhilR]

Shimano Charter Special 1000 is pretty bomb-proof.

 

[BigDaveB]

I agree Phil, either that or the TLD15 - either costs around £100.Not much choice in the 'budget' lever drag market.

 

[ETEC]

Shimano Charter Special 1000 is pretty bomb-proof.

Got to agree with the above and cheaper than a tld 15


and yes i have one and wish i had a couple more




ETEC

 

[gazmonster]

Difficult to find a decent VALUE lever drag reel, obviously you wont want top end reels for just anyone to use.

Dont go near the okuma lever drag reels they are a complete bag of [email protected]!t in my opinion.
Abu have gone downhill in recent years aswell.

Only makes id recommend are shimano or diawa but probably overkill for guests to use,
sorry i cant help more, good luck.

would you care to explain why and which one you owned? i got a titus 15 lever drag but cant comment as i aint used it yet. i paid 65 quid new from a tackle shop (including my massive discount lol) looks good for the money and feels ok. yea is never gonna be a shimano or gold penn but would love to know whats so bad about em. if you dont reply i'll take it as a baseless comment and ignore the fact i read it.

 

[raider]

If you can get hold of them, the Policansky lever drag reels are as simple and robust as a reel gets. Not too light, but quality engineering and tough materials. Ive got a couple of sizes that have outlasted most other reels of mine, and are as good today as they were when I bought them.

Ive got a feeling they are still getting sold in the UK, and for anyone that needs basic no frills performance they take some beating. Added advantage of being able to swap to left hand wind if required.

So simple to operate for a newbie, and would be my first choice if i needed something to hire out and go the distance without falling to bits or needing constant attention.

Raider.

 

[ollie.thfc]

would you care to explain why and which one you owned? i got a titus 15 lever drag but cant comment as i aint used it yet. i paid 65 quid new from a tackle shop (including my massive discount lol) looks good for the money and feels ok. yea is never gonna be a shimano or gold penn but would love to know whats so bad about em. if you dont reply i'll take it as a baseless comment and ignore the fact i read it.

I brought one as a backup last year cant remember which model it was, it looked like a shimano tld15, but it was awful.

It would make a grinding noise, the drag was jerky and it now lies at the bottom of the english channel somewhere.

I did try another one just to see if it was a one off but i found it much the same.

 

[gazmonster]

I brought one as a backup last year cant remember which model it was, it looked like a shimano tld15, but it was awful.

It would make a grinding noise, the drag was jerky and it now lies at the bottom of the english channel somewhere.

I did try another one just to see if it was a one off but i found it much the same.

ok mate cheers for the reply. i have read that some make nasty noises but thought i would take the chance. would a bit of cals or shimano drag grease not solve the jerky drag as it sounds dry?

 

[ollie.thfc]

ok mate cheers for the reply. i have read that some make nasty noises but thought i would take the chance. would a bit of cals or shimano drag grease not solve the jerky drag as it sounds dry?

It may do but it was a brand new reel so i wasn't expecting to have to service it straight out of the box! it was annoying me so it went for a swim :bye1:

Taught me for buying cheap wont do it again

Yours may be a different model so might be ok.

 

[robbym]

How many reels do you need to buy?. If it is a few it may pay you to take a trip to the States!. I bought 2 tld 15's for less than £60 each ($85 I think it was).

If you don't fancy making the trip yourself there are ways that the tackle dealer can ensure you don't pay import duty on the import - pm me if that doesn't make sense.

Cheers

Rob

 

[HE SHOT HE SCORED]

PENN 320's are proven workhorses that will take knocking around a bit.

Easy to repair etc and reasonably priced.

 

[Baddox]

PENN 320's are proven workhorses that will take knocking around a bit.

Easy to repair etc and reasonably priced.

And, they have a level wind which could be useful for a novice.

 

[Jonny 3 rods]

Hire rods and reels do get used and abused, whilst I have a fair share of expensive tackle tart, rods and reels, mainly Penn (Torque and 975) I think that Fladen are excellent value.
I know a boat on the east coast that has hire tackle, and only uses Fladen tackle, the solid c rods are good and the level wind reels are reliable.
Okuma also seems to have a good range of reliable inexpensive reels.:bye1:

 

[RobM]

Many thanks for the advice

looks like the Shimano charter special is the way to go, though I'll look at the Penn a bit more..

Oddly my favourite reel is one I've had since i was a teenager.. an small Abu I used to use for spinning for salmon.. I've since put on a large winding handle from a broken Okuma and some 20lb braid and it really is excellent especially on a light rod.

 

[Alfresco30]

I think the point is the old ABU's are great [I stll have plenty of small ones] but the new ones are cheaply made and do not last.

The boys and I have several TLD 15's and apart from the occasional need to dry off the drag washers they last the test of time

I think we paid about £85.00 for the last one in Alderney Angling last year.
The level wind of the charter specials would be good for novices/occasional anglers

Charlie

Many thanks for the advice

looks like the Shimano charter special is the way to go, though I'll look at the Penn a bit more..

Oddly my favourite reel is one I've had since i was a teenager.. an small Abu I used to use for spinning for salmon.. I've since put on a large winding handle from a broken Okuma and some 20lb braid and it really is excellent especially on a light rod.