My grandson has a friend who goes fishing with him. Between school, and part time jobs, they fish as much as they can, hitting a 5 acre farm pond close to home. Aiden has a casting outfit, and a spinning rod. Both are decent quality. His friend fishes with an older Zebco Omega Underspin which I think was made in the mid 1980s. He uses a med/light spinning rod from Academy, and spools with 6lb Trilene XL. He brought his outfit over yesterday to show me, and see if I could clean and lube the small reel for him. We cleaned and lubed it, and spooled fresh 6 lb. mono. Test casting in the yard, the small reel is smooth, easy to operate, and has a smooth drag. What surprised me was the photos he showed me of fish he's caught with this outfit. Numerous bass up to 4 pounds, large crappie, and bluegill, and a 12 pound catfish. He's using 4" Senko, Zoom grubs, Beetlespins, Kellys worms, and 4" curly tail worms, rigged with a split shot. The reel was a hand me down, given to him from his grandfather. These older USA made Zebcos are tough, durable reels. I've heard good and bad things about the newer ones, and most bass anglers look down on them. I wouldn't hesitate to use this one myself. I still have my Zebco 33 which I received as a Christmas gift in 1966.It still works, even though I haven't used it in many years. Does anyone have any experience with the Zebco Omega models?
