Are Last Years Shimano Spinning Reels Better?

[Mumbly]

I am in the market for a new spinning reel and I believe I have narrowed it down to either the Shimano Sahara or Symetre. I know there has been a lot of posts about the quality of the current Curodo G's and how much better the E's were last year. This got me thinking and wondering if the same holds true for the spinning reels?

 

Do you guys think that new Sahara's and Symetre's are better than last years model? I now seem to have more questions than answers. Aluminum frame vs Graphite, X-ship....etc. Am I thinking too much into it?

 

Any advice and information would be greatly appreciated.

[thehooligan]

I really like xship, but my older saharas and symetres feel way more solid than the new models...

[MarkH024]

 Am I thinking too much into it?

 

Any advice and information would be greatly appreciated.

Yes you are. They will all catch fish...they all will perform very well. The Curado G's are fine reels, just a few differences from E's. Your spinning reels will perform great, especially in the world of bass fishing.  

[J Francho]

Last year's reels are the same as this year's.

[Koofy Smacker]

Last year's reels are the same as this year's.

The Sahara, and Symetre were changed this year to a new smaller body design with upgraded features. Price points stayed the same though. Many of their reels did not change at all however,

[J Francho]

Ahh, didn't notice.  Looking at the exploded diagram, not much different under the hood.  Same reliable gearing and oscillation setup.  I do see they replaced the body side bearing with a bush, like much older models.

[EvanT123]

First off I don't have any older model shimanos to compare to. I did have an abu cardinal that served me well for 5 years. That said I picked up a symetre fl1000 for 15% off retail and its a great reel. I did however replace the bushing with a bearing side making it 5+1. It is very smooth and has x-ship which is a nice feature. I also like the fact that it has a 750 size body with a 1000 size spool. I don't think you can go wrong especially if you can find them at a discount.

[The Next KVD]

I personally like the FD Sahara's and previous generations over the current generation mainly because I'm a FIRM believer in aluminum frames.  I do have a few reels that I use for people that go with me that don't fish as often that have graphite frames and they do fine but I will not use them for any tournament fishing.  Don't know, its just a personal preference to me as I think reels built with aluminum frames are smoother and I know it will take a lot to make a crack in those frames.

[fishking247]

I love my symetre fj's. the new FL's look nice. If i could do it all over again i would save up and buy all stradics.

[Capt.Bob]

I personally prefer the aluminum frame which went by the wayside with the introduction of the FL, graphite frame, then they shed the one piece bail that the stradic and Sustain uses for a stamped out ???? I have three Symetres and all are aluminum framed models, for all intent purposes the FH was the last year they shared everything the Stradic had (minus one bearing for a bushing, after it they went to a double geared main gear, meaning one side was as usual and drove the pinion while on the other side of the pinion was a small set of teeth that ran a cam that sat on a pin cast into the frame that had a pin on it that oscolated the spool up and down, far inferior to the worm gear used on Stradics, Sustains, and Stellas, I am sure they didn't upgrade the Symetre and Sahara and leave the top three reels out, and the graphite body and stamped bail was the last draw for me. The FJ Symetre is the newest model I would recommend, sorry but they do keep gettin cheaper and cheaper built, they just keep seperating them further and further from their top three.

 

I agree 247!! or Sustains, just cant justify the Stellas,

[dam0007]

If you could snag a older Symetre grab it. Its a great reel under $100. My buddies tackle shop has the older ones in stock PM me if your interested I could pick 1 up and ship it, work it out through paypal.

[Triton Man]

I know very little about all the differences in each and every shimano model and only own a few but one of them is a new symetre FL size 2500 that I put on a 6' st. croix premier ML.  They match very well together.  I bought it as my trout/panfish rod but I am sure it will see some bass action with smaller lures.  Since bass season is currently closed this rod has been the only one seeing any action so far this year.  No complaints with the reel so far.  One observation is it seems like the graphite frame doesn't feel as cold on my fingers as my aluminum frames.  A positive in my eyes.  I liked the price and the x-ship and also got it for 10% off.

[Mumbly]

Thanks tons for the replies guys. My biggest concern was the change from the aluminum frame to the graphite one but I have been unable to compare the two. Thanks for setting me straight. I knew you guys would know the deal.

 

Dam0007: Thank you so much for the offer of getting me a reel but as I am up in Canada it would be an extra headache for you to ship it up here and i would sooner not put you through all that.

 

Last question and I think I know the answer but here goes.....Do I get the Sahara FD for $60 or the Symetre FJ for $70?

[flippin and pitchin]

No brainer, Symetre.

[Virtuoso]

Last year's reels are the same as this year's.

 

Didn't they add X-Ship on the new models?

 

If so, X-Ship makes a HUGE difference in the reels performance. It really makes a lot of the reels more appealing in the Shimano Lineup. That is a huge feature to add on a reel. I wish my Ci4 had X-Ship in it. My Stradic FJ is so much smoother of a reel.

[J Francho]

All X-Ship is, is a second pinion support bearing.  It was added to the Symetre.  Honestly, I don't feel much difference between my CI4s and Stradic FJ, other than weight.  But then again, I have set them all up myself.