New spinning reel help

[Knightiac]

Hey guys,

       I have been fishing for quite some time but have never really invested too much money into spinning reels. I always spent more on baitcasters, I own two Lew's Tourney Pros and love them. I currently have a couple Abu Garcia's, Cardinal SX's to be exact. Decent reels, a steal at $40 but I'm ready to step up. I willing to spend $130 or so and was debating on getting the Abu Garcia Revo S and possible the Lew's Tourney Pro. I would like to stay in the 8.2oz or lighter range if possible. Do y'all have any suggestions for me? Any insight on the two I mentioned? I'm really liking the Revo S.

[IndianaFinesse]

The revo s is a great reel, and if you get it from FFO it's only 78$.  Another good reel (or so i've heard) is the Abu Garcia premier, although it's a little over your budget.  FFO has it for 140 right now, but the retail price is 250 everywhere else.  The supreme weighs 6.9 oz. 

[MIbassyaker]

Pflueger supreme xt. normal retail is 150, but pflueger is running a $20 off mail-in rebate on spinning reels over $99 through may. On top of that you can get it for 100-130 a few places online if you poke around a bit. Size 30 is 6.8oz and 35 is 8.0oz.

[The Fisher]

I was a Shimano guy until I tried Pflueger..try the Pflueger Supreme

[EllisJuan]

26 minutes ago, The Fisher said:

I was a Shimano guy until I tried Pflueger..try the Pflueger Supreme

Pflueger makes a fine reel, but this made me laugh.

[Fishin' Fool]

Try to find a Stradic FH, FJ or FK on discount on Ebay.

[fishwizzard]

I just picked up a Lews Pro Speed Spin that I have been really impressed with so far.  It comes with a spare braid spool, which I like as I am still trying out different lines and it is nice to be able to swap out on the water.  My only other "nice" spinning reel is a Stradic FJ 1000.  For a tiny reel it as pulled in some impressive fish and has held up great to a ton of salt/brackish use with a fairly neglectful owner. 

[WIGuide]

I haven't tried the newest releases of the Revo spinning reels, but I've used the previous gen Revo S and Revo Premiers and they're sweet reels, I wouldn't expect any less from the new ones. 

[nascar2428]

No insight on the two you mentioned, however I will throw the Okuma Helios into the hat. I have three of the RTX 30s and love them. The Helios is the next step up.

[Bass Turd]

http://www.outdoorlife.com/blogs/wringer/tackle-test-2015-best-spinning-and-baitcasting-reels

No personal insight on any of these but they rate the  Lew’s Tournament Pro TP300HP Spinning Reel a best buy.

[The Fisher]

On April 5, 2016 at 9:53 PM, EllisJuan said:

Pflueger makes a fine reel, but this made me laugh.

I guess that is why there are so many brands on the market, each person has their own opinion. Glad I made your day.

[Smallieseeker]

On 4/5/2016 at 10:23 PM, MIbassyaker said:

Pflueger supreme xt. normal retail is 150, but pflueger is running a $20 off mail-in rebate on spinning reels over $99 through may. On top of that you can get it for 100-130 a few places online if you poke around a bit. Size 30 is 6.8oz and 35 is 8.0oz.

Agree with supreme xt *** had them on sale last week for 112

[new2BC4bass]

On 04/05/2016 at 10:53 PM, EllisJuan said:

Pflueger makes a fine reel, but this made me laugh.

Shouldn't have.  I've only got one Pflueger and one Shimano so not a lot of experience here with those two brands.  However, a longtime fisherman on this board who fishes 365 days a year has extensive experience with both brands.  He has stated more than once that every one of his Shimanos has been in for repair while not one of his Pfluegers have needed a repair.  Personally I like my Shimano a bit better than the Pflueger because of its higher gear ratio.  I do think the Pflueger is a nicer looking reel.

[new2BC4bass]

On 04/05/2016 at 4:25 PM, Bass Turd said:

http://www.outdoorlife.com/blogs/wringer/tackle-test-2015-best-spinning-and-baitcasting-reels

No personal insight on any of these but they rate the  Lew’s Tournament Pro TP300HP Spinning Reel a best buy.

Best of those they tested which was a long ways for all reels.  Did test some nice reels, tho.  I'm more interested in baitcast reels, and was surprised to see the Duckett win out.  I'd be willing to try one if I could find one on sale and one that wasn't white. 

[Darren.]

On 4/5/2016 at 10:02 PM, Knightiac said:

Hey guys,

       I have been fishing for quite some time but have never really invested too much money into spinning reels. I always spent more on baitcasters, I own two Lew's Tourney Pros and love them. I currently have a couple Abu Garcia's, Cardinal SX's to be exact. Decent reels, a steal at $40 but I'm ready to step up. I willing to spend $130 or so and was debating on getting the Abu Garcia Revo S and possible the Lew's Tourney Pro. I would like to stay in the 8.2oz or lighter range if possible. Do y'all have any suggestions for me? Any insight on the two I mentioned? I'm really liking the Revo S.

My best recommendation is for you to get into a Bass Pro,
Gander, Cabela's, or local shop and try every reel that piques
your interest.

If the one on display feels like crap (too many hands playing
with it), ask to see one in the box. This is really a great way 
to narrow down what feels good in *YOUR* hands.

I did this fully expecting to walk out with a Pflueger, only to 
find that I really liked the "feel" of Shimano better. I did buy
a Daiwa Lexa never having touched it. V. good reel, but I 
gave it to one of my boys....

You may have the opposite experience from me! That's the
beauty of it all. We are all different and like different looks and
feels of different brands. It's all good so long as it works for 
you and you like it!  

[EllisJuan]

2 hours ago, new2BC4bass said:

Shouldn't have.  I've only got one Pflueger and one Shimano so not a lot of experience here with those two brands.  However, a longtime fisherman on this board who fishes 365 days a year has extensive experience with both brands.  He has stated more than once that every one of his Shimanos has been in for repair while not one of his Pfluegers have needed a repair.  Personally I like my Shimano a bit better than the Pflueger because of its higher gear ratio.  I do think the Pflueger is a nicer looking reel.

I have owned a couple different Pfluegers and never had a problem with any of them, but they have all moved on to another fisherman.  Like I said, they are a fine reel.  I think it may depend what market segment a person is talking about when comparing the two.  Shimano does not offer a reel that can compete with the President at it's price.  However when you get into the Stradic ($150) and above I don't think Pflueger compares nearly as well.

[kickerfish1]

Well said Juan

[Knightiac]

Thanks for the help everybody. Special thanks to @IndianaFinesse for alerting me of the FFO deal. I went and played around with a few reels and the Revo S definitely hit home with me. I saw the awesome deal on FFO and decided to check locally just to see if anybody else offered the deal and it turns out Dick's Sporting Goods had the exact same deal. I decided to go pick one up only to find out the online inventory was wrong for two stores and they didn't actually have it in stock, other than one sample reel that the handle was stolen off of. It turns out the deal was for the older generation and only in size 30. That ended up being a no go for me since I love the smaller size 20's for bass fishing so I bit the bullet and ordered the brand new Revo S20 from Bass Pro's website.