shimano baitcasting reels quality

[lmbfisherman]

In another 5-6 years I'll see if my G series explodes or not.  I'll report back then.

[Catt]

This thread reminds me why I don't buy reels every time a new model comes out!

My 30+ year old Calcuttas are series A; solid as a anvil, versatile as as pair of ChannelLocks, dependable as a 30/30.

May put new bearing in em

[J Francho]

The Pure Fishing clones and related Lew's have some of the nicest feeling thumbar spool release and engage in the biz. I work on reels - seriously, lots of them - and I know why they feel "nice" in this way. There's a cost to that. There's a coat to the tightness in a Daiwa, and the sweet feel of their brakes. Shimanos are very mechanical and precise, despite a tiny bit of spool slop. Pick your poison. Or try an Okuma, Pinnacle, or other brand for that matter. They have their own personality too. Spend some coin, and don't compare entry level stuff. It's a good time to buy reels. 

[F14A-B]

2 hours ago, Catt said:

This thread reminds me why I don't buy reels every time a new model comes out!

My 30+ year old Calcuttas are series A; solid as a anvil, versatile as as pair of ChannelLocks, dependable as a 30/30.

May put new bearing in em

30/30 is a excellent brush round..

Oh, the Calcutta is a d**n tank..for sure.

[0119]

16 hours ago, J Francho said:

The ones whining and spewing vitriole the most about Shimano quality haven't touched one in over a decade.  Any point points made, are irrelevant

Only to you perhaps or be it your opinion. Opinion, something everyone is entitled to.  Its been much less than a decade in fact just this spring when I bought 2 Chronarch CI4's in effort to give shimano another try.  The huge gap surrounding the plastic brake dial was instrumental in allowing plenty of water into the reel.  Unimpressed.

Are you going to follow every post I make while policing me in my points purgatory? Always having a snide comment..... Please just ban me and lets get this over with......

[J Francho]

A general comment about the dichotomy of posts that show up whenever there's a Shimano thread. I wasn't really impressed with the Chronarch CI4, at that price point, though I'm not sure I've ever seen a waterproof brake dial. Water's been getting into my Daiwas for 20 years, and it never caused a problem. 

As far banning…all you have to do is hit the log out button, if you hate it here so much. BTW, political posts are no Bueno here. Just a friendly reminder. 

[RB 77]

I own 8 versions of the E series and like them all. With that being said, the more I  fish my I series the more I like it. Great reel IMHO. I will be getting more in the future, no doubt about it.

[J Francho]

I have a sweet ch201e7 going up for same soon. Keep your eyes peeled if you're looking. 

[flyfisher]

I have been using shimano baitcasters for a while and have stuck with the citica models for my budget and they have done well.  I have G and E models and i actually like the G models better but I have no concerns with either after quite a few years of hard use in my kayak.  I do know that they all performed much better after i sent them to DVT for servicing.

[dam0007]

I really like my Citica and Curado G reels. They serve their purpose. I actually like them more than my Chronarch E series reels due to ergonomics, people with short fingers like myself know what I'm talking about. I'm just getting my feet wet this year with the newer stuff Met, I series Curado and Citica, Chronarch Ci4 etc. 1 thing is for sure none of them perform as good as the 1001XT for my taste/workflow. 

[Cgrinder]

I think the Ci4+ was kind of a "hey look what we can do with this neat material" reel. I'm getting rid of mine but not because of the feel (4 pin red SVS and I are never going to get along). The reel feels different but not bad or cheap. Also its just about the only thing that's comfortable to palm on that stupid ergonomic reel seat that Shimano is using now.

At least Shimano isn't Daiwa, who still for whatever reason thinks the T-wing is a good idea.

[Raul]

15 minutes ago, Cgrinder said:

I think the Ci4+ was kind of a "hey look what we can do with this neat material" reel. I'm getting rid of mine but not because of the feel (4 pin red SVS and I are never going to get along). The reel feels different but not bad or cheap. Also its just about the only thing that's comfortable to palm on that stupid ergonomic reel seat that Shimano is using now.

At least Shimano isn't Daiwa, who still for whatever reason thinks the T-wing is a good idea.

I´ve been a Shimano / Daiwa customer since the day Abu put away that junk of a reel called Torno: Shimano pretty much "gets it right" every time, Daiwa not so much, for whatever reason they insist in "improving" something that really needs no improvements with some sort of "innovative" development, innovation may run through Daiwa´s veins but such innovation is sometimes too much. For example you only need a button:

Not many here know about this one, what a POS ! and I´m not talking just because, a friend of mine actually purchased one and I´ve had it in my hands. When Daiwa´s innovation screws badly !

[J Francho]

I like that Daiwa takes risks.  On the other side of that hideous coin above, is Mag V/Z braking systems.

[IAY]

3 hours ago, Cgrinder said:

I think the Ci4+ was kind of a "hey look what we can do with this neat material" reel. I'm getting rid of mine but not because of the feel (4 pin red SVS and I are never going to get along). The reel feels different but not bad or cheap. Also its just about the only thing that's comfortable to palm on that stupid ergonomic reel seat that Shimano is using now.

At least Shimano isn't Daiwa, who still for whatever reason thinks the T-wing is a good idea.

The line management with way I cast is wayyyyy better with T-Wing than anything else I got in my arsenal.

[dam0007]

T Wing aside, the Tatula platform is rock solid for the money. I don't think anyone can deny that. 

[QUAKEnSHAKE]

9 hours ago, Raul said:

I´ve been a Shimano / Daiwa customer since the day Abu put away that junk of a reel called Torno: Shimano pretty much "gets it right" every time, Daiwa not so much, for whatever reason they insist in "improving" something that really needs no improvements with some sort of "innovative" development, innovation may run through Daiwa´s veins but such innovation is sometimes too much. For example you only need a button:

 

Not many here know about this one, what a POS ! and I´m not talking just because, a friend of mine actually purchased one and I´ve had it in my hands. When Daiwa´s innovation screws badly !

You learn more through failures than with success Daiwa has learned a whole lot.

[QUAKEnSHAKE]

15 hours ago, 0119 said:

Only to you perhaps or be it your opinion. Opinion, something everyone is entitled to.  Its been much less than a decade in fact just this spring when I bought 2 Chronarch CI4's in effort to give shimano another try.  The huge gap surrounding the plastic brake dial was instrumental in allowing plenty of water into the reel.  Unimpressed.

Are you going to follow every post I make while policing me in my points purgatory? Always having a snide comment..... Please just ban me and lets get this over with......

I second that motion  

 

[Raul]

10 hours ago, QUAKEnSHAKE said:

You learn more through failures than with success Daiwa has learned a whole lot.

Apparantly they don't, imho, they ruined very good reels by adding the TWS, it's an "improvement" they didn't need.

[fisherrw]

2 hours ago, Raul said:

Apparantly they don't, imho, they ruined very good reels by adding the TWS, it's an "improvement" they didn't need.

I second this. I owned a t3 for a while and liked the reel but hated the t wing....

[clh121787]

On 5/5/2016 at 1:05 AM, J Francho said:

The Pure Fishing clones and related Lew's have some of the nicest feeling thumbar spool release and engage in the biz. I work on reels - seriously, lots of them - and I know why they feel "nice" in this way. There's a cost to that. There's a coat to the tightness in a Daiwa, and the sweet feel of their brakes. Shimanos are very mechanical and precise, despite a tiny bit of spool slop. Pick your poison. Or try an Okuma, Pinnacle, or other brand for that matter. They have their own personality too. Spend some coin, and don't compare entry level stuff. It's a good time to buy reels. 

What do you mean by spool slop? Is that side to side movement when the spool tension know is backed off 

[J Francho]

If you flush all the excessive grease, and there's a tiny bit of for and aft movement of the spool, when it's in gear. It isn't a bad thing, and has to do with the super beefy AR roller bearing. The cylinders are larger than many other brands, so there's a micro millimeter of movement required before the the one way bearing locks. 

Movement side to side would be worn out shims, or too loose a spool tension. Totally different. 

In contrast, Daiwa and PF use very narrow cylinders for their AR roller bearings, but compensate by using almost twice as many. 

Hope that helped.

[Nick S]

2 hours ago, J Francho said:

If you flush all the excessive grease, and there's a tiny bit of for and aft movement of the spool, when it's in gear. It isn't a bad thing, and has to do with the super beefy AR roller bearing. The cylinders are larger than many other brands, so there's a micro millimeter of movement required before the the one way bearing locks. 

Movement side to side would be worn out shims, or too loose a spool tension. Totally different. 

In contrast, Daiwa and PF use very narrow cylinders for their AR roller bearings, but compensate by using almost twice as many. 

Hope that helped.

If you are holding the handle tight and there's front to back play in the spool it's not possible for it to be caused by the ar bearing. If it was caused by the ar bearing the handle would have the same movement. What causes slop in most shimano spools is the notch in the pinion gear that slips over the spool pin doesn't fit tight. 

[J Francho]

There's that too, but that's for every reel. 

[fisherrw]

10 minutes ago, J Francho said:

There's that too, but that's for every reel. 

x2

[primetime]

I think you can get amazing deals on Fishing Reels these days and as mentioned I think every company makes good quality reels depending on price point etc...I seem to love every high end reel I have ever held from the major companies and even House brands...

I don't really care where stuff is made, I find if I take care of it, I will be happy, and if I have a problem, it seems companies are more than happy to help you out since competition is tight these days...

I am often amazed at some of the deals you can find for what I consider High end reels..$100-$150 is the most I will spend but that works for me, I am not the type of person who notices little differences in one reel to the next....

As long as they cast and reel, have a smooth drag, I am happy...and I must be lucky because I have a Silver Max that is 5 years old if not more that works fine...I guess it is not as smooth as my newer reels, but if I pick it up and the right lure is on it that day, I may use it all day with much better stuff laying down next to it...

I guess it is all about what makes you happy..Nothing wrong with buying expensive reels or inexpensive reels as long as you have your expectations regarding "Value" realistic. And that is not a knock vs. any comments above...I actually have never really looked at the Shimano pages that go past the Caenan, Citica, and Curado...Or the Tatula for Daiwa...Revo for Abu...I just can't spend the money on the top end stuff that retails for over $200 but I am sure if I owned one, I would not find anything wrong with it....

I think the industry is in a race for lighter reels, and faster, so I don't know if the lighter exterior means less quality, even if it does, light casting reels are really nice....