I need help choosing a reel

[Michael rodriguez]

I am looking for my first baitcasting reel. I have been using a spinning forever and wanted to get into baitcasters.

what would be a good choice for around 70-80 dollars including used reels? I already have a gander mtn vortex 7 foot medium heavy rod. Also what's a good place for used reels other than eBay 

[Yudo1]

If that was my budget, I'd look for a used, aluminum, left-hand reel.  I prefer daiwa/shimano, but lews and abu also make great reels IMO. 

[Nor-Cal Basser]

You can find a brand new Lews LFS on EBay right in your budget. They're solid reels with an aluminum frame. I'm a little weird about buying used reels unless I know the person I'm buying from, though plenty of people buy used reels without having any issues.

[SFL BassHunter]

Michael if you could step up to 100 you could find the Daiwa Tatula CT which is a phenomenal reel. Learning to cast on it should be much easier than what I learned on. Don't skimp on your first reel, make sure you get something with good brakes if you've never used a baitcaster. The CT is such an impressive reel, that I think can do anything you'll want it to do and has a great brake system.

 

I started with a 49 dollar BPS Megacast and I regret it to this day. I almost gave up on the baitcaster from the frustration. I was convinced to get something of better quality like the Pro Qualifier with Centrifugal brakes. The PQ is a 100 dollar reel that can be had for 50, or 75 when on sale at BPS. Gotta wait it out, but if I was going to pay 100 for the PQ I would MUCH rather pay 100 for a Tatula CT.

 

As far as reels in the 70-80 price range, if you just can't go any higher, I've heard the Daiwa Aird is a good reel and currently the Aird Coastal is on sale for 50 on TW.

A PQ on sale is a decent reel. Served me well for 2 years. But I've moved on from them.

 

Good luck finding a reel that fits your needs. I started off just like you wanting a budget reel under 100. Now those reels are sitting in a box collecting dust.

 

Edit:

Nor-Cal mentioned Lews and they make some good reels too and are budget friendly.

 

[Michael rodriguez]

I totally agree SFL bass hunter, this would actually be my second baitcaster, my first was a Shakespeare alpha and it was terrible

[new2BC4bass]

H2O Mettle at Sport's Academy also gets very good reviews.  Has aluminum frame.  One of the Moderator's uses several.  Also look at the Daiwa Exceler.  Fishnkamp says it is an excellent reel.  On sale at TW for $59.99.  Think I'd rather have the Exceler than the Aird.

[SFL BassHunter]

10 minutes ago, Michael rodriguez said:

I totally agree SFL bass hunter, this would actually be my second baitcaster, my first was a Shakespeare alpha and it was terrible

Oh good so you've gotten past the learning how to cast one phase! That's good!

 

A Shakespeare Alpha combo is 40 bucks. My god that must have been atrocious. I wanted to throw my megacast in the water so many times, I can only imagine the Alpha...I don't want to imagine the Alpha lol.

[Michael rodriguez]

I can afford a 100 dollar reel just wasn't sure if it was worth it

[burrows]

Shimano caenan I had the older version and it was a great reel. The new one is even better. I have a casitas it's in your price range and i love the way that reel cast I recommend the casitas or caenan to get started on baitcasters. There is going to be many opinions on this thread, go shimano brother you won't regret it.

[Michael rodriguez]

I've been looking at a Lews tournament Sk on amazon for 75 dollars, is that a good reel

[BrianSnat]

I've picked up a Lews Speed Spool and a Diawa Tatula for slightly LT 100. Both are good reels for the money. For another $25 the Lews Tournament is a very nice reel.  

 

Yudo1 brought up a good point.  Like you, I was a life time spin fisherman.  After over 40 years of only using spinning reels I decided to go with lefty bait casters.  I was used to cranking with my left and working the rod with my right and didn't want to switch. 

Once you get the hang of it you'll love baitcasters. In the three years since I started bait casting, I now have 5 baitcasting outfits and they all are always in my boat when I'm bassing.  All but 2 or 3 of my spinning outfits stay home.

[burrows]

Lews lol

[Angry John]

I would look for a used daiwa advantage 153 supertuned htsl.  It was the reel i learned on, they are cheap used and its a quality reel that i still use.  right or left hand your choice.    

[CTBassin860]

100 bucks id be looking at the PQ2,Abu Garcia orra sx,daiwa tatula ct,*** ***.

My first bc was an Abu Garcia silver max combo.Guy at Wal-Mart sold it to me for 15 bucks because it had no price tag and was in the wrong rod rack.Paid the man before he could change his mind.

[Michael rodriguez]

I may be able to go to 150

[burrows]

2 minutes ago, Michael rodriguez said:

I may be able to go to 150

Citica I 

[SFL BassHunter]

You're going to get so many different answers here that honestly it won't help. My recommendation is to go to a few big box stores like BPS and take your baitcaster rod. Try a bunch of reels on it and figure out which you feel suits you best.

 

Reason I say this is from experience. I have a Shimano DC7 which is a great reel, but it sits really high off the rod. Even though I have big hands I find it to be uncomfortable in the way I hold my rod and reel. I tried throwing a HB frog on it for a while and realized my hand was cramping up rather quickly.

I then got a Daiwa Tatula Tactical (about the same thing as a Type R) which is a BIG reel. It's bulky to the point where some people weren't happy and Dawia came out with the CT line which is basically the same reel, but more compact. Even though the DC7 bothers me the Tatula doesn't. It sits low on the rod and even with its bulky width I can manage it with no problem.

 

When you are fishing for 4-8 hours, you want to make sure comfort is an important factor in your decision.

 

Daiwa, Shimano, Lews you won't go wrong. But eventually you may find you prefer one over another as I have. If I was starting all over again, I would purchase 5 Tatulas, maybe even throw a Zillion TWS in there since they are on sale. It took me 2 years of fishing different reels to find the ones that fit best for me in comfort, budget, and performance.

 

[burrows]

Conclusion of this matter Diawa or shimano it's your first high end baitcaster. Don't screw this up man! lol I'm just playing man no but really Diawa or shimano hahaha

[Michael rodriguez]

Thanks sfl basshunter I will do that, I had the feeling that I had to feel the reel before I bought it.

[CrustyMono]

good time to buy good reels cheap.

[Jim72]

I got into baitcasters last yr after using spinning reels my whole life.i got a Lews  and I love it.i. Just picked Up a Daiwa tatula ct and I am very impressed with it both reels have aluminum frames very smooth .the Lews has magnetic and centrifical brakes the Daiwa has magnetic .i would recommend the ct you can get them for a 100 or less if you look around or wait for a sale.the tatula ct is effortless to cast and the brakes are very good in helping to eliminate backlashes (professional overrun).watch some vids on how to setup a baitcaster with the tension knob and brakes,that helped me quite a bit .i still use my spinning rod but I fish mainly with my  baitcasters .

[burrows]

Conclusion of this matter Diawa or shimano it's your first high end baitcaster. Don't screw this up man! lol I'm just playing man no but really Diawa or shimano hahaha.

I'm just joking really everyone has a brand that they are adamant about wether lews,abu,phluger whatever. I think the reason we are so passionate about a certain product is because of past mistakes and the learning process which could take more than just one high end reel to figure out what is ultimately best for you most of us are adamant with this topic because we went threw those problems with prior reels during the process of investing in a high end reel I guess what I'm trying to say is We don't want you to make the mistakes that we made.

[lonnie g]

be careful on used reels   might look good on outside but be wore out on inside  get as much info as possible on used one   a great new reel is revo stx  6.4 is most popular  ther are deals out there  I just gave $124.95 free shipping a little more than you suggested   I love using it tho.  been using my cousins when visiting him on lay lake in Alabama. is why I bought my own 

[Darren.]

Welcome aboard, Michael!

 

I'd hunt on ebay for Daiwa Exceler reels in your
price range. I used to have a Lexa and the Exceler
is almost identical, but less expensive.

[webertime]

19 hours ago, Michael rodriguez said:

I am looking for my first baitcasting reel. I have been using a spinning forever and wanted to get into baitcasters.

what would be a good choice for around 70-80 dollars including used reels? I already have a gander mtn vortex 7 foot medium heavy rod. Also what's a good place for used reels other than eBay 

TW has Daiwa Exceller for $60

Amazon and EBay will get you Daiwa Tatulas for $75 and Daiwa Tatula CT for $100 both new.

 

Buy new for your first reel, at least you know it's 100% when you get your hands on it.  You wear it out or break it, then fix it.  Get comfortable with them then embark on used.