d-camarena Posted January 9, 2017 Posted January 9, 2017 Just get a shimano sienna and call it a day 1 Quote
KDW96 Posted January 9, 2017 Posted January 9, 2017 On 1/8/2017 at 1:11 AM, jsh32 said: I know https://www.favoriteusa.com/ has some reels starting at 19.99 and go up to 149.99. I personally have never used them but they say they are made in the US and the YouTube guys I watch like them from what I have watched. If you were to get them I would love to see a solid review on the reel you picked and how it performed for you, I have been looking at some of their stuff since I heard the brands name from one of the YouTube guys videos, but don't know what to think since I know no where around here (or probably anywhere near me) has them in stock for me to actually hold before I buy. I don't know where most brands are being made to be honest, but I do know that Daiwa, and Shimano are making some of the better reels right now and everyone I have seen on this site love Pflueger. I totally understand wanting to buy "Made in the USA" products, but if you are looking for the best bang for your buck products, I would at least check those brands out. I just emailed them, and asked if the rod and reels are made in the usa. I will post the response,if i get one Quote
lonnie g Posted January 9, 2017 Posted January 9, 2017 I applaud wanting to buy in usa. nothing wrong with that. some times we don't have a choice. sad but true. was talking with person at A.L. he said as far as spinning reels shimano hard to beat . casting reel felt like they may have fell behind a bit compared to others. most companies have web sites, nothing wrong with voicing concern about american jobs. I have always heard the squeaky wheel gets the grease! my father once told me a lot of people complain about a lot of things. instead of asking what can I do to help solve the problem. good luck in your search tight lines this year my friend lonnie Quote
basszilla Posted January 10, 2017 Author Posted January 10, 2017 Thanks to everyone who replied. I considered all the suggestions, but in the end, I wasn't all that comfortable buying a model that I couldn't hold first. Another problem was that when I followed up on some of the make/model recommendations, it turned out they were made in various places. Some of the ones you guys bought that were made in Japan were also made in Malaysia or China around the same time. I guess it was the mid-'80s when companies began offshoring the work. Rather than spending the next two months searching through eBay auctions, I decided to just buy the old Mitchell 300. Getting one of those in decent shape without paying a collector's value is a challenge, but there are a few around. This will be more than good enough for Saturday morning fishing, and there are tons of parts out there in case it breaks. Now I just need to find a lightweight rod and maybe fill out a second tackle box. Thanks again for all the comments and advice! Quote
Super User Goose52 Posted January 10, 2017 Super User Posted January 10, 2017 6 hours ago, basszilla said: ........... I decided to just buy the old Mitchell 300. Getting one of those in decent shape without paying a collector's value is a challenge, but there are a few around. This will be more than good enough for Saturday morning fishing, and there are tons of parts out there in case it breaks. To each his own...ya gotta use the gear that you're comfortable with (for whatever reason)... I still occasionally fish a made-in-France Mitchell 408 that I've now owned for 50 years. It works, is smooth, and gets the job done. BUT, the aggravating thing about using these early Mitchells (for those of us accustomed to using modern spinning reels) is the lack of manual bail close. Unless you want to try to pry out the little bolt that holds the bail open...the only way to close the bail is to crank the handle. This induces some additional unnecessary line twist and is a general pain in the butt. My muscle memory is to reach up and manually close the bait at the end of the cast and that doesn't work for the old Mitchells. Otherwise, they are nifty reels... Quote
The Bassman Posted January 10, 2017 Posted January 10, 2017 12 minutes ago, Goose52 said: To each his own...ya gotta use the gear that you're comfortable with (for whatever reason)... I still occasionally fish a made-in-France Mitchell 408 that I've now owned for 50 years. It works, is smooth, and gets the job done. BUT, the aggravating thing about using these early Mitchells (for those of us accustomed to using modern spinning reels) is the lack of manual bail close. Unless you want to try to pry out the little bolt that holds the bail open...the only way to close the bail is to crank the handle. This induces some additional unnecessary line twist and is a general pain in the butt. My muscle memory is to reach up and manually close the bait at the end of the cast and that doesn't work for the old Mitchells. Otherwise, they are nifty reels... Bail springs broke pretty regularly, too. Quote
basszilla Posted January 11, 2017 Author Posted January 11, 2017 C'mon guys, no reason to bash 'em. I know about the bail, and I wish it had rear drag adjust, too. Never had a problem with the spring on mine, but I can see online it's a common failure. Maybe that's because they're 60 years old now. Anyway, the springs are cheap, and the Mitchells are easy to maintain and fix. One thing's for sure - none of these issues will keep me from catching fish. Incidentally, is there a comprehensive list anywhere of all the Mitchell model numbers and their descriptions (saltwater, fast retrieve, commemorative, etc.)? I'm not intending to take up reel collecting as another hobby, but maybe there's a model I'd like better than the 300. Can't seem to find all of them in one place... Quote
nstec Posted January 11, 2017 Posted January 11, 2017 On 1/8/2017 at 1:31 AM, Sam said: Even the Bass Pro Shops rods are of good quality, especially their Cranking Sticks. As for their reels, I don't know who manufacturers them. You will have to inquire about that from BPS. But I would surmise that they are made in the USA. As far as I can tell, the BPS reels are almost definitely made in the same plant as Lew's reels (so not the USA). Quote
Super User Goose52 Posted January 11, 2017 Super User Posted January 11, 2017 14 minutes ago, basszilla said: Incidentally, is there a comprehensive list anywhere of all the Mitchell model numbers and their descriptions (saltwater, fast retrieve, commemorative, etc.)? I'm not intending to take up reel collecting as another hobby, but maybe there's a model I'd like better than the 300. Can't seem to find all of them in one place... I had one site bookmarked that was pretty good and when I just launched the link my AV program identified it as containing malware so I bailed out. (It was Mitchellreelmuseum.com). Don't have anything else bookmarked so you might want to Google it... Quote
Captain Phil Posted October 13, 2020 Posted October 13, 2020 Found this on the web. Among Daiwa and Shimano proucts, MSRP$300-400 or higher products are Made in Japan. Products sold at lower are mostly made at factories outside Japan, like Thailand, Malaysia and etc. In my opinion, the best low cost spinning reels are the Daiwa Black Gold series. They are light, reliable and affordable. 1 Quote
waymont Posted October 13, 2020 Posted October 13, 2020 On 1/9/2017 at 8:57 AM, lonnie g said: casting reel felt like they may have fell behind a bit compared to others. Shimano make some of the best casting reels in the world. Just read about them all over this site. Quote
redmeansdistortion Posted October 13, 2020 Posted October 13, 2020 5 hours ago, Captain Phil said: Found this on the web. Among Daiwa and Shimano proucts, MSRP$300-400 or higher products are Made in Japan. Products sold at lower are mostly made at factories outside Japan, like Thailand, Malaysia and etc. In my opinion, the best low cost spinning reels are the Daiwa Black Gold series. They are light, reliable and affordable. The new Daiwa Luvias LT is now made in China. The very first run of the new model were made in Japan but I'm wondering if the pandemic had something to do with it. I have a 2000S-XH I use for brook trout and thought I was buying a Japanese made product. When I emailed Japan Tackle they told me what was going on then updated their website accordingly. Quote
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