Talk me out of buying a Shimano Casitas

[MisterDeadeye]

I've been wanting to get back into baitcasting for a while now. The last time I used one was probably 10 years ago and then I went to college, my parents moved(with all of my fishing gear), and I haven't talked to my dad for several years. So, I'm not going to try getting my stuff back and I really didn't have anything good as a kid anyway. I don't remember what kind of low profile casting reel I had, but I used Abu Ambassadeurs for catfishing, so I'm not a beginner. I won't mind tinkering with breaks and dealing with backlashes for a while, so I don't need something dynamic like Daiwa's Magforce.

 

After reading several reviews of several reels, after sifting through forum posts on here and elsewhere, and after watching dozens of videos, I think I've decided to go with the Casitas over any other comparably priced reel(absolutely has to be under $100). My main reason is casting distance. I don't have a bass boat and the lakes I go to are heavily fished by casuals out camping, kids, etc, and they're mostly ~60 acres or less. Because I'm bank fishing and because of the shape of the lakes, I want a reel that can really bomb casts when necessary. 

 

During my research, I came across a channel that tests reels for casting distance. He uses the same rods, takes a long time dialing in the brakes before doing the "official" testing, then he does several casts showing footage of it all. He did a $100 reel shootout including the Revo X, Fuego CT, Lew's Speed Spool LFS, *** Origin C, the Quantum Accurist PT, and the Casitas. In each of the tests, the Casitas casted further than every other reel in the lineup, and it did so from a weightless senko, to a lipless crank, a 1/4oz squarebill and an 1/8 oz floating minnow. I'm looking for a reel that can cast almost everything well, and so far I think the Casitas takes the cake. 

 

I've been trying to think of any downsides or of any possible reels that can cast better than the Casitas at or below the same price point and I've only come up with the graphite body. The Lew's and the Fuego have aluminum frames, but they still have graphite sideplates and graphite drag stars, so the only real difference in breaking point for the Casitas is the reel seat. I'm not going to be taking my reel off the rod unless I buy something else and need to move something over, so I'm not sure if the graphite is even important.

 

Please, can someone give me other recommendations at or under $100? Does anyone here have any experience with the Casitas compared to other reels at the same price point? I'll be honest, I haven't owned a Shimano baitcasting reel before, and I kind of want to see what the hype is about without going straight for a Curado(and the Citica is basically the same price right now), but the actual performance of the Casitas seems to be better than the other reels I've looked at despite people recommending them over the Casitas. 

[Big-Bass]

Get a Fuego CT.  Done deal.

[Tywithay]

The reel seat wouldn't be a major area of concern, in my opinion. A graphite frame vs. aluminum frame could at some point affect gear alignment, depending on the quality of the graphite. In the past, cheaper graphite frames had a bit of flex. As far as casting distance, I can't be much help. I have a dickens of a time using any of the newer Shimano reels and have chosen to stuck with Daiwa. I can cast my Tatula almost 15 yards further than I could cast my Curado K (actually tested it and measured the distances). I would say my Fuego is very similar distance-wise to the Tatula, though I haven't officially measured it, just the eye test.

[grub_man]

The Casitas seems like a great reel.  I'm a huge fan of the older Shimano Citica and Curado from the 90's and early 2k's.  Fortunately I hadn't felt a pressing need for anything new after prices got jacked up through the roof on those lines until this year.  In the meantime, they discontinued the little Cardiff 100a round reel that would have been my choice going forward.  The steeper prices and switch to seasonal updates and planned obselescence is a large departure from what made Shimano reels so great in the past.  I now no longer see them offering models for the long term.  So it was back to the drawing board.

 

I stopped in a little mom and pop tackle shop this spring in search of a reel to get mounted on a new build to replace my old worm/jig rod and Curado that got donated to the fishing gods last spring.  Unfortunately they did not stock the Casitas.  In comparing a few options from Lew's and Abu Garcia, I ended up going with the Revo X.  The biggest reason was its aluminum frame.  The other options I was looking at were graphite frames.  It's the first magnetic braking reel I've used since my old trusty Shimano Coriolis reels, and it's really not that bad.  With the spool tension set just tight enough to keep the spool from moving side to side and the brakes turned all of the way down, it will reach a cast out there if your thumb is well educated.

 

I've been using it lately on my shaky head rod and casting a T-rigged 5" grub and 1/4 oz. weight to boat docks and other cover.  I have to say that so far, I'm pretty impressed.  It's the first low profile reel from a manufacturer other than Shimano that I've genuinely liked enough to not feel regret or the need to return for a Shimano.

 

I know it may not have fared the best in the $100 reel shootout, but so far it feels like a solid performer.  I still prefer centrifugal brakes for casting light lures for distance, but with heavier loads, I don't feel like I'm giving up all that much with the magnetic brakes in the Revo.  They don't seem as strong as some of the magnetic brakes of days gone by.

 

This is just my experience with the Revo X.  Your mileage may vary, and I understand the good hard look at a Shimano reel.

[MisterDeadeye]

17 minutes ago, Tywithay said:

The reel seat wouldn't be a major area of concern, in my opinion. A graphite frame vs. aluminum frame could at some point affect gear alignment, depending on the quality of the graphite. In the past, cheaper graphite frames had a bit of flex. As far as casting distance, I can't be much help. I have a dickens of a time using any of the newer Shimano reels and have chosen to stuck with Daiwa. I can cast my Tatula almost 15 yards further than I could cast my Curado K (actually tested it and measured the distances). I would say my Fuego is very similar distance-wise to the Tatula, though I haven't officially measured it, just the eye test.

 

I forgot about gear alignment, but I was aware of it. Thanks for bringing it up, it could be an important factor. Honestly if I get back into the swing of things and get a little more serious, I'll eventually need another rod and reel and at that point I'll probably go for something a little nicer with a metal frame. We don't have many monster bass around me, no muskie or stripers etc, so I'm probably not going to be catching anything bigger than 5-7lb with this reel, and I don't know if I'm going to make trips North or South to get into some big fish especially without a boat. 

 

8 minutes ago, grub_man said:

The Casitas seems like a great reel.  I'm a huge fan of the older Shimano Citica and Curado from the 90's and early 2k's.  Fortunately I hadn't felt a pressing need for anything new after prices got jacked up through the roof on those lines until this year.  In the meantime, they discontinued the little Cardiff 100a round reel that would have been my choice going forward.  The steeper prices and switch to seasonal updates and planned obselescence is a large departure from what made Shimano reels so great in the past.  I now no longer see them offering models for the long term.  So it was back to the drawing board.

 

I stopped in a little mom and pop tackle shop this spring in search of a reel to get mounted on a new build to replace my old worm/jig rod and Curado that got donated to the fishing gods last spring.  Unfortunately they did not stock the Casitas.  In comparing a few options from Lew's and Abu Garcia, I ended up going with the Revo X.  The biggest reason was its aluminum frame.  The other options I was looking at were graphite frames.  It's the first magnetic braking reel I've used since my old trusty Shimano Coriolis reels, and it's really not that bad.  With the spool tension set just tight enough to keep the spool from moving side to side and the brakes turned all of the way down, it will reach a cast out there if your thumb is well educated.

 

I've been using it lately on my shaky head rod and casting a T-rigged 5" grub and 1/4 oz. weight to boat docks and other cover.  I have to say that so far, I'm pretty impressed.  It's the first low profile reel from a manufacturer other than Shimano that I've genuinely liked enough to not feel regret or the need to return for a Shimano.

 

I know it may not have fared the best in the $100 reel shootout, but so far it feels like a solid performer.  I still prefer centrifugal brakes for casting light lures for distance, but with heavier loads, I don't feel like I'm giving up all that much with the magnetic brakes in the Revo.  They don't seem as strong as some of the magnetic brakes of days gone by.

 

This is just my experience with the Revo X.  Your mileage may vary, and I understand the good hard look at a Shimano reel.

 

See, when I was a kid and I fished with my dad a lot, we used Abu Garcia and Spiderwire. It's almost seared into my mind that I should go with them and that's part of what's holding me back from snagging the Casitas. I'll mostly be throwing T-rigged stick baits with and without weights and some flukes, but I'll probably be throwing frogs and spinnerbaits, some jigs, etc. 

 

The Revo's braking system and the lack of centrifugal brakes were partly what turned me off of it. My thought process was that with both kinds of brakes, I'd be able to throw more lures, farther. I don't know what to do. Maybe it's time to flip a coin.

[JustJames]

Don't buy Shimano.

[long island basser]

Very nice reels. Bought one at the start of last year, liked it so much just bought another    

a couple months ago. Comfortable in hand, cast great, very happy with them.

I like em better then my Lews tournament pro, team Lews pro z, tournament mb’s, and *** ***. While all these are very good reels imo, the casitas are my new favorites.

[puddlepuncher]

Don't buy the Casitas it's not worth the price.  Save up another $60 and the the Casitas MGL and you've got an unbelievable reel for the price and it will throw the lighter stuff too.

[d-camarena]

Its an awesome reel, palms great. Its a good workhorse. Theres a huge daiwa bandwagon going around now but that does not mean shimanos are bad. Just means they need to work on advertising. They still make the best reels in my opinion. 

[MassYak85]

You can get a Diawa Tatula CT brand new on Ebay right now for 90 bucks. I haven't tried the Casitas and haven't heard anything bad about them, but you might get a better bang for your buck with that deal. 

[WRB]

Lots of reel clearance sales going on at TW now.

Tom

[Quarry Man]

https://www.ebay.com/itm/253663574185?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1558.l2649

 

buy the one im selling! it is a great reel!

[new2BC4bass]

I was going to talk you into buying the Antares until you mentioned a $100 limit. 

 

I also fish from shore and like to be able to reach way out there............but I couldn't tell you which reel casts the furthest.  I've never taken them to a park where I could make some honest measurements.

 

Sounds to me like you've done your research, you know the reel you want and now it is time to spend your money. 

 

Welcome to the forum.

[LCG]

Daiwa fuego ct. Aluminum frame, longer handle, solid braking system. You will not be disappointed. 

[Backroad Angler]

Big fan the casitas, been fishing with it for about a season and its a great reel! The only negative thing people talk about it is the graphite frame.

[NYWayfarer]

Message sent.

[Brad in Texas]

I can only comment on the Casitas, no experience with some of the others mentioned here. For around $100, I think it is just a great caster, super easy and straight-forward to use. Nothing much fancy about it and I really like the material it is made of.

 

My gear "overlap" is likely higher than most, so I tend to use spinning tackle well up into the range of applications normally assigned to casting reels. So, if I am throwing something down around 1/4 oz., I'm on spinning gear and rarely want to try too hard to make a casting reel work.  Others do it just the opposite where they push really hard to use casting reels to throw light stuff instead of spinning reels to throw slightly larger things. There are several makes and models out there of bait casters pushing lighter and lighter . . . but most are pretty expensive.

 

Brad

 

[Dangerfield]

Came here to vote Fuego but the Casitas is a great value compared to Daiwa's offerings at ~$100. I avoided Shimano due to the braking system.

[deep]

21 hours ago, MisterDeadeye said:

 

Please, can someone give me other recommendations at or under $100? Does anyone here have any experience with the Casitas compared to other reels at the same price point? I'll be honest, I haven't owned a Shimano baitcasting reel before, and I kind of want to see what the hype is about without going straight for a Curado(and the Citica is basically the same price right now), but the actual performance of the Casitas seems to be better than the other reels I've looked at despite people recommending them over the Casitas. 

 

No experience with any of the reels you mention in the third paragraph of your OP.

 

Day in and day out, I fish a variety of baits on my Curado 71's though. 1/4 oz all the way to 1.5 oz.

 

Now I understand that's out of your price range. No worries. Before I got the 71's, I used to fish them on Curado 201I's. They throw light stuff just fine. Citica I's are not saltwater safe IIRC, but otherwise, they should have comparable performance.

 

Before the Curado I's, I used to use Curado G's. They worked just as well.

 

Still have and fish the I's and the G's; I use them for specific conditions (and not as often as the 71's).