$150ish to spend on a new baitcaster

[jdr99a]

I’ve got $150ish in Academy gift cards burning a hole in my pocket. I’m in the market for a new baitcaster. It will be used as a general purpose reel. I’m still new to the whole fishing game and I’m eager to learn more...and I like new toys. 

What baitcaster would you recommend in the $150ish price range? 

[Delaware Valley Tackle]

$150 is good budget for a quality reel. Choose a brand name with features you find attractive and you’ll be fine. Being new to bait casters I suggest something with centrifugal or dual braking. 

[bwjay]

The SLX XT is a great value reel and works well for all applications IMO. Despite having multiple higher priced reels that I love, the SLX XT earns its keep in my lineup and I have no plans to sell it. Throw some 30-40lb braid on it and enjoy!

[Hammer 4]

26 minutes ago, bwjay said:

The SLX XT is a great value reel and works well for all applications IMO. Despite having multiple higher priced reels that I love, the SLX XT earns its keep in my lineup and I have no plans to sell it. Throw some 30-40lb braid on it and enjoy!

I would suggest, being that the OP stated he was "new", that braid wouldn't be the best option in this case. Some 10 or 12 lb Quality mono would be better to learn with. There are several good lines that are non memory that would fit the bill. 

[NYWayfarer]

Lew’s Tournament MP $149.99 aluminum framed, dual brake reel. I highly recommend this reel to those new to baitcasters. Once it’s set properly it’s very forgiving of the mistakes most folks make. Anything short of hooking a bush on the back cast and you will be ok. Spool it with 12 Berkley Big Game and have fun.

[FishTank]

How about the Shimano Curado K?  You can find it sometimes on Amazon for $160 and I think Academy will match their price.  Its a great reel, pretty basic but well built and it would be great for someone new to baitcasters.  Also, I would start out with some cheap mono for line.  Trilene XL or Stren 10lb would work out great just in case you have a monster backlash. 

[Catt]

9 hours ago, NYWayfarer said:

Lew’s Tournament MP $149.99 aluminum framed, dual brake reel. I highly recommend this reel to those new to baitcasters. Once it’s set properly it’s very forgiving of the mistakes most folks make. Anything short of hooking a bush on the back cast and you will be ok. Spool it with 12 Berkley Big Game and have fun.

 

Got one, outstanding reel ?

[BoatSquirrel]

The Daiwa Tatula has been absolutely superb for me. Good luck man!

[Teal]

I'm impartial to the lews.  They are all good reels. I have several.   My nephew is young and getting into bass fishing. He recently bought a new Abu Revo X.  They are 99.99.  He swears by them.  If you can find something in that price range there is more money for line, baits, etc.  

[plawren53202]

12 hours ago, NYWayfarer said:

Lew’s Tournament MP $149.99 aluminum framed, dual brake reel. I highly recommend this reel to those new to baitcasters. Once it’s set properly it’s very forgiving of the mistakes most folks make. Anything short of hooking a bush on the back cast and you will be ok. Spool it with 12 Berkley Big Game and have fun.

I just got one of these as well, about a week ago.  With a little looking you can find one on sale for 119.  

 

Stepping up from the $50 Lew's Classic Pro, the Tournament MP has blown me away so far.  Once I got the dual brakes dialed in, it has been amazing at controlling backlash.  Also casting distance is outstanding.

 

Granted this is my first experience with a reel in this price range, but so far I love everything about the Tournament MP.

[Pogues2300]

I learned on a daiwa tatula ct and i found it to be a pretty easy process spooled with 12lb trilene xl. 129$. It's now my wife's first baitcaster. Solid reel for the price. 

[bwjay]

15 hours ago, Hammer 4 said:

I would suggest, being that the OP stated he was "new", that braid wouldn't be the best option in this case. Some 10 or 12 lb Quality mono would be better to learn with. There are several good lines that are non memory that would fit the bill. 

Braid is a great option for beginners ESPECIALLY when talking about baitcasters! Line management is much easier with braid on both types of reels. You don't have to try and find "low memory" mono or copoly lines which never stay that way unless you use line conditioner (try telling a beginner they need to condition their line every couple uses).

 

Yes, tying a leader is a slight learning curve, but the Double Uni is actually quite easy to learn and to tie and works in almost every scenario. Another option, though not ideal, is to tie a 12-18" leader with a swivel (anything longer makes it hard to cast) so you can use a Palomar or whatever you're comfortable with that you'd normally tie to bait with, and then a snap on the leader end so you aren't trimming it away to re-tie. You're adding more hardware which may or may not defeat the purpose of a leader, but I think it's still better than straight braid in terms of line shy fish.

 

Braid is also forgiving for beginners because of the almost-nonexistent stretch which means you don't need hard hooksets for anything but heavy wire jig or swimbait hooks. Braid is also more sensitive so you can feel the bottom and bites better than with mono or copoly. The only real downside of braid is the visibility and I think it makes up for it with all of the other pros I mentioned.

[Tywithay]

I'd 100% reccomend the new version of the Tatula.

[FryDog62]

I’ve had a lot of <$150 Lew’s reels and really liked them - for about 2 years.  Then, most of them started screeching.  It doesn’t seem to affect the reel functionally but it gradually gets worse and worse.  Have had them in to be serviced, lubed, etc. but eventually they start screeching again. 
 

Switched to Daiwa and haven’t had one issue.  Solid reels and seem bullet proof.  At your price point, I would recommend either the Tatula CT or Tatula 100.  If you can stretch to $200 buy the new Tatula SV TW.  

[CrankFate]

I’d recommend a Tatula CT 100xs, plus a finesse spool and upgraded spool bearings. This will get you as wide a range of applications there is. You can use the finesse spool and faster bearings to go very light and the standard spool and bearings for anything else. I’m not a big fan of reels that are more expensive than this, unless they are much, much lighter. IMO, most of the differences across the product lines (other than spoolweight and size) are just for advertising different words, that have hardly any impact on performance.

[Revival]

Tatula SV.  Places have them on sale all the time.  Never paid more than $150 for them.  Last one was $135 brand new.

[Beeno]

If you are able to throw in a little more of your own cash I would consider the Curado k if not I would also recommend the advise given by Delaware Valley Tackle. 

[Hook2Jaw]

The Daiwa Tatula 100 is your new reel.

[Armtx77]

Shimano Curado K 201HG.

 

Start with a lefty and don't look back.

[swhit140]

[dodgeguy]

On 4/12/2020 at 9:38 PM, NYWayfarer said:

Lew’s Tournament MP $149.99 aluminum framed, dual brake reel. I highly recommend this reel to those new to baitcasters. Once it’s set properly it’s very forgiving of the mistakes most folks make. Anything short of hooking a bush on the back cast and you will be ok. Spool it with 12 Berkley Big Game and have fun.

Absolutely 

[J-rod]

I'm new to the baitcasting game and picked up a Daiwa Tatula SV103 in January and have had no problems at all aside from a few big backlashes that were all my fault... branches slow down a lure pretty quickly . Since then, I have purchased a 60th anniversary Tatula 100 and another SV103 (used). All have worked great. I'm sure there are tons of good options in the $150 range. Just start with a 12lb mono until you're comfortable.

 

Also, if you reel your spinning gear with your left hand, you may as well start with a lefthanded baitcaster. 

[1202FireMedic]

A lot of Tatula love in this thread. I have one and it’s been fantastic. However, I seem to pick up my curados more than the tatula. It seems to fit my hand better. I would suggest going and handling a few reels and see what feels good to you.  

[jdr99a]

I went to academy and handled the lew’s tournament mp (no tatulas in stock). It came home with me. Now to find a rod for it. 
 

thanks for all your help!

[onenutinthewater]

There's a reason why the Tatulas are sold out and the Lews is in stock..................