Abu Garcia Black Max

[plawren53202]

Found out last minute that I'm fishing a tournament on Saturday (super excited, first one ever, Angler's Choice). Based on the lake, I'm expecting to do some flipping and pitching. Normally being a bank-only angler, I don't have a dedicated flipping setup. So I had one day, today, to put one together. No time to order online, and I could not afford to spend a fortune--and, lovely Covid-related inventory shortages to deal with as well. So the mission for the day was find good quality at a reasonable price, in stock in person.

 

Rod was no problem, Academy had an Ethos HD in stock in H/F, 7'3". I'm really enjoying the Ethos HD MH/F 7'0" I picked up a little while back, so I'm a fan of that rod, and a big fan at the $69 price tag.

 

Reel was a little more of a problem. Bass Pro literally had nothing in stock sub $100. Academy was pretty limited as well. The only aluminum frame reels were all well north of $100. They had one or two Lew's reels that are graphite frames less than $100 (like the Laser MG). But I figured if I'm going to have to settle for a graphite frame reel for this weekend anyway, I might as well save a few bucks, so I went with the Black Max.

 

I've heard people say they really like this reel for the price. I know Jonny on Fish the Moment owns a herd of them. My intention is to upgrade to something aluminum frame when I have time, but for now, what should I expect out of this Black Max that I didn't really anticipate buying? In particular, how finicky are they to get dialed in; and how is the longevity? 

[PourMyOwn]

If you take care of it, two to three years of heavy use is pretty standard before they get noisy. I have some Silver Max reels and they are good, but once you use something nicer it's hard to go back. 

 

I don't think they are hard to dial in at all, but I've been throwing a baitcaster since about 1988. 

[r83srock]

This reel will serve you well. Enjoy it. Good luck at your tournament, don’t eat a spicy burrito the night before and “try” to get plenty of rest. And take it easy on the Red Bull in the morning. Have fun.

[BrianMDTX]

I have two Black Max’s. One is L/H and the other is R/H and I fish both equally well. One was on a Fenwick HMX HMX70M-FC and the other on a Daiwa Aird X AIRX701MHFB, but the tip broke on the Fenwick so it’s now on another Aird X- a AIRX661MFB (waiting to hear back from Fenwick about warranty). 
 

Both are spooled with 12 lb YZH. I don’t really flip or pitch, but have caught bass on topwater (Whopper Plopper), spinnerbaits and weighted and weightless T rigs. I haven’t had a single issue with either reel yet, although they only have 2-4 months of use. Spool tension is easy to set as is the brake. 
 

Maybe down the road I will upgrade to higher-end baitcasters, but for now, they catch bass. 

 

[plawren53202]

3 hours ago, r83srock said:

This reel will serve you well. Enjoy it. Good luck at your tournament, don’t eat a spicy burrito the night before and “try” to get plenty of rest. And take it easy on the Red Bull in the morning. Have fun.

Thanks! I am excited, so I do imagine sleep is going to be hard to come by Friday night....and highly suspect that Red Bulls are going to be flowing Saturday morning, we are leaving at 3:15 a.m. to make the 1.5 hour drive and be ready for 6:00 start time.

2 hours ago, BaitFinesse said:

The braking is fine for pitching.  They don't like hard casts but pitching is about as far from that as you can get.  Handle is short but it works fine.

I kind of suspected that this reel would be safer planning on it as a flipping/pitching setup reel than if I wanted to use it for a long bomber. 

[BrianMDTX]

22 minutes ago, plawren53202 said:

kind of suspected that this reel would be safer planning on it as a flipping/pitching setup reel than if I wanted to use it for a long bomber. 

I have zero issues with long casts. Long enough for me anyway. 

[plawren53202]

26 minutes ago, BrianMDTX said:

I have zero issues with long casts. Long enough for me anyway. 

No doubt, it may handle them great and Jonny from Fish the Moment sure bombs them. I just meant that since I intend to mainly pitch/flip with this combo, I wasn't worried about it. I may find out it bombs and buy several more LOL.

[BrianMDTX]

I know that reel doesn’t get a lotta love, but I’ve got no complaints at all so far. I’m actually impressed with it, especially considering the price. 

[Linewinder]

My older model has a "flipping" switch on it, such that when you release the thumb it automatically engages the spool.  I don't see that on yours -- still have that or did that go away?  I never quite got the hang of that anyway.

 

[DitchPanda]

Honestly I bought one for my girlfriend as a starter baitcaster and I've been impressed with it. I've got lots of baitcasters and would say I like it best out of my sub $100 reels. I also own a silver max which is a step up but like the black max better. As for longevity we have had ours for probably 3 years with moderate to average use and it's solid. As for the dialing in I didn't find it hard...but kinda like above I've had lots of baitcaster experience. Got my first one in 96 for my 13th birthday so I've been around the block. Strange enough that reel was an Abu Garcia 5500 which I still have and use for catfish.

[Hower08]

I have more high end casting reels than I care to admit. I picked one of the blackmax up for a general back up to keep in the boat for people to use that need a reel. It is fine for the money I actually don't hate using it 

[Big Hands]

14 hours ago, DitchPanda said:

Honestly I bought one for my girlfriend as a starter baitcaster and I've been impressed with it. I've got lots of baitcasters and would say I like it best out of my sub $100 reels. I also own a silver max which is a step up but like the black max better. 

From what I gather, the Silver Max is essentially a Black Max with a "Rocket Cast" button and silver paint. 

====================================

I have a Black Max and a two Pro Max baitcasters, and the difference in casting performance is noticeable for me, but so was the price tag. 

 

For a $40 +/- baitcaster, the Black Max works well (for the money). For flipping and punching using relatively heavy baits, I imagine it will work just fine.

[Mobasser]

You'll be fine with the Black Max and the rod you bought. Should work good. Good luck in your tournament!

[plawren53202]

Alright, OP here checking back in after first time using the Black Max. Fished an 8 hour tournament day. Originally I was planning on using this combo for flipping and pitching. I did a little of that but the spots we fished weren't as conducive to flipping as I anticipated. But, I did end up using the Black Max quite a bit for, of all things, deep cranking a SK 5XD. So, probably not the easiest task for a reel, and also meaning that I was bombing as long of casts as possible so I could get the 5XD down deep. And the 6.3:1 ratio is the slowest of my baitcasters so it seemed the natural choice for deep cranking.

 

I'm happy to say, I was really pleasantly surprised at how well the Black Max handled this. It obviously wasn't quite as silky smooth as my Lew's Tournament MP, but it did really well. No problem bombing the 5XD a country mile on the 7'3" rod, and the brakes did pretty well also. No birds nests and just a little line fluff once in a while. If someone is on a tight budget or wants to recommend a beginner a good solid reel, the Black Max really seems like a strong choice. So, I may just leave this one on that rod for a while rather than trying to replace it quickly. To use a baseball analogy, the player who just got called up from the minors did well enough the first time out to earn a few more starts.

 

Let me just say as an aside, I have really enjoyed by Tournament MP since I got it last winter (it was the first reel in that price range I have owned), but putting it through 8 hours' worth of tournament fishing today, man I love that reel. In particular the dual braking system, dialed in, just made so much of my casting effortless. Trying to cover a lot of water and bombing cast after cast in rapid succession, and really trying to launch some casts, with accuracy, and not wanting to overpower the reel and backlash, that dual braking system dialed in is just...effortless is just the only word for it. 

[BrianMDTX]

Glad it worked for you! 

[TheBasslayer]

I'm a bit late, but I love my Black Max, especially for only 40$. I recommended this reel to my friend who might start baitcasting soon, so I really like it. It catches bass for me!

[Spankey]

I’d like to find the BM combo for my youngest grandson. Hard to find local. I never hear much bad about them and it appears many seasoned guys use them and like them. Good luck. 

[TheBasslayer]

On 4/22/2021 at 5:55 AM, Spankey said:

I’d like to find the BM combo for my youngest grandson. Hard to find local. I never hear much bad about them and it appears many seasoned guys use them and like them. Good luck. 

I don't know any local stores in Pennsylvania, but here is the best I could come up with. And now it's 54 dollars. It's probably been updated since this, which  is my Black Max(2019 model) 

 https://www.tacklewarehouse.com/catpage-ABUREELS.html?from=basres

[Spankey]

I appreciate the tip. I think for an 11 year old to give it heck on this could be the answer. Good start. I’d give my two grandsons the world if possible because they fish with me. But a Revo like I’m using is probably not the start that is required. But I would/will buy him a Revo at some point in time. Doesn’t have to be a Revo but you get my point. 

[TheBasslayer]

Just now, Spankey said:

I appreciate the tip. I think for an 11 year old to give it heck on this could be the answer. Good start. I’d give my two grandsons the world if possible because they fish with me. But a Revo like I’m using is probably not the start that is required. But I would/will buy him a Revo at some point in time. Doesn’t have to be a Revo but you get my point. 

Nice. My grandpa doesn't really fish, but every once in a while he does. My dad doesn't really fish either, so I learned pretty much by myself. But the Revo seems fine. I don't know what my next baitcaster's gonna be, but I'd say that it could be an Abu Garcia.

[galyonj]

FWIW, Abu doesn't list the Black Max on its combos page or its reels page, so I think it's probably been replaced in the lineup, and any store that does have it is just selling out their existing stock. I suspect the Max-X is its replacement in the ± $75 range. Both the Black Max and the Max-X have pretty comparable specs for gearing, bearing count, etc. Rod options that come with each combo are pretty comparable, too.

[Spankey]

25 minutes ago, TheBasslayer said:

Nice. My grandpa doesn't really fish, but every once in a while he does. My dad doesn't really fish either, so I learned pretty much by myself. But the Revo seems fine. I don't know what my next baitcaster's gonna be, but I'd say that it could be an Abu Garcia.

I hear you on that. I’ve pretty much been the black sheep in my family since I was a kid. Many many moons ago and no sense bad mouthing anybody who is not on this earth still breathing and can’t defend their actions. The reality is what it was. At least in my case. I’d like to think I made out ok. 
 

You'll do ok. You are fortunate to have sites like this today. This is a good bunch of guys on here. Don’t be afraid to ask questions. 
 

I’m pretty much a Shimano guy, but I’ve taking a liking to the Revo Winch Series. So far the last few season they have been great for the crankbait fishing I do. 

[TheBasslayer]

2 minutes ago, Spankey said:

I hear you on that. I’ve pretty much been the black sheep in my family since I was a kid. Many many moons ago and no sense bad mouthing anybody who is not on this earth still breathing and can’t defend their actions. The reality is what it was. At least in my case. I’d like to think I made out ok. 
 

You'll do ok. You are fortunate to have sites like this today. This is a good bunch of guys on here. Don’t be afraid to ask questions. 
 

I’m pretty much a Shimano guy, but I’ve taking a liking to the Revo Winch Series. So far the last few season they have been great for the crankbait fishing I do. 

Yes I am fortunate to have the internet today. Let's hope that fishing will still be my hobby when I am older. And my next baitcaster may be an SLX, if I want one.

[BrianMDTX]

1 hour ago, Spankey said:

I’d like to find the BM combo for my youngest grandson. Hard to find local. I never hear much bad about them and it appears many seasoned guys use them and like them. Good luck. 

@Spankey Walmart has a Black Max combo for $69.95. Not sure what the specs are on the Black Max rod, but for that price, probably good enough. 
 

Both my Black Max reels are on Daiwa Aird-X’s. One a MF and the other a MHF. I have no issues with either reel. I had no problem reeling this bass in last Friday that bit on a Daiwa/GYBC Neko Macho weightless TR on a Gamakatsu 3/0 EWG. 
 

 

[roadwarrior]

Have you had good luck with the Neko Macho?