Lews is taking Abu's spot.

[ABU is overpriced]

Anyone else feels like Lews i kinda stepping up their game in the last 3 or so years? I look at both companies lineup of rods AND reels, and i am liking Lews offering much more. Reels and rods look higher end, feel better and don't have this plastic look that pretty much all current gen abus have.

Give it 1-2 years, and i bet you that "the big three" will be Shimano, Daiwa and Lews.

[Hogs_n_Logs]

I dont think Lews will ever really compete with Shimano/Daiwa because you are always paying the middleman with Lews. The fact that Shimano/Daiwa are actual OEMs and not essentially marketing/importing firms like Lews and Abu means that their development and manufacturing systems will always be inherently more streamlined. 

[Tennessee Boy]

Yeah,  if you ain't making the reels then you're just a marketing company.  It's still fun to debate who sells the best DOYO reel...I guess.

 

[F14A-B]

Woo hoo !! A DOJO argument 😂🤣

[detroit1]

I thought that you were going to change your name to Lew's is overpriced.

[F14A-B]

Lmao

[thediscochef]

LOL

 

Lews sells the better doyo these days

 

Give me a tournament pro and a daiwa sv reel, I won't really need much else. 

[FishTank]

I think Lews has been the number three reel company for quite some time (at least 5+ years). They have a loyal following but continue to shoot themselves in the foot with their on and off sale tactics, once great but now questionable service, and their general lack of support (no sales reps) to local shops. 

[bowhunter63]

Still using Diawa . Have a few Lews but they don’t seem to hold up as well

[woolleyfooley]

I have a couple lews from 2013ish and they’re still going strong. I quite like them. Very light, carbon handles and a good braking system. 

[ABU is overpriced]

1 hour ago, detroit1 said:

I thought that you were going to change your name to Lew's is overpriced.

HOW?🙃

[MediumMouthBass]

 

6 hours ago, ABU is overpriced said:

Give it 1-2 years, and i bet you that "the big three" will be Shimano, Daiwa and Lews.

IMO theres only the big 2 now, and will only be the big 2 for the foreseeable future.

Abu got kicked out years ago and is now a joke (no offense to guys who like Abu, i even like Abu but PF took them to Stellantis Dodge level of ridiculous).

Lews low tier stuff is cheap garbage, their mid tier Mach series is also junk. But because of "influencers" hyping them up they charge absurd amounts for them and sell many of those combos. Lews mid tiered rods and reels are where its at, but should never be bought for full price. I got my 2 BB1 Pros for $100e, Superduty LFS $100, LFS 1 $66, LFS 2 $22.50, and for rods 3 KVD's $66e, TP1X $66, 3 Team Custom Pro's $60-70e (retails for $220e). The KVD rods are just alright (uncomfortable handle), the TP1X is a personal favorite, the Team Custom Pros are the nicest looking and feeling rods i have ever seen, super light, very sensitive, and i love the hybrid cork/eva handle (since its not the same generic one on everything else). The LFS is cheap, it looks cheap, feels cheap, leaves alot to be desired. But its a tank. The Gen 3 was a much deserved upgrade, it looks great (im so glad they added the BB1 Pro's handle/grips to it). The LFS G3-Custom-BB1 Pro-Superduty LFS-Tournament Pro-Last gen Custom Pro are great reels, you can pick most of these up certain times of the year from $50-100-180. And with the new Shimano SLX A's from America getting such bad and problematic reviews i can see more guys switching over to Lews or Daiwa for that mid priced market. Lews high end rods and reels arent worth it, just buy Daiwa/Shimano/loomis/Megabass at that price point.

 

The customer support is hit or miss, some guys get taken care of in minutes/days, others may wait a few weeks just to get someone on the phone. The warranty is more than often very good, heard a few guys snapped their rods on accident and told Lews, they got sent a new rod for free. Others were out of warranty date and Lews gave them a coupon for 25% off a new purchase. The one guy broke a reel seat on his 2 year reel, new one showed up a week later.

 

I love my Lews rods and reels (even the KVD's i guess) and want to buy more, but honestly Daiwa and Shimano have a status so high that Lews more than likely wont be able to reach. But they dont need to, they have the market cornered. Abu pulled out of being affordable, Daiwa and Shimano US (many people are afraid of ordering from Japan or dont know about it) are twice the price because they rarely go on sale for anything substantial, and Lews has the best marketing team in the game. They know their audience and how to reach them.

 

[redmeansdistortion]

On 2/26/2025 at 7:09 PM, MediumMouthBass said:

no offense to guys who like Abu, i even like Abu but PF took them to Stellantis Dodge level of ridiculous

No offense taken.  What kept Abu relevant were the Japanese.  The former distributor for Abu in Japan was Olympic, who went bankrupt in 2000.  This is when Pure Fishing took over and created Pure Fishing Japan, who then slowly introduced more American market type reels to Japan while watering down the Ambassadeur in the process.  Some of the best reels ever made by Abu were Japanese market only, like later releases of the 1500C/2500C, Morrum Mag and Ultra Mag, 1600C/2600C, later versions of the Cardinal 3 and 33 spinning reel, and some others I'm missing.  It's what the market there wanted, while those elsewhere were wanting something different.  It had to do with the Ambassadeur being a status symbol in Japan.  When the yen was weak in the 1970s, an Ambassadeur cost a month's salary, so only the well off could afford it.  This spawned companies like Daiwa and Isuzu who made reels inspired by the Ambassadeur for their own market, but at a cheaper cost.  Isuzu now is without a doubt the finest maker of classic style round baitcast reels.  

[bulldog1935]

Isuzu drive-by

[ABU is overpriced]

On 2/26/2025 at 7:09 PM, MediumMouthBass said:

 

IMO theres only the big 2 now, and will only be the big 2 for the foreseeable future.

 

 

I too believe there's only 2 relevant brands, but most people see the "big three", and i am sure to the more casual crowd, Abu is as good as Shimano and Daiwa. To me personally, if Shimano is a 10 and Daiwa is a 10, Abu is no more than a 6/10 in comparison, and that' being generous.

[DaubsNU1]

I am fiercely brand loyal...but only in certain areas:

 

Reels: Shimano

Truck: GM

Car: Honda

DSLR: Nikon

Garden tractor: John Deere

 

Everything else, I'll try to balance price | quality | availability | durability, and find the best fit for me.

 

But for reels, it's Shimano and nothing else.

 

[bulldog1935]

Endurance means a few things - mechanical, reliable, long production run - but enduring can also be emotional.  

A '77 4500C that's been fished since '77 can be tuned to do everything a new "big 2" low profile reel can do.  

A thread on TT asked why no aftermarket parts are currently made for OG Daiwa - it's simply not enduring, and was made to be fished 5 years and replaced.   

 

[MediumMouthBass]

3 hours ago, bulldog1935 said:

Endurance means a few things - mechanical, reliable, long production run - but enduring can also be emotional.  

A '77 4500C that's been fished since '77 can be tuned to do everything a new "big 2" low profile reel can do.  

 

The issue with tuning them would be cost, i can go into any store now and get a reel from the big 2 ready to fish off the shelf for $100-150. Vs the $150 for a new C3/C4 ($30-75 for an old one at a yard sale), and then the added costs of parts. Now you would know more than me on this so please chime in if theres a better/cheaper way to do this, but anytime i checked into upgrading either my old C or new C3 it would be atleast another $150-300 depending on what i wanted to do. I would think most guys would just take the off the shelf reel thats more modern, looks cooler, and is more affordable.

 

However those Ambassadeurs would be cheaper in the long run, even modded out with the fanciest parts. It might break down in 50 years😂, but how many of Daiwas "newest and greatest" Tatulas would you have bought and recycled in that period? Because i dont think many new reels last more than a few years without excessive cleaning and replacing parts (and these have alot more parts)

 

Anyways @bulldog1935 what would you do to take a new C3 5500 more modern and on par with a Tatula/SLX from the big 2? Asking for a friend🙂

[redmeansdistortion]

15 hours ago, MediumMouthBass said:

what would you do to take a new C3 5500 more modern and on par with a Tatula/SLX from the big 2? Asking for a friend🙂

Honestly, scratch the 5500 and look for a 4600.  They can still be found even though production ended 4 or 5 years ago.  Abu only discontinued them because they were eating into Revo sales.

 

A newer 4600 has a "light-ish spool" (15g) and already comes with a lighter line guide compared to its predecessors.  With a polish tune and low viscosity oils, they will cast in the 5-7g range fairly easily.  If you need to go lower, you can always do the 2BB cog, 2BB level wind, and an AMO spool.  If a magnetic brake is your thing, Avail makes a good one that is pretty set and forget.

[bulldog1935]

My 4600C3 ended up in PE#2 (45-lb) frogger niche, but still set my mag brake casting 3 g.  

 

I would consider Avail 5-mm deep UC spool (photo is 6500CS Rocket in surf-lure, 1/4 to 1 oz).  

AMO spool is notably lighter, but 3-mm deep limits you to PE#1, equivalent dia to 4-lb mono.  

Since I swapped to the deeper Avail spool above, I have this 4500/4600C3 AMO spool set aside.  

If anyone wants to tinker the AMO spool, I'll sell it cheap. 

Aftermarket parts slick the LW and reduce weight/inertia - alloy LW rider also includes TiN line-guide coating for fishing braid.  

Here's JunSonada's priority list for tuning these reels:  

https://japantackle.com/Tackle_topics/abu_tuneup.htm 

Mike's Reel Repair in BC sells LW upgrade kits, with option for alloy rider and zirconia pawl

https://www.mikesreelrepair.com/reel-tuning-upgrades/wormshaft-upgrades/

[Darth-Baiter]

my fishing bud took 100% Lews Reels to Mexico.  I asked him why he doenst try the Big-2, offerings.  (1)cost and (2)he feels Lews can hang in quality.    he is probably correct on the first part (never priced Lews).  on #2 it was comical.  he would whip out a bait, and quite often, the bait would fly out and abruptly stop when the line got jammed up.   he ended up taking his reels on shore at lunch to respool multiple times...and he brought 2 spare Lews which he dipped into on day 2.  then he had to tape on his grip handles...  I kept my mouth shut because that is what my dad taught me, growing up.    I never had issues..I had the big-2's with me.  

 

I have one ABU in my garage.  I use it to hold line.  haha..like if I spool up my spinning with braid and the spool doenst fill up, I can put the line on the Abu, put some mono backer on the spool, and put the same braid back on.  voila!!  ABU for the win.

[bulldog1935]

He doesn't know how to set up his reel.  

I've kept 2 Super Duty G, sold Team Pro SP and Tournament Pro (replaced both with Daiwa).  

Super Duty linear mag is an astounding distance reel, down to 1/8 oz.  

 

My older reel has spent 7 years in the salt with only replacing the brake magnets. 

It backlashed Once, but that was a single line wrap on the rod tip.  

I also paid $130 for my first new SD (ebay vendor), and $145 for the 2nd (Lew's close-out).  

[lunkerboss923]

I think Lew's could be better, I would never pay full price for a reel. Especially the sub $150 range. The numbers on the brakes flake off after a season of use. Now the Custom Pro Gen 2 went on sale over Christmas and I did buy one and I love it. Pairs great on my X-Bites. I use it to pitch finesse jigs around stumps and lay laydowns. Great reel. The Gen 3 Custom Pro is gawd awful color. It looks cheap. 

[Eric 26]

Although I don’t own the reel anymore I had a BPS Carbonlite 2.0 casting reel that I believe is based on the Lews LFS reel with dual brakes and a different color scheme. I had I believe 12 pound suffix 21 monofilament spooled on and had zero issues for a few years throwing small cranks and spinner baits mostly but I just couldn’t get comfortable with the ergonomics. Based on that reel alone I would have zero issues purchasing a Lews reel and if I come across a good price on a SLP model I may just pull the trigger. 

[Catt]

Shimano & Diawa are sliding downhill ever so slightly! 

 

Shimano rods were top of the line, now they to get Loomis to bail em out.