I WILL NEVER BUY ANOTHER SHIMANO PRODUCT AGAIN!!!!!!!!!

[bronzeback01]

I bought a sustain a few years back and although it was an ok reel it wasn't worth  the 229.00 it cost , in fact the only reason i bought it is because                                                                                              the new models were comming out and it was on special for 99.00.

yesterday i tried a new stradic 159.95 , it felt really nice and high quality so i bought it. This morning i took it fishing my 1st cast w/a 20.00 lucky craft pointer minnow the bail closed on it and snapped my line , after i got my lure back i took a few more casts the bail wouldn't lock in the open position and just flopped around ,so i took it back to BPS and got a new abu garcia 702 lx (on sale for 59.95 reg. 109.95)

so far so good BUT I WILL NEVER BUY ANOTHER SHIMANO PRODUCT AGAIN !!!!!!!!!!!

[Micro]

You'll like that AG 700LX.  They are built extremely well.  Best drag in the business, too.

[Jake P]

I'm sorry you have such bad experiences with Shimano products, I wish you could know the Shimano I know.

[fishfordollars]

Sorry you have had the rotten luck. I use a lot of their products and could not be happier. I abuse the heck out of them and just like a Timax they come back for more.

for you younger guys a Timax is a watch.

[T-rig]

for you younger guys a Timax is a watch.

It's timex.

[flechero]

Sounds suspiciously like a common BPS problem...  they have a bad habit of re-selling returned reels.  

It's highly possible that you should be upset with them, not Shimano.

Oh well, there are lots of other good reels out there for you to buy.

[Ern]

Sorry you have had such bad luck with the Shimano brand.  I for one only use their spinning reels.  I wish you and I could get together and I would show you why to avoid other spinning reels.  

I also believe that you got a lemon through BPS.  

Ern

[shimanogloomis man]

knock on wood but iv been buying shimano reels ever since i started fishing about 18 years ago never have 1 issuse including my new sustain

[hawgchaser]

You will love the abu 700. They are THE best spinning reels in that price range period. I have 2 and will buy more.

[MNGeorge]

Not that I'm a stauch Shimano man or anything, but the ones I have have never given me a lick of trouble and I would not hesitate to buy another.

[Fishing Doug]

I bought 2 Stradic FI's and had an issue with both-and neither of them were bought at BPS.  The bail on my 2500 does not always stay closed and the 1000 is far from 'smooth'. I am sure both issues can be resolved with a little maintenance, however, IMO, new $160 reels should not have these issues.

FD

[Grey Wolf]

I bought a sustain a few years back and although it was an ok reel it wasn't worth the 229.00 it cost , in fact the only reason i bought it is because                                                                                           the new models were comming out and it was on special for 99.00.

yesterday i tried a new stradic 159.95 , it felt really nice and high quality so i bought it. This morning i took it fishing my 1st cast w/a 20.00 lucky craft pointer minnow the bail closed on it and snapped my line , after i got my lure back i took a few more casts the bail wouldn't lock in the open position and just flopped around ,so i took it back to BPS and got a new abu garcia 702 lx (on sale for 59.95 reg. 109.95)

so far so good BUT I WILL NEVER BUY ANOTHER SHIMANO PRODUCT AGAIN !!!!!!!!!!!

Good for you!!!!!!!!!!!!

[burleytog]

More for me.  

[kms399]

out of 12 shimano's I have NEVER had a problem-EVER- my oldest is 6 years old and still runs like a champ I would say you got a lemon and should avoid boycotting a well known and liked company because of a bad reel.

[muskyxl]

for you younger guys a Timax is a watch.

I think that is a womanly product...

when i first read the heading of this thread, my first reaction was that you tried the diawa zillion... ;)

[Bassn Blvd]

More for me.

and me!!!!!!

[Jeff H]

Never say never, especially if you are young!

[daviscw]

More for me.

and me!!!!!!

Meeeee 3!  

Did you try it out before you bought it?

[islandbass]

Sorry to hear that, but you have to make the choices that suit you best.

I would be more inclined to think that somebody probably effed the reel before you got to it, much like how people screw up and damage rods and put them back onto the rack and an unwary soul buys it and it snaps on the first cast.

Neither Shimano nor Abu spinning reels have ever let me down. Sorry you had a lemon upfront. I too would have been upset with a reel of that caliber, but I would have exchanged it for one that worked after a diligent inspection of everything. I have since learned to inspect any rod or reel before I buy.

[roadwarrior]

Sounds suspiciously like a common BPS problem... they have a bad habit of re-selling returned reels.

It's highly possible that you should be upset with them, not Shimano.

Either way, that's too bad. Experiences like this are made worse

when our expectations are high. Good luck with your new Abu Garcia.

8-)

[bronzeback01]

when i bought it i took it out of the box played w/the bail and it worked fine ,it's too bad because i really liked the reel i should never say never because i will probably try another one.

[k4phd]

Sorry about the bad luck. I bought  Citica about a year and eight months ago, and after I owned it for over a year the reel started getting noisy and rough like a bearing was going out or something. I e-mailed Shimano service dept. and the next day was told to send it back for repair at their cost. I did and within a week I received a brand new Citica free of charge and the guy told me if I ever had trouble with one of my Shimano reels, just to let them know.  That is what I call good service, and the warranty was even out. It wouldn't hurt to contact them.

Jim

[quant PT]

I know exactly how you feel.  See this thread I started when I thought I had a problem with my new Saros. It sounds like this may be the same thing you are experiencing.  Read Reel Mechanic's post, it explains the issue fully.  I am now very happy with the Saros.

I will never buy any spinning reel other than Shimano because I have one of the early Stradics ( about 14 years old) that has seen heavy inshore saltwater use and still works great.  

Hope this helps.

[Redlinerobert]

I bought a sustain a few years back and although it was an ok reel it wasn't worth the 229.00 it cost , in fact the only reason i bought it is because                                                                                           the new models were comming out and it was on special for 99.00.

yesterday i tried a new stradic 159.95 , it felt really nice and high quality so i bought it. This morning i took it fishing my 1st cast w/a 20.00 lucky craft pointer minnow the bail closed on it and snapped my line , after i got my lure back i took a few more casts the bail wouldn't lock in the open position and just flopped around ,so i took it back to BPS and got a new abu garcia 702 lx (on sale for 59.95 reg. 109.95)

so far so good BUT I WILL NEVER BUY ANOTHER SHIMANO PRODUCT AGAIN !!!!!!!!!!!

One bad experience with one reel and you're swearing off the entire brand?   :

I'm not the biggest fan of Shimano but what I do have from their line up I like.  Like some of the others have said, more for us.  

[MARSH MASTER]

suks for you