Stasher1 Posted February 28, 2011 Posted February 28, 2011 Probably a silly question, but has anyone here had an opportunity to look inside one of these? I'm curious about the quanitity of plastic bits inside. http://www.usreel.com/products/HIBDON800SX_Specs.aspx I've been eyeballin' this reel for a while now, and even bought the 700X that was for sale in the Flea Market to see how it worked. Surprisingly, it actually outcasts my Curado by about 5-6 yds with the same lure and the seesaw levelwind does a pretty good job of laying the line on the spool. It has a lot of plastic parts in it, though. I guess it's no more than you'd expect to see in a low/mid level reel, but it made me curious about the Hibdon model. Quote
Stasher1 Posted March 10, 2011 Author Posted March 10, 2011 Well, I guess since you guys are no help I'm going to have to find out on my own. ;D I managed to find a very lightly used one for sale on ebay for $40 less than a new one, so I snatched it up. If it works out well enough, I may pick up another to replace my Curado. Yup, I said it. I might replace a Shimano with a US Reel Supercaster. ;D ;D ;D Quote
CKFishin Posted March 10, 2011 Posted March 10, 2011 My thought about reels with level wind lets say I am using a jerk bait where my rod tip is constantl down when reeling. Does the levelwin still have the ability to lay line flat? Quote
Stasher1 Posted March 10, 2011 Author Posted March 10, 2011 The line comes off the top of the spool like a "normal" baitcaster, but then it goes under the seesaw instead of through a levelwind. As long as you have a lure tied on, you have tension on the line. It seems like it would be a problem, but it actually works surprisingly well. Quote
Super User roadwarrior Posted March 10, 2011 Super User Posted March 10, 2011 I bought the first US Reel in combination with a "custom" rod from Ray Scott several years ago. The initial hype was "Made In the USA", specifically St. Louis. That didn't work out too well. I hope you have better luck and report your experience after fishing the reel for awhile. I suspect you will be back with The Posse later. 8-) Quote
Super User roadwarrior Posted March 10, 2011 Super User Posted March 10, 2011 No. I think they are made in China, but someone that owns one will know. "Country of origin" has to be disclosed, but not in their promotional materials. I saw no mention of this on the website. Quote
MarauderYak Posted March 10, 2011 Posted March 10, 2011 I don't think they're made anywhere. They were made in China, but they were unavailable for around a year. I had one person at US Reel tell me the factory closed, and sales rep told me they were unhappy with the quality & were looking for another factory to make them. Quote
Mr SwimJig Posted March 10, 2011 Posted March 10, 2011 I saw Jimmy Houston at BPS during the Fishing Classic and he spoke very highly of these reels. I talked to him for a while after the class and looked at the reel and didn't really even think about asking him where it was made at. But overall I was not very impressed with the looks of the reel. No clue how it performs so I will be anxious to hear how you like it. SJ Quote
Stasher1 Posted March 10, 2011 Author Posted March 10, 2011 No.I think they are made in China, but someone that owns one will know. "Country of origin" has to be disclosed, but not in their promotional materials. I saw no mention of this on the website. It's there. It's the first question in their FAQ... http://www.usreel.com/products/BaitCasterFAQs.aspx I don't think they're made anywhere. They were made in China, but they were unavailable for around a year. I had one person at US Reel tell me the factory closed, and sales rep told me they were unhappy with the quality & were looking for another factory to make them. I don't know. They're obviously making them somewhere since they're readily available online and at some larger retailers like Academy. They could just be selling off old stock, I suppose. Quote
Super User roadwarrior Posted March 10, 2011 Super User Posted March 10, 2011 Duh... I didn't see FAQs and obviously didn't read them. There is nothing fundamentally wrong with being made in China. The problem many companies have run in to is quality control. 8-) Quote
David301 Posted June 20, 2011 Posted June 20, 2011 I have owned one for about 6 months now. It does cast far and like a dream, but the issue I have with the seesaw levelwind is that, for me, it does not spool the line very well. At the end of the day from fishing it looks like my 3 year old spooled the line by hand. I have lost many lures from the knots that become created from this and snaps the line thru mid-cast. Quote
Stasher1 Posted June 20, 2011 Author Posted June 20, 2011 I find that it depends on the kind of lure you're retrieving. Something like a crankbait or spinnerbait that applies constant resistance results in smoother and more consistant line lay, but lures like weightless Trick Worms or topwater poppers that are twitched back result in less consistant line lay. It hasn't been a problem for me (yet?) but it is worth noting. Quote
David301 Posted June 22, 2011 Posted June 22, 2011 I have even noticed this problem after I finish spooling it with braid...it is layed down so badly that I know I could have done a better job by hand. I have tried spooling with different line tensions and ensuring the reel was perfectly level. I do enjoy this reel but because of this issue I am having, I mainly only use it for flipping and pitching now. Quote
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.