Been bass fishing for about two years now. My buddy always uses a Daiwa Steez, and I really wanted to get a super-light magnesium setup, too. But I just could not bring myself to spend 600 dollars on a single reel so I ended up picking up a magnesium Kastking. Honestly, it was mostly because I was curious about that titanium spool since I had never seen that material used before. We swapped setups for a few casts at the lake on Sunday. I know Daiwa is top tier but telling the truth I totally could not feel where that several hundred dollar price difference comes from. My reel throws weightless plastics pretty smooth and both reels feel super light in the hand. When you guys spend big money on flagship models, do you actually feel a massive leap in quality, or am I just too much of a beginner to notice that high end precision?
Posted by PRABHAT_CHOUBEY
41 Comments
No
If you can afford it and enjoy it, then yes. But in my experience, value per dollar starts going downhill quickly after around $300
No. Unless you’re like a pro who has sponsors and money to burn or get free stuff from said sponsors. I always think about the law of diminishing returns when it comes to buying things. For example, I play and teach guitar. The absolute most I have ever spent on a guitar is like $1500-$2000. So let’s take a $2000 guitar and compare it to like a $4000 guitar. Am I really getting $2000 more worth of guitar? Nope. So apply the same logic to anything. The most I ever spent on a reel was like $150. Compare that to a $600 reel. Am I really getting $450 more reel? Nope. Sure the $600 one has better brakes and bearings and such but $450 worth more? Probably not.
But I digress, I won’t ever tell anyone how to spend their money. It’s nice to have nice things but $600 for a reel? Na I’m good.
Nah, its like buying a luxury car. Do you need it? No. Does it making the user experience better? Yeah
Honestly not worth the extra money for spinning reel. A baitcaster yeah definitely worth the money because cheap reels backlash like crazy but a spinning reel is just line falling off an open spool so no not worth it
Never gone that big, but I recently got a vanford ($285) after rocking in the Nasci / sedona (~$100) tier for the past 10 years and the step up was noticeable. Like noticeable enough that I feel very good about my purchase and I think I might save for the vanford on my future setups.
That being said, I think the roi really flattens out above vanford/ballistic but I have never heard anyone complain about or regret a vanquish/luvias so..
I have that exact daiwa reel on the right, I honestly prefer my shimano saharas. Its quieter and smoother and a third the price. I have like 5 sahara reels and find them almost as good as any high end reel I’ve used and they only cost like 70-85 bucks.
Saltwater is a different story
I have a stradic 1000 fm and i wouldn’t change it for anything
Sure the Sustain, Twin Power are slightly better with infinity loop but the stradic casts so good without it I’m not sure they are worth the extra money.
And it is smooth with a smooth drag
No. I have some expensive combos, but not a $600 reel. Some of my favorite combos are reels in the $200-$250 range (well, Curado DCs are $300 now but they used to be cheaper) and rods in the $200 range.
I have a Curado DC on a Levante braillist that I love. Brand new that combo would be $500. I also have an old Curado I on a Cashion Element V2 I love and if I bought the Curado I knew back in the day, that’s a $300 combo and it fishes amazingly. My spinning set up is a 2500 JDM Ultegra I got for $110 and a ML 13 fishing Oath I got for free. Will eventually get a JDM zodias or a JDM expride tho. Those run $100-$150.
My point is, there’s a major point of diminishing returns around the $200-$300 point for reels and the $150-$200 range for rods when it comes to bass fishing. If I were to buy another bait casting reel soon, I’d get a JDM SLX DC XT. $200. Same I-dc5 chip as the $540 Metanium. Smack that on a Cashion Element V2 for $140 and have a kick ass combo for under $350.
At the $600 price point, you’re just showing off. Reel quality and tech tops out around $250-300 range. Go get a Curado or Tatula if you want something nice.
Gotta be honest. I’ve had more fun with an ugly stick, worm, and bobber. Than I have with a $400 set up.
It depend on use I think. I have a vanford and it was worth every penny with the heavy use it gets but my daughter fishes 4 or 5 times a year so she had the daiwa fuego and is very happy
For me yes. I don’t get to hit the water very often these days. Fishing is my absolute favourite hobby and I enjoy having nice gear
Also, if you only get limited time on the water, I want to know everything I have is reliable and light.
My last combo was an NRX and Shimano Metanium DC. It’s incredible to use and allows me to enjoy my time more
I recently bought a $35 casting reel and a a $32 collapsible rod after scrolling through the app…. that is the best behaving casting setup I’ve ever used… f*** my $350 okuma setup evidently….
I think the main difference between the high-mid priced reels ($300-400) and the expensive reels is longevity. I have one really expensive reel (saltwater) and I expect it to last the remainder of my fishing life. I have had to replace several in the $250-300 range because of total failure of one part or another, not worth the price or hassle of repair.
But is the extra few hundred worth it? Only if you can afford it and you really enjoy a nice piece of equipment/machinery, you won’t catch more fish, it will just make the attempt more pleasurable. There are a few really high priced reels that have special features, fully sealed saltwater reels for example or big deep sea reels, those are a special niche thing.
Nope. If you’ve got the moolah and want the feeling of knowing you have the “best” in your hands go for it. I find the sweet spot for me to be in the 200-300 range. These reels will do everything just as good as the high end stuff. And honestly the some of the sub 200 dollar stuff is pretty darn good. I have a couple regular slx’s that I’ve had for years now, and I’ve beat the shit out of them. For about 100 bucks they still cast as far as my curados and DC’s. I recently just got one of the SLX XT’s for 140 bucks and aside from not having the DC breaking system and making the cool noise, it’s just as good as its big brother for about 100 bucks less. I use my stuff, I’d have a hard time taking a 600 dollar reel out knowing it’s about to get put through the ringer lol
Not unless you are fishing ultralight…then starting inertia becomes relevant and the weight of the spool and handles actually come into play. Beyond that I haven’t found a reason other than aesthetics and reel sound for more expensive reels.
A lot of people slag the Kastking reels but the last couple of years have seen a dramatic upswing in quality and user satisfaction.
The main knock now is to assert that they won’t last long. A position of speculation considering these new ones haven’t been around long enough.
If your KK reel is doing the job and gives you that luxury feel, keep it and smile.
NO….. I don’t think I own a reel that costs more than $75 except 2. A Shimano Calcutta 700 that was given to me by my dad and a Penn Senator 12/0 that I use for shark fishing. Everything thing else is either yard sale reels or on clearance so I didn’t pay much for them.
It doesn’t help me catch more fish but it makes the experience more fun. I’ve caught awesome fish on 50 dollar setups and 700 dollar setups.
At one point you’re buying a warranty
I don’t see a reason why one would need a 600$ for freshwater bass.
I just bought a Tranx 400 for musky fishing. But I read online it’s the top of the line reel for musky fishing.
The Tranx 500 is close to 600. But that was designed to be a salt water reel. So it is sealed better and can handle the Mega big rubbers people will throw for musky.
for bass a 300 series would work just fine for about 230-300 anything above that is jus overkill.
I bought a new in box Shimano Sustain reel for $236 through the Shimano fishing ebay store. Those reels new are closer to $400. It is such a smooth reel. If you buy high end try to get a significant discount, like last year’s model but still new product.
Hell to the NO.
Go to Walmart and buy a Zebco!
I prefer Lew’s myself and they’re still fairly cheap at Walmart.
I’ve landed probably hundreds of fishes in the last 8 years just on basic cheap and discounted rods!
I don’t spend more than 150 on rods or reels unless I have a gift card or something what you get for tha price point nowadays is so much better than even a few years ago
Sometimes yes mostly no
Id say for me “expensive gear” has been my baitcasters in the Tatula price range that I actually felt the difference for casting ability and smoothness but I couldn’t ever spend $150-$220 on a spinning reel. Rods ill spend $120-$200 depending on what I want it to do but a $100 rod is still a lot for fishing gear imo and will definitely be more sensitive than a $30 rod so it depends on how much you want more sensitivity. Any reel over the prices ive mentioned you’d just be paying for smoothness and maybe a little better breaking system but its definitely not going to change your life like switching from a $50 black max to a Tatula SV or Shimano DC.
I will say definite difference in my Nasci/Miravel stuff and “entry level”
But
Can’t imagine what I would need beyond that
No. $200 rod $200 reel is my limit now
Nope. I caught a 15.9 lb hybrid Lake Fork bass on a $14.99 Snoopy rod and reel I got from Walmart for my daughter in the early 90s. I was playing with a Cinco worm near the docks at Lake Fork and it hit and I was super lucky to be able to fish it in with a 34″ rod made for a kid.
Used to have pics but that’s been 30 years ago.
The fish don’t care how much your gear costs bub. If it works and catches fish, its fine.
Unless you’re getting into tournaments or contests, what’s the point? Do you fish more than you work? Maybe it would be worth it then.
If you can catch fish on a $50 reel/rod combo, why spend more than $100 for another?
Just my thoughts.
Absolutely not
Back in the 80s I caught a 24 lb blue cat catfish on a 12′ cane pole and bobber. Its not the equipment it’s the person fishing. I was only 9 when I caught the catfish.
I’ve dropped $1100 on two technique specific tuna reels. Bought Z2020 during the real bad exchange days. That’s just a few. The best cost the most but don’t always need to spend that much. Sometimes because it’s what’s needed yet other times just because I wanted to such as the Z2020 since I could have gotten the job done with other cheaper options yet even today don’t regret buying them and still in my collection. I’m getting ready to use both of them this summer for specific techniques.
Spend your budget and get what you need vs want always works. BTW, looking to get a Tranx 300B 5.8 that by yesterday’s spend is cheap and yet to some that might be too expensive, yet for what I need it fits.
I’ve had a cheap gear and expensive gear and still can’t catch anything. So I guess not.
Combos in the $100-150 range are you best bang for buck.
The difference between a $20 reel and a $200 reel will always be far greater then a $200 to a $600, same goes for graphs, having a $200 graph is a huge upgrade from something old or nothing at all vs going from your $200 graph to a $10k setup
Nope. My $100 Shimano SLX catch fish just fine
One of the biggest bass I’ve seen out of a local pond was on a Barbie kids rod. While there’s definitely a quality difference between the average combo sold at a big box retailer and say a $200 rod and reel you picked out separately, you’re already seeing diminishing returns by then.
I’m f you can’t tell the difference between a $30 reel and a $600 reel, but the $30 one. (Same advice I give for stereos.)
Even though many of my reels are relatively inexpensive (I only buy on sale) I would avoid anything less than $75 b