...and look at the pathetic state of the Big 3 automakers right now.

Ford and GM and all their OEM's are headed towards or are in financial distress, partly due to lousy quality (vs. Japanese competition) and not listening to the consumer.

BTW, it didn't cost me $700 but $499 cash for my new 250. A bigger bang for the buck, eh? ;) By far the best investment ever on a surf reel because of the way I fish.

I had too many problems with the 705 in the short time I had it, particularly after any dunking in water or sand. I was glad to get rid of it. The 250 just feels far more substantial, indestructible and smoother. So far, it's been behaving superbly with the 50# Sufix Performance braid.

I don't know too many people who even have their VS serviced on an annual basis anyway. More like every other year or two, unless you fish it hard 300 days of the year.

I fish from a boat all summer long and hit the surf in the fall (Montauk and outer Cape Cod). I suggest you buy a Van Staal Model 150-N for boat and sheltered water (i.e. bay) fishing and purchase a Van Staal Model 200-N for surf fishing. This past summer on Ebay I purchased a near-new Van Staal Model 200-N reel, with (brand new) spare spool, for $ 325.00 plus shipping. You don't need to pay
$ 700.00 for any fishing reel.

I took my wife surf fishing for the first time about 8 years ago (Cahoon Hollow in Wellfleet, Mass.) and gave her an 8 foot rod with a Van Staal Model 100-N reel to use. It took her fewer than four casts to learn to use the manual bail pickupand she had never before cast a lure.

Ten years ago I switched to Van Staal spinning reels because of (1)manual bail pick-up (no more lost plugs when the bail suddenly closes in the middle of a cast) (2) lighter weight (I converted all my Penn 6500 and 7500 reels to manual bail but then discovered the reels were still too heavy for 10 foot graphite surf rods) , and (3) Van Staal reels are goof-proof. They can be dropped in soft sand and, with a simple rinsing in the surf, fully recover.

Buy a Van Staal reel. Other spinning reels are either too heavy, have limited line capacity, are not available with manual bail pick-up, or cannot survive falling over in soft sand or being submerged for extended periods of time. If you want a goof-proof reel, buy a Van Staal.

I enjoy my Penn 704 for all these years, it's still working ... but, over the past season, I have come to fall in a lot ... not sure why but always seem to lose my balance and the 704 has to be broken down and rinsed off and then regreased ...

... so I myself have made the plunge into the world of VS, mainly because of durability, if I have to use the butt of my rod as a wading stick, and the reel goes under ... or I fall in like I have done several times this season, or seem to wade out too far in an effort to get extra distance, I don't want to worry about my reel.

AS for the manual bail, it's the preferred method of fishing, if I could convert all of my spinning reels to manual - whether they are Penn, Diawa, Shimano, etc. etc. I would. It take a little practice and then becomes second nature. The only way to go.

Not sure I understand the analogy. Van Staal = American Car manufacturer GM?. GM is in financial distress, partly due to "lousy quality". Van Staal isnt in financial distress as far as I know, and they make quality products. If they were having financial problems, would it be because of competition with Japanese manufacturers of reels? Don't think they have any stiff competition from Japan... & Ford(aka Van Staal) doesnt listen to their consumers? They seem to listen to me....

Maybe im missing something?:huh:

Do some research. Van Staal was in financial distress at the outset. I believe the original entity filed for bankrupcty several years back. It was sold to Reel Ventures LLC and then to Zebco.

The parent company of Zebco isn't going anywhere (run a D&B report on http://www.wcbradley.com/ ). But that doesn't mean that Zebco isn't going to try to keep this line profitable.

Look what aluminum is doing.

They aren't making money on service.

You definitely are.

Just another perspective on the cost....
About 20-25 yrs ago (man I feel old) my Dad and I were seriosly into freshwater bass fishing, we went top of the line at tje time on reels and we used Shimano Bantum MAg plus reels, expensive at the time and my Dad was on a limited budget. I think teh reels were around $75. Just last week I browsed a Bass Pro Catalog, one of the 2000 I get each year. My jaw dropped when I saw the prices for baitcasting reels, some were over $500, for a freshwater reel!!!
I just bought a VS this year adn comparing the performance I need to fsih the water I do, its worth it. Things are expensive now. I used Penns for years, but take too many waves and they crap out. I rinse and lube but still have problems. The VS is an uncomplicated reel that sio far has worked for me. It is very expensive, but I beleive the cost benefit over time will eb worth the investment

1) No question VS helped define the high-end segment of the reel market.

2) I'm sure the bass tournament fishing phenomenon helped dupe people into parting them from their hard-earned cash.

3) Evidence of people willing to pay $500 for a ***freshwater reel*** tells me there's an awful lot of liquidity sloshing out there. Bad sign for you inflation watchers.

If it weren't for the used/classifieds market, I would not have; the VS 200 from last year, two more rods and one 300 series reel this winter, and possibly a boat coming this spring... Been boat shopping for four years. Last 'new' car purchase was in 1982. Can't tell you how many tools have come the used/rebuilt discount route, and are often better than new due to rebuild. If you have patience, identify the need/target, and do your homework, you can get the products far below list price. We all choose to make an investment in our passions, and still have to make the monthly nut to keep a roof over our heads and the kids in clothes/activities etc.

Even Flap would have paid what I did for the VS. And no issues to date with the reel.

But I do buy my Breakaway clips new!:hihi:

I own a VS 250. That being said I never use it on the boat. if you are on the boat 85% of the time. Buy 3 Shimano 400s and put the extra $100 in your pocket.

Strange thing is that based on consumer reports and other surveys, the tacoma would be astronomically more reliable. The worst reliability is always mercedes, bmw, landrover, jaguar etc.

Even if this were the case with vs, there must be some performance advantage of the high end cars and high end reels that makes them appealing, right?

It makes sense to tell someone that there may be other reels to look that will do a great job and save money or whatever... but (and I don't own one...) I don't get the business of basically implying someone is foolish for getting one or just doing it for status. Funny thing is I don't hear this as much about Arra rods, which I own and love, but could certainly have spent much less on rods that do a comparable job.

The Arra rods are second generation graphite, and are a better rod...than the standard lami blank which is first generation graphite :tooth:

yep... i love my 1205, but I can imagine someone arguing its not worth the money over a gsb1201m or allstar 1208 which is (well...was) way cheaper :as: Beauty is in the eye of the reel/rod/beer holder :alien: