Striper Talk Striped Bass Fishing, Surfcasting, Boating - View Single Post

Mr. Sandman · 11-23-2004, 08:21 AM

Frankly I for one am glad to see these higher end reels. There are LOTS AND LOTS of inexpensive spinning reels out there. Everyone makes them.
For 100 bucks you can get a pretty decent spinning reel that works for years if you take care of it. Surfcasting is really a pretty inexpensive sport/hobby..but like anything else, you can pump it up if you really get into it. If you want a specialized reel, or one that is better made with improved materials, bearings, special coatings and alike, you should expect to pay more.

While a hyundai will get you to where you need to be a BMW is more fun to drive. Same goes for the fishing gear. There is added pleasure to fish with quality gear....is it worth it? That is up to its owner. Same goes for tackle....why buy a quality $20-30 custom plug?...because they work better and it is more fun to fish with then the comm plastic types...

I wish penn would make an international spinning and baitrunnner series...I hate buying overseas stuff and I am tired of "hyundai-class" or "ford feista" spinning reels. But they won't, they are fixated on "price-point" reels and not "performance ". Hence I buy Jap. I've been told penn makes more money selling reel parts then reels (they make 8-12 bucks on a $120 reel) , hence it is in their interest to make stuff that falls apart after a season. I have NEVER gotton more then 1/2 season from my penn bait runner without something going wrong and I don't use it all that much and it goes in for service EVERY season. The paint is bubbling up on the casing, the casing is corroding, the baitrunner drag does not engage.... the list is long. And the annual service bill is 25%-40% of the cost of the reel. On the other hand I fish with my costly stella almost *every day* all season long. It sees no maintainace except for a hose off now and again, it I have *never* had a problem. Also, when I sent it in, they clean and "fix"it for free. They replace stuff they feel is worn but I have never gotton a bill and I get free service coupons if I take it in for service at a dealer nearby. I had a friend bring in his stella to the shop, he bought one of the first ones, he never did a thing to it for several years and clearly something was wrong internally. The shop dealer said... send it in to the factory for out of warrenty service.... and he got a BRAND NEW REEL (latest model) in return, no charge.....THAT is customer service.

The reel you see here is huge and is made for offshore game. Ever see what a big accurate offshore reel costs? A smaller version for surf and inshore boat in the $500-600 would sell. (just ask shimanno or vs)

If you ask me Fly reels are overpriced...you can spend a TON on a fly set-up and quite frankly I don't see the technology in the reel to justify it. Hell, You can spend 500 on a crappy fly reel!

11-23-2004, 08:21 AM	#26
Mr. Sandman Registered User iTrader: (0) Join Date: Sep 2001 Posts: 7,649	Frankly I for one am glad to see these higher end reels. There are LOTS AND LOTS of inexpensive spinning reels out there. Everyone makes them. For 100 bucks you can get a pretty decent spinning reel that works for years if you take care of it. Surfcasting is really a pretty inexpensive sport/hobby..but like anything else, you can pump it up if you really get into it. If you want a specialized reel, or one that is better made with improved materials, bearings, special coatings and alike, you should expect to pay more. While a hyundai will get you to where you need to be a BMW is more fun to drive. Same goes for the fishing gear. There is added pleasure to fish with quality gear....is it worth it? That is up to its owner. Same goes for tackle....why buy a quality $20-30 custom plug?...because they work better and it is more fun to fish with then the comm plastic types... I wish penn would make an international spinning and baitrunnner series...I hate buying overseas stuff and I am tired of "hyundai-class" or "ford feista" spinning reels. But they won't, they are fixated on "price-point" reels and not "performance ". Hence I buy Jap. I've been told penn makes more money selling reel parts then reels (they make 8-12 bucks on a $120 reel) , hence it is in their interest to make stuff that falls apart after a season. I have NEVER gotton more then 1/2 season from my penn bait runner without something going wrong and I don't use it all that much and it goes in for service EVERY season. The paint is bubbling up on the casing, the casing is corroding, the baitrunner drag does not engage.... the list is long. And the annual service bill is 25%-40% of the cost of the reel. On the other hand I fish with my costly stella almost every day all season long. It sees no maintainace except for a hose off now and again, it I have never had a problem. Also, when I sent it in, they clean and "fix"it for free. They replace stuff they feel is worn but I have never gotton a bill and I get free service coupons if I take it in for service at a dealer nearby. I had a friend bring in his stella to the shop, he bought one of the first ones, he never did a thing to it for several years and clearly something was wrong internally. The shop dealer said... send it in to the factory for out of warrenty service.... and he got a BRAND NEW REEL (latest model) in return, no charge.....THAT is customer service. The reel you see here is huge and is made for offshore game. Ever see what a big accurate offshore reel costs? A smaller version for surf and inshore boat in the $500-600 would sell. (just ask shimanno or vs) If you ask me Fly reels are overpriced...you can spend a TON on a fly set-up and quite frankly I don't see the technology in the reel to justify it. Hell, You can spend 500 on a crappy fly reel! Last edited by Mr. Sandman; 11-23-2004 at 08:55 AM..