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Which rod would help to determine Abu 6500 or 7000/7500 size.
The Calcutta 400 is nice. It has a better drag than the ABU reels but you can change the drag washers in an ABU to "smoothies" or whatever the latest is and the drag is way better after you do. The washers are cheap. IMO the black BG 6500CL and the Black BG 7000CL are the best of the ABU reels. They were discontinued but you may be able to find one. The models with mag casting controls are nice for certain conditions too.
They had a reel called the Abu 6600 C5 Mag that was excellent for a beginner. Center thmb bar , centrifical brakes , mag control , high speed retrieve. All the features are what a beginner would want . I've seen it available cheap in the past , do search. on the other extreme the the 6500 mag elite non levelwind with no breaks , abec 7 or ceramic bearings and speed bushing is so fast you could burn your thumb trying to control it.
Switching to conventional is easy if you start by not being greedy for distance. Use brakes , adjust the side tension so you just cannot overrun and loosen the tension and take out brakes as you get better. If you close your eyes and cast by feel only you seldom overrun a conventional but if you try to reach a specific far away spot you can often overrun. Your thumb learns what to do eventually but it takes time.
Some reels like the Penn 525 (non levelwind) can be superfast and along with some others , very hard to control for a beginner. For the most part the ABU's are a good choice for a beginner. I also recommend you get a levelwind , at least for when you start. the abus can be made excellent for distance with new bearings , braid , no brakes , no tension , super thin oil lubrication and speed bushings on the non levelwinds. Do this later in time as you get better.
Once you feel good enough to need the reel enhancements , you will be good enough to make a wise choice of the next reel yourself.
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