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They are not that heavy duty. They have lots of bearings because it is cheaper to put in bearings to hold alignment then to machine a quality rigid frame. They will work fine for a few seasons and are worth the $ IMO for the budget minded angler who is not hard core or the kid who fishes infrequently. The drags are surprising smooth and they have a nice smooth feel to them. They won't stand up to a lot of heavy use but they are not a bad reel. I have won a few cheap okuma's have bought a couple inspria's and one large spinner baitrunner). In fact my kid won another one at the SB show as a door prize. IMO the inspria model is a nice light duty spinning real. I caught some screaming bonito last fall on one in the surf and the drag held up great. (10# test on a small spinner)
I had a bail flipping problem on the big baitrunner spinner (corranado?) which cost me more in Habs needles then the reel was worth but it is now a manual bail (which is now in the backup bin) but the others reels work fine. I also have some higher end gear to compare it against and there is a big difference between the better Penns, stella, VS and the okuma but for 50-70 bucks, it is hard to beat. Keep in mind a new spool for the stella sells for 150 alone.
My kids have okuma rods/reel combo packages they won in past derbys and have used them to catch countless bluefish and even a few bass and bonito. For the young or inexperience I would say go for it. For the guy who is used to higher end gear it might feel a little plastic to him.
I have one okuma that is looking tired but still functions after 3 years of boat fishing and never seeing a service other then a hose and a spray of WD40 from time to time. It will probably see the backup bin and join countless others and never been fished again but it did its duty.
I have never used their convential gear but again the price is appealing and they look nice from outside. When I am seriously fishing...the good stuff comes out though, new high end gear with fresh line. But for blues on the surface in August..they are fine.
One other thing that might be an issue. You can get a part of most any Penn locally when you need it, not so for okuma. (or stella or vs either I might add) I know several guys who ONLY use penn products for this reason alone. They can get a part at the shop today when they pick up bait.
I would get a pair of reels and some Tica or Tusunami rods and give them a try for a season...it is not like you can make a costly decsion here and the package feels nice and the price is fantastic.
It is not the same feel as a cape fear rod with a stella reel but you have some $ left in your checking account when your done.
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