suggestion on spinning reel...

[BrianS]

Mike's site is down to get the real price, but the couple places I peeked around for the stradics were $150+... maybe that was high.. was odd sites I had not heard of...

[McSpooled]

I've been fishing both models mentioned below (4500 Baitrunner, and the Spheros 6000), and highly recommend them. Very good value for the $$.

I was surprised to see the Spheros for $70 at Marine tackle (Baitrunner is closer to $100):

Spheros: 70.00

Baitrunner: $95.00

[dondkim]

I would stay with strong metal body reel and handel. IMHO Stradic is not the strongest reel for the money. I had trouble with handel being loose and finally cracked because they use plastic parts. If instant anti-reverse is not your real concern, I would recommend Daiwa Black Gold.They are all metal except wooden handel. I have owned many Daiwa Gold Series and Black Gold Series for the last couple decades. Bodies are the same and spools interchangeable. They still work like a charm. Of course I maintain them religiously. You can get them less than $100 from store and a lot less from eBay. As matter of fact I just bought another brand new Black Gold 20 from eBay for $51 including shipping.