Anyone used a Kastking Assassin or Stealth. I was thinking about buying one as a backup reel.

I bought a Demon because I couldn't resist a 9.3:1 reel for $70 shipped. I liked it so much, I bought another Demon & 2 Assassins.
They have all exceeded my expectations for a value priced reel. They out cast my more expensive reels. I'm sure the trade off will be longevity but heck, I usually upgrade every 2 years anyway. I haven't caught any giants to really test the drag, but I usually lock them down anyway. Customer service has been awesome also. I inquired about bearing size because I thought I may want to upgrade. I got a very quick response but also was asked to try the reel first. I am happy with the way they are. Also, my first reel came with a neoprene reel cover. The later ones did not. I inquired about purchasing them & was told that was a short term promotion, but to give them my address & they would send them to me no charge. I got them in about 3 days.

Save your money and buy a reel from a reputable company for a little more. I bought one, and after a handful of casts it started making noises and would only cast half as far.

Same here.

One thing that I did that I failed to mention was I cleaned out the gears of the factory grease blob that was there, & cleaned/lubed the rest of it properly - a tip I read on another forum. Sorry you guys had bad luck with yours - I guess I've been lucky so far.

Can you please give us the link to that advice? Thanks.

ALWAYS clean reels from the factory. To much grease and oil is a bad thing

I use a KastKing Legend Royale on my jig rod. No issues yet, except it is a larger reel than I like, but for the price, I can deal with it.

It's a long read, but lots of info from actual users.

https://www.bassresource.com/bass-fishing-forums/topic/183703-kastking-reels-just-arrived/

I am interested in the new Kastking Assassin. Anyone know anything about them?

Just like Davy Crockett used to say, "All of you may go to hell, and I will buy Shimano..."

Yep

As I stated above, my 2 Assassins have performed very well so far. I did take them apart & cleaned/lubed them properly before using.

And I don't mean to imply that these are the greatest reels made. They are a $50/$60/$70 reel that IMO performs above it's price point. But for the casual stick or someone on a fixed income/tight budget, I believe they are an option. I didn't sell all of my high end gear - heck my swimbait combo cost more than my first car

Yeah this would be a backup reel.