All of my setups are Abu 6500c3's but I was at bass pro shops yesterday and saw this reel was on sale from $69.99 down to $52.99. I've heard good things about them so for the price I thought I'd give one a try. If you are on a budget and quite can't afford an Abu then this could be an option for you, just thought I'd throw it out there.

If they're anything like the older versions, they sure are a quality reel! I've had a couple that were neglected and used frequently for over 4 years, and they just kept on going strong! My Abu's don't like that kind of treatment. Sadly, all my gear got stolen. I still miss those things.

Do those reels have a bait clicker?

They do have a bait clicker, they are not as loud as an Abu but still loud enough to get your attention. The location of the clicker button is not in the best location as it is on the left side almost underneath.

Pro cat makes one two much similar little cheaper

The Academy brand? It's nowhere near the same other than they're both round.

Thanks mjmetro0719

Correct!
Im burnt out on my Abu's continued failures
The more you rebuild them the faster they burn out it seems
Yes Ive dumped the coin for the ceramic rebuilds(cost more then the reels) and they are getting shaky inside 3 seasons
Yes Sir . . . . . . Im looking hard at these CatMaxx
FWIW . . . . the Penn reels arent doing any better then the Abu's for the money
OF Coarse opinions will vary but I wear all my stuff out before I die generally

I have one and it is a good strong reel. The problem is that you can't cast it very far unless you have a really long rod and some heavy heavy weight. Best use is for drifting/trolling.

Have you tried adjusting the brakes? They're just underneath the right side cover. If I remember correctly, I pulled all of those plastic sliders off of mine, so basically no brakes, and those things would sling some lead. If you still want some braking action, slide those plastic caps inwards.

Yea I know the quality has for sure gone down compared to the previous Abu's. I think I'm going to give Shimano reels a chance next time I'm in the market.

I'll have to look into that. All I have done is loosen the spool tension knob under the handle to the point it almost came off and it still don't cast very far with 2 oz weight, 65lb braid on a 7.5' Ugly Stik.

That rod is alot of your problem,decent pole but they cast like slop
Rhino rods are the same way
2oz on a PA

We didn't have good luck with ours

I got one about 4 month ago. Was a nice reel out of the box and I could really sling a 2 oz lead with it.. 4 months later I'm having problems with the thumbar. Haven't taken time to look into it yet, but if it can't last more than 4 months without a problem, it's not for me.