Looking to purchase my first reel

I just recently won a Denali kovert 7ft medium action bait casting rod. What would be a good reel to complement it. My budget would be between $100 to 180 dollars. Thanks for your help.

They're are quite a few high quality reels in that price range.Shimano, lews, daiwa etc. If you plan on using this as an all purpose rod for bass I recommend taking the rod with you, go where you plan on buying the reel and mount the reel on the rod to see if it's comfortable and balanced. Line capacity, comfort, and bearing quality not quantity are some good points to consider.

Also the material used to build the reel are important, depending on saltwater or freshwater use or both.

Thanks for the advice.

I have 12 Lews and love them.

This is the best advise I've read in a long, long time.

You can get a good deal on a new or used jdm Daiwa Certate on ebay or a new Shimano Stradic FJ or FK for that price. All are very well made reels and offer a whole lot of bang for your buck. I own 4. And also I'm making direct comparisons to my Shimano Stellas. Either or will last a long, long time with no issues. I'd guess a 3000 or 4000 model should work with that rod.

Shimano will last longer than most brands

he's needing a baitcaster........many good ones in that price range like Old School said - I'm kinda partial to the Daiwa Tatula Type R. Shop around - I got mine from eBay for about $135.

My bad! Well then the Shimano Curado is a great value. I still own my curado e's (200e5,200e7 and 300ej) They're bulletproof. I've used them on countless trips over the years and they are as good as new. They can also be used in both fresh and saltwater. Recently, I installed the boca bearing kit and now their performance is unreal!

Check out the Quantum Accurist. I fish Denali rods and have that exact setup. Hard to beat.

Lews tournament pro have 8 there great have 2 bb1 pro also good the rest are Shimano have 7 an I like the lews best

Daiwa Lexa $80 shipped on ebay. Great reel especially for the price.

Other favorites of mine in that price range...Lews Super Duty, BB1 Pro, are a couple of my favorite Lews but they have some new models I have not tried yet. Shimano Curado E and Citica E. are my favorite Shimanos.

That Daiwa Lexa will outperform the Shimano Curado I and the Daiwa Tatula type R.

Not any more, it depends on what Shimano you are talking about. Daiwa and Lews make some fantastic reels and Shimano has dropped the ball several times over the years. Their G series was a total flop. The B,D and E series were some of their best ones made. The I series,..some are problem free and some are not.