Texas Fishing Forum

Reel suggestions? Thanks

Posted By: Jungle Explorer

Reel suggestions? Thanks - 04/28/15 06:39 PM

Okay. I may be trying to split hairs here, but here goes. I do mostly freshwater fishing and when I visit the coast I usually target specs or slot reds. I have never really gone for big fish like sharks before, but I would like to try it out. Here is my dilemma and why I am here asking questions. I don't want to spend money to build something that will be just for big fish, like shark, that I might use once a year. I am trying to reach a happy medium, with a setup that can handle up to say an 8 foot shark, but that won't be too over sized for say, large catfish fishing. I already have an 8 foot Ugly Stik Big Water rod (BWS110280) that I think will be okay for what I want. Last week I was at the coast and I bought a Penn Squall SQL40. I did not like it at all. It had no level wind, the drag was awful and the spool tensioner was useless. The line capacity on it is not what Penn listed it to be either. That plus, the clicker assembly broke and the button fell off into my hand the first time I tried to use it (Total piece of junk). Never even caught a fish on it! I got my money back on it. I know for sure that I don't want anything like that again.

Here is what I would like to find. A good quality reel that can hold around 500 yards of 80lb braid and 100 yards of 60lb mono, that has a level wind and that cost less then $150. Since I will be using it for freshwater as well, it needs to be a reel that can be casted. A loud clicker is a bonus.

I have been looking online at reels like the Okuma Solterra SLR-20L and the XP Pro 452L. Never used this brand before, so don't know anything about it, but it has been the only brand that I have been able to find large capacity spools with level winds. I am sure there are other, I have just not found them yet.

Thanks in advance for the suggestions. smile
Posted By: J.StoneRepairs

Re: Reel suggestions? Thanks - 04/29/15 06:18 AM

Okuma reels are pretty good and if you ever need parts their customer service is great.
Posted By: Jungle Explorer

Re: Reel suggestions? Thanks - 04/29/15 07:27 AM

Originally Posted By: J.StoneRepairs
Okuma reels are pretty good and if you ever need parts their customer service is great.


Thanks. Are there any reels from brands (that you know of) that compete with these models? I would just like something to compare them to. I like the look of the SLR-20L and it is close to the line capacity I am looking for. Okuma makes a larger model, the SLR-50L that hold a lot of line, but it is a little over my price range. I just can't find any reviews for them from people that have caught big fish on them, like sharks. On paper they seems to have good components, but I want to feel comfortable that if I hang into a 6 or 7 foot shark (fingers and toes crossed and tongue held just right), that it will not give out on me. I wonder if anyone on here uses one of these models.
© 2024 Texas Fishing Forum