cheap reels and good line

Wheres the cup holders?
FWIW,Abu doesnt retool for stronger frames and side plates
They are all the same,just stickers and price tags fella
Side plates on my 7K arent any stronger then my old 5K
Its a 3 screw,4 screw kinda thing

Expensive reals with stickers and expensive rods dont make a difference?
Your right,looking good and pricey dont catch fish

I don't want to argue Sarg but a 6500c3 and a 6500 rocket are not the same thing. They are completely different animals. Brass sideplates are stronger than aluminum and the chrome rocket frame is much heavier and stronger than that of a c3 and the reel foot is forged vs welded. It has a better clicker and casts much farther also.

If you have a genuine rocket frame like the frame on the left in the picture it is stronger. It has a forged reel foot. If you have a reel foot like the frame on the right the foot is rivoted or welded and yes it is weaker and will break easier. You can also buy a rocket with a cheaper frame if you bought yours from Simmons or catfish connection. They custom order reels from Abu and cheap out on the parts to be able to offer them at a lower price. There is many companies that do this.

My beautiful new custom c3s sure have been catching me a lot of fish! And they are defignitly built better than my stock c3s. Different side plates, bigger plate screws, different line guide, different thumb rest, lot of differences in the two actually! Saying the only difference is just stickers is just plain wrong. My customs weighs 6 more oz than my orange c3 catfish specials. Must be magic!! I've added pics of clear differences in the two and I'm quite certain there are more.
different side plates!!

bigger plate screws!

different thumb rest!

different line guide!

You're gonna make me go take pics of my Zebco 303s. They are the best!

Did you go with 500 or 600's ?(500's will spool 200+ yds of 40#)
Im making the switch
Any reference for sale/sales/source(where to buy)
Im needing 8 reels to rig out another new boat

I have 11 abu's, some are 5000's, some 6500's, some 7000's. The 6500's are my favorite. The 7000'a are a little heavy. The shimano;s cost more. I've always thought about buying a calcutta. I have mine cleaned and checked every year. Never had a problem with any of them. Biggest blue I have caught is a 42 lb. I'm sure littlejohn knows since he fishes every day and catches 50-60 lb'ers. I'm gonna buy a shimano just to see if I like them better. Should I get a tekato or a calcutta? If a tekato, what size?

I got two loaner Tecota 500 last weekend and fished two days with them
I fished again two days this weekend and Im sold on that reel now for sure.
After three or four fish on an Abu and then you hang a solid haaawg with a Tekota,man oh man the difference is well worth the price difference.
The entire platform is so smooth and positive,just barely bump the drag and it will stop a Peterbilt
SO MUCH more refined then Anything I have from Abu
The Tekotas also have a ceramic bearing option(after market)available
Gonna write me a big ole check this week

[quote=SARG]
I got two loaner Tecota 500 last weekend and fished two days with them
I fished again two days this weekend and Im sold on that reel now for sure.
After three or four fish on an Abu and then you hang a solid haaawg with a Tekota,man oh man the difference is well worth the price difference.
The entire platform is so smooth and positive,just barely bump the drag and it will stop a Peterbilt
SO MUCH more refined then Anything I have from Abu
The Tekotas also have a ceramic bearing option(after market)available
Gonna write me a big ole check this week [quote]




I've said stuff that is wrong on here before but I try not too... And now that I've said that I can say this... You don't wanna try to stop a peterbilt. Just leave your drag set at 5 or 6 lbs and enjoy. You'll see more big fish...

I own 3 Peterbilts every month I send the payment
ANYWAY. . . . .
These Tekota's are damn nice,my fault for sticking with Abu for over 30yrs
Found me 2 of the 500's today for $139 close outs from a big box store
Town close by has two more in stock same price,next city up has 3 on hand
Need one more for my 8 total for the new rig coming next Tues on transport
May just suck it up and pay the $180 for the last one and be done with it cause the last one is over in Louisiana.
Upgrade bearings will be ordered once reels arrive in hand,known fail parts also from the same source(very few).
Ordering rods in the morning . . . . .

LMAO! what happened to the Chinese reels that are so great??? Already flushed em down the toilet?

I've got 2 abu 5000's . not used much. Have just been serviced by Turbo Dan. I think I will sell them and buy a shimano to try. Any offers ?

Only takes about 3-6lb of pressure to stop a Pete under controlled braking
8lb under full load controlled braking
Its all pedal control . . .