What is “the best” catfish reel? Loaded question because everyone has their own opinion but I need a couple and can’t figure out which will do a great job long term with few or no problems.

Thanks for your thoughts and suggestions. I appreciate them!!

Ray

For Blues and flatheads My #1 choice is Shimano Tekota 600 hga. Built like a tank and easily the most well built catfish reel I’ve used. Running Tekotas now for 8 yrs hard every week and not a single one ever been in the shop. Cost a little more than the others but you get what you pay for in durability and performance.
#2 Penn Squall II 20. Not quite as durable as Tekota but is a great reel. Probably the most popular amongst big fish guys.
#3 Abu 6500c3 or 4 or the 7000. Great reel, not as durable but can be easily repaired. I ran these for 25 yrs and they did great but had to be serviced and repaired often.

When I use a rod and reel in freshwater it is almost always an Abu 6500. I have caught lots of big catfish with them. The older Swedish ones are pretty bulletproof, but as El Gato Azul indicates, with some long term maintenance the newer ones will work. They are the best all-around reel I have found.

Very much personal choice on this one, but many good reels around.

I started off with the Abu 6500. Great reels and simple to use. Mine have worked well but they need a bit of TLC and the level winds are fragile.

I went to Daiwa Seagate's and I love these reels. They are absolutely bullet proof with a really strong wind mechanism and are big heavy reels. Not a single issue with the four I use, but no level wind (I like the simplicity, I use my thumb) and no auto bail close (you have to throw a lever to reel, again I like the simplicity).

I like the Shimano Tekota 600's, beautifully made reels and yes expensive, and you can feel the quality in your hand. The reel feels a bit small for me, but yes very much a personal thing.

The Penn Squal's are also great reels, and like the ABU's have level wind and an auto bail close. They seem better made than the Abu's imo and as El Gate stated, the choice of many pro guides which is when I got to use them when fishing the Tennessee river.

I have a mix bag of reels, some I have had for years and some more recent. Most of my catfishing is for Blues, drifting, and usually looking for bigger fish. Notice I did not say "catching"... as that is often not the case. LOL

As others have said, the Tekota 600 is a super nice reel - but expensive. Feel good, nice drag, good high speed gearing, tough. But expensive!

I have a couple of older Abu 6500's that I still use and like. I also bought a couple of Slimecat 7000 reels a year or so ago. While I have not used them hard, I am happy with them so far. About $85 each, when they have them in stock - guys are in Kansas. Copy of Abu 7000 reels. I also have a couple of heavier spinning reels that I will use at times. Especially if casting baits, spinning cast easier - further I think.

Give the reels a little love every now and then, and keep good line on them, and there are a lot of things out there that will work well. Our rods and reels are so much better than 20-30 years ago, it makes a lot of things look good.

Good luck.

Ken

I just go my first Shimano Tekota 600 and it's perfect, you can cast it, you have a higher gear ratio for fish that might swim at you hard and it's built smaller but the stuff it's made from counts for when you do catch that fish we all search for. The 600 sports 24 pound drag which is really lots more to use to control the situation like if fishing in lots of timber... I call combat style fishing lol.

I have had plenty of the others mentioned already, I sold and got on the Shimano reels more than 20 years ago now and their reels have not disappointed me yet. I don't consider the Tekota 600 an expensive reel by any means. Yes it's more than some of these less expensive reels, I just will not throw a 150 bucks at a reel for this type of fishing that I know 75 bucks more and I can get something that is like a tank but still small enough to cast.

The guys here turned me on to these Tekota reels, I have been using Shimano Calcutta 400 and they don't have the drag like this Tekota 600. I would say to find someone close enough and go check these out. These are very impressive reels for under 300 bucks...

Thanks, I really appreciate y’all’s suggestions. I think I’m going with the Shimano Tekota 600s, a couple of them. I’ve got several hundred dollars of Cabela’s points or bucks or whatever they call them saved up and didn’t know what I was going to do with them. Now I do.

What line and weight do y’all suggest? I’ve used mono and braid over the years on fresh- and saltwater from light to heavy but I haven’t fished catfish in a long time. I’ll be fishing Lake Waco and Lake Brazos mostly.

Also, what bait do y’all like best, another loaded question?

Thanks again!

Ray

I love my Penn Squall II's ,dragging and bank fishing for blues.

For flatheads nothing beats my Daiwa BG 5000 and 6500's........I use slip floats 6-25' deep with live bait so soft cast are a must and these big spinning reels are perfect for that technique.

Fresh cut gizzard shad.

I've used almost all the above and the Tekota is definitely the top dog imo. I will say, for anyone reading this and just getting into the cat game, you absolutely can't beat the Okuma Classic Pro. I got mine for under $60 and they're still going strong without a single issue. Cattin is expensive and I think this is the best first choice you can make. I've put a LOT of fish in the boat with these reels. I've done zero upkeep (on purpose). I decided to see just how long they would last without any preventive maintenance. As they die I'm replacing them with the Tekota's. Or I'm going to be. Not one of them has died yet. I've had them for two seasons so far. They'll hold a ton of line, and feel great in the hand. I'm not going to call them a tank yet but they've exceeded ALL of my expectations. They don't have quite as high of a drag rating. I think they're set at 17 or 18 pounds. My biggest Texas blue is a 57 pounder and it was no problem. I've put dozens of fish over twenty pounds in the boat and I haven't so much as glanced at these reels when it comes to maintenance.

Ray, I'm a fan of braid in open water. If I'm fishing timber I'll swap line for sure to mono. I use 80 pound braid with an 80 pound mono leader. I used to use a lighter leader so I wouldn't lose all my terminal tackle on hangups but El Gato convinced me the error of that idea. I mean, looking back, I'm shocked that the only place I was making it easier to break off was the end that my fish were on! Sometimes it's all a matter of perspective. There's a reason sayings like that are cliche.

As far as bait goes, fresh caught period. Shad is always the go to but I also like drum, carp and bluegill. I always try to put at least two or three different baits out when I go regardless of the time of year.

I hope that Cabela's will let you use your rewards points on the Shimano reel. That would be a great way to offset the investment on these reels. Honestly I don't have a single Shimano reel that is not a favorite, they are all so well made.

Far as the line 80# power prow and then a fluorocarbon leader. Bait wise, shad and perch if you can. Your going to love the Tekota 600's for the money as well as for this type of fishing. These guys on this forum rock this sport and know exactly the gear for it...

I changed to braid a few years ago and never looked back. It solved my backlash problems, and is soft and limp, yet tough as steel. You can get 60 lb. braid the same diameter as 17 lb. mono. I wound my Abu baitcaster and trusty old Mitchell 300 spinner with 60 lb braid and use a 20 lb mono (XT) leader. Both cast and work beautifully, and will handle just about anything.

Best bait? Not gonna touch that one...

I was looking at the BG 4500 for a Mad Katz rod. Think this is too small?

Match the reel capacity in line weight to the lure rating of the pole.

You should look at piscifun they have some good spinning reels at affordable prices..