[Tony Barnes]

Greetings from snowy Kent.

I've recently bought a 7', 10-30g Bushwhacker at a good price and am looking for a reel to go with it. I'm thinking of using 15lb Power Pro on a 2500/3000 front drag reel with SPs as well as plugs. Any thoughts? The rod was only £43 including postage, so I was thinking of spending about £50 on the reel, might spend more for a saltwater proof reel, which is what I'd prefer. I Like the look of the Cormoran Black Star (£90) and Black Master (£50). Can anyone confirm if the Black Master is saltwater proof? I already have an Exage 4000FB, but it feels a bit heavy on the Bushwhacker.

Any advice and suggestions would be appreciated.

Tones.

 

[Tim Griffin]

Tones - if you look lower down the tackle forum I've posted a link for VERY cheap Shimano Exage 2500 Fb and 3000FB - £29 plus carriage new. I bought my lad the Exage 2500 for his 7' Bushy and it's a beautiful balance.

 

[Steve Lewis]

Greetings from snowy Kent.

I've recently bought a 7', 10-30g Bushwhacker at a good price and am looking for a reel to go with it. I'm thinking of using 15lb Power Pro on a 2500/3000 front drag reel with SPs as well as plugs. Any thoughts? The rod was only £43 including postage, so I was thinking of spending about £50 on the reel, might spend more for a saltwater proof reel, which is what I'd prefer. I Like the look of the Cormoran Black Star (£90) and Black Master (£50). Can anyone confirm if the Black Master is saltwater proof? I already have an Exage 4000FB, but it feels a bit heavy on the Bushwhacker.

Any advice and suggestions would be appreciated.

Tones.

Tony,

I have the Black Star and it is a cracking reel,should balance well with the Bushwaker !!

 

[Tony Barnes]

Hi griff,

I left a message on the other thread as I can't find it on their site.

I would prefer a front drag though as a rear drag probably won't fit in the end pocket of the new lure bag that I bought for christmas.

Thanks for the info. Any more bargains out there?


Tones.

 

[Simon L]

Morning Big Tones . . . .

My lad uses the 8'6" Whacker, and he has an Awa-Shima reel on it, in a 2000 size. It's a lovely little reel that has given us no problems so far, and seems robust . . .

Here's a link to the Awa-Shima site. The model he has is the Pulse HZ Bass 2000 i paid less than £40 for the reel.

S

 

[Tim Griffin]

That is a lovely reel, Si. Where did you pick that up?

 

[Simon L]

That is a lovely reel, Si. Where did you pick that up?

My local tackle shop HR Jones in Clydach. I think he was selling them for £39.99, and i think he knocked 10% off that again. He hasnt got a website at the moment, but if you are interested, let me know, i'll sort something.

 

[Tony Barnes]

Hi Lewisman,

I haven't heard of them before so thanks for the link. Some handsome looking reels on there. Does it cope with the salt ok?

Also, would you recommend a 2000 size reel? Would a 150 yard/meter reel of 15lb power pro fit on there nicely, and still be underfilled like the 'experts' recommend?

Cheers,
Tones.

 

[Mark Sleep]

If I were you I would forget about looking for the 'saltwater proof' reels. Unless you are spending a few hundred quid, the difference on a reel that quotes 'saltwater friendly' is generally very cosmetic. I would say choose whatever reel you think suits you best and just be sensible when looking after it, wipe over after a session etc.

 

[Tim Griffin]

I would agree, Mark. I recently had my two Exage 4000RB reels serviced and had new gears and bearings fitted. The guy at Shimano Felindre who did them basically advised me to either spend £400 for a proper sealed saltwater reel, or stick with lower end reels like the Exage and below, and expect limited life in the salt. I do rinse my reels after every trip btw! Can't fault their service or repair prices though!

 

[Simon L]

I'd tend to agree with Mark & Tim . . saltwater-proof is a bit of a myth in my opinion. My experience of the Awa-Shima so far (had it for about 9 months), is that it's coped very well. No signs of any problems at all - no corrosion, no stiffening, it's still running as well as the first day i bought it. My lads reel is loaded with mono, and i cant remember exactly how much is on there, but it's stated capacity is 140m of .25 diameter, so i'd have thought that 150yds of PP will fit on there no worries at all (what's the diameter of the PP ?). I give my reels a quick splash under the tap at home, and then leave them to dry, and that's it.

For the money, i am very happy to recommend these reels.

 

[Ben Field]

I'm a bit surprised that Shimano don't make reels with water resistant (sealed) drags. Most mid priced (£100+?) Daiwa's (upwards) have a rubber seal to stop water getting in and around the spool. My Abu has it too (cost me £65). It's a bit of a safety buffer if nothing else. I have an Exage 2500 and a Technium 2500 FA that I do use for light stuff and not having the seal is one thing I constantly think about. If it got dunked, water'd be straight in there. What I'm saying is, it's just a bit of rubber/plastic - so I'm surprised Shimano don't do it.

 

[The Squid]

Cormoran Black Star3000 £90 and IMHO as good as a Shimano Twinpower (£230). I still use my Cormoran Magnesia 3500 (£80) and its out lasted my Diawa Certate 4000 (£240)

 

[Tony Barnes]

Thanks guys, some interesting points made.

Does anyone know if the Black Master (£50) is meant to be saltwater proof. I asked this on another thread but no replies. The website doesn't say so. I'm not sure if I want to spend £90 on a reel for the Bushy. Especially if it's not goin to be very resistant to saltwater. Also, I'm into the idea of a relatively cheap set up. But it could make sense in the long run to go for the black star. I must have a look at Mick's comments about the Cormoran reels again. I'm also surprised that nobody has mentioned Daiwa reels yet. Any recommendations for a small cheap Daiwa? Any new models for 2010?

Thanks again everyone,
Tones

 

[Steve Lewis]

Thanks guys, some interesting points made.

Does anyone know if the Black Master (£50) is meant to be saltwater proof. I asked this on another thread but no replies. The website doesn't say so. I'm not sure if I want to spend £90 on a reel for the Bushy. Especially if it's not goin to be very resistant to saltwater. Also, I'm into the idea of a relatively cheap set up. But it could make sense in the long run to go for the black star. I must have a look at Mick's comments about the Cormoran reels again. I'm also surprised that nobody has mentioned Daiwa reels yet. Any recommendations for a small cheap Daiwa? Any new models for 2010?

Thanks again everyone,
Tones

Tony,

Daiwa own Cormoran reels ! This reel is very good value for money and should last you years IMHO !

Buy Cheap, Buy Twice.

Steve.

 

[The Squid]

The only reel that I know of that is saltwater proof is the Van Staal, But you are looking at £500 upwards. Shimano are making Stellas and Twinpowers (SW) that are being marketed as saltwater friendly, however Shimano UK are only importing 5000 and upwards sizes, you can get the smaller ones from Japan via mail order.

 

[Ben Field]

Yep, waterproofness is only really the case with the VS. Others are just slightly more realed than others though - the Daiwas I was on about have the sealed drag system. Here's a link with a very rough looking pic and explaination: http://www.daiwa.com/Reel/detail.aspx?ID=439. Just in case anybody though I was trying to say they were waterproof. They're not, just more water resistant than some. Wouldn't at all surprised if the Cormorans have the same thing. Think my next reel will be the Black Star!

 

[Tony Barnes]

Hi Guys,

i just wanted to say thanks for the advice. I might have a look for a cheap Okuma or similar, but I'll probably end up going for the Black Star anyway. But I'm in no rush at the moment.

Lewisman, according to Vidar's post in the encyclopedia section, 15lb Power Pro is 0.19 mm. I might even go to the 10lb (0.15 mm). Currently using 20lb (0.23mm) on the Exage 4000FB.

All the best,
Tones.

 

[Mike Kennard]

I think Tones that there are all sorts of reels out there which can be used if you look after them in the right way. Just keep them clean and well maintained and even the cheap ones will last a surprisingly long time. They won't feel as good on the retrieve and the drag may not be as smooth but they will still catch fish.

 

[Simon L]

Lewisman, according to Vidar's post in the encyclopedia section, 15lb Power Pro is 0.19 mm. I might even go to the 10lb (0.15 mm). Currently using 20lb (0.23mm) on the Exage 4000FB.

Plenty of capacity on the Awa-Shima then. Good little reel for the money.