# Shimano Saros F



## basstardo (Jun 5, 2006)

Anybody fish these? They look like a decent alternative to the Stradic FI since I don't like those and the FH's are becoming harder to find.


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## HellRhaY (Jul 6, 2007)

built for freshwater, not waterproof drag as well.
it's a freshwater stradic FI.


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## basstardo (Jun 5, 2006)

Interesting. Could you just grease up the drag to stop water intrusion? I very rarely get my reels wet, so that's not necessarily a showstopper. If I clean it off after each trip really well, you think it will hold up?


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## HellRhaY (Jul 6, 2007)

can't really say how it'll hold, i don't own one.sry.

it has paladin gear, so gears are pretty durable. i check and it said it has waterproof drag. my bad.


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## basstardo (Jun 5, 2006)

It would get light use, nothing more than some schoolie rockfish and trout. Maybe some flounder. Thanks Ray.


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## Newsjeff (Jul 22, 2004)

What don't you like about the FI?


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## basstardo (Jun 5, 2006)

The price. That and I like the FH's WAY better. Just a matter of preference, no real gripes about the FI.


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## Newsjeff (Jul 22, 2004)

Hmm. To me, the FI is much smoother ... and better built ... than the FH. 

The new Saros is a very nice reel for the money.


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## basstardo (Jun 5, 2006)

Something about the FI's just feel weird to me. I don't like the look of them either, but that has nothing to do with usability. I'm up in the air really. I may get an FI and try it, and if I don't like it, sell it. Dunno yet.


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## uncdub13 (Aug 9, 2003)

The main difference between the Stradic FI and the Saros F is that the Stradic has the Aero Wrap Oscillation feature to help with laying braided line on the spool and the Saros does not. Both are fine for saltwater, assuming you maintain them properly, but that's pretty much any reel.

I've been pretty happy with my Stradic FI's so far (1000's and 3000's) and have several friends fishing them pretty hard with no complaints either. For what it's worth, i used the old FH models for quite a while and wasnt very pleased with them at all.


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## basstardo (Jun 5, 2006)

I use braid on all my spinning stuff, so that may not work out after all. Did the sizing change from the FI to FH? Is a 4000FI the same as a 4000FH?


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## uncdub13 (Aug 9, 2003)

I'm sure braid would work fine on the saros, just maybe not quite as nice as the stradic. The price difference really isnt that much, especially if you go on ebay or somethin.

The spool size is still the same on the 4000, but i think the FI might be a couple ounces lighter than the FH was. If you're just looking for light use on schoolies and trout like you mentioned, i'd look at the 3000.


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## Newsjeff (Jul 22, 2004)

I've got a 4000FI on a 9' and a 3000FI on a 7'. 

The 4000 is perfect with 20lb braid on the 9'. 

IMHO, the 3000 is a little too big for a 7' trout/pup/schoolie rod. It works just fine, but I'd get a 2500 for that rod if I was to do it over again.


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## uncdub13 (Aug 9, 2003)

The only difference between the 2500 and 3000 is the spool size and handle style. Otherwise, they're the same reel.


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## Newsjeff (Jul 22, 2004)

uncdub13 said:


> The only difference between the 2500 and 3000 is the spool size and handle style. Otherwise, they're the same reel.


That could be.

I know it was like that with the FH models.

The same was true with the 3000 and 4000 FH series. However, the 3000FI is a diffrent (smaller) reel then the 4000FI.


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## uncdub13 (Aug 9, 2003)

Yeah the 3000 size is new for the FI series i think. In the FH it went 1000, 2500, 4000/5000(same size). Now it's 1000, 2500/3000(same size), 4000, 5000(bigger than 4000 now) with the FI.

I can see how you might be wantin to go lighter than that 3000 for inshore fishin. I find myself wanting to throw my 1000 setups over the 3000 more and more. That 1000 can whip just about anything i'll hook inside the inlets with 140 yards of 10 lb braid.


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## Newsjeff (Jul 22, 2004)

You are correct, sir. 

I had the 3000/4000 reels mixed up with the 4000/5000. 

As I said, I really like the FI. Shimano got it right this time. 

I have fished Daiwa spinners for a long time - until that FI came out. Now I'd rather fish an FI than either a Tierra or a TDA.


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## CrawFish (Sep 23, 2003)

They look very cool. My buddy has 2. I'm thinking about get one for my fresh water set up. I have a couple of rods that don't have reels yet. I have FH 2500 and 1k for about 3 years. I don't do any maintenance, but rinse after fishing. It's still as good as new.


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## basstardo (Jun 5, 2006)

I've been using a 4000 for trout fishing. I know where I can get a new 2500 FH on the cheap. Is there an advantage to the smaller reels?


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## CrawFish (Sep 23, 2003)

basstardo said:


> I've been using a 4000 for trout fishing. I know where I can get a new 2500 FH on the cheap. Is there an advantage to the smaller reels?


Weight. I can fish longer using lighter set up than heavy. And its more confortable. You don't need the 4k size for schoolies, pups, or flounders. I use 10lbs braided on my small spinners. I've caught pups in high 20" and low 30" with no problem with the 2500 and. I'd use the 400 size for thowing metals and Lesner.


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## finfinder (Sep 17, 2004)

I think the Saros is a better value for the money.
I considered buying a stradic until I tried the Saros. The 3000 is my favorite bass reel. Very Smoooth and I like the larger handle.


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## NTKG (Aug 16, 2003)

finfinder said:


> I think the Saros is a better value for the money.
> I considered buying a stradic until I tried the Saros. The 3000 is my favorite bass reel. Very Smoooth and I like the larger handle.


i've got a few of them when the first came out. I was goin to replace my old stradics with new ones, but they jumped in price and said screw it. Have not yet had any issues with any of them, and i'm not like crawfish, i beat my stuff up. Most of my reels will not last a few months without a complete rebuild(spinning reels). Most of them get used on the kayak too and sit in water and some point and I have not yet had to tear down my saros. I've had to do 2 of my stradics once so far this year. I think it'll do fine for what your looking for.


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