# Saltwater trout reel?



## rocket (Dec 1, 2008)

I'm looking to buy a new saltwater trout/puppy/whatever spinning reel for throwing 1/4 to 5/8 oz jigs. There must be some good trout fishermen on here so I'd like to hear what you all like to use.

Also, do any of you use baitcasting reels for tossing light jigs in the surf? I'm thinking it would be more trouble than it's worth but I'm open to trying it.


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## SmoothLures (Feb 13, 2008)

A small Shimano in whatever model depending on your budget won't let you down. I like low profile baitcasters but from the sand, I don't see it happening. Inshore, maybe, but the saltwater models are $$$ and aren't worth the maintenance IMO.


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## rocket (Dec 1, 2008)

Thanks, SmoothLures. I have a Saros 2500 and it is a really nice reel but I wonder if I really need that high of a retrieve ratio for working jigs. I'm not at all opposed to getting another Shimano but just wondering about other options.


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## citation (Dec 8, 2010)

Penn 440ssg or 450ssg, I am a big fan of penn reels, they are the best.


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## surf fisher (Aug 28, 2008)

penn 260 slammer


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## SnookMook (Jan 7, 2004)

I second the Penn 260 Slammer. I do a lot of trout fishing down here in Florida and that is the reel I use for slinging soft plastics on a jig head. That 260 Slammer loaded with 10lb braid lets me sling even a 1/8 or 1/16th oz jig head a good distance.

Plus when I'm doing a ton of repeated casting the lighter model reel make a big difference now that my casting elbow and shoulder are pushing 50 years old. Even though the Slammers are not the lightest reels out there. LOL


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## Kingfshr (Jan 31, 2009)

Penn Battle 3000.


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## StriperChaser (Dec 12, 2007)

rocket said:


> I'm looking to buy a new saltwater trout/puppy/whatever spinning reel for throwing 1/4 to 5/8 oz jigs. There must be some good trout fishermen on here so I'd like to hear what you all like to use.
> 
> Also, do any of you use baitcasting reels for tossing light jigs in the surf? I'm thinking it would be more trouble than it's worth but I'm open to trying it.


Rocket I use a Diawa inshore low profile made for the salt, casting model and love it. I Fish it for specs and puppies casting jigs and mirrorlures in the surf and it performs very well imo. I spool it with 2 lb pp and seem to be successful catching but that is all relative. Casting is fine with the lighter heads but it does take some getting used to. I have it on a 7ft6in rod and it throws great. It is all about what you are most comfortable with.


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## Fish Hunter (Jul 31, 2002)

After 1 year and a few nice fish, I still like the US Reel 240SX. Now, its not been put to hard use or lots of fish, so the jury is still out on long term.

But so far, its done a nice job and still smooth.


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## bluefish1928 (Jun 9, 2007)

rocket said:


> Thanks, SmoothLures. I have a Saros 2500 and it is a really nice reel but I wonder if I really need that high of a retrieve ratio for working jigs. I'm not at all opposed to getting another Shimano but just wondering about other options.


speed and trout fishing don't generally go together

now blues and Spanish mackerel, thats another story

I think ur 2500 is just fine if u have 10-15 pound test braid


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## GTOK (Jul 31, 2010)

I use a magged ABU 4500 with 15 lb. mono.


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## DrumintheSuds (Nov 19, 2007)

I have been a ABU conventional man my entire life. I have owned MANY 6500 reels for the surf but I never found that love for them trout fishing....UNTIL I learned how to TUNE those mothers to cast easier and further with lighter lures. I did a few upgrades on my trout set-ups and I can cast light lures all day long.


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## GTOK (Jul 31, 2010)

Got to thinking about line on the ABU 4500 so I checked and is 10 lb. mono. I have found ABU reels respond well to magging and cast like a dream after being modified, and it is easy to do. Backlashs are almost a thing of the past.


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## taskmongo (Jan 7, 2007)

daiwa feugo 3000 with 300 yards of 30lb sumari braid . I use mirrolures most of the time and this set up is the ticket . should you hook a big drum a fat striper or chopper blue You still have enough to land it .Mine even whipped a 50lb amberjack in aug this year


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## rocket (Dec 1, 2008)

Thanks for the opinions so far. Lots of options. That fuego looks sweet but pricey.


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## Fishman (Apr 23, 2000)

Anything Daiwa in the 2500 series. Look for something with a low gear ratio.


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## rattler (Jul 3, 2004)

rocket said:


> Thanks for the opinions so far. Lots of options. That fuego looks sweet but pricey.


 If you want cheap spinning. Look at the "rhinos". I bought one on a chepo rod and just cleaned it up. Works great for trout. Check the web for "salmon" rods. "Noodle rods" will toss a 1/8- 5/8.


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## rocket (Dec 1, 2008)

rattler said:


> If you want cheap spinning. Look at the "rhinos". I bought one on a chepo rod and just cleaned it up. Works great for trout. Check the web for "salmon" rods. "Noodle rods" will toss a 1/8- 5/8.


Not looking for cheap but $300 is a little out of my range. I'd like to keep it under $200.


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## surf rat (Jun 30, 2004)

*reels*

I would buy a Shimano 3000 stradic....Or a Daiwa SOL 2500 for around 200. Stay away from the 125 to 150 range Daiwas. The SOL is a diffrent animal.


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## JAM (Jul 22, 2002)

*As someone who is highly addicted to Speck Fishing*

and spend most of my time chasing them... I love the Dawai td SOL 2500..You will not find a smoother reel in the 200 dollar price range. It's loaded with 329yrds of 10 lb 4 pound berkley crystal... Paired on a Custom Lamiglas xra-102-2 mt...IMHO constant repitition fishing is better suited with a spinner, just less to go wrong... Go as light as ya can on the line, super line of course.....Have landed a 43 inch Drum on this setup from the beach and numerous trout... I put as little backing on as possible of a light mono then load it with the crystal.. Reason being is I am also looking for the wayward striper and Drum and need the yardage to get them to the beach... Good luck.... Just goes down hill from here..... Get good stuff and get it once... JAM


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## Rockfish1 (Apr 8, 2005)

I have 2 small conventionals I fish from the beach... one is a green Shimano Curado, loaded with 20#PP, left hand retrieve... hate switching hands when I'm doing a lot of casting... I fish this on an 8 1/2' Lamiglas Norwest Special rod... most excellent for all the stuff you'll find in the wash and just beyond...

the 2nd is a Shimano Calcutta 50 currently loaded with McCoys Mean Green in 8# test, but that's gonna change next spring... that one rides a Shimano VCT60ML 6'0", 6-15#, 1/8-1/2oz med fast taper... this is one of the Loomis built rods, from right at the beginning of the transition... sweet set up for light plugs, spoons and jigs in the surf...


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## rattler (Jul 3, 2004)

rocket said:


> Not looking for cheap but $300 is a little out of my range. I'd like to keep it under $200.


I think I paid $35 for the combo. Rod works fine for spot. I cleaned a fixed the reel. Baitfeeder no less. I put it on a old st. croix I had. 7'. You do understand you can break a reel and land big fish on a $35 reel, 10 times before you have spent $350. It really does teach you to "play" a fish. YOU GET PULL, YOUR ROD/REEL IS A TOOL, Not a winch. IMVHO. Its not the reel/rod/bait/etc. Its what YOU put into it. Not $$$$, Not even TIME. I really feel(JMVVVHO) its the understanding of the fishing.


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## Jesse Lockowitz (Feb 13, 2006)

rattler said:


> I think I paid $35 for the combo. Rod works fine for spot. I cleaned a fixed the reel. Baitfeeder no less. I put it on a old st. croix I had. 7'. You do understand you can break a reel and land big fish on a $35 reel, 10 times before you have spent $350. It really does teach you to "play" a fish. YOU GET PULL, YOUR ROD/REEL IS A TOOL, Not a winch. IMVHO. Its not the reel/rod/bait/etc. Its what YOU put into it. Not $$$$, Not even TIME. I really feel(JMVVVHO) its the understanding of the fishing.


:--|


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## smacks fanatic (Oct 16, 2010)

diawa d wave and d shock are great and there really easy to get!(cheapppp)


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## bluefish1928 (Jun 9, 2007)

smacks fanatic said:


> diawa d wave and d shock are great and there really easy to get!(cheapppp)


the slow rod action is ideal for float fishing

now the reel just sucks


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## rocket (Dec 1, 2008)

I am building a 7'6" St Croix for the rod. I'm leaning towards the Daiwa Sol if I can find a good deal on one.


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## surf rat (Jun 30, 2004)

*Sol*

Some of the best Trout fisherman around use it.....I have four of them....Bottom line is either you know or you don't....If someone dosen't have a clue what they are doing the reel and rod really don't matter anyway... I hear people say all the time I would never spend 250 dollars or even 350 dollars for a G. Loomis Trout rod..They charter me for the day and after fishing with one for a day go out and buy one then another and another...same with the SOL..I fished with a couple friends of mine last week and we had about nine Sols on nine Loomis rods between us in the boat....As far as finding a used SOL for sale good luck....It is like finding a used top notch Bird dog for sale... You may have to get out your wallet.


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## Fishman (Apr 23, 2000)

Rat where did you buy your SOLs


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## rocket (Dec 1, 2008)

surf rat said:


> Some of the best Trout fisherman around use it.....I have four of them....Bottom line is either you know or you don't....If someone dosen't have a clue what they are doing the reel and rod really don't matter anyway... I hear people say all the time I would never spend 250 dollars or even 350 dollars for a G. Loomis Trout rod..They charter me for the day and after fishing with one for a day go out and buy one then another and another...same with the SOL..I fished with a couple friends of mine last week and we had about nine Sols on nine Loomis rods between us in the boat....As far as finding a used SOL for sale good luck....It is like finding a used top notch Bird dog for sale... You may have to get out your wallet.


I'm pretty new at the trout game so I probably don't know nearly as much as I should. I'd like to use a good setup while I'm learning though. :fishing:


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## Newsjeff (Jul 22, 2004)

If I was going to buy a new trout reel, I'd give a hard look to the Stradic CI4.

JMHO.


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## surf rat (Jun 30, 2004)

*Sol's*

I got them when I was on the Daiwa pro staff. I am with Shimano now. Shimano reels are great no complants. I have a couple Stellas that I trout fish with. The SOL in my opinion is the best 200 dollar Trout reel on the planet. A stella 3000 goes for around 725 dollars. I have the opportunity to fish with about anything I want. Any reel that I comment on I have fished with a lot under some extreme conditions and caught a lot of big trout on. Most reels under 150 to 200 dollars just don't hold up. Any reel is smooth in the store. Let a few hundred puppy drum up to about 30 lbs and stripers up to 25 or 30 lbs and several hundred big trout rip it up and on top of all that fish big jerkbaits for 10 hrs a day about three or four days a week all winter. Then see how smooth it is. What you will have is a coffee grinder.


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## greg12345 (Jan 8, 2007)

if you're cheap like me...shimano sahara 2500 ($50 new on ebay) w/8lb fireline crystal alberto'd to 20lb fluoro...i break it down once a year for a complete clean/regrease


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## skunk king (Mar 25, 2008)

I got one of them stadics and they be nice


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## JAM (Jul 22, 2002)

Nothing wrong with the Shimano Stradic, but IMHO its too fast oif a reel to trout fish with... Most folks are too fast all ready add a fast retrieve reel and sucess will be limited.. I use the stradics for spanish, because of their speed....

Ric we carry them at the roost 199.99...

As far a equipment not matering, I am with the Surf Rat on this one, I use all Custom Lami's Built by me.... They will out cast, out feel and out preform all Factory Rods... period Dot.. They come with tighter tolerances and are a much better quality graphite...

Don't get me wrong Cheap has its place.... On my KAYAK where rods and reels are disposibale..... Not by choice..... LOL....

JAM


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## xtopdawg386x (Dec 30, 2010)

SnookMook said:


> I second the Penn 260 Slammer. I do a lot of trout fishing down here in Florida and that is the reel I use for slinging soft plastics on a jig head. That 260 Slammer loaded with 10lb braid lets me sling even a 1/8 or 1/16th oz jig head a good distance.
> 
> Plus when I'm doing a ton of repeated casting the lighter model reel make a big difference now that my casting elbow and shoulder are pushing 50 years old. Even though the Slammers are not the lightest reels out there. LOL


I use the penn 650 ssm with PowerPro braided 15 lb for trout in the pan handle of Florida works great other then the braided diameter small then the mono filament so depending on the size reel you have to back fill the braided with mono or tie on more braided .I use the double uni knot I think there a few more knots that work just as good but this ones very easy to tie and faster to tie then some of the others.


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## Newsjeff (Jul 22, 2004)

surf rat said:


> Shimano reels are great no complants. I have a couple Stellas that I trout fish with.


You wanna sell any of yer Stellas just let me know.


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## Fishman (Apr 23, 2000)

QUOTE=JAM;639790]Nothing wrong with the Shimano Stradic, but IMHO its too fast oif a reel to trout fish with... Most folks are too fast all ready add a fast retrieve reel and sucess will be limited.. I use the stradics for spanish, because of their speed....

Ric we carry them at the roost 199.99...

As far a equipment not matering, I am with the Surf Rat on this one, I use all Custom Lami's Built by me.... They will out cast, out feel and out preform all Factory Rods... period Dot.. They come with tighter tolerances and are a much better quality graphite...

Don't get me wrong Cheap has its place.... On my KAYAK where rods and reels are disposibale..... Not by choice..... LOL....

JAM[/QUOTE]


I agree JAM I like a slower retrieve reel myself. I fish with the Daiwa Exceller 2500 the older one with the 4.6:1 gear ratio I may look a the new Exceller 2500 HA with a 5.3:1 gear ratio.

I have the Shimano Sahara 4000 but I think that the 6.1:1 gear ratio is a bit to fast.


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## PoBenda (Sep 6, 2010)

surf rat said:


> Some of the best Trout fisherman around use it.....I have four of them....Bottom line is either you know or you don't....If someone dosen't have a clue what they are doing the reel and rod really don't matter anyway... I hear people say all the time I would never spend 250 dollars or even 350 dollars for a G. Loomis Trout rod..They charter me for the day and after fishing with one for a day go out and buy one then another and another...same with the SOL..I fished with a couple friends of mine last week and we had about nine Sols on nine Loomis rods between us in the boat....As far as finding a used SOL for sale good luck....It is like finding a used top notch Bird dog for sale... You may have to get out your wallet.


Agree with you completely, to a point. The rod that I have landed the most fish on is a 30 dolla cheapy that I bought in Louisiana on a deployment just to wet a line. It landed me more fish there, in MS, AL, FL, and when I got back here in VA than any of my other rods combined. It's a crappy little 6'6" 2-piece ugly stik lite that throws super light jigs (down to about 1/8) great, but has the strength to stand up to a cajun redfish running like hell. I put a 30 dolla Sienna on it with 8# trilene, and I really do love that set up. It stood up to one 32" flounder, 20", 28", 30", and 36" reds, a whole slew of trout and mangrove snapper, and more "Damn Hardheads" (that's there scientific name) than I care to remember. That's not taking into account that it was all saltwater flats fishing where it got dunked more than once as I fell into some damn mudhole, and 6 months of neglect. (I wasn't really there to fish, so I did when I could and never really had the time to take care of the rod or reel.) I also felt confident in it's ability to fend off Gators, Copperheads, and Water Moccassins. (Which is an essential quality for a rod in that part of the world. )

Tried Loomis rods, DAMN. They are nice. Totally different world of fishing rod. Makes the fishing experience that much more fun, they just feel so good in your hands. It's like Snap-On tools, you can FEEL the quality with everything you do. I'm sure the bait presentation, the action, the casting distance, and all that other stuff is that much better and will land you a whole lot more fish.

However, I hope I never need or get used to that quality. I'm not a professional, nor am I someone who relies on it to make a living. Rest assured, my gear, my tools, and my boats are of the highest quality, because my life and the lives of my fellow sailors rely on them to be so. But my life doesn't rely on a fishing pole, so I put my $ where my life does rest.

Know I'm not NEARLY as experienced as 90 percent of the people on this forum, but just the .02 of a guy who doesn't have $250 for a trout rod.


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## Tomsatx (Dec 20, 2010)

My personal line up for drum and trout is the Abu Revo sx, cabo 30 pts, and an abu 5500c (sweden). My revo is new, but the ambassadeur has been a great reel with the only modification being a cabo handle and a smooth drag upgrade. I actually prefer the revo for bottom and have been using the sx for lures. The cabo seems to have tons of bearings that are not as simple to service despite the quick access of the sliding sideplate and the plastic parts that wore out already. The stupid pinion yoke wore out and would not disengage and I would not recommend the reel. I also would look into the revo inshore ($200), daiwa advantage 153hsta ($140) , and the shimano curado 200 ($170).


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## Fishman (Apr 23, 2000)

Tom are you saying to stay away fron the Quantum Cabo.


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## razor78016 (Dec 24, 2010)

I got to use a buddys Shimano Curado for a weekend and I really liked it. Way different than my Abu 6000 heh, which I mainly use and recommend.


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## Tomsatx (Dec 20, 2010)

Yes I would say so, I remember seeing the yoke stripped and being very disappointed that someone would design such a critical point out of plastic. The odd thing was I don't fish often enough to see this stripping, just poor design on their part. The Abu is refreshing to see all brass, aluminum, or chrome on all of the critical areas. It's been a great reel for more than 15 years in my family.


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## RudyH (Jan 2, 2011)

The Abu Soron STX is an excellent reel for this purpose. Excellent with braid. A superb reel in every way.


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## Fishman (Apr 23, 2000)

Tom I was thinking about looking at some of the Quantums I quess I'll just stay with my Daiwas.


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## dahut (Dec 30, 2010)

rattler said:


> I think I paid $35 for the combo. Rod works fine for spot. I cleaned a fixed the reel. Baitfeeder no less. I put it on a old st. croix I had. 7'. You do understand you can break a reel and land big fish on a $35 reel, 10 times before you have spent $350. It really does teach you to "play" a fish. YOU GET PULL, YOUR ROD/REEL IS A TOOL, Not a winch. IMVHO. Its not the reel/rod/bait/etc. Its what YOU put into it. Not $$$$, Not even TIME. I really feel(JMVVVHO) its the understanding of the fishing.


I was kinda thinking like this, too. How do you define "long term" life for a reel, anyway? If I spend $40 on a reel (or buy one used for the same money), and catch fish with it for years because I take care of it, well... have I gone wrong because I didnt spend $350 on it?
There is nothing wrong with having the best of anything. But having what works when you need it counts for an awful lot.


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