The reel is hands down the most important peace of equipment you will buy! To insure that you have a fun full year of fishing make sure you pick a reel that can stand up to the pounding the salt and sand will give it. It will be a good idea that you get the best reel possible! There are now hundreds to pick from and I have only listed 3 that I think work best and in one case price was not a factor and do not let it be for you. Picking a good reel will allow you 7 months of good fishing.
Of the 3 reels I have listed not one of them is a big honking 250 or 300 and its best to start with the size off reel you would like to carry. Now I'm forced to use a 150L Van staals because they do not make a 200L but I would if it was made. It is about as big as you need for off Crane’s or the rocks. You will not get any big advantages by using a bigger reel and only end up having to lug the thing up and down the beach all summer. However, pick a reel that feels good to you and use it for a year, if you feel you might need a bigger or smaller reel then make the investment.
All of the reels that I have list also have one good thing in common? They all have very good line capacity. Now Crane's is a sanddy beach but even so you can never have to much line on your spool. You never want to fish in the fall with a spool with to little line. That is why its also a good idea to buy an extra spool; I have 4 extra.
Now bail or no bail? It does not matter and it does not take long to learn to cast the bailless reel. I have come to like the idea that I do not have to shut the bail all day after each cast and I also like the idea that the bail is not there to shut on me when I'm casting in the surf . I have lost more lures when the bail snapped shut durning the cast. Just pick one! .

vanstaal

Zebco Van Staal Spinning Reel - Worth the cost?

I have carried two reels with me every year so i would never be without a reel for the fall runs. I dragged my Van Staal up & down Crane's Beach, strapped to my Kayak & dropped it in mud & sand all summer SO is a Zebco worth 700$?

Year one; When I finally sent my main reel back for repair I was told; I should have my reels repaired once each year. My reply was that is was new this year! That year I used this one reel for 96 days of fishing. I would estimate that it was submerged 70 of those days and it broke. 125$ in repair cost.

The second year I bought a back up reel to have just in case? Nevertheless, I stuck with my main reel after repair as long as I could. It still put up with 100 days of fishing with & avg fishing time of 3 hours per day. The estimate on how many days it was submerged would be a around 75. At the end of the year it broke in half! So I turned to the backup for the last 30 days. 145$ in repair cost.

Year three started out with reel 2 that had 30 days on it and after an extra 30 days or a total of 60 days it locked up or as I have learned the reel case cracked! 145$ in repair cost. Now I'm using reel one and it's going down a little faster every day! Estimated repair cost? 200$!

If you are going to fish from the shore & submerge your reel everyday in saltwater, then there is no better reel. I'm fairly sure this reel could last for two years in the salt water without freezing up if you are not fishing like me... although it is not recommended. Now its not cheep, 600-720$, with repair cost of 55$ to 150$ each year. So is it worth it? Its up to you but with all the repair cost and up front cost I could have gotten 11 OF THE BLOW PENN REELS! :) BUT I LOOK COOL? :)

Penn reels

Penn Spinning Reels; When I first started moving away from fresh water in 1994, I started using Penn reels. I still have my first & second reels from Penn . I've never really had any problems with these reels. People ask me all the time what reel they should get if they can get the Van Staal? The Penn! The only reason I needed a Van Staal reel was I keep my reels in the water and sand to long without repair. At the start of the season the front drag on the The Penn works beautifully, but like all reels it slowly will fall out of balance because of the sand and salt water. Yet with a little TLC though out the fishing year this reel be fine The Penn has been shunned because it lacks some of that shinny parts and glitz parts reels have now but for a starter or daily reel its hands down the best. They're AS durable as a Stella and they are cheaper to repair! They just don't look as cool. At the end of the day it only takes a good spray of fresh water & they are ready for the next day of fishing so if your do not want to go nuts spending all your money on a reel pick one of these reels up.

stella

SHIMANO STELLA FD SPINNING REEL; Once you try a Stella it's hard to use any other reel. The reel is an exceptional performer. The silky smooth retrieve & a gear ratio that always provides taut lines while streaking fish. I have 4 Stella's (2500, 4000 & 2 6000's) & I started using them right around the time they came out. They are a little pricey, but with a service plan of 55$ per repair each year, you can't miss? The price & good service plan has been the main reason I was reluctant to switch to Van staal. I have invested 2230$ in these reels so 160$ at the end of each year is worth it. However, I had a reel serviced in 2008 & it cost me 255$ for one reel! Now I own 2 6000 Stella's and know there is NO way a Stella will last 60 days of surfcasting; NO WAY! I do not briefly submerge my Stella's; I constantly submerge my Stella's. On avg the reel will lock up after 58 days of fishing then its off for a 55$ over the winter. Now, when I was told that they would not fix reels from northeast fisherman at a cost of 55$ anymore that was it.
This reel is awesome for fishing out off a boat & is the Cadillac of reels, but its "waterproof drag system" is not made for surfcasting. Shimano actually promotes this reel as a saltwater reel, but it will only last in the surf if you do a lot of maintenance & cleaning.

Sure my Stella's are not the new 2010 redesigned models. Plus, over the last 3 years Shimano has added a myriad of new features to improve the reel. I would still pass on trying to use this as surf reel. BUY the Van staal.

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