Time for new reel and.....

[fish_4_all]

I have been fly fishing for some time and it has become time to upgrade slightly from my first fly reels. Small arbors, clicking drags, just need to move up.

Things have changed a lot since I last looked at reels and lines. Most have drags where almost none had them before. A little confusing is a major understatement.

I will try explain everything needed to help get the best opinions as possible.
I Fly fish streamers and clousers for salmon and steelhead both fresh and tidal water. I have fly fished for 15 years, caught many trout but never caught a salmon or steelhead on a fly rod. I have an 8 wt, Pflueger Purist rod now with a lower end small arbor Cortland reel. Price is an issue for me, $50 and under is about all I can afford, higher for a spare spool if it comes with one.

I want a medium to large arbor reel to reduce line memory and increase retrieve rate.
Not worried about a great drag. Palming is fine and is what I have been doing since I started.
I just want a durable reel that is gonna hold the right amount of line and backing and not fail after 10 years of my 10-15 fly fishing trips a year hooking 10-15 salmon/steelhead a year.

Reels I have looked at and like:
Cabelas Wind River and Prestige plus
Okuma SLV, Cascade and Sierra
Orvis Encounter II
Cortland Pro cast mid arbor, (higher price but like the reel)
Cortland CDM

I know nothing about the different types of drag systems, have read for days about them and still have no clue if I want all stainless, carbon or cork discs nor what the real difference is.

I plan to put Cortland 333/333+ on the reels, 2 spools, one with WF/F and one with WF/ IS.

I have stalked here for a year or so, should have joined a long tie ago. I really like reading the helpful comments I see on here compared to some other sites I have been on when it comes to fly fishing. Thanks in advance for everyone's help/advice and hopefully I can contribute some useful information in the future for all you give me. Don't know a lot about rods and reels but I can tie a mean fly when I sit down and try to.

 

[caseywise]

for around 50 bucks your going to be hard pressed to find a better reel for the money than the okuma slv.
great drag. nice finish.
go slv at that price range

casey

 

[Ard]

Well, welcome to the forum!

Getting a reel in the 50 dollar range that will meet your wants is not impossible. First off it will not happen overnight but with careful shopping and good advice you can get one that will work.

The Orvis Madison IV Disc, and the old Battenkill Disc 8/9 reels are both disc drags with a palming rim. Both will hold your line and plenty of backing. Both will hold up through years of fishing and plenty of salmon. Both can be bought off the auction site in good condition in the price range you give.

Here's the rub, both have standard arbors. I have used standard arbor reels ever since I took my first salmon fishing trip in 1980. Once you have a spool full of backing line you essentially have a large arbor on them. Now I fish for salmon about 80% of my river time and I still use a standard arbor reel with backing. I don't have any problems with line memory and I can say in complete honesty that the reel and line preformed flawlessly on over 100 salmon last season.

So, in order to find a good reel and a good value try to avoid getting pigeon holed into any one line of thought when it comes to what may serve your needs. Where do you live and fish for the salmon?

Ard

PS. Hi Casey, you know I'm old school......I don't know anything about the Okuma reels but if you say they are solid I'm inclined to back you on that. I only ever tell the people what I've used and had good experience with and I've never had one of the Okuma reels.

 

[fish_4_all]

I fish Washington coastal rivers, Humptulips, Satsop, Copalis, Chehalis and Wynoochie, with a trip or two to the Olympic Peninsula a year to the Salmon and Queets. Tidal fish salmon in the Chehalis river.

First hand experience is what I want to hear or at least first hand knowledge. I have hooked a few steelhead and salmon on my cheap reel and aside from being whooped it performed great. I would rather get a reel that I hadn't considered form someone who uses them than buy blindly.

The information on the arbor size is very helpful! Thank you.

 

[kayo]

for around 50 bucks your going to be hard pressed to find a better reel for the money than the okuma slv.
great drag. nice finish.
go slv at that price range

casey

+1, bought one for my son on ebay 40.00 brand new Okuma SLV 5/6. Best reel for the price.

 

[fish_4_all]

Would the Okuma Integrity be considered a step up from the SLV?

 

[mojo]

I'm going to throwout another brand. Allen reels. Give them a look. NAFF members get a discount now and again.

 

[gatortransplant]

I'm with Mojo on this one, Allen reels are great, and while they may be a bit above your price range, the customer service, performance and warranty make up for it. I use a Allen Trout 5/7 for steelhead, but if you're also going to use it for salmon, just for the sake of heavier line and backing and pairing up with the 8wt, I'd look at the Alpha II 7/8. However, you may be able to find the original Alpha for a closeout price, and I've heard a lot of good things about them.

 

[FrankB2]

The Okuma SLV is an excellent reel for the money, and Okuma's customer service is excellent (based in California). I dropped one of mine on asphalt (REALLY HARD), and a couple threads on the drag knob were stripped. It still worked, but I called Okuma and they sent a new knob out 2-Day Fedex for $5. I had a bad couple of years back around 2007-2008 as far as dropping reels, and they usually feel off the roof of Jeep onto asphalt....and they were all Okuma SLV's. No breakage other than the stripped threads on one reel. The drag itself has a very wide range, and is silky smooth. They're ventilated without looking too skeletal, and hold plenty of backing. I've seen videos of fly anglers using the SLV for steelhead, but haven't used it for that species myself.

 

[Rip Tide]

When somebody says that a company stands by their reels and then describes how the reel failed.... that's a big time red flag to me.
I like reels that are "bomb proof" in the first place
Only once did I ever have a reel fail because it got banged up or I dropped it. A $20 imported medalist. I bent it back into shape and was good to go.
Of the last two reels brands mentioned in this thread, I've noticed through posts here on NAFFF that they have regular issues with getting banged around.
For all I know this is common with all large arbor "space age" looking reels but I wouldn't know. I prefer the more solid, traditional abor reels

 

[FrankB2]

Jeez....My SLV didn't fail: it fell! The fall that banged up the drag knob on that SLV happened when it was attached to a 9' 6wt, and I was standing on the leader. I grapped the rod/reel off the roof, and standing on the leader caused it to be ripped from my hand. It REALLY hit hard on the asphalt. During that two year period, I tended to let my line fall through the guides at the end of a fishing trip, and then reel it in with the reel off the rod. The SLV has a HUGE retrieval rate, and once again I found myself stand on a 12' leader on several occassions and having the reel torn from my hand, and slammed onto asphalt. These were little Oooops...My reel fell onto soft ground moments. They were HOLY CR#P that was a hard slam onto asphalt moments. I've been much more careful lately, but did have a new Ross reel hit the asphalt a couple weeks ago: I was stringing the rod with the rod/reel resting on the back seat of my Jeep, and the the whole thing came flying out when I gave a three foot tug on two feet of leader. :grin: I've been using SLV's since 2002-ish, and they've never failed. I stepped on a Ross Evolution and bent the spool into a heart-stopping mess. That wasn't a failure. It was a Foolure.

 

[fish_4_all]

To be honest I might not even be looking to "upgrade" if it weren't for the clicking. Gives me a headache. That Cortland Mosquito M works great, I just can't deal with the clicking anymore.

If I go with the Okuma, get the 7/8 or the 8/9? I am figuring the 8/9 but had to ask anyway.

 

[kibby]

My son bought an Okuma SLV, and despite my initial ribbing, he really likes it. He's a pretty solid kid - saving his cash for his wedding this June - he said, "Hey Dad, Not everyone can afford an Abel."

Sage advice from a 29 year-old.

 

[pa dave]

I have an Okuma Sierra which has held up fine for years, though the finish chips up easily. That is my only criticism. I've had Okuma Integrity reels as well. The first held up great for a number of years until I failed to flush the saltwater well enough after a striper trip. It sat for a few months after that and the damage was done, but I didn't hesitate to replace it with another Integrity. I haven't tried the SLV yet.

By the way, I have a Cortland Mosquito M that I moved up from years ago. This year I broke it out and put it on a rod I just built. That thing is a durable little truck of a reel. Don't scrap yours...you may come back to it someday.

 

[webrx]

I have all 3 of these, Cabelas Wind River ($30) and Prestige plus (on sale right now for $25) and an Okuma, not sure if it is the SLV, it was ~$60 when I bought it. I also still fish my redington CD reel (standard arbor with spare spool) and love it (around $100 plus the spool when i bought it). I don't fish for steelhead so have rarely had a fish run back at me fast enough for the smaller arbor to be an issue. I don't/didn't upgrade because of the large arbor, I just add reels as I need/want/can afford them and I am not a guy that "has" to have top of the line everything - nor can I afford to do so.

I have fished my okuma for about a year now, no issues, no problems. The other two I just picked up and have not had a chance to fish yet.

I bought the wind river so I could load up a type 1 sinking line and carry it with me on my float tube. Drag feels smooth, reel feels solid, and reviews I have read say it is worth every penny and more. I have this one in a 3/4 size and have it loaded with 50 yards of backing and a 6 wt type one sinking line.

I bought the prestige plus on a whim - buddy was at the store and said they were half price ($25) did I want one, so I got one, have not loaded it yet, but it feels OK for an inexpensive reel, drag seems to work, though it has a little spot that seems grabby strraight out of the box. I have this in the 5/6 size, large arbor, and seems like a nice reel for the price

If the weather breaks and I get out this weekend I will post a report/review

d

 

[flymark]

I currently own a Cabela's Prestige Plus, and a Cortland CDM. I have not owned the Okuma SLV - but I have owned the Okuma Sierra (standard arbor), the Helios, the Integrity, and the Vashon - all mid or large arbor reels.

The CDM and the Prestige Plus are so close in design, it makes me think that Cortland is the OEM for this Cabela's reel. There are some cosmetic differences - but they're slight. Both reels have worked well for me - with the Prestige Plus I have owned both the number 2 and 3 reels (basically 5/6 and 7/8 sizes). They worked fine - drags work well. Very functional reels. THe only complaint I could have about them - they're not as light as I wish they were, but we're talking an ounce or two here, nothing deal breaking. The CDM, I only have the 5/6 size - but it's held up like a tank. I've had a couple instances where I've dropped it in sand/gravel, and it chugged along just fine.

Largely, weight is the only "downside" to the Okuma's I've had also - they're heavier than the higher end reels - but I've never had a drag failure, spool retention failure, or anything break on any Okuma I've ever owned.

If you're looking for silence and budget - get yourself the Okuma Sierra standard arbor in the 7/8 or 8/9 size - they'll run you about $40. They do have a clicker for retrieve, but this is easily disabled without effecting the reel's function at all - I did this on the 5/6 models I owned. The Sierra is honestly one of the best values out there, and it's actually gone up $10 in price compared to what it used to be. Last one I bought was for $30. They are a disc drag reel with a good range of adjustment, all metal, standard arbor. every one I had even had a nice wooden handle, instead of cheap plastic. That was a nice touch on such an inexpensive reel. The silence was the best - like you, I am not a fan of clicking, noisy reels. They detract from the experience for me. The Sierras are very rugged reels, and unless you smash them up on a rock or run them over with a truck - I don't think you'll have any problems with them lasting. Also - Cabela's used to sell a standard arbor reel they called the "Cahill" and looking at my old catalogs - and the Okuma Sierra - I'm pretty sure Okuma was the OEM for those reels also. They were a great reel then, and a great reel now. They're just not high-speed high diameter large arbor.

I will also say this - I also have been using mid or large arbor reels almost exclusively for some time now - I only have 3 reels in my working rotation now that are standard arbor - a Pfleuger Medalist 1494, a Cortland Vista turbine reel, and a cheap Shakespeare clicker that I found in a box after moving - that had a full sinking line I forgot I had on it. I'm putting it back in rotation for lake fishing this season.

My working reels are 2 Cabela's Prestige Plus reels, the Cortland CDM, Okuma Vashon, Echo Ion, Cortland Vista, Pfleuger Medalist, and the Shakespeare clicker.

Most of those have some clicking to them - but they're not the loud, annoying clickers, except for the Shakespeare. The Prestige Plus and CDM's are the quietest out of the bunch, closely followed by the Vista turbine reel.

If you don't mind saving up a bit longer - you seriously might consider going with an Echo Ion reel if you want a large arbor. They're $99 for the 7/8 or larger sizes - $79 for the trout size reels. The clicker isn't very loud on them - good disc drag, rugged construction - and they look kinda cool - similar in appearance to the Ross Evolution. They're also noticeably lighter than the comparable Prestige Plus/CDM reels, but not necessarily as light as a similar size Ross reel. But when you hit the $100+ price point - the biggest functional factor you start to notice is lighter weight, followed up by smoother drags - which honestly are rarely needed for salmon & steelhead fishing.

The Echo Ion reels are a great value for what you get. Extra spools run about $35 or $40 I think.

 

[pa dave]

To be honest I might not even be looking to "upgrade" if it weren't for the clicking. Gives me a headache. That Cortland Mosquito M works great, I just can't deal with the clicking anymore.

If I go with the Okuma, get the 7/8 or the 8/9? I am figuring the 8/9 but had to ask anyway.

With my Integrity, I had the 7/8 for my 8wt and found it didn't hold as much backing as I really wanted, so when I replaced it I went with the 8/9. The first striper I hooked this past summer told me I made the right choice. Downside it, it's a touch heavier.

 

[pa dave]

This thread got me thinking, especially about the Prestige Plus reel, so I made a side trip this morning to Cabela's to check out the Prestige and the Wind River reels. At half price ($25), I decided on the Prestige. Now that I'm home from fishing, I'm kind of kicking myself for not buying two.

 

[webrx]

Hard to beat the PP for $25 bucks (half price). I also have the wind river and in my opinion it is also a good reel especially when you consider it is only $30 regular price.

 

[pa dave]

I was really impressed with both. The deciding factor was actually the country of manufacture. I chose Korea over China.