Good reel for deeper cranks?

JerseyFisher · 08-05-09, 06:22 PM

What would be the best reel under $100 for deeper running cranks (low gear ratio)? What reel do you use for this application? I've seen a few for under $100 with a low gear ratio like the BPS David Fritts, and Extreme, Abu Garcia Ambassadeur C3, and the Shimano Corvalus. They seem like the best I can find. Have any of you used any of these? I think I remember people talking highly about the David Fritts. Are there any others out there I should check out?

Thanks
Jack

keithdog · 08-05-09, 07:31 PM

Hi Jersey, I'm planning to buy a reel for deep cranking myself and want to keep it about the same price range as you. I'm probably going to buy the BPS David Fritts reel in 4.7:1 gear ratio. The other two reels that I really like are the Shimano Curado CU200E5 and the Garcia Revo Winch. But at $180.00 and $200.00 I just cant do it at this time. I recently looked at a David Fritts and it seems like a pretty decent reel, although there are things I would definately change about it. At this time of year, I am holding out untill the 2010 models come out to see what shows up. It's a wait, but I really hate buying something and 6 months later really wishing I had waited.

BigBassin144 · 08-05-09, 08:30 PM

Jersey, gear ratios are only half of the equation. The other half (which I think is more important) is line retrieved per handle turn.

Generally, the lower the gear ratio, the less line retrieved per handle turn. But this is not always the case. Here's a couple examples.

Abu Garcia Skeet Reese Revo has 6.4:1 gear ratio and reel in approx. 24" of line.
Daiwa Zillion has a 6.3:1 ratio and reels ~28"
Daiwa Zillion has a 7.1:1 ratio and reels ~31.5" of line
Daiwa Aggrest has a 7.3:1 Ratio and reels ~32" of line
Abu Garcia Revo Winch has a 5.4:1 and reels ~21"
Daiwa Zillion Cranking reel had a 4.9:1 ratio and reels ~22"
Abu Garcia Ambass. C3 has a 5.3:1 (or close to it) and while I don't know off the top of my head, I'd be willing to get it reels close to 30" of line.

I hope this helps explain that just because a reel has a low gear ration doesn't mean it reels in a small amount of line. And you want a reel with less line per handle turn for deep cranks.

BB

carolina-rig-01 · 08-05-09, 08:40 PM

i had some of the fritts reels and while they worked ok for a while they sure didn't stand the test of time very well. i think i got about 6 months use out of one and about 7 or 8 months out of the other. since then i went to revo winchs' for my crankbaits so that all my reels are revos (all my other reels are revo sx's). in my honest opinion the best reel in your price range is the bass pro extreme. i don't own any of these reels but have used a lot of them because my dad has a bunch of them and is yet to have any problems. they all cast well and are very smooth. they have a model that is 5.4:1 grear ratio so that would be perfect for your crankbait needs.

http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/st...ems#itemDetail

fishin' fool · 08-05-09, 09:37 PM

For deep crankbaits go with a slower gear ratio. This will help you fish through the cover throughly with out getting hung up as much. But really you really don't reel a crank straight through the cover, you kinda work it through like a t-riged splastic. I have a 5:1;1 reel, and a 4:1:1 gear ratio reel. I like them both, but perfer the 5:1:1. The 4:1:1 can be alittle slow at times. If you're fishing into a stiff wind or current, the reel has a hard time keeping up with recovering slack line. I suggest go with a 5:1:1, these are good all around ratio for any crankbait, deep divers and squarebills! Good fishin

zooker · 08-06-09, 03:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by carolina-rig-01

i had some of the fritts reels and while they worked ok for a while they sure didn't stand the test of time very well. i think i got about 6 months use out of one and about 7 or 8 months out of the other.

hmmm i have used my fritts reels for 3 years now with no problems...

zooker

keithdog · 08-06-09, 05:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by zooker

hmmm i have used my fritts reels for 3 years now with no problems...

zooker

Hey Zooker, how ya doin buddy? Are you tossing the 4.7 Fritts or the 5.3 ? Glad to see your latest round hasn't kept you from the forums!

zooker · 08-07-09, 11:23 AM

both keith.. i use a 4.7 quite a bit but i do have the 5.3 which i sometimes use on shallow cranks..

oh ya the happiness of high power chemo..headaches of bad hang over propotions,your intestins tied up in super happy knots.a slight change of smell and your all head down in a bucket...ya keith this aint the most fun you'll ever have...

zooker

carolina-rig-01 · 08-07-09, 02:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by zooker

hmmm i have used my fritts reels for 3 years now with no problems...

zooker

one developed a problem in the brakes, no matter how loose you had the tension knob or how many brakes you had backed off it wouldn't cast 20 yards. this all happened at once too it didn't gradually get worse.

the other had a problems in the gears, you may make to or three cast and everything go fine and then for 10 minutes the handle was hard to turn. i limped through a tourney with it this way and said never again.

zooker · 08-08-09, 09:17 AM

rig you know me. i have a pile of reels i crank with..i absolutly love the old silver quantum mag gear 1310 reels..i have some 20 of them..the 5.1 gearin on these reels are great for nearly every type of cranking..i do have two gold 1310's in the crawling 3.8 geared reel thats only jobs are the deep cranking...

it is very hard to find a decent long lived reel any more..but when you do find a reel that will be reliable over many years without fail..you tend to stick with that reel..

zooker

keithdog · 08-08-09, 11:47 AM

I was looking at the David Fritts reel at BPS and I noticed there was no left plate dial for any megnetic casting brakes. The guy at BPS told me he didn't like the Fritts reel because it didnt have dual breaks. But I was also reading reviews of the Fritts reel on line, and nearly everyone loved this reel. However, there were a few who complained about having to remove a screw to remove the left sideplate to access the megnetic breaks. So I'm a little confused. Does the Fritts casting reel have dual breaks or not? Does it have a megnetic breaking system?

carolina-rig-01 · 08-08-09, 12:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by zooker

rig you know me. i have a pile of reels i crank with..i absolutly love the old silver quantum mag gear 1310 reels..i have some 20 of them..the 5.1 gearin on these reels are great for nearly every type of cranking..i do have two gold 1310's in the crawling 3.8 geared reel thats only jobs are the deep cranking...

it is very hard to find a decent long lived reel any more..but when you do find a reel that will be reliable over many years without fail..you tend to stick with that reel..

zooker

that is why i went with the revo winch for my crankbait reels. i have a bunch of revo sx's and have yet to have any problems at all, so i decided that all of my reels would be revos.........the winch for crankbait reels and sx for all my other reels.

woody · 08-08-09, 01:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by keithdog

I was looking at the David Fritts reel at BPS and I noticed there was no left plate dial for any megnetic casting brakes. The guy at BPS told me he didn't like the Fritts reel because it didnt have dual breaks. But I was also reading reviews of the Fritts reel on line, and nearly everyone loved this reel. However, there were a few who complained about having to remove a screw to remove the left sideplate to access the megnetic breaks. So I'm a little confused. Does the Fritts casting reel have dual breaks or not? Does it have a megnetic breaking system?

Keith,
The Fritts reel uses the 6 pin centrifugal cast control.

Right out of the box this reel has worked very well; obviously I only have had to adjust the tension knob, even when casting the 1/4oz. shallow cranks.

~Mark

keithdog · 08-08-09, 04:46 PM

Thanks woody

zooker · 08-09-09, 06:50 PM

i am with woody on the fritts reel...

zooker

08-05-09, 06:22 PM	#1
JerseyFisher BassFishin.Com Active Member Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: New York, NY Posts: 156	Good reel for deeper cranks? What would be the best reel under $100 for deeper running cranks (low gear ratio)? What reel do you use for this application? I've seen a few for under $100 with a low gear ratio like the BPS David Fritts, and Extreme, Abu Garcia Ambassadeur C3, and the Shimano Corvalus. They seem like the best I can find. Have any of you used any of these? I think I remember people talking highly about the David Fritts. Are there any others out there I should check out? Thanks Jack

08-05-09, 08:30 PM	#3
BigBassin144 BassFishin.Com Premier Elite Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Toledo, Ohio Posts: 9,463	Jersey, gear ratios are only half of the equation. The other half (which I think is more important) is line retrieved per handle turn. Generally, the lower the gear ratio, the less line retrieved per handle turn. But this is not always the case. Here's a couple examples. Abu Garcia Skeet Reese Revo has 6.4:1 gear ratio and reel in approx. 24" of line. Daiwa Zillion has a 6.3:1 ratio and reels ~28" Daiwa Zillion has a 7.1:1 ratio and reels ~31.5" of line Daiwa Aggrest has a 7.3:1 Ratio and reels ~32" of line Abu Garcia Revo Winch has a 5.4:1 and reels ~21" Daiwa Zillion Cranking reel had a 4.9:1 ratio and reels ~22" Abu Garcia Ambass. C3 has a 5.3:1 (or close to it) and while I don't know off the top of my head, I'd be willing to get it reels close to 30" of line. I hope this helps explain that just because a reel has a low gear ration doesn't mean it reels in a small amount of line. And you want a reel with less line per handle turn for deep cranks. BB __________________ As of June 14, 2014 the members of the BF.com forum have moved to basschat.yuku.com!

08-05-09, 08:40 PM	#4
carolina-rig-01 BassFishin.Com Premier Elite Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Webb City, MO Posts: 6,387	i had some of the fritts reels and while they worked ok for a while they sure didn't stand the test of time very well. i think i got about 6 months use out of one and about 7 or 8 months out of the other. since then i went to revo winchs' for my crankbaits so that all my reels are revos (all my other reels are revo sx's). in my honest opinion the best reel in your price range is the bass pro extreme. i don't own any of these reels but have used a lot of them because my dad has a bunch of them and is yet to have any problems. they all cast well and are very smooth. they have a model that is 5.4:1 grear ratio so that would be perfect for your crankbait needs. http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/st...ems#itemDetail __________________ You only live once. But if you do it right, once is enough.

08-07-09, 11:23 AM	#8
zooker BassFishin.Com Premier Elite Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: denton nc Posts: 13,441	both keith.. i use a 4.7 quite a bit but i do have the 5.3 which i sometimes use on shallow cranks.. oh ya the happiness of high power chemo..headaches of bad hang over propotions,your intestins tied up in super happy knots.a slight change of smell and your all head down in a bucket...ya keith this aint the most fun you'll ever have... zooker __________________ the godfather.. aml in remission since 7-20-09

08-08-09, 09:17 AM	#10
zooker BassFishin.Com Premier Elite Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: denton nc Posts: 13,441	rig you know me. i have a pile of reels i crank with..i absolutly love the old silver quantum mag gear 1310 reels..i have some 20 of them..the 5.1 gearin on these reels are great for nearly every type of cranking..i do have two gold 1310's in the crawling 3.8 geared reel thats only jobs are the deep cranking... it is very hard to find a decent long lived reel any more..but when you do find a reel that will be reliable over many years without fail..you tend to stick with that reel.. zooker __________________ the godfather.. aml in remission since 7-20-09

08-05-09, 07:31 PM	#2
keithdog BassFishin.Com Premier Elite Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: IN Posts: 8,308	Hi Jersey, I'm planning to buy a reel for deep cranking myself and want to keep it about the same price range as you. I'm probably going to buy the BPS David Fritts reel in 4.7:1 gear ratio. The other two reels that I really like are the Shimano Curado CU200E5 and the Garcia Revo Winch. But at $180.00 and $200.00 I just cant do it at this time. I recently looked at a David Fritts and it seems like a pretty decent reel, although there are things I would definately change about it. At this time of year, I am holding out untill the 2010 models come out to see what shows up. It's a wait, but I really hate buying something and 6 months later really wishing I had waited.

08-05-09, 09:37 PM	#5
fishin' fool BassFishin.Com Active Member Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Iowa Posts: 184	For deep crankbaits go with a slower gear ratio. This will help you fish through the cover throughly with out getting hung up as much. But really you really don't reel a crank straight through the cover, you kinda work it through like a t-riged splastic. I have a 5:1;1 reel, and a 4:1:1 gear ratio reel. I like them both, but perfer the 5:1:1. The 4:1:1 can be alittle slow at times. If you're fishing into a stiff wind or current, the reel has a hard time keeping up with recovering slack line. I suggest go with a 5:1:1, these are good all around ratio for any crankbait, deep divers and squarebills! Good fishin

08-08-09, 11:47 AM	#11
keithdog BassFishin.Com Premier Elite Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: IN Posts: 8,308	I was looking at the David Fritts reel at BPS and I noticed there was no left plate dial for any megnetic casting brakes. The guy at BPS told me he didn't like the Fritts reel because it didnt have dual breaks. But I was also reading reviews of the Fritts reel on line, and nearly everyone loved this reel. However, there were a few who complained about having to remove a screw to remove the left sideplate to access the megnetic breaks. So I'm a little confused. Does the Fritts casting reel have dual breaks or not? Does it have a megnetic breaking system?

08-08-09, 04:46 PM	#14
keithdog BassFishin.Com Premier Elite Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: IN Posts: 8,308	Thanks woody

08-09-09, 06:50 PM	#15
zooker BassFishin.Com Premier Elite Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: denton nc Posts: 13,441	i am with woody on the fritts reel... zooker __________________ the godfather.. aml in remission since 7-20-09

Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)