Inexpensive Spinning Reels; What Can You Get?

[happyhooker]

INEXPENSIVE SPINNING REELS-WHAT CAN YOU GET?

Go online or into any place that sells fishing reels and you have a good chance of being overwhelmed by the choices available.  If you're in the market for a reel, then you are weighing these choices by criteria you consciously or unconsciously select:  what are you gonna fish for; what product feels “good” when you're using it; what about durability; and, of course, price.  I'm overriding all of these factors but the last one, and looking at what you get from one of the least expensive spinning reels I could find.  No, I'm not saying go out and buy the cheapest reel you can find.  I'm just gonna take a look at the bottom end, price-wise, and see what your buck gets you.  You can compare that to the reels you are familiar with and that likely cost more, and see what the extra dollars get you.

The reel we're looking at is an R2F “Performance Series” R2F-30/WAS.  “R2F” stands for “Ready to Fish”, a division of Big Game International, a sports gear conglomerate that includes other fishing names like South Bend, Matzuo, Apex, Hurricane and Danielson, to name a few, as well as other outdoor equipment brands like Mossy Oak, Propel Paddle Gear and Shoreline Marine.  The “30” undoubtedly describes this reel as a 30-size item, indicating something bigger than an ultralight but smaller than a big, heavy reel.  Approximate reel weight, with line, is 9.2 oz.  Retrieve rate is approximately 5.3:1.



The reel came as part of a “Walleye Combo”, including a 6 1/2 ft. medium action fiberglass rod (split grip, foam handles, ceramic guides) and a small tackle kit; hence, the ready-to-fish moniker.  Price for the whole package was $10 at one of the local big box places; they regularly sell for $20-$40 at other places like Dick's and Amazon.





First surprise in opening up the reel was all metal drive and oscillation gearing.  Brass on the rotor gear and what looks like alloy on the main and oscillation gear.  Metal oscillation slider too.  Would've guessed in advance some type of plastic/graphite/nylon on the oscillation gear and slider, and maybe some lesser metal on the main and rotor gear if I was lucky.  The body, body cover and rotor are some type of plastic/graphite/nylon.  The word “plastic” gets a bad rap sometimes, but if you think about it, the type of nylon used in reels is a plastic too, and “graphite” is probably a misnomer, as so-called graphite in reels is usually more correctly called “carbon reinforced plastic”, there being little likelihood of any real graphite existing anywhere in it (graphite is a form of carbon and man-made graphite from carbon has all but succeeded natural graphite in many industrial applications).  “Graphite” or “nylon” probably sells better than the generic term “plastic”.  There are all kinds of different plastics and all kinds of different ones used in fishing tackle.  In essence, to say a reel is graphite doesn't say very much, other than it's non-metallic.  Some reel manufacturers have their own proprietary non-metallic reel compositions, such as Daiwa with their Zaion, and South Bend with their Tricor.  You tell me which are “better” than others, and for what applications.  Metals are somewhat the same; there are many kinds of brass (red, nickle, phosphor bronze, etc.); ditto “pot metal” (called such because many combinations of zinc, aluminum, iron, tin, copper, etc. can be tossed “in the pot” to make it) and the various steels, including stainless.  Aluminum is the same (anyone interested in reel gear metals can check the article at www.sportfishingmag.com/fishing-reel-gears-explained-0).



The A/R shaft and cam, dog and springs are metal; the A/R lever is plastic and the A/R acts on teeth inside the rotor, the rotor being plastic as earlier stated.



The plastic A/R teeth are fairly substantial, as is the metal dog that engages the teeth.  I've always preferred all metal A/R mechanisms, but there are more than a few that have at least partially plastic components.  I guess if it has to be plastic, the large teeth on the R2F rotor (note the counterweight; rotor is advertised as balanced) make me feel a little better.



The spool is advertised as “vented graphite”; although it has a metallic-look, it is not metal and flexes slightly when squeezed.  There are any number of reels with plastic or metal spools within the same model, so I guess it boils down to quality of the material and preference.  I've always liked metal, but it will nick if bumped, which is bad, especially on the exposed lip.  Solid plastic won't show scratches as much and a good plastic will flex a little and absorbs some bumps before breaking.  The spool on this R2F strikes me as being a little more hard and brittle than the plastic of, say, the spool of an old Mitchell 300 or DAM Quick 220, but I'm not prepared to say it is fragile.  Another surprise: the front-mounted drag on the R2F is a 6-element type, with steel and slightly oiled felt-like material disks as the friction surfaces, along with the bottom of the well on the plastic spool.  Didn't expect a drag of this type; while not top-of-the-line, it looks more substantial than that on many new, name brand reels; also, it has a micro-adjusting style of ratcheting drag knob, and appears to operate pretty smoothly.



Other features include R/L handle retrieve, roller line guide and a bail mechanism consisting, in part, of the new style spring—the kind that looks like a large ink pen refill spring and that compresses when the bail is opened and expands when the bail is tripped.  The bail trip rod is, indeed, a metal rod with a little hook on the end, looking somewhat like that on a Pflueger President 6720 or a Daiwa Crossfire 2550.  In fact, there are other Daiwa similarities, including the 6-disk drag and A/R mechanism like on some of the Crossfires and a body cover held on by 4 screws (with one hidden by the rotor, necessitating rotor removal before you can remove the body cover) akin to a Spinstar X3500C.  This R2F is made in China, and I know some Daiwas are or have been as well; can't say Daiwa had any hand in the R2F, though, given the broad appearance of China in the reel manufacturing process, who knows who might be imitating who.

There is one ball bearing on the rotor gear shaft and, visually, it looks like a good bearing.  No BBs on the main gear supporting the handle shaft; the “bearings” are some type of plastic and, to me, one of the less appealing features of the R2F reel, although I've had other reels with plastic or so-called graphite main gear bearings and I can't say they did not perform well.  The rotor shaft is supported behind the BB, inside the body, by a support made of the same material, I suspect, as the body itself.  All parts inside the body that you would expect to be lubed were coated with a light bluish grease.  The reel cranks smoothly with little play anywhere; the bail opens easily and closes smartly with a satisfying click; and the A/R switches back and forth via a small lever under the body and behind the rotor, locking the rotor when turned on.  When I had the reel open, I looked at the gears somewhat closely, and to my untrained eye, the teeth appeared to be properly meshing, with proper clearances, and of satisfactory quality as far as the teeth being uniform and properly cut/cast.

All-in-all, I believe this reel was certainly worth the few dollars it cost.  I would not buy one like it for my personal “arsenal”, as I'm too hooked at this time on the old classic spinning reels from the 1960s-1990s, particularly with metal bodies and metal most everything else.  I know many of the current model reels, and some that are considered very good reels, have non-metal bodies, rotors and spools, but I'm just not there yet.  I would have no hesitation keeping a reel like this around for use by kids learning or infrequent adult anglers, or putting it in a box and tossing it in the back of my vehicle as an “emergency” reel, or just a reel to have around if a likely fishing spot presents itself and I don't have my regular gear handy.  I like the metal gearing, adequate and straightforward A/R and the drag system.  Less enthusiastic about the main gear bearings and unknown spool quality.  I can manage with the non-metallic body and rotor.  Yeah, I know the arguments about them flexing under stress and throwing the alignment of everything else out of whack.  All screws that go into the plastic need to be treated with extra caution to avoid stripping and maybe the longevity is less than metal screw holes.  Nevertheless, there are a lot of non-metallic reel bodies out there, on good reels, and because of that, I'm unwilling to dismiss that kind of material out of hand just because I might prefer a metal bodied reel.  An inexpensive reel like this needs to be fished below its limitations.  It came in a walleye combo (and I believe the same reel is available in a bass combo too) and I think you'd be OK with it on the usual walleye or largemouth of a couple of pounds or so.  When I fish for those two species, for example, though, I always hope for something way bigger than that, knowing it may not happen too often, but....  And in Minnesota, northern pike are almost everywhere and you'll catch 'em when you least expect it, but especially when fishing for largemouth or walleye.    In these cases, I want a reel that will catch what I'm likely to catch, but is also up to something significantly bigger.  I don't want to risk losing the "big one" because I used a reel that got overmatched.  So, spool the R2F up with some 6lb. test mono, and let the kids go after big crappies or perch, knowing the reel is a little big for that, but also knowing you've got a little insurance if your average largemouth shows up.  Or, let that usually non-fishing buddy who's likely to be hard on gear use it to bottom bounce for walleyes.  Some folks aren't into buying $200 spinning reels, and would just as soon use an inexpensive reel that might last awhile, to then be replaced with another reel of the same type (the disposable reel angler) when necessary. I also gotta say that, looking at some YouTube and Amazon reviews, for example, from "average Joe" anglers, this R2F reel has faired OK in the minds of most, the most frequent complaint seeming to be that users didn't care for the prespooled line supplied--easily remedied obviously.

Looking forward to discussion on any point raised in this post, so we all, including me, can learn something new, and thanks for reading.

[festus]

Very interesting read. These combos definitely have their place, as you said, make a good emergency set up or  something to carry in the trunk of your car to use whenever a least expected fishing opportunity would occur.

About 7-8 ago I got my nephew one of the R2F South Bend Catfish spinning combos for Christmas.  7' MH rod, size 40 reel spooled with 20 mono, small tackle box with a few hooks, dip bait worms, sinkers, plastic stringer and a few bobbers.  His fishing had been limited to a few farm  ponds with a Zebco 202 and was tired of getting his line busted and tackle malfunctions when he hooked a decent bass, channel cat, or carp. This combo has served its purpose, it's still holding up fine but of course he hasn't caught anything over 6 or 7 pounds.

[Crow]

   Pretty much all the spinning reels I use are "cheap" ones.....the "priciest" would be the older Daiwa Samurai 7-I series ($30, a few years back), the "least costly", the Berkely Fusion 206.($29 at Wally World, with a rod).........and the Quantum, Shakespeare, and Cabela's "King Kats" fall in the in between range. Most are one ....sometimes two, bearing reels...felt drags, for the most part. I do some modifications...greasing drags, etc., but usually fish them until something "gives", then try to pick up another, or, whatever piece is needed. I will say, the "cheap" reels seem to live well, in the sand......I guess the loose fit lets the sand blow right on through, without sticking ! LOL ! I've used the Berkely's for the last 4-5 years surf fishing for whiting and pompano, at our "winter quarters", and they keep right on keeping on !  They have guts enough to handle the occasional black drum (39" is the largest I've gotten on a spinner) so, I guess , they do me as well as a "real reel" would !  I've yet to have any gearing problems with any of them...the die cast main gear...if you keep it lubed,will last a long time. The drags....there again, you have to keep them clean, and slightly lubed, will handle a surprising load, and, if you have "water enough" to allow the occasional "long run", will eventually bring those big drums in. I just (this summer) picked up some "cheap" stainless shielded bearings to replace a few that were getting a bit rusted / rough, and have installed those....and I also picked up a few "spare reels (e-bay) for either use...or parts, if needed. The biggest problems I've found are line rollers....if they are "really cheap"....just a bushing...they do pretty well with cleaning / lubing, but, the ones with an actual "bearing" tend to freeze up , rather quickly....if you DON'T lube, the salt /sand jams them almost immediately , and if you DO lube them, the sand / salt sticks , even worse !I'm going to try a "teflon" type "dry" lube, this year, to see if that helps.
    I have built a pretty good "arsenal" of Penns, that I intend on fishing, this winter, so the spinners won't get quite as much use, but I really feel that the initial cost of the reel....whatever it is....isn't as important to it's "life span" , as how well it's maintained......and that's probably where the "more expensive" reels shine. They are built with better materials, fasteners that don't "strip out", and with higher "loads" in mind...so, they can stand up to a little more 'abuse" than a cheap one, and with a little longer time between 'oil changes".
   We spend 3 months on the Gulf Coast...and I fish *almost* every day, so, every day, it's wash things down, wipe them down, lube the line rollers, and bail trips....once a week it' pull them down for a "full blown" clean and lube...gearing and drags.
   

[alantani]

I'll weigh in favor of cheap spinners as well. $20 to 25 seems to be a good price range for these. I would change out the drag washers to greased carbon fiber.  A squidder 6-155, long beach 6-60 or jigmaster 6-309 drag set and some cal's grease is all you need. Don't worry if they get corroded. Fish with them until they stop working, then go buy a new one.