Is Your Spinning Reel a 10, 20, or 30? Basic Rating System

[foakes]

All of us get a lot of questions from folks —-

Such as, "what is the best reel?".

Of course, that is subjective to the individual —-

However, to keep things somewhat standardized and easier to explain —- this is a dead-simple, basic scoring system that has been useful to me.

Of course, there are many things that could be added —- but for me, just the basics are needed.

Uncomplicated, quick, and works.

Best, Fred

[happyhooker]

Not sure how the marketing part fits in.

I always thought the oft-stated 10-20-30 numbers used frequently nowadays to describe spinning reels referred to size or capabilities, i.e., a 10 was an ultralight. 20 a medium, etc.  Wouldn't want to see them confused with a quality "rating" system.

Frank

[CincyDavid]

I guess it also comes down to how YOU value the reel vs how "the market" values the reel.  Mitchell 300s are very popular but they are way down on my list of go-to reels. I like Penn greenies but the market values them much more highly than I do.  So much of this is a "feel" thing for me, some reels just feel right on the rod, others don't. 

[Gfish]

Cool and creative and useful, Fred. Since it can be kinna subjective, Whata ya think about a name for your system?

[foakes]

Cool and creative and useful, Fred. Since it can be kinna subjective, Whata ya think about a name for your system?

This little form has nothing to do with popularity, size of the reel, value, or personal likes, dislikes, and/or opinion.

It is strictly a guide for determining the quality and durability of a reel —- based on materials, function, and long-term reliability.

It could be a $10 yard sale special, a reel that belonged to Gramps, your first reel that has out-fished everything since, or a $1000 spinner.

It is a factor in whether or not you might want to add a reel to your personal arsenal.

An excellent reel doesn't have to break the bank —- and there are hundreds of variations out there.

This is just what I use —- simple system for grading —- and is based on 40+ years of working on every type of reel that came across the bench.

I think we should name this after you, Greg —-

G-Max Form.  (Grading form).

Best, Fred

[Gfish]

Me? Ha! Naw, I'm pretty critical, but it's more flash than substance. Don't know enough about materials and their properties or quality value, for one...
The "F-max Grading Form" sounds better.

[Paul Roberts]

Cool idea. I like it. Fun! A way of quantifying the A, B, C grading system many of us posted about a while back.

I think the results of such a system would reflect the expertise of the evaluator too, as Greg alluded to, such as materials evaluation. Also the sheer experience of seeing the effects of use and abuse on reels over time. I've not seen near the reels that a professional such as Fred would see.

I like Fred's chosen categories. One thing that I would add, that is important for me, would be how well a reel does its expected job on the water. Very subjective of course, but would weigh in heavy for me. Lotsa nuance there. And there certainly doesn't have to be agreement. Perhaps call it "fishability"?

I may give this a shot, play with the idea some. Fun!

...

OK, so I made up a "Foakes Evaluator", with a few changes of my own.

I chose 5 categories (for a total score of 25):

Mechanics & Engineering: Gear train, bearings, materials, design features, ...
Durability: Materials, apparent wear
Parts Availability:
Fishability: Weight (sensitivity); retrieve speed (ipt); How well it functions for a given application, keeping in mind the power limits the reel was designed for.
Aesthetics: How I feel it looks (subjective); Noise; How much it contributes to a good experience.

My expertise and experience, or lack thereof, meant that a certain amount of guesstimating was required. For example, If I haven't sought parts for a particular reel I wouldn't know how available parts might be. So I chose a score of 3 as a conservative, "I don't really know". Parts for older reels can be found, but one may have to buy an entire parts reel to get them.

My first run through was a Shakespeare Sigma 2200-030. It's a reel I know well, having used it as my primary UL spinning reel for nearly 4 decades. It's been a favorite for all that time. I scored it 21/25. I gave it a 4 for M&E and for Durability despite having used it nearly flawlessly for all those years. Not sure how fair that is, but I gave it those 4's bc I knew there were better M&E out there. (I scored a Penn 430SS at 23/25, dinging it only for parts availability). A couple of plastic parts in the Sigma had failed: A bail arm that was cut into by the fishing line over time, a part I replaced. And the AR click silencer had broken. No issue for me since I am a back-reeler and the AR is turned off while I fish.