# How about this "Made in China" deal...



## jampen (Oct 12, 2012)

http://www.ebay.com/itm/360768089347


----------



## crabtrap (Apr 24, 2005)

cheap Chinese junk, beware


----------



## MRfishingexpert (Jul 15, 2013)

Stay away. Pretty much what was said above. If your looking for a decent priced reel, I would go with Abu Garcia BlueMax


----------



## Fishin' Magician (Jul 17, 2012)

Same with golf clubs....stay away.


----------



## Shane Wright (Nov 13, 2013)

*I bought one*

I actually have that reel right now. I bought one out of pure curiosity and it has actually done really well. I have caught everything on it. It has been in the surf catching reds and trout and to the lake catching bass. Don't know how long it will last but i've had it for a year or two and it hasnt flinched yet.


----------



## Suprafishing (Dec 22, 2014)

I have this setup too.. saved me alot of money and it out performed my made in USA reels... could be happier...


----------



## charlie23 (Jan 11, 2005)

more than 1000 sold. Sometime gotta really think, or buy, outside the box.


----------



## tspitzer (Feb 7, 2013)

I have bought several --some looked and worked good --some not so--


----------



## fangard (Apr 18, 2008)

Check out www.aliexpress.com

Some interesting stuff. Sometimes the shipping is more than the item.


----------



## dolch (Aug 19, 2005)

I would almost pay that for the handle.


----------



## Drundel (Feb 6, 2006)

I'd be really tempted to just to see one in person and take it apart.


----------



## BullyARed (Jun 19, 2010)

crabtrap said:


> cheap Chinese junk, beware


They make the same Shimano, Diawa, Lews, Abu Garcia, H2O, or Penn. They just make the same models with the same parts in the evening with different labels.


----------



## TranTheMan (Aug 17, 2009)

BullyARed said:


> They make the same Shimano, Diawa, Lews, Abu Garcia, H2O, or Penn. They just make the same models with the same parts in the evening with different labels.


LOL. They are doing the same to electronics and even cars! 
All they would need to do is to relabel it with a catchy name instead of the Chinese name/characters on the body; put a suggested MSRP price of US$150, then have it on sale at US$49.99 and I bet folks will think that it is bargain.


----------



## BullyARed (Jun 19, 2010)

Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime. -->* He catches all your fish!*
 Maimonides 
----
Teach China how to make your products, you can no longer compete.


----------



## Solodaddio (Mar 22, 2014)

Suprafishing said:


> I have this setup too.. saved me alot of money and it out performed my made in USA reels... could be happier...


Between this & some of the other first posts, are we just trying to market? Advertise, advertise, market, market. Of course support local companies, but not copycats!


----------



## Jerry-rigged (May 21, 2004)

Suprafishing said:


> I have this setup too.. saved me alot of money and it out performed my made in USA reels... could be happier...


What USA made reels are you using? The only USA made reels are offshore reels, AVET and the big Penns. Pretty much all low profile reels are china/korea/japan/far east.

Are those new Concept 13 reels made in USA? out of my price range, though.


----------



## HoustonKid (Dec 29, 2005)

They are ripping off the bicycle companies models also. Many high end carbon bike frames are made there and you can buy the unbranded ones on ebay for a fraction of the price. I don't but some people I know have. They look exactly the same. They should, they are made on the same machines and to pretty much the same specs.


----------



## Solodaddio (Mar 22, 2014)

HoustonKid said:


> They are ripping off the bicycle companies models also. Many high end carbon bike frames are made there and you can buy the unbranded ones on ebay for a fraction of the price. I don't but some people I know have. They look exactly the same. They should, they are made on the same machines and to pretty much the same specs.


Wow, that's crazy to hear. I recall the bmx days with Easton and brand x making the lightest forks. Nuke proof had the lightest carbon fiber hubs, the t&t alloy hubs were more in my price range!


----------



## Jerry-rigged (May 21, 2004)

Solodaddio said:


> Wow, that's crazy to hear. I recall the bmx days with Easton and brand x making the lightest forks. Nuke proof had the lightest carbon fiber hubs, the t&t alloy hubs were more in my price range!


yup. You can get almost any carbon frame, in any weave, for about $500. Add carbon fork, stem, bars, seatpost and you are still under a grand. Even some of the so-called "great Italian" (pinnarello) frames can be had from these china shops.


----------



## dolch (Aug 19, 2005)

My dad and I designed some pretty cool items, and we looked into the patent process. For the money it would cost to get a patenet, then realizing that somebody is going to copy you anyway, there is no reason to patent anything anymore. China doesn't care, so they produce whatever they want, and the US government doesn't seem impose any kind of penalties on imports. 

American consumers (most) seem completely happy to buy the chinese knock offs. 

were circling the drain, and excited about it. 

In the case of these reels, all the companies are foreign manufactured to the best of my knowledge.


----------



## crabtrap (Apr 24, 2005)

BullyARed said:


> They make the same Shimano, Diawa, Lews, Abu Garcia, H2O, or Penn. They just make the same models with the same parts in the evening with different labels.


No, the reels you mentioned are made in Korea and are built to the labeler's specification.
These are Chinese made and assembled. They use plastic and aluminum wherever possible. Note no mention of the frame material in their description. Sure, they will work out of the box but these reels will be loose as a long neck goose in a short period of time with any kind of moderate to heavy usage.


----------



## BullyARed (Jun 19, 2010)

crabtrap said:


> No, the reels you mentioned are made in Korea and are built to the labeler's specification.
> These are Chinese made and assembled. They use plastic and aluminum wherever possible. Note no mention of the frame material in their description. Sure, they will work out of the box but these reels will be loose as a long neck goose in a short period of time with any kind of moderate to heavy usage.


Don't under-estimate them. They are super copycat and counterfeit. Plastic! no problem, they can replace them. The good China factories can duplicate them all. This is a no brainer.


----------



## crazivi3tdude (Dec 12, 2014)

this reel is same as KastKing reel. I have purchase 2 KastKing bx1000h reel because it looked good, have good specs, and are saltwater approved, plus 13 freakin bearings!!!
The reel cast like a dream compared to a lot of my H20 Abu and Shimano. For $35 you cannot go wrong with these Chinese knock offs. and NO its not plastic, they are graphite and carbon fiber and stainless steel material. Try it, you may thank yourself


----------



## jampen (Oct 12, 2012)

I pulled the trigger, mainly because I want to open it up and compare to Shimano, Daiwa, ABU. 

I will post pictures when it arrives, but don't hold your breath. ETA is Jan 2 - Jan 20

No shipping or tax BTW


----------



## Tortuga (May 21, 2004)

Don't think you will ever see "Made in the USA"..and..."Lowest Price" applied to anything any more...from a $50K truck to a $50 fishing reel...

It's just the 'worldwide economy' nowadays.. Labor in China, Japan, Korea, India...all are about one-tenth the cost of here in the USA...as are living standards.

Just a fact of life now....


----------



## crazivi3tdude (Dec 12, 2014)

^ you can barely get Americans to work $10 /hour, so NO we cant have nice things at low cost Made in USA. I wouldnt be surprise if a 12 year old assembled the reel over there, but who cares. When you buy something, someone got paid, we know they make very little wages but they are content about it.

My Apple Iphone 3,4,5,6 says "Made In China" and I still love it.
My FORD says "Made In USA" and I still hate it till today


----------



## poppadawg (Aug 10, 2007)

yep, a 5 year old will work for pretty cheap


----------



## TxAdam (Jun 28, 2007)

I certainly don't want to sound anti-American and try to buy "Made In The USA" as often as possible. However, I have to take exception to these claims of 5 and 12 year old children working in these factories.

While that certainly may have been an issue in the past, I can personally attest it is not a common practice today. In my previous career, I visited and worked in factories in nearly every province of China. I also did significant due diligence in Korea and Vietnam. Child labor just did not exist. I'm sure it is happening in some out of the way factory, but the same can be said right here in America.

What I did find, though, was an immense workforce that is extremely proud to work and proud of their ability to support their families. An emerging middle-class has also taught them to work harder, advance themselves and strive for better wages so they can buy all the same things we do...hence the reason they are the #1 car market in the world and electronic sales far eclipsing even ours.

I'm not a huge Ish fan, but check out this article about his recent visit to China: http://www.flwoutdoors.com/fishing-articles/blog/156709/ish-test-blog/#.VJmqI-cY

Worried about your fishing equipment coming from an overseas factory that employs child labor? Shop at WalMart or BPS. Had to submit several rather lengthy sourcing reports to both retailers that allowed them to audit our factories for just these kind of injustices.


----------



## sharkchum (Feb 10, 2012)

After reading this post last week I decided to order one of these cheep pieces of junk and do some testing. The one I ordered is a Kast King LMA200R, it has 10 stainless steel bearings, stainless steel gears, eva foam grips, 10lbs of drag, magnetic cast control, and it says it's approved for saltwater, all for $29.98 with free shipping. I got it in today, and I have to admit it wasn't what I expected. The fit and finish was flawless, it reels very smooth, it feels good in my hand, and with the cast controls turned all the way down the spool spins forever. When I get home I'm gonna break it down and see what the insides look like, than tomorrow morning I'll take it for a test run.


----------



## specker (Apr 9, 2005)

crazivi3tdude said:


> My Apple Iphone 3,4,5,6 says "Made In China" and I still love it.
> My FORD says "Made In USA" and I still hate it till today


lmfao:headknock:headknock:headknock:brew2::brew2:


----------



## Bluwave1 (Sep 5, 2011)

*Reel*

I thought about buying a few of those reels. My new Shimano hasnt lasted 6 months and I'm having issues.I may have to try the 30$ reel. They are pretty cool looking.


----------



## stdreb27 (Aug 15, 2011)

America still makes a lot of stuff, but it's not consumer level. It's all durable goods. Cars, commercial appliances, oil platforms etc.


----------



## Donyboy (Oct 30, 2014)

*kAST KING*

Dang, that reel looks pretty much like a spitting image of my new Lew's Tournament speed spool reel ! Do they offer a left handed model?


----------



## robolivar (Oct 7, 2011)

got a combo setup with one of these on it one time....NEVER AGAIN. didnt last a month. Its a china made abu garcia called BCX...me and my ol man call it the "BIG CHINA XCHANGE" haha


----------



## WillieT (Aug 25, 2010)

sharkchum said:


> After reading this post last week I decided to order one of these cheep pieces of junk and do some testing. The one I ordered is a Kast King LMA200R, it has 10 stainless steel bearings, stainless steel gears, eva foam grips, 10lbs of drag, magnetic cast control, and it says it's approved for saltwater, all for $29.98 with free shipping. I got it in today, and I have to admit it wasn't what I expected. The fit and finish was flawless, it reels very smooth, it feels good in my hand, and with the cast controls turned all the way down the spool spins forever. When I get home I'm gonna break it down and see what the insides look like, than tomorrow morning I'll take it for a test run.


I look forward to your report. I know you will give an honest and unbiased report.


----------



## RogerTherk (Aug 24, 2011)

just ordered me one
Looks good, can't go wrong


----------



## Tail Chaser (May 24, 2004)

For the money, why not just get an H2O Express from Academy? The ones I have been dang near bullet proof.


----------



## crazivi3tdude (Dec 12, 2014)

I have 2 of the kastking BX1000H. One lined with mono, one with braid. It cast incredibly well. The drag worked excellent (largest fish yet caught using it was 10lbs). Also I only fish saltwater so this thing has taken abuse. I dunk my reels everyday I wade, the waves always gets me.
1 negative thing is the metallic paint near the front likes to chip and flake off. Not a performance impact but those that are concern about appearance this may deter you. Otherwise I have used this 3X per week for the past 3 months. I like it


----------



## BATWING (May 9, 2008)

Good luck with the reels. Thats the gamble the companies makes sending the manufacturing over to China. You make better profit until they put you out of business.


----------



## Mrschasintail (Dec 8, 2004)

I don't know about this reel...but one of the best we ever had was a Scorpion that was from China. Guides were selling them, couldn't buy in the store. It can be rebuilt. Dipsay did it.


----------



## FISHUNTER (Dec 4, 2007)

I have fished with a lot of those and been to the factories in northern china that produce them. Their junk.


----------



## Notenoughtime (Mar 7, 2011)

Annnnnnd on the other end of the spectrum:

http://www.aliexpress.com/item/Fish...r-molinete-reel-fishing-coil/32244606757.html

4 figures for a baitcaster, are they serious????


----------



## sharkchum (Feb 10, 2012)

*Update*



sharkchum said:


> After reading this post last week I decided to order one of these cheep pieces of junk and do some testing. The one I ordered is a Kast King LMA200R, it has 10 stainless steel bearings, stainless steel gears, eva foam grips, 10lbs of drag, magnetic cast control, and it says it's approved for saltwater, all for $29.98 with free shipping. I got it in today, and I have to admit it wasn't what I expected. The fit and finish was flawless, it reels very smooth, it feels good in my hand, and with the cast controls turned all the way down the spool spins forever. When I get home I'm gonna break it down and see what the insides look like, than tomorrow morning I'll take it for a test run.


 I got the reel home last night and tore it apart. It did not have stainless gears like it said on the box, but they were brass. The insides did'nt look like a knock-off of a Shimano, Abu Garcia, or Dawia, so I guess its their own design. The fit and finish of the inside all looked good and I didn't see anything questionable about the design. Before I put it back together I did put some royal purple on the bearings and some Cal's on the drag and gears. When I got done I put in on a cheep H2O express rod and filled it with some 30lb Finns windtamer I had laying around. Now if anyone is wondering what qualify's me to judge a reel, I'll tell you. I've had a successful reel repair business for over 10 years and I have worked on everything from Zebco 202's to Penn Internatinal 130's and everything in between, so despite the fact that I'm just a stupid ******* that fishes to much ,I do know a thing or two about reels. To be continued.


----------



## netboy (Dec 12, 2006)

I have not tried the Chinese bait casting reels, but I have bought 4 of their CNC fly reels. So far, they have been great. Caught some really nice trout in the North Arkansas rivers and the drag systems were flawless.

It's amazing, you can buy a great fly reel for about $10 if you work the auctions on Ebay.

If the bait casters are as good as the fly reels, we can say sayonora to Shimano.

That said, a fly reel is a much simpler machine then a bait caster.


----------



## sharkchum (Feb 10, 2012)

*Continued*



sharkchum said:


> I got the reel home last night and tore it apart. It did not have stainless gears like it said on the box, but they were brass. The insides did'nt look like a knock-off of a Shimano, Abu Garcia, or Dawia, so I guess its their own design. The fit and finish of the inside all looked good and I didn't see anything questionable about the design. Before I put it back together I did put some royal purple on the bearings and some Cal's on the drag and gears. When I got done I put in on a cheep H2O express rod and filled it with some 30lb Finns windtamer I had laying around. Now if anyone is wondering what qualify's me to judge a reel, I'll tell you. I've had a successful reel repair business for over 10 years and I have worked on everything from Zebco 202's to Penn Internatinal 130's and everything in between, so despite the fact that I'm just a stupid ******* that fishes to much ,I do know a thing or two about reels. To be continued.


 Today was test day, and to tell the truth I really thought this cheep piece of knock-off junk would fall apart within 10 cast, I was wrong. Not only did it perform flawlessly all day, but the performance blew me away. Just so you know, I wasn't by myself. I had Zeitgeist and Bubbas Kenner with me as witnesses, so even if you don't want to believe me, maybe you will believe them. We were using the same lure with the same jighead and everyone of my cast's were 30' to 40' farther than their Lew's and Shimano's. Not only was I using a cheep piece of junk reel, but I had it on a cheep piece of junk rod, and it still out preformed there stuff that cost 5X's as much. The drag was smooth as butter when fighting fish and when I got hung up I could crank it down and drag the boat with it. Anyone that knows me know's all I fish with is Abu Garcia and Penn, aside from 1 Avet and 1 Canyon reel everything I own is a Abu Garcia or a Penn, that's because they are the only thing that will hold up to the abuse I put a reel through, but this piece of junk really surprised me. Now I don't endorse a product until it can prove it's self time and time again over at least a year, but because this thing is so cheep I'm gonna give it 30 days, if it can hold up for me for 1 month, than it should last the average at least a year, and that's about 9 months longer than any of the new Shimanos will last. I will try to keep re posting updates once a week for the next month on how it holds up, if anyone is interested. To be honest, I hope this thing is froze up tomorrow and I can throw it in the trash, because I hate to think about all the money I've spent on top of the line reels, just to be outdone by a $30.00 piece of junk, but only time will tell.I will keep ya'll posted.


----------



## jampen (Oct 12, 2012)

I'm thinking the bearing won't last. But that is an easy fix

...brass is "stainless" right?? Maybe it's a "lost in translation" thing


----------



## NOCREEK (Jan 18, 2012)

Hmmmmmm?


----------



## Jerry-rigged (May 21, 2004)

Ok, ya'll got me to bite. Ordered one. I don't really need another reel, but for $30... When it comes in, I will open it up and add some decent lube.


----------



## mas360 (Nov 21, 2006)

I bought two Chinese junk reels (spinning reels) off Ebay last year. They both worked great out of the box. One became a little squeaky after I dropped it in saltwater and only washed it off with a garden hose. I have not taken it apart to clean and oil it as I should. The other one is still working. They are smooth but not as good as my $80 Penn. But heck, for $20 I spent on it I cannot expect it to be as good. Time will tell how long these two last.


----------



## Z (Sep 22, 2014)

mas360 said:


> I bought two Chinese junk reels (spinning reels) off Ebay last year. They both worked great out of the box. One became a little squeaky after I dropped it in saltwater and only washed it off with a garden hose. I have not taken it apart to clean and oil it as I should. The other one is still working. They are smooth but not as good as my $80 Penn. But heck, for $20 I spent on it I cannot expect it to be as good. Time will tell how long these two last.


Which two did you purchase? I just ordered this one http://www.ebay.com/itm/361059101031

It's a 12+1. I selected it because it's lighter than my current reel, and has about the same line capacity, not to mention 8 more bearings.

I'll treat this one rougher :work: and post update when data is available


----------



## Donyboy (Oct 30, 2014)

*Chinese KastKing reel*

Hey shark hum,
I noticed on eBay they also are selling a braided line for about $3. Any thoughts on how good it might be? I've been looking at the Academy ethos rods as well. They're cheap at $59 but have some nice components. Stuff like this does de mystify some ideas that we tend to have!


----------



## BKT (Sep 27, 2013)

I couldn't resist at $27.68 ... I have a KastKing LMA200 on the way


----------



## Z (Sep 22, 2014)

I'm looking to restock my braids, i'd be interested in your findings.


----------



## sharkchum (Feb 10, 2012)

Donyboy said:


> Hey shark hum,
> I noticed on eBay they also are selling a braided line for about $3. Any thoughts on how good it might be? I've been looking at the Academy ethos rods as well. They're cheap at $59 but have some nice components. Stuff like this does de mystify some ideas that we tend to have!


 There is a word for this,"Argumentum ad populum", which basically means, "If the majority of people believe something is true, than it must be so." As a society we have been brainwashed to believe that unless something is "Brand name", "Used by the pro's",or "Cost a small fortune", it must be junk, and that's simply not true. Now, I like my $250 reels, $300 custom rods, and $240 Costa's, but do any of these things make me a better fisherman, no way, but I will keep buying them because I'm a idiot just like everyone else. As far as the cheep braid goes, yes I've tried it, and yes its works fine, it just doesn't cast as good as the name brand stuff.


----------



## jampen (Oct 12, 2012)

Straight truth. If Roland Martin or Babe Winkleman ran an ad, and slapped a $99 price on it, they would be sold out...

Hey I think I just got an id


----------



## bubbas kenner (Sep 4, 2010)

Suprafishing said:


> I have this setup too.. saved me alot of money and it out performed my made in USA reels... could be happier...


Sharkchum was outcasting and out fishing Zietgast and I with that bad boy get Ã table full of em no joke.


----------



## 2thDr (Jan 25, 2014)

:ac550: When I was a kid, "Made in Japan" meant poor quality. Now, according to Consumer Reports, guess who makes the most reliable cars on the planet?


----------



## BullyARed (Jun 19, 2010)

2thDr said:


> :ac550: When I was a kid, "Made in Japan" meant poor quality. Now, according to Consumer Reports, guess who makes the most reliable cars on the planet?


Yep. Heard it several times "JapCrap". Now Toyota to car is like Shimano to reel. China is very good at copying and modifying since they now have resources and technology. Just give it a little bit time. We used to turn our nose at bicycles made in Taiwan, but now they make much better bicycles.


----------



## UHcoog (Jul 23, 2013)

bought one of these and it seems like its either hit or miss. on my first one the spool was just a mm too small so the line kept getting jammed on the inside. second one was fine.


----------



## mas360 (Nov 21, 2006)

Z said:


> Which two did you purchase? I just ordered this one http://www.ebay.com/itm/361059101031
> 
> It's a 12+1. I selected it because it's lighter than my current reel, and has about the same line capacity, not to mention 8 more bearings.
> 
> I'll treat this one rougher :work: and post update when data is available


The one you bought is very similar to mine. 
Here is mine:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/New-Aluminum-12-1-BB-Ball-Bearing-Fishing-Spinning-Reels-High-Speed-5-2-1-LK3000/360732750814?_trksid=p2047675.c100005.m1851&_trkparms=aid%3D222007%26algo%3DSIC.MBE%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D20131003132420%26meid%3Dbefea105933b4261b9b7deb7f8ea4ecf%26pid%3D100005%26prg%3D20131003132420%26rk%3D4%26rkt%3D6%26mehot%3Dpp%26sd%3D361059101031&rt=nc&tfrom=361059101031&tpos=unknow&ttype=price&talgo=origal


----------



## Jerry-rigged (May 21, 2004)

I ordered the reel from the OP last week in December, it showed up at my house last week. Over the weekend, I spooled some 10lb Stren on it (had the line lying around), mounted it to a 6'6 tops & Tails rod, tied on a corkie devil (no hooks) and gave it a spin the the yard. After 20 minutes of playing with it - 1- it will cast a mile. 2 - it will backlash worse than any reel I have owned. 3- after a dozen backlashes, adjusting the mag and spool tension, I finally set the tension so the lure will not drop, plus a 1/4 turn, and the mag at FULL. That was the only way I could give it a full cast and not backlash. If I dropped the mag more than 3 clicks off full, I started getting backlashes.

My curados, I will normally run 1 or 2 brakes, and spool tension for the lure to slow drop, and I can fish for an hour and only get 1-3 backlashes. I do run braid on my Curado's, not sure if that matters.

for sure, it was out-casting my curado's. When the cat or kids picked up the lure, the drag seemed smooth. But if I am getting a backlash every cast, I don't think it will get used much. I still need to play with it, maybe swap the line out. Still hopefull... LOL


----------



## sharkchum (Feb 10, 2012)

They do cast a mile. I did have to mess with the cast control and mag to keep from backlashing, but that's with any reel. I've had mine for 3 weeks now. I've fished it hard and never rinse it off when I was done, and it still preforms perfect. I'm gonna take it surf fishing next week and see how it holds up to bull reds, maybe I can bend the spool or break the frame, I just wan't something to break so I can say it's a piece of junk. If something don't break soon I'm gonna be kicking myself for all the money I've spent on top of the line gear.


----------



## JimD (May 25, 2004)

Braid makes a big difference vs mono. 

I took my best reels and rods and went out to see what worked best for distance and professional overruns. I have always run 1 or 2 brakes on the curados with bait tension set and still had some serious over runs. They are a bear out wading at night and just a small hat lamp.

I got serious and did different setting with my best reel (super Free) and my different go to rods to see what worked best for 1/8, 1/4, 3/8, and old corky clone less hooks and the bend cut off on the other with a rat tail bait.

It is really interesting on what poles did what distance with the different bait weights. The other big thing was how easy or hard it was to throw some of the weights. Yes I did measure off 30/35/40/45 yards so you could see how far you were throwing.

Bottom line is I added another brake and got rid of 90 percent of my over runs and really did not lose very much distance at all. Sure is nice to fish all day and not have but a couple of over runs. Funny how they happen when you are on fish. 

One of the fishing buddies gets ~50+ yards with the corky to my 39-42 yards on a serious throw.


----------



## BKT (Sep 27, 2013)

My KastKing LMA200 came in the other day and I spooled it up with 15lb big game. Tossed a few plugs then turned the brakes down. Nice professional over run!! Thing is even 15lb mono worked it's way between the spool and the frame...


----------



## netboy (Dec 12, 2006)

Caution...
I ordered one and when "it" came in the mail, all I got was an empty box inside the package. Apparently one of the Chinese postal workers opened the package and stole the reel. What I received was a package that had been opened, looted and re-sealed. After many emails to the seller he finally offered to split the loss. 

That's just the price of doing business with the Chinese.

As the old carnival hawkers used to say... you pay your money and takes your chances.


----------



## Crusader (Jan 31, 2014)

mas360 said:


> The one you bought is very similar to mine.
> Here is mine:
> 
> http://www.ebay.com/itm/New-Aluminum-12-1-BB-Ball-Bearing-Fishing-Spinning-Reels-High-Speed-5-2-1-LK3000/360732750814?_trksid=p2047675.c100005.m1851&_trkparms=aid%3D222007%26algo%3DSIC.MBE%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D20131003132420%26meid%3Dbefea105933b4261b9b7deb7f8ea4ecf%26pid%3D100005%26prg%3D20131003132420%26rk%3D4%26rkt%3D6%26mehot%3Dpp%26sd%3D361059101031&rt=nc&tfrom=361059101031&tpos=unknow&ttype=price&talgo=origal


I bought this reel about 5 months ago. It works fine with exception of bail wire -- it tends to close on it's own if you cast too hard. But on the bright side -- no one stole it in transit. :-D


----------



## swimmingpoolbob (Dec 15, 2012)

I've tried many of the Chinese reels like Tica, Canyon, Okuma, Diawa, Shimano, Abu Garcia and some of the ones mentioned here in this thread. IMHO you do get what you pay for in the higher end reels. They are LIGHTER, SMOOTHER, BETTER CENTER OF BALANCE, TIGHTER TOLERANCES ALLOWING YOU TO MAKE BETTER ADJUSTMENTS and probably a few things I missed and all these add up to less fatigue. I started out with Mitchell Garcia spinning then Abu red 5000? and now that I'm getting up in my age it is worth the extra $$$ to fish with very few problems and not be as tired casting all day. The days of DAM QUICK reels weighing a ton on a fiberglass rod weighing another ton are long gone as are those cheap Chinese reels.


----------



## Drundel (Feb 6, 2006)

I was looking a little over the holidays but all I found were 200 size reels, anyone find any ones the size of the 50MG or the old CU100B/D size reels? I like those smaller frames better than the bigger ones.


----------



## sharkchum (Feb 10, 2012)

*Junk<junk<junk*

We went fishing Tuesday and one of my buddies wanted to try mine out.The thumb bar was sticking and did not want to pop back up after engaging the reel. I din't want to say anything until I had time to take it apart and find the problem. I just got done breaking it down and found the thumb bar release broken off, its the piece I'm pointing to with the screwdriver. I treated it the same way I treat my other reels and it only lasted 3 weeks, therefor in my professional opinion, these things are pieces of junk.


----------



## speckcaster (May 5, 2012)

*business as usual*

that's what we call "OEM" ing! (original equipment manufacturer) .... I'd dare to say 95% of all name brand reels are OEM'd from some Asian manufacturer.... if you look closely you'll see tons of these reels that look hauntingly close to their american clones .... some of their internals have major, minor or in some cases no difference other than the decals and logos of the company their building them for other markets...

one of the those things ..... I'm not real thrilled about.......but what the h#*ll it's a perfect set up for that "can't fish a lick" tag a long that will never touch my good stuff!

speckcaster


----------

