Real Reel Question

[Bear125]

I have not purchased any new fishing equipment for a long time. I am looking to buy a new rod and reel for my wife. It will be used for panfishing, mostly Bluegills. She would like a closed face reel. Can anyone tell me what is a good quality reel that is afordable? Say under $75 for both rod and reel.

Thank you

[double trouble]

both zebco and daiwa or even shakespere make good quality (oxymoron) closed faced reels. look for any with 1 or 2 bearing drive and steel gears. many closeouts this time of year so look arround. get her an ugly stick arround 6 feet long medium to medium light and you should be set for about 50 bucks max.

[ESOX]

Got my kids some real nice Abumatic spincast combos from either BPS or Bellas. The drags actually work on them! Kids have caught many a pike and bass on them, much less panfish.

[Burksee]

As a kid I owned quite a few old Zebco "202"s and "404"s, best real you could buy for under $5 back then! :lol: This past summer it was time for my daughter to retire her "Barbie" rod/reel, I bought her, her first "real" fishing pole, a $8.95 "202" combo. :yikes: After watching her get frustrated with I tried it, someone should have smacked me! :sad: :bash: What a POS! I applogized to her, we went and got an ice cream cone and then back to the store and bought her a "33", put it on a $20.00 5' ultra light "Ugly Stick". She's now a castin, fish catchin fool! :D The "33" is a really nice real for the money! Under $20.00 for the base series model. They have them in more expensive, better quality series models as well.

http://www.zebco.com/catalog/33.html

Oh, and about the POS "202" combo, We tie cat toys to it and terrorize the kitty's with it! :woohoo1:

[trout]

I have caught 100s of walleye using a "33" fishing from share in the SCR.

[walleyechaser]

Here's a thought to consider ---ease of casting with light jigs,
slip bobbers, etc..
You might want to consider going with a Quantum Xtralite
triggerspin reel which mounts beneath the rod like a conventional
open faced spinning reel but is a closed face model and match
it up with a 10' Quantum Xtralite rod.
Why the long rod? I and the guys I fish gills and crappies love
this set up, although we use open faced reels, because it allows
you to cast the lightest lures and slip bobber rigs a country mile
without any effort at all. The long length lets you handle pretty
big fish because the long rod is more forgiving when using light line.
We use this combination with 2# line and tiny ice fishing bobbers
in canals as soon as the ice goes off and the gills are spooky and
move up to 4# line when it warms up.
The long length makes hook setting easier when fishing deep water
with slip bobbers and a couple of minor changes makes this a
sweet setup for slip bobbering walleyes.
Try it---you'll like it!
BTW, you can get both at Cabela's for a little over 50 bucks.

[Freestone]

I really like the Diawa underspin closed face reels. It feels much more balanced than a traditional closed face reel and you can use a spinning rod which I prefer also.

[OTIS]

Pflueger Combo from Cabelas. (http://cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/product/horizontal-item.jhtml?id=0017458117248a&navAction=jump&navCount=1&indexId=cat20287&podId=0017458&catalogCode=IF&parentId=cat20287&parentType=index&rid=&cmCat=MainCatcat20166&hasJS=true)

I like the 6 ft combo. Price is reasonable also.

[gvsufishin]

I would go with a the guide series (gander mountain brand) ultralight rod. These are my favorite rods for the price. You can get a nice 5' ultralight rod at gander for around $15 and as far as I'm concerned you can't beat that price and quality. Now with a reel you may want to look into shimano, they have some great reels at affordable prices. I bought a shimano reel last summer for $30 and have been more than happy with it. You should'nt have to spend more than $50 to have a very nice panfish setup.

[baydog2]

I would spend more on the reel being she will be panfishing with bobbers mostly. Reels give the most headache to a person. If jigging for panfish then consider looking into a rod with better quality. I second the Abumatic reel and a then a decent Rapala series rod should get you some change back.

Lonnie

[Bear125]

Thanks for all the Ideas. I would have responded sooner but went snowshoeing over the week end. I may take all your advise and buy her a bunch of different set ups. Then she would not be able to complain if I baught some new stuff for me. LOL.