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[Blue_Fox]

I've had little luck with quality spinning gear. I've even used Shimano Symetre and Spirex reels which are both Made in Japan which have cheap plastic gears inside. Both of the Shimano reels have a heavy sluggish feel to it - even when they were brand new fresh out of the box. 

Who makes the best quality spinning gear with solid long term reliability?

[noobfisher]

For my ultralight set up I'm using an abu garcia 300i series spinning reel.  Inexpensive, light weight and has held up great for 3 years so far.  Used it from everything from trout to pinks.

[Blue_Fox]

I've always wanted to buy Abu Garicia spinning reels. They had the best TV commercials featuring exotic tropical locations back in the 1980's and 1990's. I've first seen their spinning reels sold at Wal-Mart - Abu Garcia Cardinal MAX - at around 20 years ago at Lougheed Mall in Burnaby.

Back then, I was more interested in baitcasting reels, and I ended buying an Abu Garcia Ambassadeur instead, which has been solid as a rock.

[milo]

Abu Garcia produced a Cardinal series of reels for the US market which went by the name brand of Zebco:

http://www.reelstown.com/pag_mod_abu/abu_greenbody.htm

There's tons of them on eBay and they can be had for cheap. They are bomb proof spinning reels and come in four sizes (3, 4, 6 and 7). The 3 is for small systems and lakes, the 4 is a great overall trout/bass/ light salmon reel. The 6 and the 7 are big salmon/steelhead reels suitable for our fall salmon fishing.

Do yourself a favour and get a couple of those. Spare parts are available everywhere, but you'd hardly need them if you give the reels proper maintenance. I sold the surplus I had and only got one size 7 reel left that I could let go for 50 bucks. If you want smaller models, eBay is your friend. Mind you, these are 30-40 year old reels, but they still command respect in the fishing community and are highly sought after by collectors when they are in mint shape.

Some sample auctions ongoing on eBay:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Zebco-Cardinal-3-spinning-reel-Made-in-Sweden-912007-/120975842378?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item1c2ab8dc4a#ht_5545wt_1140

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Zebco-Cardinal-4-Spinning-Reel-/380465338447?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item589580584f#ht_500wt_1289

http://www.ebay.com/itm/ZEBCO-ABU-CARDINAL-6-Spinning-Reel-with-extra-spool-and-instruction-manual-/280955960776?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item416a47bdc8#ht_500wt_1289

If you are lucky, you can end up scoring an excellent Zebco Cardinal for around 40 bucks plus shipping give or take a few dollars. Here's a list of recent sales from ebay:

http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_nkw=Zebco+cardinal+reel&_in_kw=1&_ex_kw=&_sacat=0&_okw=&_oexkw=&_adv=1&LH_Complete=1&_udlo=&_udhi=&_samilow=&_samihi=&_sadis=200&_fpos=&_fsct=&LH_SALE_CURRENCY=0&_sop=12&_dmd=1&_ipg=50

Those are the spinning reels you want if you are looking for a work horse that will not let you down. They simply don't make them like that anymore - in any price range.

[Nitroholic]

I like my shimano stradic 2500FI

[fishgod]

My 2cents-if you want to talk bomb proof spinning reels then Dam Quick.  My dad used one buzz bombing in the salt for years still going.  I know families that have fished the Bella colla for 20 years of  spring fishing seasons and still going.  Personally for smaller fish - tributary chum and coho I swear by quantum anything  in the PT series.  My preference is size 20 - perfect for coho with a really smooth drag system.  Reels can be had for under 100$ whenever they put out a new version though cabalas or any other big outlet.  In smaller trout sizes browning makes a nice reel also - with technology improving in leaps and bounds it is definitely having a trickle own effect and cheaper reels are increasing the number of ball bearings and other higher end features usually found only in higher end reels even up until 5-6 years ago.

[Every Day]

LOVE my Penn Fierce reel. Buddy equally loves his Penn Battle. IMO best reel for the money that I've found so far!
Has landed me many big steelhead, some chinook, lotsa bull trout/bows/cutties, and well over a 100 coho already and still going strong.
They are also a saltwater reel with sealed drag which is nice!

Will be using it off the beach a lot this year so I'll re-visit this thread and let ya know how they do!

Cheers,
Dan

[Dennis.t]

My 2cents-if you want to talk bomb proof spinning reels then Dam Quick.  My dad used one buzz bombing in the salt for years still going.  I know families that have fished the Bella colla for 20 years of  spring fishing seasons and still going.  Personally for smaller fish - tributary chum and coho I swear by quantum anything  in the PT series.  My preference is size 20 - perfect for coho with a really smooth drag system.  Reels can be had for under 100$ whenever they put out a new version though cabalas or any other big outlet.  In smaller trout sizes browning makes a nice reel also - with technology improving in leaps and bounds it is definitely having a trickle own effect and cheaper reels are increasing the number of ball bearings and other higher end features usually found only in higher end reels even up until 5-6 years ago.

Have a couple Dam Quicks, German precision! Havent been sold in Canada for a number of yrs now.

[Blue_Fox]

I just saw pics of the D.A.M. Quick Finessa reel. The design sort of reminds me of the Shimano Spirex, but with only a single handle. Just by the pics, the D.A.M. Finessa reels have a very high quality finish to it. However, I don't plan to spend more than 100 dollars for a new spinning reel.

I've heard a lot about Penn reels through the decades, but where is a good place to buy it in the Lower Mainland?

[cohoaaron]

I have a pflueger president that i really like. The drag is verrry smooth (no jerkiness when a fish runs) i hear they are not to good in salt water but it hasn failed me yet

[rheticus]

Since earlier this year I've used a Pflueger Arbor (with braid) in the salt water and just love it. They're not easy to find, but well worth the price.

[cutthroat22]

The most important thing I find with any reel is to NEVER EVER EVER EVER EVER try to reel in while the fish is running on drag.  It destroys the reels internals fast. 

[scheng53]

If you are not willing to spend more than $100, there's no quality stuff out there in the market! 
I was going to suggest to you either the shimano "stella" or the daiwa "saltiga". I own both reels for years, done some heavy salt water overseas.  Both reels are still solid like rocks! 
The problem is they are both over $800US reels!

[millsm]

i really like my shimano symetre. Think it was about $90.

[Shmoke Shaman]

I really like my ryobi arctica, its smooth like butta