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[Darko]

So I decided to pull the switch and get a centrepin reel.

After watching Petr hermans review comparing different reels I decided to purchase a centrepin off amazon. I had no problems with deficiencies at all.

Common complaints are the screws so I added some loctite, I will admit the clicker knob sometimes accidently turns on easily though maybe I will figure out a way to fix it. With the original bearings I averaged a spin time of 10-15s, I fished it a bit at the sumas practicing with no hook at the end to practice my casting. The startup was smooth and did not fail.

Since then I ordered hybrid ceramic bearing on Aliexpress for 10$ for 2. Once replacing the new bearings the new spin time is about 3 and a half minutes! The reel was 70$ and the bearings 10$. For 80$ I have a smooth functioning centrepin.

How long it will stand the test of time and fish only time will tell but I sure am excited for it.

Links from where I bought are below, I would highly recommend trying this out for yourself if you want to buy a centrepin, have some fun, be a little different or because you don't have 600$ of disposable income for one fishing reel!

https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B07NCB6376?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005004146235006.html?spm=a2g0o.order_list.order_list_main.16.33bb1802KfgH7G
7 x 14 x 5 is the bearing size

[dennisK]

Good on you Darko; actually looks pretty good especially with the upgraded bearings. Does the reel feel heavy?

Oh and what rod are you using?

[Darko]

Good on you Darko; actually looks pretty good especially with the upgraded bearings. Does the reel feel heavy?

Oh and what rod are you using?

No it does not feel heavy, I have casted it with my rod which I will show below and it felt natural to me. Those handles are adjustable so I moved them near the bottom about 6 inches away from the butt, as was suggested to me.

[DanL]

By all accounts those Amazon CP reels are surprisingly performant. Modern engineering and mfg have come a long way, especially when the bearings are doing all the important work

While I have not tried the CPs I have a number of Amazon fly reels of various quality levels and prices and you really don't have to spend too much to get some very nice feeling reels. Compared to a premier brand like Sage, they may not compare for fit/finish and attention to detail, but if I can get 95% of the performance for 20% of the price, I know what direction I'm leaning.

How long it will stand the test of time and fish only time will tell but I sure am excited for it.

Longevity is a fair question, but outside of occasional bearing replacement, I'll bet it will last plenty long given normal usage.

No it does not feel heavy, I have casted it with my rod which I will show below and it felt natural to me. Those handles are adjustable so I moved them near the bottom about 6 inches away from the butt, as was suggested to me.

Don't take that recommendation too seriously; there is no one right way to do it and you should find what works best for you and feels most comfortable. Reel placement in the local west coast style is typically quite low, but 6" sounds unusually short (depending on how you are measuring it). If you find yourself feeling fatigue or wrist pain, that could be why... If you have an adjustable reel seat (most people dont) you might as take advantage of it and experiment.

[Darko]

By all accounts those Amazon CP reels are surprisingly performant. Modern engineering and mfg have come a long way, especially when the bearings are doing all the important work

While I have not tried the CPs I have a number of Amazon fly reels of various quality levels and prices and you really don't have to spend too much to get some very nice feeling reels. Compared to a premier brand like Sage, they may not compare for fit/finish and attention to detail, but if I can get 95% of the performance for 20% of the price, I know what direction I'm leaning.

Longevity is a fair question, but outside of occasional bearing replacement, I'll bet it will last plenty long given normal usage.

Don't take that recommendation too seriously; there is no one right way to do it and you should find what works best for you and feels most comfortable. Reel placement in the local west coast style is typically quite low, but 6" sounds unusually short (depending on how you are measuring it). If you find yourself feeling fatigue or wrist pain, that could be why... If you have an adjustable reel seat (most people dont) you might as take advantage of it and experiment.

thanks for sharing Dan, I will take your advice and experiment when i do fish it. Maybe you're right in the future I might get some spare bearings to keep if needed

[coastangler]

While I have not tried the CPs I have a number of Amazon fly reels of various quality levels and prices and you really don't have to spend too much to get some very nice feeling reels. Compared to a premier brand like Sage, they may not compare for fit/finish and attention to detail, but if I can get 95% of the performance for 20% of the price, I know what direction I'm leaning.

I agree with the sentiment and also with the fact that that premier brands overprice their items. This is definitely the case for most of trout fly fishing where the fly reel is merely a line holder and you rarely use the drag, and even if you do use the drag, a cheaper disc drag will suffice or even click & pawl. The exception to this is Pacific Salmon and steelhead fishing. In my opinion the most important piece of fly fishing gear for salmon is the reel. In many cases a cheap reel will get you through but is common to see subpar reels blowing up with an angry chum. It hurts to buy one of those especially now with those high prices but in my opinion is worth it. I felt a great difference when I upgraded from a cheap fly reel to a mid/high range (400 bucks) that resulted in much easier handling and landing of bigger fish.

Back to the original thread, I suspect your CP reel will do great Darko. My understanding is that with CP fishing the rod actually applies most of the pressure when fighting the fish while the reel drag is purely hand pressure but the machinery is more involved in the casting and drifting than actually fighting/landing the fish so you should be fine

[firstlight]

you cant go wrong at that price.
Nice looking reel.
Hope you catch a ton of fish with it.

[Darko]

you cant go wrong at that price.
Nice looking reel.
Hope you catch a ton of fish with it.

I agree with the sentiment and also with the fact that that premier brands overprice their items. This is definitely the case for most of trout fly fishing where the fly reel is merely a line holder and you rarely use the drag, and even if you do use the drag, a cheaper disc drag will suffice or even click & pawl. The exception to this is Pacific Salmon and steelhead fishing. In my opinion the most important piece of fly fishing gear for salmon is the reel. In many cases a cheap reel will get you through but is common to see subpar reels blowing up with an angry chum. It hurts to buy one of those especially now with those high prices but in my opinion is worth it. I felt a great difference when I upgraded from a cheap fly reel to a mid/high range (400 bucks) that resulted in much easier handling and landing of bigger fish.

Back to the original thread, I suspect your CP reel will do great Darko. My understanding is that with CP fishing the rod actually applies most of the pressure when fighting the fish while the reel drag is purely hand pressure but the machinery is more involved in the casting and drifting than actually fighting/landing the fish so you should be fine

thank you both for your inputs. I will update this in the future if I have any issues or what have you.

[vancook]

If they had those reels for sale when I first started looking at pin fishing I probably would have bought one to see how I liked it. Can't complain about the price.

Instead I started with a vintage Hardy Super Silex I inherited from my grandpa. Caught my first river coho on it as well.

I look forward to hearing how it performs on the river once you get out there.

[jim]

I have one of the same reels as Darko does. I have wound the mainline around the knobs a few times. That doesn't happen with a Silex as it has a cage. It is so light compared to the old Silex.
 There is a need to oil the handles right away, as the water will get inside the wood knobs and swell the wood.
Yes to tightening the knob screws or some blue Loctite...
And like Peter Herman said it can get the line inside the spool, so need to be careful of that.

[FlyFishin Magician]

Congrats on your first CP reel!

[Darko]

I would like to update this review, since I have spent a lot more time with this reel since then.

The clicker did become an issue overtime, the knob turns very easily and is inconveniently place right where you hold the reel. I had to replace the click pawl once for 5$ at mikes reel repairs. Even when the clicker worked the spring was not very good quality and did not hold well, I tried bending and tightening it but I couldn't get it to work.

The bearings worked great but I forgot to mention they are a bit noisy, maybe that bothers you maybe not.

I did end up fixing the issue of the line getting caught between the plates by placing a thin layer of tape between them.

The handles do get in the way because they are on the outer edge, the line also did get stuck there time to time.

Overtime I got more and more annoyed and decided to upgrade

I purchased this new reel from a new local company (Langley) called BC Reel.Co. They are sold out on Amazon but if you email the owner I think he still has some for sale. Note there is a site called Anglervalhalla selling their reels for a very cheap price and the website is a scam so avoid that..

https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B0CKP711GK

I have not fished it yet but having it in hand I will say that the quality is very good, the reel is machined well, the bearings spin well and are silent, the clicker is tight and hold well, there is no play in the spool the design is aesthetically pleasing and the handles are good quality. For a bit more than 100$ I am very much more confident about the long-gevity and quality of this reel. I will update my review in the future if need be.

[Silex-user]

My first  store brought new centre pin reel is a 1974 Grace&Young Avon. Cost me $36.99. Took me 2 months of saving to buy it. $40.00 was lots of money back then for  15 year old teenager kid. Still have it. Caught few steelie with it.....

[Phronesis]

I would like to update this review, since I have spent a lot more time with this reel since then.

The clicker did become an issue overtime, the knob turns very easily and is inconveniently place right where you hold the reel. I had to replace the click pawl once for 5$ at mikes reel repairs. Even when the clicker worked the spring was not very good quality and did not hold well, I tried bending and tightening it but I couldn't get it to work.

The bearings worked great but I forgot to mention they are a bit noisy, maybe that bothers you maybe not.

I did end up fixing the issue of the line getting caught between the plates by placing a thin layer of tape between them.

The handles do get in the way because they are on the outer edge, the line also did get stuck there time to time.

Overtime I got more and more annoyed and decided to upgrade

I purchased this new reel from a new local company (Langley) called BC Reel.Co. They are sold out on Amazon but if you email the owner I think he still has some for sale. Note there is a site called Anglervalhalla selling their reels for a very cheap price and the website is a scam so avoid that..

https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B0CKP711GK

I have not fished it yet but having it in hand I will say that the quality is very good, the reel is machined well, the bearings spin well and are silent, the clicker is tight and hold well, there is no play in the spool the design is aesthetically pleasing and the handles are good quality. For a bit more than 100$ I am very much more confident about the long-gevity and quality of this reel. I will update my review in the future if need be.

Looks good ! Man I wish I knew about this reel sooner, I got a kingpin last year, nothing wrong with it and works really well, just that BC reel is 1/5th the price

[Darko]

Looks good ! Man I wish I knew about this reel sooner, I got a kingpin last year, nothing wrong with it and works really well, just that BC reel is 1/5th the price

the reels are back on sale btw. Maybe it's worth trying for you. I've used it for 4 trips now steelheading and no issues.