Aluminum mooching reels...if not Islander?

[Fish Assassin]

That's interesting Dave, as I have fixed/replaced washers in many of both and they all had washers. I didn't even know there was a difference till they came out with the new reel with the dartanium drag system and the steel palming ring. What is dartanium anyways?

 

[Dave S]

I think maybe I have to pass on the aluminum reel pipe dream... I am the kind of person who will go frickin nuts trying to resolve line creep. My cheap butt 4000GTs don't creep. So why do reels costing multiple times more do it? And why buy a high performance reel only to have to use a release clip to prevent something that shouldn't happen in the first place?

Sounds like a case of "WTF?" if I ever heard of one.


Franko

MILF (Man, I Love Fishing)

Hey Franko, It's very easy to stop line creep on the cnc reels. Just tighten the drag knob a bit and no more creep. It would mean that you need to back off the drag once a fish is on. And if you weren't paying attention and a heavy fish hit and tried running, it could be possible to break off if there was a weak spot. I know this seems like a compromise, but any reel with smooth drag will creep when applying lighter tension on the drag system. The 4000 gt's will creep if you kept the drag loose. Personally, I don't care if it creeps. I see a slow creep as a sign that nothing is binding or holding the line back if a fish hits. I'll just reel in the excess after a while. It's just the blow back. Which is also why it only creeps when fishing below 100' for my setups. I run 25lb test. I could see it creep being more prominent with heavier tests.

 

[Lipripper]

I am still running the original 2000's... I take them apart every 5 years or so for a little lube love and they still work better than some of the more fancy anodized reels.. Haven't had to get a part yet.. they gotta be almost 25 years old

 

[Dave S]

That's interesting Dave, as I have fixed/replaced washers in many of both and they all had washers. I didn't even know there was a difference till they came out with the new reel with the dartanium drag system and the steel palming ring. What is dartanium anyways?

Yeah, the washers I swapped out were the dartanium ones.

 

[Steelhead S2]

I had a 4000GT blow up last summer. This was a little disappointing because I really liked it. Never had a reel blow up before either. The spool just blew apart, and nit in combat either.

I spent last summer fishing with one of the Peetz stainless reels. The verdict is in: I like it. Its got a classic look, and it holds lots of line. It is not one way drag. This was a bit of an acquired taste. But I very quickly learned to love it. Pop the rod, back off the drag and fight the fish. Most of the time its deep water fishing, so not really spectacular runs. But I tangled with a few good fish in some shallow water situations farther north too. Definitely fun to be tied directly to the fish without a drag system between us.

This is not a good reel for newbs though. Lots of fumbling, or struggling against a tight drag. It has some other weaknesses too. The drag knob is black plastic, feels cheap and I don't know if it will last. Reel shows signs of minor corrosion. I am not a reel washer. And the clicker switch often gets bumped when playing a fish. With the clicker off, there is no drag whatsoever. End game manoeuvres at the side of the boat can get very troublesome when the reel suddenly looses all tension.

Personally, I would happily receive another one (maybe one day soon). But this isnt a reel for everyone.

 

[Franko Manini]

That's interesting Dave, as I have fixed/replaced washers in many of both and they all had washers. I didn't even know there was a difference till they came out with the new reel with the dartanium drag system and the steel palming ring. What is dartanium anyways?

Dartanium is just one of those BS marketing names they throw on to make some Chinese alloy sound high tech.


Franko

MILF (Man, I Love Fishing)

 

[SpringVelocity]

This is interesting discussion, and makes me wonder if I did the right thing....

We had a new design that we were going to bring out a year ago. I have my own design company so R and D so cost in engineering/development is not an issue, and I interface with CNC shops regularly. The issue is making money at it.. I did a careful market research on it still to find majority of the market still like these old reels. I think that is mainly due to cost. But I do agree the drags are basic and work there is no doubt on it.

The issue with developing a new reel is your also dealing with a majority of market who just refuses to pay more than $200.00 for a reel. Islander already has a very large market share and loyal customers despite some of the issues.

Now just this year alone we have seen coast reel, a new improved Amundsen, forged reel etc. All of them are built with same initial same islander design... Although I think a lot of these reels have had great improvements so not putting them down...

But ask your self if we brought you a design to the table that fixed the creeping issue and was not a copy of islander how much would you pay? Likely it would be under $200.00 which is an offshore reel. Even then it would be hard to squeeze a good margin out of it. And that is exactly why we abandoned working on it, and also why most places wont take that risk. There is also a lot of us in R and D that would prefer to build it all here, and its frustrating how consumers just will not pay for it. Built here 100% Canadian than 500+ is what your going to pay.

Back to Franko. Quite honestly make your decision on you own. I have trophys as I mentioned. I love them. I have no issues, and got them for just under 500.00 for two of them. I don't have this line creep.... But that is just me... I think like anything it comes down to preference..

 

[Fish Nutz]

I have an MR3 and a Trophy Tyee QR. I changed out the spring on the Trophy with an MR3 spring to deal with the touchy drag problem I had and now it's fricken awesome! No line creep and it seems to catch more fish than the Islander. Of course I love the MR3 but I only paid 350 bucks for it used and would have a problem spending 600 bone for a new one.

Cheers

 

[trophywife]

I had a 4000GT blow up last summer. This was a little disappointing because I really liked it. Never had a reel blow up before either. The spool just blew apart, and nit in combat either.

i have seen this on a few... line is wrapped around the spool too tight and pow, splitsville.. backing will stop this, and if a big fish is the last thing you did with your shimano reel it is a good idea to troll for a deep halibut and not catch one... less line tension compacting the reel.

 

[Rum Buddies]

IMO islanders look pretty but sh*t reels.

- line creeps

- drag knob sucks

- reel handles suck


Someone mentioned rigging up an extra downrigger clip to snap onto the mainline to take pressure of the reel. Are you kidding me? You spend $500 on a reel and are OK with having to go to those lengths to use it?

Tell you what I've had a pair of M-Ones that I've beat the crap out of the last 10 years and they still work perfect, every single time.


The only thing Islanders are good for is putting up in your rocket launchers so everybody can see your shiny reels when you come into the dock.

 

[kyjelly44]

Anyone fish the Amundson Mooching MSR05? I see they are in the same group as all the entry level combos, like quantum, diawa, ect...

 

[Discus]

I like the reels are bigger than 4.5" diameter and The reel must have a free spool

This is interesting discussion, and makes me wonder if I did the right thing....

We had a new design that we were going to bring out a year ago. I have my own design company so R and D so cost in engineering/development is not an issue, and I interface with CNC shops regularly. The issue is making money at it.. I did a careful market research on it still to find majority of the market still like these old reels. I think that is mainly due to cost. But I do agree the drags are basic and work there is no doubt on it.

The issue with developing a new reel is your also dealing with a majority of market who just refuses to pay more than $200.00 for a reel. Islander already has a very large market share and loyal customers despite some of the issues.

Now just this year alone we have seen coast reel, a new improved Amundsen, forged reel etc. All of them are built with same initial same islander design... Although I think a lot of these reels have had great improvements so not putting them down...

But ask your self if we brought you a design to the table that fixed the creeping issue and was not a copy of islander how much would you pay? Likely it would be under $200.00 which is an offshore reel. Even then it would be hard to squeeze a good margin out of it. And that is exactly why we abandoned working on it, and also why most places wont take that risk. There is also a lot of us in R and D that would prefer to build it all here, and its frustrating how consumers just will not pay for it. Built here 100% Canadian than 500+ is what your going to pay.

Back to Franko. Quite honestly make your decision on you own. I have trophys as I mentioned. I love them. I have no issues, and got them for just under 500.00 for two of them. I don't have this line creep.... But that is just me... I think like anything it comes down to preference..

 

[vanislehunter]

I have a trophy that I love. Holds the line tight even at looser drag levels. No line creep if I don't want it. Also use the shimanos and have no complaints. I really like the 4000's for mooching lingcod. Best control over the bait.

 

[Fish Assassin]

I like the reels are bigger than 4.5" diameter and The reel must have a free spool

Yup...... And the old Shimano 4000 paddles

As for the spool blowing on the 4000's if you pack mono on them under tension from say a deep retreval there is the possibility of that happening. What I normally do is end my day by popping my lines and retrieving the line under less tension and put it on reels nicely for the next day of fishing. This was never an issue till I started fishing 200-350ft down off the rigger.

That being said I had the guys at PNT strip back about an inch worth of mono and put 300yards of Sufix 832 ghost line with about a 100ft ultra green top shot. No more warranty replacment spools Great action and sensitivity..... Never looking back...... Wish I had done it years ago.


The only thing I like about aluminum reels to date is that they are machined to fit each other. They are not clunky sounding. They actually fit together like a perfect machined reel should.... Guess they got that part right, now how about the rest of its workings

 

[finaddict]

I had a 4000GT blow up last summer. This was a little disappointing because I really liked it. Never had a reel blow up before either. The spool just blew apart, and nit in combat either.

i have seen this on a few... line is wrapped around the spool too tight and pow, splitsville.. backing will stop this, and if a big fish is the last thing you did with your shimano reel it is a good idea to troll for a deep halibut and not catch one... less line tension compacting the reel.

Yep it happens more than people think. Its a combination of lots of UV rays on the reel and then tight re-winding in wet line. The line stretches when its being wound back in and then shrinks as it dries. Lots of pressure involved and voila, cratered spool.

 

[Whole in the Water]

Anyone fish the Amundson Mooching MSR05? I see they are in the same group as all the entry level combos, like quantum, diawa, ect...

This is one of the few new reels (like the new MR2 free spool) that has a free spool lever, which I like as you don't have to loosen the drag evey time you need to let your line out. However, the $200 they want for it seems a bit much as it doesn't look any better than a new Shimano 2000/4000 GT, which are less than half the price and are pretty much bullet proof reels IMO. I wish there were more cheaper Islander knock-offs out there with free spool levers.

 

[mikep]

I dunno I think the mr2 is pretty decent at putting 40's 50's 60's and 70's to the boat. I would way rather have a reel with low start up enertia than a jumpy graphite paper weight. There were islanders with 10+ years of heavy guiding on them at the outpost still killing it. There is no graphite reel that could do this.....period. 500$ bux for a reel that will last 20+ years of rec use is chump change. Line creep is not an issue anyone that wants to come fishing with me can check it out. There is always room for improvement but they still work decent for now...my 2 cents.....

 

[Theb55]

IMHO. I'd check out the reels made for wise Butkus in Colwood.


Sent from my iPhone

 

[Percy Stipec]

Remember when fishing meant saving money...

 

[TanTastic84]

Hey guys. I haven't heard anyone mention Daiwa Mooching reels. I have been running my M-One Plus reels for a year with no problems. This was my first year using mooching reels in WA state so I really haven't put them to the test. But after reading some reviews about the Daiwa drag I called up Smoooth drag (based out of CA, $8 for a set) and ordered replacement drag washers for all of my Daiwa mooching reels. I haven't replaced any of the drag washers yet because I haven't had much of an issue with line creep on the standard stock washers. When I do have creeping line I just snug the drag down little by little until it stops. I will admit that the excitement of a fish on the line makes me forget about my drag almost all the time, but I get "subtle" reminders to back the drag off when the fish takes a run and the rod almost flies out of my hands.

The Daiwa reels seem to have almost the exact same specs as the Shimanos (correct me if I'm wrong). I also couldn't say no to the closeout price for the M-One Plus models. I got them from a shop in Bellingham, WA for about $55 each. I picked up all four they had in stock. My little lady definitely gave me the "Why are you buying FOUR of the same reel!?!?!" look.