Walleye spinning reel...

ac700wildcat

ac700wildcat

Joined
May 24, 2011
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3,790
What spinning reel is everyone using for walleye? I've always had rhino rods and whatever reel I could afford from wally world, so when I decided I was going to start fishing more this year, I figured I would invest in a better rod and reel. I've bought a rod and now I need to figure out what reel I want to go with. The rod is a 13 Fishing 6'7" Black Omen, medium power, fast action. I kinda wanted a good all around pole for casting cranks, jigging, and for some swimbaits and figured this would be a decent choice. As far as reels go I've mostly been looking at Shimano, but am definitely open to other options. I'm thinking about $100 or less for the reel. I'll be running either 10lb Power Pro or 10lb Suffix 832. I'd go with a bit smaller line, but you always end up catching northerns here whether you are fishing for them or not and 15-20lb or even larger northerns aren't uncommon. Anyways, any reel suggestions would be great! Right now I'm kinda between the Shimano Sedona and the Symetre.
 
The Sedona is a great reel. I have one for my back country canoe trip set up. Good reel that doesn't break the bank. Another good reel I really liked and have good luck with is the Quantum Accurist PTi. I Personally like the Quantum Accurist a bit more IMO. Good luck with your search! Post pics of what you get.
 
I've done quite a bit of walleye jigging in my life (only 30 though). I'll second the choice of Shimano reels. I can't say how well the new ones hold up, but I have 3 older reels; two "Solstice" models and one "Sidestab" model. The Solstice models have a fast adjust drag on the back which can be pretty useful if you hook into something big. I'd definitely get something with a quick-change spool. Swapping line goes from an hour to minutes.

Hauled in some decent sized ones on light line. Ten pound test seems slightly heavy (for around here anyway). The lighter the line, the better the feel you get when jigging and helps keep those sneaky bastards from dropping the jig all the time. Keep a couple spools of assorted line for the right task. I just jig most of the time, so a longer rod helps (7' plus). There's a stack of St. Croix rods tucked away in my shed.

A tip for pesky northerns:

Get yourself some THIN leader wire on a spool and a pack of really small single swivels without the snaps. Fish the wire through the eyelet of a jig and give yourself about an inch and a half sticking out. Clamp your surgical pliers around the wire poking through and just wrap it by swinging the piers around the long length of wire. Fish out a length of wire as long as you want the leader. Then wrap the swivel stud end (a bit tricky-always wants to swivel-but put enough pressure and it'll go). There ya go; pre-made jigs ready to be tied on, and there's no bulky snap on the end. I'd show you, but I can't find a good video at the moment. Lots of others on Youtube though.
 
Hard to go wrong with Shimano I have been using the same two Stradic reels (a 1000 and 2000) for going on 10 years. They perform the same today as they did when I bought them a decade ago. I use 4-6 lb fluro on the 1000 and 6-8 on the 2000. For your $100 range I would go with the Sahara you should be able to find it for around $80 and you will have a reel that should outlast you if you take care of it.
 
I have 2 Sedonas,1 Sahara and one Stradic I would recommend the Sahara I think its well worth the $20 more than the Sedona just a better feel more solid. Went back reread your post I'd take the Symetre over the Sedona.My son has 2 Symetre reels good reels but I don't think that there is as much difference between the Sahara and the Symetre as there is between the Sedona and the Sahara.
 
Thanks guys. It looks like I'll be going with Shimano and probably a 2500 Symetre. I found them for around $80, so that's not too bad. II'll post up some pics once I get a reel and get it all set up.
 
Good middle sized spinning reel. I hope you like it. I use the Stradic reels pretty much exclusively now, but they are much more expensive. My fish tend to be smaller than what you are likely to be dealing with, so I go with the 1000 size mostly but keep a 2000 available as a backup. Use the lightest line you are comfortable with. I would suggest you fill one spool with your choice and go 2 lb less in the other spool for starters and see how you like each in terms of feel and performance. Don't be afraid to experiment.
 
I like the Spyrex reels from Shimano. No other current models offer rear-drag combined with one-hand trigger casting. Current prices are about $60.

I don't care for the double handle though, and would like to swap it out for one from a different model. Assuming they're interchangeable...

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Curious about one thing. Walley are a pretty large fish, compared at least to the panfish and trout I'm usually after. Did you consider a bait casting system? Just wondering.
 
22-rimfire said:
Good middle sized spinning reel. I hope you like it. I use the Stradic reels pretty much exclusively now, but they are much more expensive. My fish tend to be smaller than what you are likely to be dealing with, so I go with the 1000 size mostly but keep a 2000 available as a backup. Use the lightest line you are comfortable with. I would suggest you fill one spool with your choice and go 2 lb less in the other spool for starters and see how you like each in terms of feel and performance. Don't be afraid to experiment.
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I think I'll try keeping an extra spool with 8lb and see how that works. I'll be ordering the reel next week sometime. For now I put an Abu Garcia reel that I already have on the rod and fished the only open water we have right now, which is around some bridges. No walleyes, but I did catch a 6ish lb northern pike.
 
Bob W said:
I like the Spyrex reels from Shimano. No other current models offer rear-drag combined with one-hand trigger casting. Current prices are about $60.

I don't care for the double handle though, and would like to swap it out for one from a different model. Assuming they're interchangeable...

----
Curious about one thing. Walley are a pretty large fish, compared at least to the panfish and trout I'm usually after. Did you consider a bait casting system? Just wondering.
Click to expand...

I've never actually used a baitcasting reel, so I decided to go with what I know for my first good combo. I'll likely pick a baitcasting combo at some time to see if I like them or not.
 
ac700wildcat said:
I've never actually used a baitcasting reel, so I decided to go with what I know for my first good combo. I'll likely pick a baitcasting combo at some time to see if I like them or not.
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I bought one just to try too, with mixed results, but there aren't any fish here that can't be brought in with 6lb line. :D
 
Another brand you might want to consider is Okuma. I know that some of their lower end reels aren't exactly what I'd call high quality, they do have some excellent spinning reels with a baitrunner feature on them that really work nicely when trolling or baitfishing under a slip-bobber. You don't have to worry about opening the bail to let the fish take the bait, it basically works as a free-spool switch that kicks back in as soon as the handle is turned. I've got two spooled with 6 and 8 pound test and they'll handle any walleyes I've come across so far.

Just an opinion, take it for what it's worth. And good luck this season regardless of what you choose.
 
SOFileworks said:
Another brand you might want to consider is Okuma. I know that some of their lower end reels aren't exactly what I'd call high quality, they do have some excellent spinning reels with a baitrunner feature on them that really work nicely when trolling or baitfishing under a slip-bobber. You don't have to worry about opening the bail to let the fish take the bait, it basically works as a free-spool switch that kicks back in as soon as the handle is turned. I've got two spooled with 6 and 8 pound test and they'll handle any walleyes I've come across so far.

Just an opinion, take it for what it's worth. And good luck this season regardless of what you choose.
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I'll definitely check them out. That feature sounds pretty nice. I do a fair amount of fishing with slip bobbers and whatnot where I leave my bail open. I'll probably still go with a symetre for now, but maybe I'll set up another with an okuma in the future.
 
I keep forgetting to post an update on this. I ended up buying a Shimano Symetre 2500 to put on this rod. I caught 30-40 northern pike with this combo until I ended up breaking a guide on one of the rails for my tonneau cover. It was going to be a bit before I could get the guide fixed, so I ended up buying a 6'6" med fast Fenwick HMG to fish with and put the Symetre on it. I went and picked up my repaired rod last week and stopped by Cabelas to pick out a new reel. I looked over some Pfluegers, Shimanos, Quantums, and a couple of the less expensive Okuma reels(all they had). I ended up picking up a Shimano Saros to put on it. The had a killer deal on a Quantum Smoke($99 regular $160), which was really tempting, but I decided to stick with Shimano.

I fished both setups today and I really like the 13 Fishing rod over the Fenwick rod, it just feels better in my hand and seems easier to fight a fish with. I'll have to put them head to head some more and see if I still feel the same way. Both reels are awesome to use and seem pretty flawless. Their weights are pretty similar and both are silky smooth with great drags. The Saros is supposed to be better built, so I will see over time if it holds up better or not. I don't think anyone looking at both of those reels could go wrong with either one.

I keep meaning to take a couple pictures when I'm out fishing, but every time I think about snapping one my phone is sitting in my pickup. I'll try get one soon. I'm hoping the weather cooperates and I can head out again on Sunday. I've been catching a pile of northern pike lately with some nice walleyes mixed in. The pike have been smaller fish for the most part, but the smallest walleye I've caught the last few weeks has been 17" which is a perfect eater for me. I think I've also caught one 19" walleye and the rest have been 20"-23" and a nice 25".
 
Glad you are liking your set ups, also the Saros is a fine reel for 100 bucks I don't think there are any better. My thoughts on the Omen Black vs the HMG are the exact opposite of yours though not that I feel the Omen is a bad rod far from it but because my 2000 Stradic balances perfectly to a 6'9" ML HMG.

Good fishing sir!!!
 
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