I bought this reel after reading an advert in a well know weekly angling magazine. The price seemed too good to be true. Perhaps it was.....
At first glance this reel looks very good and comes in a very nice wooden presentation box. It also has a velvet type drawstring bag for day to day use. Production of these reels is alegedly limited to 1000 and each has a serial number and certificate of authenticity, although the certificate is not numbered, just a standard copy.
It is nice and light to hold and is painted matt back. The spool and main body are machined in the traditional aerial style and the spool has the aerial type drag. On the back there is a clicker which will come in handy. A moveable line guard comes as standard.
After looking into the box I was very excited as it looked like I had a quality reel for a great price (£60). However my excitement was short lived as when I removed it from the box to give it a spin I was very disappointed. The spool did not spin freely and had a very noticeable wobble. Something was catching each time the spool revolved as I could hear it grinding. It will still probably do its job but I just know the noise and vibration will ldrive me mad!
I assumed that I had just been unlucky as surely such a famous angler would not endorse something of this quality. I decided to get another but unfortunately it also has the same quality issues. I don't think this is a coincidence so i will be returning mine for a full refund.
Also another thing to bear in mind is the very close similarity to the Marco Cortesi Mk2 reel, with the addition of the drag system. Clearly both come from the same stable which might give a few clues as to the poor build quality.
My advice is don't buy this reel, you may be disappointed. I certainly am!
At first glance this reel looks very good and comes in a very nice wooden presentation box. It also has a velvet type drawstring bag for day to day use. Production of these reels is alegedly limited to 1000 and each has a serial number and certificate of authenticity, although the certificate is not numbered, just a standard copy.
It is nice and light to hold and is painted matt back. The spool and main body are machined in the traditional aerial style and the spool has the aerial type drag. On the back there is a clicker which will come in handy. A moveable line guard comes as standard.
After looking into the box I was very excited as it looked like I had a quality reel for a great price (£60). However my excitement was short lived as when I removed it from the box to give it a spin I was very disappointed. The spool did not spin freely and had a very noticeable wobble. Something was catching each time the spool revolved as I could hear it grinding. It will still probably do its job but I just know the noise and vibration will ldrive me mad!
I assumed that I had just been unlucky as surely such a famous angler would not endorse something of this quality. I decided to get another but unfortunately it also has the same quality issues. I don't think this is a coincidence so i will be returning mine for a full refund.
Also another thing to bear in mind is the very close similarity to the Marco Cortesi Mk2 reel, with the addition of the drag system. Clearly both come from the same stable which might give a few clues as to the poor build quality.
My advice is don't buy this reel, you may be disappointed. I certainly am!