Help! I need a new reel for light waggler fishing.

[tigger]

When I used mitchell matches they were the best around at the time imo,why mitchell didn't update the design I don't know,they certainly missed a trick.

As soon as I got my 501 the mitchells never saw the light of day .

 

[flightliner]

Mitchell Match- Tidal Trent- 110 Dace-

 

[barbelboi]

Never had a 'match' but the 300's got slung in the roof space as soon as the Cardinal 55's appeared................

 

[John Keane]

We could stray into a debate about vintage tackle. I had a flirtation with it a few years ago, using Hardy Richard Walker Avon glass rod and an Ambidex Delmatic reel. I landed barbel to 8lb on the Avon and, as long as you aren’t in a hurry to bully them in, it was a delightful experience. The reel was less delightful with the drag being rough. There is a reason that tackle design moves on (besides the monetary) and that is to make fishing more enjoyable/efficient. Mitchell reels are firmly in the rear-view mirror where I’m concerned.

 

[flightliner]

We could stray into a debate about vintage tackle. I had a flirtation with it a few years ago, using Hardy Richard Walker Avon glass rod and an Ambidex Delmatic reel. I landed barbel to 8lb on the Avon and, as long as you aren’t in a hurry to bully them in, it was a delightful experience. The reel was less delightful with the drag being rough. There is a reason that tackle design moves on (besides the monetary) and that is to make fishing more enjoyable/efficient. Mitchell reels are firmly in the rear-view mirror where I’m concerned.

I've always been a Mitchell man John, love em.
I'm a backwinder so clutches mean a little less for me than most , they suit my kind of fishing and style at particular moments throughout the season just as other reels suit other anglers, it's
Just down to personal choice--- here's a 14-1 Barbel that I took using a Mitchell 300 float fishing on the Trent, 7lb mainline 6lb hooklength.

 

[markcw]

Daiwa have brought the new Ninja reels out, the LT version which stands for Light & Tough
They may be worth a look,

 

[markcw]

I will be having a chat with Paul on the Cadence stand at the Northern Angling show, I will ask him about the reels and the spec on them.

 

[Richox12]

Never had a 'match' but the 300's got slung in the roof space as soon as the Cardinal 55's appeared................

Excellent reels. Much better gearing.

 

[trotter2]

Abu cardinals very good reels very powerfull and robust you could still use these today. I would not use a mitchell reel 40 yrs ago, today there scrap metal imo.

 

[Keith M]

Abu cardinals very good reels very powerfull and robust you could still use these today. I would not use a mitchell reel 40 yrs ago, today there scrap metal imo.

I still occasionally use one of my Abu Cardinal 55’s when I’m surface fishing for Carp; however it’s far too big for light waggler fishing.

Plus Im not so keen on the cardinals plastic spools as I had one collapse under the strain of the line being wound onto it a little too tightly once; but besides that they were a great improvement over the Mitchell reels which we used before the Cardinals.

My mate had a couple of the even older Cardinals with the white spool coverings and they were good too.

Keith

 

[108831]

As soon as I got my 501 the mitchells never saw the light of day .

I found the 501's and the other Abu closed face reels great in their operation,but poor for bigger fish,due to narrow spools allowing bedding,even with reduced amounts of line being loaded,great for smaller fish,roach,dace,perch etc.

 

[tigger]

I found the 501's and the other Abu closed face reels great in their operation,but poor for bigger fish,due to narrow spools allowing bedding,even with reduced amounts of line being loaded,great for smaller fish,roach,dace,perch etc.

I've never had a problem with line bedding when fishing still waters Alan. I even used to use mine for carp fishing and although I never had any propper large ones I got one of 26lb which was prolly the biggest in the venuue I was fishing.
Trotting was a different story though, then it was often a pain in the harris.

 

[108831]

Never had a problem playing fish with them,likewise with Mitchell's,it's the bedding after the playing that was my issue,obviously size would be an issue of closed face spools were made wider,they'd be like a beach ball,lol...

 

[Richox12]

I found the 501's and the other Abu closed face reels great in their operation,but poor for bigger fish,due to narrow spools allowing bedding,even with reduced amounts of line being loaded,great for smaller fish,roach,dace,perch etc.

Same as above

 

[Mark Wintle]

For far bank waggler fishing on rivers like the upper Thames, Lea, Dorset Stour etc. the Mitchell Match was the best reel as the ABU closed faced reels were inconsistent in how the line came off cast to cast. OK in open water at moderate range but no good for long range fishing or pin-point casting which is why you'd never have seen the Likely Lads using a 506 to cast a zoomer across the Welland (close to 40 yards). The ABU Cardinals never caught on with the match anglers either - reels like the 44 Express - beautifully made, fast and smooth but without the speed of single-handed casting and top class line lay.

 

[nottskev]

Another vote for Mitchell reels in their day! When I finally talked my dad into buying me some fishing gear, he said the blokes at work told him not to buy a cheap reel - get a Mitchell. He bought me a Mitchell 300. That was 50 years ago. It's in the shed now; I could fish with it tomorrow and it's had nothing replaced save grease and oil. When I got a part-time job, I bought myself a Mitchell Match - and joined the innumerable others who judged them the best available. Great line lay, casting, good spool size..... even the folding handle design beats most of the dumb, clunky designs I see on many current models. The friend I gave it to is still using it.

 

[Keith M]

I caught loads of Barbel including my very first Barbel using a Mitchell 300 reel and also my first 5lb Chub, my first 5lb plus Tench, my first 15lb plus Carp, and I caught my first big (18lb plus) Pike on a Mitchell 810, plus a few other old personal bests were all caught on my old Mitchell’s (and a couple of abu’s) all back in the 70s and 80s, and I caught my first 2lb Roach using a Mitchell Match reel too; so you can see why I used to much prefer using Mitchell reels back then; however today; although I still have my old Mitchell’s in the back of a drawer together with various other reels from that era; the only older reels from that era that I will still occasionally use are my Abu 506, my black cat Centrepin and my Abu Cardinal 55; the rest never see daylight, because in my view these older reels feel nowhere near as good quality as the more modern reels that I use now.

I used to much prefer using a Mitchell Match if I was fishing tight up to the far banks on canals and rivers as I felt that my Abu 506 closed face reel was just not up to the job for very accurate long casting, not only because of its much smaller size but also because of its constant bedding in of line after playing any larger fish (because of it’s very narrow and restrictive spool) and because of the much bigger and wider spool and also it’s line lay made the Mitchell Match a lot more versatile to use in difficult casting situations than my Abu 506.

I know that some people still like using their Mitchell’s for various reasons but I’m just not one of them, even though I used to love using them back in the 1970s and 1980s. However I wouldn’t get rid of any of my various old Mitchell’s, or my old Abu’s either; as they all bring back many good memories, and they all still work, unlike some of my other makes of reel from the 70s and 80s like my old Shakespeare and Dam reels which all gave up the ghost within a few years of buying them.

Keith

 

[tigger]

Sensible post Keith. I think people just have such fond memories of catching fish with their mitchells in the golden era that they just can't see the reels faults, or choose to ignore the faults and crack on using em.
I really do understand that, fair play to em!
Personally, I like modern fixed spool reels much more than any of the reels from that kind'a era. I do still like the shimano stradic in any of their guises/models from the original ones to the very latest ones. I think the stradic reels are a classic reel.

 

[mikench]

Nostalgia ain't what it used to be! Flared jeans, non synchromesh gears, cross ply tyres, wide lapels , wrangler cords and jackets are all remembered fondly but, bluntly, they cannot hold a candle to the latest incarnation! I remember my first car, a Jeans Beetle but I wouldn't want it today!

 

[sam vimes]

It seems we've gone a fair way off topic. The OP wanted a reel with a good front drag and a large diameter spool with a sensibly low capacity. Abu 501s don't qualify on three counts and Mitchells don't have anything close to a good drag.

I do wonder if it's about time that someone took a good modern reel and put a Mitchell type automatic bail arm on it. I know that some will suggest the Daiwa 1657DM, but I'm afraid that only really cut the mustard as a poor substitute for the Mitchell. I don't much like the Mitchell Match compared to a modern reel, but I'd rather have a Mitchell over the 1657DM. A bad reel with just one redeeming feature.