Lidl Reel - Crivit 'Smart Pryce Value 3000' Freespool

Bought one of these this morning for 15 quid from the local Lidl. It's not really called the 'Smart Pryce' but even if it were and had that name emblazoned all over it in Arial Extra-Bold script, I wouldn't be bothered as long as it does the job....

It comes with a spare spool and feels very chunky and solid. The bail arm is thick and thunks over like a mouse trap when you wind the handle.

It's got four ball bearings (so it says) and feels smooth enough. Obviously not like the (much) more expensive ones, but not too bad at all.

The freespool/baitrunner thing is a lever you push forward to engage. The drag for it is then set by the twist knob on the back. One thing I don't like too much is that if you don't have the freespool on (i.e. the lever is backwards) it juts out from the back in what looks like quite an awkard, get-in-the-way, slack line catching position.

If you don't have the freespool on, then the drag setting is on the front of the spool.

I wonder what would happen if I had the freespool feature engaged and very little drag set on the back knob, but had the drag on the front of the spool set hard on? Would that not affect it at all? I'll find out when I take it out I suppose and can experiment a bit.

It also comes with 3 years warranty, which seems pretty good. I've had one or two reels that have barely lasted a season. We'll see how this one goes on. The contact phone number for service is in Northern Ireland, but the only clue as to the reel's origin is a company address in Germany.

Yeah I picked one of those up yesterday and I`m quite impressed with it given the price. Compared to other reels I`ve handled at that price it feels streets ahead in quality. Hoping to give it a try later this week.

I also bought one of the 5000s but I`m still debating whether to keep it or not because it`s a pretty big reel.

maceo said:

I wonder what would happen if I had the freespool feature engaged and very little drag set on the back knob, but had the drag on the front of the spool set hard on? Would that not affect it at all? I'll find out when I take it out I suppose and can experiment a bit.

Click to expand...

It won't make an iota of difference; the rear setting is only for the freespool feature when it is engaged once disengaged the front drag will take over as the sole working piece.

Shimano 'baitrunners' also have the same system that when swithced off the lever is in the backwards position - daft I think so am grateful that my big pit Daiwa's work the opposite way, much neater and no chance of line catching.

There does seem to be a wide range in quality on many of these reels, I'm glad this one is looking positive. It would be good if someone could compare it against the Okuma Opti-Drag Reel in terms of performance. The Opti Drag only has 1BB but in my experience is a reliable little reel that sets the bar for the under £20 price range.

If these new Lidl reels are as good as the Okumas then they are good quality. I have a pair of Okumas and they are very nice reels. I don't use them much as I prefer my early Shimano 3500s, which have the lever which goes back. I've had them since the early 80s and I have never once had line get around the back of the baitrunner lever. How would that ever happen anyway?

Peter Jacobs said:

Shimano 'baitrunners' also have the same system that when swithced off the lever is in the backwards position - daft I think so am grateful that my big pit Daiwa's work the opposite way, much neater and no chance of line catching.

Click to expand...

Many of the Shimanos work in the way you prefer now. All the "baby" baitrunners and the new Long Casts certainly do.

I have never once had line get around the back of the baitrunner lever. How would that ever happen anyway?

Click to expand...

You haven't seen me fishing. There's often a lot of slackness!

I've had line caught round most parts of my clothing, tackle, surrounding shrubbery, body and passers by during various sessions I think.

I came across this very reel today in our local Lidl at a bargain €13 (approx' £10.40) and the 5000 a Euro more expensive. Curiosity got the better of me and so I put the 3000 in my trolley intending to give it a good going over in the car park and if it was crappy take it straight back. Unlike Decathalon you don't get to try stuff at Lidl.

So, in the car I opened the box and had a good play with it. Surprisingly he reel is of metal construction as are the two spools. It reminds me of my Shakespeare Cypry in feel and design. The Cypry I have had for about 6 or 7 years cost me around £15 from Bennetts of Sheffield and still performs as it should. I think they now retail around £22 and seem to be similar if not the same as offerings from Abu Garcia, Fladen and Mitchell .

The Crivit reel turns smoothly and the bail arm returns with a satisfying clunk. No tinniness there and the bait runner mechanism also works as quietly and effectively as my Shimano Aeros and Daiwa Z5000BR reels. There is an over sized line roller too. As for build quality; there are one or two little things that you wouldn't find on a Daiwa or Shimano. A rivet in the handle isn't finished off properly. There is a slight imbalance in the handle and the gap between the back of the rotor and the body is slightly wider than in my other reels of the same size, and the gap is variable as the rotor turns. This may be a problem for dirt and grit ingress. We shall see. Anyway, it passed the initial inspection and was taken home.

Back at the house I loaded it with line. According to the spec' it should take 220 metres of 0.25mm line and that is what I put on the spool. Well, 0.25mm in the shape of Ultima 6lb line and you'll have to guess how much went on. I loaded the reel to the lip of the rear of the spool which left about 2 or 3 mm of lip at the front. The reel ran smoothly and the line lay is acceptable. According to the blurb on the reel the retrieve ratio is 5.5:1, but I reckon that is slightly over stated. I got 5.25 per turn of the handle and the rotor goes clockwise so no problem fingering the line during casting for right handed anglers. The handle does swap for lefties and there is a usable line clip on each spool. The bait runner drag works fine and can be set very light and whilst the front drag isn't the smoothest in the world it is adequate.

I haven't used it yet. Maybe it will fall apart. Maybe it will jam at a critical moment. Maybe it won't last three years and I'll have to take it back for a refund. But for little over a tenner I'll take that chance. And it looks great in my Aldi fishing bag

Well the ones I bought are still going strong after 2 years.

I would be very interested in hearing more about how this reel performs.
I am looking for a cheap reel for some light feeder fishing i have in mind.

Can't help you there Steph. My post was merely first impressions, but it has instilled enough confidence to buy one of their light spinning outfits. I picked one up last month and thought that it might be ideal for taking in the camper van given that the rod packs away to around 1 metre. I didn't get it because it was blister packed and I had no idea of the quality of Lidl tackle. Next time around I'll add one to my shopping list. I could have done with a small spinning outfit earlier this week too

I bought two of the spinning outfits a couple of years ago with the same camping idea in mind.

One is still in its packaging and the other hasn't made out oft garden!

In my opinion they're awful.

For a 'light' outfit they are heavy and poorly balanced. They are not nice to handle as they feel top heavy. The build quality is poor also.

When I bought them my expectations weren't high - for £10 I was hoping for something adequate. But my low expectations were not met.

steph mckenzie said:

I would be very interested in hearing more about how this reel performs.
I am looking for a cheap reel for some light feeder fishing i have in mind.

Click to expand...

Welcome back to FM Steph.:w

For a decent cheap reel have a look at the Shakespeare Omni and Beta ranges.

I have one of each, the Beta cost me £9 and the Omni £14, both are excellent for the money.

Mr Cholmondeley-Corker (PaSC) said:

I bought two of the spinning outfits a couple of years ago with the same camping idea in mind.

One is still in its packaging and the other hasn't made out oft garden!

In my opinion they're awful.

For a 'light' outfit they are heavy and poorly balanced. They are not nice to handle as they feel top heavy. The build quality is poor also.

When I bought them my expectations weren't high - for £10 I was hoping for something adequate. But my low expectations were not met.

Click to expand...

Thanks for that input.

I'll go with Plan A then and buy an Ugly Stik travel spinning rod and look for a suitable reel.

steph mckenzie said:

I would be very interested in hearing more about how this reel performs.
I am looking for a cheap reel for some light feeder fishing i have in mind.

Click to expand...

Steph, I`ve used mine for pretty much every style of fishing I do. The reels have performed well whether used for float, feeder, method or surface fishing. I`ve had no problems with them whatsoever. They cast well, the line lay is good and the baitrunner function works perfectly.

In fact I was so impressed with the first 2 I purchased that I went and bought another the following year. Compared to the other cheap real I bought, a Shakespeare Omni-X, they are streets ahead in build quality and function.

I`m sure Clive will do a more technical review and I admit he will have used a larger range of reels to compare it to. But trust me it`s a bargain at the price it is. I`ll be very surprised if you`re disappointed with it if you buy one.

dangermouse said:

I`m sure Clive will do a more technical review and I admit he will have used a larger range of reels to compare it to. But trust me it`s a bargain at the price it is. I`ll be very surprised if you`re disappointed with it if you buy one.

Click to expand...

Thanks Neil. But I'm sure that you missed out the word 'cheap'. As in "he will have used a larger range of cheap reels to compare it to."

I got one at the start of the season and I must say at the moment its running great, very impressed.

I just googled "Crivit reel" and a few came up.

They look remarkably similar to some of the Lineaeffe range.

Not that that is a problem, I have a couple of Lineaeffe reels and they are very good for the money.