Expensive reels and their life span.

alan whittington · Apr 23, 2012

Ive always said you get what you pay for,but recently(last week)i sent a shimano stradic 4000 gtm(japanese model)back to Felindre for a service and a minor problem with the fighting drag,had a call from them stating that certain parts were now unavailable,so they put a new drag washer in and are in process of sending it back,without being able to service the reel,my thought at present is that daiwa and shimano only hold spares for models around 5 years i believe,in my experience,problems dont normally arise for around 8-10 years,barring accidental damage,so my question to you is,is it worth spending around £200 on say a daiwa tdx,when in 5 years its defunct?

Lord Paul of Sheffield · Apr 23, 2012

£200 over 5 years is £40 a year

which would you prefer a good reel for 5 years and then replace IF needed or a poor reel for a year and replace every year?

Mr Cholmondeley-Corker (PaSC) · Apr 23, 2012

Uncle Dave spent 100s in a couple of Shimano Stellas (for salt water use). When eventually the elastomeric rotor seal went he returned them to Shimano only to be told that they don't support them anymore.

It seems they hold spares for a period where spares aren't really needed! ie within the first 5 years.

Unless you damage a reel in this period then it is likely to last well beyond 5 years if you look after it. After a while various parts will wear and need replacement - but wait,no spares!

sam vimes · Apr 23, 2012

I too have a pair of the original Stradic GTMs. I was aware that parts were becoming an issue a year or two back. As my first one was bought in the mid nineties and second in the late nineties, I wasn't overly fussed. They had more than paid for themselves and given excellent value. Mine are still going strong. However, they have now been retired in favour of new top of the range Shimano equivalents. I had no hesitation in buying new top end reels. I'd much rather use the better specified reels. I believe that they are generally better value for money too. I've seen too many friends suggest that I was mad to buy the Stradics way back when. The suggestion being that £120 way back then indicated that I had more money than sense (not particularly difficult

). However, in the twelve to fifteen years that I used the Stradics, they thought nothing of buying fifty quid reels every couple of years. Ultimately, I've had better reels all along and spent less money in the long term. There's also a chance of selling them for pretty reasonable money even now. Japanese made Stradic GTMs regularly sell on Ebay (which I may get round to doing at some point) for sixty to over a hundred pounds.

barbelboi · Apr 23, 2012

I too have a stradic that dates back to the late 90's and is still doing what it's supposed to. When it was just over two years old the bail arm snapped, I took it back to my local t/s, Shimano collected and returned it within three days and not only replaced the arm but most of the reel as well foc. I also have a pair of Aero 5000 GTE's that are about the same age and going strong. If my year old baby baitrunners last that long I'll be well pleased.
Jerry

agamemnon · Apr 23, 2012

i used to have to buy new tackle every few years to replace broken or worn tackle or rods that just wernt up to the job i needed them for.
then i paid out £130 each on daiwa emblems and £90 each on shakespear carp rods and £150 each on daiwa cat/pike rods . i brought those items at least 12 years ago and the shakespear rods are maybe 18 years old. since then i have not felt the urge or need to go out and but new gear. i still have my optonic alarms that i brought in the mid 80's and they are going strong even after use in sub zero temps and horrendous rain storms.
in the long run i think i have saved a fortune compared to some friends of mine that have brought cheap reels, sub standard rods are poor bite alarms

alan whittington · Apr 23, 2012

Im not bemoaning the price or the quality of my shimano,i have seven different sized/function shimano reels,im just wondering if i spent say £60 on an exage,i'd probably be getting a reel that lasts 5-8 years,so with i believe 3 bearings and a roller bearing,possibly get technology changes at a better price,that said,i dont know the reel may return with f.drag perfect ready for many years service,also this is the only problem ive ever had on shimano reels.Its not that i cant afford to buy the gear,its the logistics and the way these manufacturers work that concerns me.

sam vimes · Apr 23, 2012

alan whittington said:
its the logistics and the way these manufacturers work that concerns me.

It's the way of the world with pretty much every consumer item these days. We may not particularly like it but we've got to accept that it's part and parcel of the disposable society that has developed over the years. Considering that the original Stradics are close to twenty years old now, it's reasonably impressive that repairing them was a viable option until fairly recently.

flightliner · Apr 23, 2012

sorry, cant help myself!

sam vimes · Apr 23, 2012

flightliner said:
sorry, cant help myself!

I can only assume that this'll be an oblique reference to the longevity and availability of spares for Mitchell reels. Good luck to you, I'd still rather use a decent reel for fifteen years, knowing that it would break and not be repairable, than have to suffer a Mitchell for all eternity!

terry m · Apr 23, 2012

There is also the possibility - albeit slight - that you may lose the fish of a lifetime as a result of a poor rod or reel failing at a crucial moment.

It is of course horses for courses, if you can afford decent kit then fine, if you cannot then you either save up or make do with less costly alternatives, as with everything in life!

The earlier point about a disposable society is a good one, and a point that does not always sit easy with people of a certain ageincluding myself, but that is how it is, and is one of the results of low cost manufacture in the first place.

flightliner · Apr 23, 2012

sam vimes said:
Quote:
Originally Posted by flightliner
sorry, cant help myself!

Sorry, cant read a thing for the tears in my eyes!

sam vimes · Apr 23, 2012

flightliner said:
Sorry, cant read a thing for the tears in my eyes!

Never mind tears, I'd have clawed my own eyes out if you forced me to use a Mitchell.

P.S. Based on your ability to quote, the tears in your eyes really must be bad.

Morespiders · Apr 23, 2012

sam vimes said:
I can only assume that this'll be an oblique reference to the longevity and availability of spares for Mitchell reels. Good luck to you, I'd still rather use a decent reel for fifteen years, knowing that it would break and not be repairable, than have to suffer a Mitchell for all eternity!

Why are my Mitchells still working after 40odd years, I still use them all the time, have about 12, pus about 30 spools, Yes i do have lots of shimanos to, and use them , but still use my Mitchells for most of my fishing, the trick with any reel is not to use it as a winch
ps
Yes a few of them growl, but a man's reel should growl not purr

barbelboi · Apr 23, 2012

Morespiders said:
Why are my Mitchells still working after 40odd years, I still use them all the time, have about 12, pus about 30 spools, Yes i do have lots of shimanos to, and use them , but still use my Mitchells for most of my fishing, the trick with any reel is not to use it as a winch
ps
Yes a few of them growl, but a man's reel should growl not purr

The trick is not to catch anything - puts them under less stress

Jerry

sam vimes · Apr 23, 2012

Morespiders said:
Why are my Mitchells still working after 40odd years, I still use them all the time, have about 12, pus about 30 spools, Yes i do have lots of shimanos to, and use them , but still use my Mitchells for most of my fishing, the trick with any reel is not to use it as a winch
ps
Yes a few of them growl, but a man's reel should growl not purr

Where did I suggest that Mitchells wouldn't work? I couldn't care if they work for all eternity. I hate the damned things, a Mitchell for all eternity is my idea of hell. I'd rather use an alternative that's actually nice to use, even if I had to scrap it every few years.
I totally agree that not winching should have a half way decent reel, of any brand, working for a long, long time. I don't really care if spares aren't available for any of my reels. I've never managed to wear one out yet.

tigger · Apr 23, 2012

Alan, would it not be possible to get the required part made ?

Philip · Apr 23, 2012

My first reaction on reading this thread was what the hell are you all doing with your reels !!!!

In the past I had the obvious stuff like the bail arm spring go on things like the Woolworth start kit reel (remember those..) but in general reels nowadays seem to stand up really well. I really am struggling to remember the last reel that “broke” and I am not talking mega fancy reels here either.

flightliner · Apr 23, 2012

sam vimes said:
Quote:
Originally Posted by flightliner
Sorry, cant read a thing for the tears in my eyes!

Never mind tears, I'd have clawed my own eyes out if you forced me to use a Mitchell.

P.S. Based on your ability to quote, the tears in your eyes really must be bad.

My ability with a computer isnt whats in question ( Its fundamental at best tho I could throw you up a pretty good house amongst other things,) the way I structured my original post wasnt aimed at anybody in particular,it was co-incidental that it followed yours. I was simply smiling at the thought of people having a perfectly good reel that has done years of yeoman service and is still perfectly servicable/usable but being thrown onto the shelf because either the company dont do spares in order to keep people buying a new shiney model has been put onto the market often to tempt the guys that cant resist having the latest bit of kit (sad).
My second post was structured exactly as intended, not to qoute anyone in particular but to re-inforce my first post but its meaning was sadly missed -- hopefully not by all here.

alan whittington · Apr 23, 2012

tigger said:
Alan, would it not be possible to get the required part made ?

Tigger,i dont know if its one or several,the reel returned and seems the same as when it left.

---------- Post added at 21:18 ---------- Previous post was at 21:13 ----------

Philip said:
My first reaction on reading this thread was what the hell are you all doing with your reels !!!!

In the past I had the obvious stuff like the bail arm spring go on things like the Woolworth start kit reel (remember those..) but in general reels nowadays seem to stand up really well. I really am struggling to remember the last reel that “broke” and I am not talking mega fancy reels here either.

Philip,can i have some of the drugs please,my reel isnt 'broke',its fighting drag isnt working quite as it did,wear and tear,with usage,not moaning about that,just the fact that parts arent available,as and when required,on a quality item.

As for mitchells,it would be difficult to use one for five years without something going wrong,particularly bail springs,they would be fine if i liked knitting though.

Expensive reels and their life span.

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