Shimano And Daiwa Surf Reels

[hottyscotty]

If you navigate through Shimano's and Daiwa's japanese webiste you will find sections dedicated for surf fishing. What's the difference between these reels compared to big Stellas or Salitgas for example? I'm just curious if there are design differences that makes them any better

[TheDiko]

The difference between a surf reel and any other reel is that the surf reel will not fit as much line on it (the spool has a thicker core) and are slightly higher than the compared normal reel (which gives a better cast).

A big Stella will fit 600m+ of braid on it where as the beach reel has no need for such an amount of line.

IFS

[Mondo Rock]

The other big difference is going to be the price!!

I use a Shimano Ultegra for most of my beachfishing work and it hasn't let me down yet. Sturdy, casts a mile, and has a great drag. The oversized spool also makes a really big difference to cast length. Probably retails for around $350 (although they're rare in Australia).

Your Stellas and Saltigas would probably work just as well, but you'd be mad to take a $1,000 reel to the beach!! If you dropped it in the sand you'd have to send it straight in for servicing, whereas the Jap beach reels will tolerate a bit of sand and can be washed down without risking significant $$.