HTJ

Anyone with hands on experience with the cheap Chinese baitcasters such as Piscifun or Kastking? I have a 14 year old that has proven himself very adept at destroying my good tackle so he is about to get his very own stuff. If they mean anything at all the reviews for said reels on Amazon are generally positive.

deckape

Kmart / walmart is your friend

triumphrick

Well, now is your chance to confirm what I have found out about them....cheap parts, cheap stainless and cheap bearings!

But I can sympathize, Hillman,...as I work hard to keep my gear up...and am not too keen on having it beat up. I am sure you are that way as well.

What sucks is there are never parts available if you want to replace something...except possibly bearings. I won't even bring it into the shop anymore.

GoneNdoneit

swflgroupertherapy

Some of those cheap reels aren't complete junk. Shoot... some of those "fishing products" are sold with a fancy name on them at twice or three times the price here in the states.

Pez Vela

This ^^^. No questions asked replacement for broken rod or reel. Keep your receipt.

aquaholic23

The Piscifun is a good little bait casting reel for under 40 bucks, damm if it last 2 years and needs service you can throw it out, the service would most likely cost as much as a new reel. thats my 2 cents,

Surfside

If you buy one of the cheap ones, let him beat it up BUT keep it as a keepsake for him down the road. It will bring life long memories fishing with his dad

Cucumber

Ugly Stix and the lower end Penn stuff at WalMart or Amazon.

Pursuit, Battle, Fierce, etc. = Cheap Chinese Reels

1 Year warranty and you still get to experiment with Chinese made products.
I've kept a few of these combos around for a few years for friends without gear. Never done anything more than spray them off and I can't kill them.

The Pursuit and the Fierce are only about $20 more than the Piscifun and Kastkings and you know you can get all the parts easily from Penn if you should need them.

kmoose

Yeaaa_Chris

HTJ

And just when the nausea subsides.....

Thanks to everyone for the tips and insight. Back when Okuma was the new cheap reel on the scene I bought a couple of their round baitcasters - two trips in the salt and they froze up - now they are at least a little popular and respected - and their "better" models the same price as anything else.

SquidsDusky

A buddy had about a dozen rods stolen out of his boat and found some great deals on Wish. He bought some of the higher priced ($30 not $20) Chinese spinning reels and said they're every bit as good as his higher end stuff that was stolen. He's planning on buying more.

We used to buy the Penn 4400's from Walmart and beat the hell out of them in the spring on huge stripers. The drags were shot after the spring run. We'd save the box and receipt and exchange them after the spring run and have new reels for the next season. Got away with it for several years until they stopped carrying them.

sultany

good stuff

I have a Piscifun Baitcaster I use for Speckled Trout and Reds and can't say anything bad about it. I was skeptical at first but for $39.00 what the hell.

R Days

Go to bass pro and get the gear guard with whatever you buy. Its a 1 or 2 year no questions asked warranty

Kenner 23

Academy will have the H2O's on sale for black friday. They no longer have a life time warranty but should last long enough for him to decide that taking care of his equipment is a good idea.

gofastsandman

Jim311

The Piscifun reels are generally well liked in the fly fishing community. If you really think almost all the big name manufacturers aren't selling cheap Chinese reels with an expensive name on them you're kidding yourself. This is the perfect situation to buy a reel that's disposable if you ask me. There are some seriously good reels for 40 or 50 bucks out there, like Pflueger President/Trion. I use the Presidents and Supreme reels exclusively for my saltwater and bass fishing. I fish hard and frequent, and they last me a minimum of 5 years. When they get crunchy I get another one. Any reputable service company is going to charge me half what a new reel costs just to grease it so I treat them as disposable. Lube them once in a while and they'll last a long time.

Mark Y

Okuma is putting out a very good product these days, they learned from their mistakes.