Best/favorite levelwind for trout trolling?

[1 nut in the water]

Alrighty here is my addition for the week-

It's about time to invest in another reel and I'm thinking about a baitcaster for trout trolling. Currently i use 3 Shimano Stradic( 2 2500's and a 1000) which I love a Revo STX and a Cardiff 401a for the big guys.
I am wanting to get another small baitcaster so any first hand experience with a particular reel would be great. Considering a curado or cardiff 201a but.............

 

[halibuthitman]

I have always used a penn No.9.... or a pfluegar medalist flyreel loaded with lead core. A curado seems like a government level waste of money for a trout reel... but if you got the cash and love fancy things I guess that would be a heck of a set-up. One of my favorite things to do is put a $500 Hardy flyreel on a $65 flyrod, makes me smile every time-

 

[1 nut in the water]

I am a firm believer in buying quality instead of cheap stuff that is good for a year or two. Might as well spend a little more now for buttery smooth fishing for years instead of being cheap and grinding gears in a couple of months on a zebco. Also I am rather hard on my equipment and would rather put my $ into the reel since the rod will most likely end up in a few pieces eventually....

 

[DirectDrive]

I cut my teeth on 80s era Shimano baitcasters.
They worked well but had a few minor flaws that could be worked around.
Then in '93 the Greenie showed up on store shelves.
It had a weird name....Curado, but it was the answer for many of us. Solved all the old issues.

(The very first was actually in about '89 "The Tomato" because of its color. It wasn't until '93 before they took off in popularity.)

The first greenies were called the B model...200 size (what we call steelhead size) is what you want.
I use a 201B which is a left crank. I also have a 201BSF which is the deluxe version (left crank) with a bearing supported pinion.
The right crank versions would be 200B and 200BSF.
They are a bulletproof design and easy to rebuild....you basically just clean them because nothing seems to break if you don't abuse them.

You can find these on Ebay or Craig's List usually for about half their original cost (or less) which was $120 and $150.

They look like this...

 

[Troutski]

Line counter reels...

Line counter reels...

For Trolling I recommend and use level wind line counter reels, there are plenty on the market from 45$ to the moon. The great thing about a line counter is the ability to go right back to where you caught the first fish... time and time again. No messing with color coded lines or counting how many pulls you were just at. JMHO

Chuck

 

[DirectDrive]

If you don't mind wielding a larger reel (like a line counter or a Penn) you might want to consider an Ambassdeur levelwind.
A "4 series" or a "5 series"...actual model numbers would look like "4500, 4600 etc" or "5000, 5500 etc".
They are both the same diameter just the 4 series is narrower.

These reels feature a non-disengaging levelwind...the line guide runs back and forth as you pay out line.
What you do when trolling is to count the line guide passes...they are every bit as fast as a linecounter to get reset.
A 5 series Abassadeur pays out 8 feet of line per pass. It will pay out a little less as the spool goes down, yes, but that does not matter. Just count your passes, it's about repeatability to get reset in the same spot.

Very important...some of the Ambassadeur production has gone to China. Originally all you had to do was avoid "Kalex" and "BCX" but now folks are reporting that some traditional model numbers are coming out of China.

Look for Made in Sweden and there are many of these great reels available in the used market for very reasonable prices.
Bulletproof, rebuildable, these are the Harley Davidsons of reels.

 

[OnTheDrop]

^^ for price made in Sweden Garcias are the shiiiiioot.

I'd get a 4000 size as they are fairly small...

Go ahead and spend an extra 100$ but for trout why ...?

Cheers

 

[WildRivers]

I have always used a penn No.9.... or a pfluegar medalist flyreel loaded with lead core. A curado seems like a government level waste of money for a trout reel... but if you got the cash and love fancy things I guess that would be a heck of a set-up. One of my favorite things to do is put a $500 Hardy flyreel on a $65 flyrod, makes me smile every time-

You struck me as more of an Islander Precision kind of a guy. Why pay $500 when $800 or $1,000 is even more fun?

Who was it that said they thought they were catching trout just because the fish wanted a closer look at their fancy reel?