Ambassador or Shimano levelwind reels

[Mr. BrownTrout]

Which of these reels are your favorite???

[ 01-22-2004, 11:51 AM: Message edited by: Mr. BrownTrout ]

[high_arc]

Depends on what you are fishing for.

[Buck50]

I love my old Shimano 201. Great steelhead reel and it's caught it's share of springers too!

[Akuracy503]

Started with Abu..still using Abu's for fall chinook fishing...solid reel

how about plueger brand trion's, are smooth excellent reels also..

the Shimano 201SG was a very popular steelhead reel..

[go fisch]

Shimano all the way. NO matter if I am fishing for Steelhead or Salmon

[freespool]

My reel of choice is Shimano. I own several ABU's that I use on my loaner rigs,work good last a long time. For my personal use I go 251 for salmon and 51 for steelhead. Comparing the two is like the difference between a Ford and a Mercades.


salmon hugger

[HOGTIDE]

....so the Shimano would be the Ford? :smile:

...ain't no Mercedes gonna pull my boat!

[DAB]

Shimano 201sg for steelhead, Pen Senaters for sturgeon, Okumas for fishing out of a boat for salmon, ABU's banking for salmon.
DAB

[dirt]

Abu's levelwinds and Shimano's for spinning. A differance exist in the application.

[Fshklr]

Well I have been through a few reels over the years and this is what I've found.
I am a diehard ABU fan ever since my first 1 in 75 and it was a 5000D direct drive. I have numerous ABU levelwinds. 5000 5500 6000 6500. All have performed flawlessly are are a great reel for the a great price each used for specific types of fishing.Salmon bobbering, plugging, plunking, and drifting heavy flows.

Pflueger Trion
I bought 1 a month ago and so did 5 friends all within a week plus or minus of each other.
1 buddy had 2 fail..thumbar release wouldn't re-engage after a week..returned for a replacement and the drag failed whenever you set the hook and felt as if it disengaged even though it was set for a stiff drag..he returned it and upgraded to a Shimano Curado.
I had mine 3 weeks with 9 days of use and began experiencing same drag problems and returned it and upgraded to the Curado as well.
Another buddy has been experiencing drag related problems as well and will be returning it shortly.

Shimano Curado's
5 models all appropriately priced and the best in my opinion money can buy for a low profile baitcaster $119.00 to $169.00. Smooth spool control, precision drag performance, and effortless casts with as little as 1/4oz weight.
Tight lines Dan

[Fish Finder]

Daiwa :grin:

[Ty]

Shimano.............

[B.J. Lilly Hunter]

Definetly Shimano. A Curado CU-201 BSF cannot be beat for the price in my opinion.

[SKP]

Ambassador

[HOGTIDE]

I feel like I should be loyal to ABU because they are a big part of our local heritage when it comes to salmon fishing. Most of the veterans cut their baitcasting teeth on these reels. They are still a solid reliable reel, especially for the money.

But, I've gotta say, I think that overall Shimano makes a superior fishin' reel. Positve 'click', tightness and close tolerances between gears,no handle slop, extended smoothness in casting and very smooth drags...I have to vote Shimano....with a very strong apology and a "I like 'em , too" to the fans of ABU.

I've got a few Calcuttas, which just can't be beat.

[Mr. BrownTrout]

Well anyone who has a shimano and wants to trade it for an Ambassadeur, check out my other post then.

[rola76]

My two favorite brands!!

I use Curados and Calais exclusively for steelheading (and one Cabela's Prodigy) and for "light" salmon. Load 'em up with 8-12lb Maxima and you're set. Awesome overall reels and the Curado is a great value for what you get.

Step into the world of salmon, especially plugging, and now you're talking about ABUs. Load these up with Fireline or some other heavy test and you're good to go. And actually, they cast well also! They by no means are a "finesse" reel, but for the price they're bulletproof and, if taken care of, will last a lifetime!!

Buy 'em all!! :grin:

[salmurai]

If you compare dollar for dollar value, there is no comparison. Ambassadeur all the way. If they made a two or three hundred dollar Ambassadeur, I'm sure it would measure up to Shimano. I've got an old Ambassadeur that I'm going to send to the Reelmeister for a rebuild. That will cost me about $80.00 for the upgrades and rebuild. I've had that reel for 30 plus years and don't want to part with it. Lately I've started using the upper end Shimanos and feel that they can't be beat. Just my $.02 worth.

[drifterwa]

Shimano.....every since I was standing waist deep in the Humptulips river......using about 4 inches of lead to "try to get to the other side". This guy slides in below me, about an 1 1/2 inches of lead.....and made 1 cast......hit the other bank. I watched this for about 20 minutes, finally asked what kind of reel that was......He said "Shimano Bantum 100". He asked me if I wanted to try it....of course I said "yes"....about 5 casts and I knew that I was going to have 1 of those.....Year was 1985, December.....wife got me one for Christmas. I used it for winter run and summer run steelhead. Changed and went to "left hand retrieve". I still have that reel...box,oil,directions, parts, and a shimano sticker....looks good.

Now have Curado(4) and 1 Calcutta, love the way they handle. Use for all salmon and steelhead.

"Worse day sport fishing, still better than the best day working."

[skrimmy]

Grew up with Abu's and been using them for well over 30 years and still have a bunch of them. They're solid and take a beating. Love em.

But for steelhead drifting, it's hard to beat a Curado or Calcutta. Although I can cast either an Abu or Curado the same distance, the Curado does it much more smoothly and quietly. And they have a drag smoother than a babies behind.

[Slade]

I can't really say which is better, but I can say that my little buddy sitting with me here just made me a smelly little creation in his diaper so I better get moving.

[Dinikin]

Originally posted by Mr. BrownTrout:
Which of these reels are your favorite???

<font size="2" face="verdana,arial,helvetica">I assume that your intentions to find out which is more dependable and smoother.
I would give a call to people who repair those reals day in/out. Like ollie daimonds and such.
And then tell us what you found out.

[globalfisher]

I have an ambassador. It was my first salmon/steely reel, and it seem to be very good to me. Sometimes, it can be a little pain, but it is just probably me making a casting error. If it were me I would pick the ambassador.

[Mr. BrownTrout]

I was just curious as to which was more popular, I myself own 2 ambassadeurs and 1 shimano, my faorite is shimano hands down. If I could get rid of my 2 abassadeurs I would and buy 2 shimano's.

[shalom]

I agree with HOGTIDE

i cut my baitcasting teeth on an AUB . about 45 years ago . I still have several and have never had any trouble with any of them. I all so have Shimano reels and have found them to be an excellant reel I!m currently useing DAIWA-TD-X baitcasters.They are all great reels . I had a chance to fish with a SHIMANO DIGITAL baitcaster and it was SWEET to say the least .When they come out with a low profile model........ I WILL HAVE TO THINK ABOUT , ONE MORE BAITCASTER .

[willametteriveroutlaw]

Shimano... Abus are clunky, poor casting, and heavy.. Shimanos are smooth, cast very easily, very reliable and well ankles through shoulder ahead of Abus. Don't get less than catala grade (pref calcutta) for salmon.. or below a curado for steelhead.. (have both and love them)

[blacktail]

glassblower,

I agree that the ambassadeurs are a good reel for the money, but you're sticking it way out there saying that all the others are junk.

The mid to upper end Shimanos and Daiwas, while more expensive than most ambassadeurs have proven to be very reliable and way smoother than any ambassadeur.

Yes, I do have and use both ambassadeurs and the "imports".

Mike

[glassblower]

Ambassaduer all the way, they are the only level wind reel I will buy. All the others are built cheap, hard to repair. Ambassaduer reels are built very well with all brass gears, sealed bearings, they break down fast for repair, they are easy to put back together, and if you maintain them they will last a lifetime. In the past I had bought shimano, diawa, quantum, and others and most were junk straight from the box that would not cast smooth or had other issues, plus they have wimpy little drags made for trout, lower line capacity, they are a mess to repair and then get working again after you have had them apart. I have never had a bad ambassaduer reel, and I have owned a bunch of them. I currantly own more than a dozen amassadure reels. You get what you pay for, so do you want to pay for fancy modern looks or somthing that works right everytime all the time.