Gear Guide: Trolling Reels Under $300

By Perry Mack

Daiwa M-One UTD

Mooching, or drift-fishing, for salmon is one of the best and most popular ways of catching fish on Canada’s West Coast, and the M-One UTD mooching reel from Daiwa® is one of the most affordable. The UTD Carbon drag is smooth and fade free, with a one-way design that lets you easily wind line regardless of drag setting. The stainless palming flange on the spool gives you added control of large fish, and the reel is switchable from right to left hand retrieve.

One model holding 14/850 – 30/350 mono, with a 1:1 gear ratio providing a retrieval rate of 17.2 IPT.

MSRP: $80 USD - Daiwa.com

Okuma Cold Water Wire Line Star Drag Reel

Designed specifically to hold up to the demands of braided and wire line fishing, these reels are constructed of durable, corrosion-resistant, lightweight materials and have a powerful drag and heavy-duty machine-cut brass gears. Utilizing Okuma’s Mechanical Stabilizing System (MSS - which ties the spool shaft, pinion gear, pinion gear bearing, drive shaft and main gear together with a single support system), stainless steel ball bearings, and a self-lubricating design, ensure that these reels run smooth. The largest diameter high speed 553LS has no reel counter.

Three right hand models are available with 3 bearings, weighing 20.1 – 30.7 oz, max drag of 20-22, gear ratios of 6.2:1 - 4:7.1 for retrieval rates of 35 to 40.7 IPT respectively.

MSRP: $115-$145 - Okumafishing.com

Penn Squall Level Wind

This reel is the improved successor to the GT reel. Penn has added an Infinite Anti Reverse bearing, Line Capacity Rings, their Versa-Handle, and a machined brass main gear, which mates to a high strength stainless steel pinion gear. All models use the HT-100 drag system to give you the full range of drag adjustments and the reel uses a lever drag adjustment mechanism that is easy to handle in the middle of fighting a fish. It is corrosion resistant and good for fresh- or saltwater. Only one model incorporates a line counter, the SQL20LWLC and only two models are available in left hand retrieve.

Four models (differentiated by spool size) are available, all with 2+1 bearings, weighing 16.2 – 20.9 oz, max drag of 15-20 lb, from 415/17 – 285/60 mono or 580/20 – 665/100 braid, in ratios of 4.0:1 to 4.9:1 and retrieval rates of 28 – 35 IPT.

MSRP: $120-$150 USD - Pennfishing.com

Penn Fathom Lever Drag 2 Speed

These reels feature a full metal body, stainless steel main and pinion gear, Dura-Drag washers greased with Duralube for a ‘wet’ system, and a double dog ratchet anti- reverse. A push or pull gets you into high or low range so you can change retrieval rates while you’re fighting the fish. The 20 & 30 size models are available in left or right hand retrieve. Models numbers correspond to the mid-size filament mono spool capacity and the ‘N’ refers to a narrow spool.

Five models are available with 4+1 stainless bearings, weighing 15.6 – 27.3 oz, holding 330/20 – 480/40 mono and 200/20 - 735/100 braid, max drag of 20 – 40 lb, gear ratios 6.1:1/2.8:1 to 5.0:1/2.5:1 for retrieval rates of 31/14 to 42/21 IPT respectively.

MSRP: $250-$300 USD - Pennfishing.com

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