Thoughts on buying a first Centre pin reel

[Tigger]

And I've never even used one before! All thoughts and advice much welcome thanks.

 

I've never seen a dud okuma centrepin and I think most are of equal build quality which is excellent. The sheffield and pro (and even the raw) are the same reel with a different face plate. The varying noises will be down to the bearings whizzing round, ball race reels produce this noise, it is normal. When you put a drop of oil on the reel and use it a few times it may rumble a little less. The rumble isn't usually heard when the reel is spinning at slower speeds as you'd get in use.

The reason the greys Bewick wouldn't spin for as long is because it's a true pin, needs oil and to spin for any length of time it must be lying horizontal (with the handles pointing upward). A true pin will get smoother and spin for longer as it gets worn in and will run silently without the rumble of the ball race pin.

[philocalist]

Just thought I'd share some thoughts and ask for help with a first centre pin.

 

Firstly, is it centre pin or centrepin? (not really important!)

 

What has struck me is the difference in quality and price between 'identical' reels. I've been into local tackle shops (I like to support them when I can) and feel even more confused.

 

One told me the Okuma Aventa Pro isn't available anymore.The other had in stock. One had the Okuma Sheffield. It felt and ran amazingly smooth but was £220... Ouch. I thought they were £150-ish. The other had a Sheffield. It said the RRP was £179 but they were selling it at £139. Great. But it felt awful compared to the one in the other shop! Not as smooth and made a quiet rubbing/grating noise when it spun............ Er, no thanks. The Aventa Pro (£120-ish I think) felt nothing like as good as the £220 Sheffield but about the same as the poor £139 Sheffield

 

I tried the cheapest one they had. Ikonix at £70 but it felt tinny and nothing like as 'good' as the £220 Sheffield. Fair enough....

 

The worst when I 'tried' was the Greys Beswick at £200. It just hardly spun at all. Utterly bizarre and confusing.

 

The best one I tried was the Okuma Raw 2. £150-ish I think. But I found it too ugly and 'modern' looking. Not what I'm after.

 

All this has made me even more determined to try them out in person before I buy. I know you can get cheaper online etc but I just don't know what is going to arrive. And I'm running out of tackle shops! All the shops have said they've had a lot of interest in them. They're definitely in fashion at the moment.

 

I'm tempted to just say "sod it" and get a Cortesi £40 one because frankly some of the £150+ I've tried just don't feel good enough. The quality between 'identical' reels feels so vast that I'm not surprised so many reviews differ so wildly on forums etc.

 

And I've never even used one before! All thoughts and advice much welcome thanks.

Hi Noel - welcome to the forum ... and the creeping madness that seems to inflict most 'pin owners / users! You may as well have your eyes opened right from the start ... it's VERY unlikely that you will only own one centrepin; they can be addictive!

 

Just trying to work through the points in your post, in no particular order, be aware that there are two main types of (very different) centrepin; those that actually DO run on a pin (like the Greys, and reels from the Youngs stable ... and most hand-bult reels too), and those that run on a bearing ... typically the Okumas, but also reels from the likes of Kingpin and Adcock Stanton.

All things being equal, you WOULD expect a bearing reel to out-spin a 'proper' 'pin by a country mile, especially straight out of the box ... 'proper' 'pins improve with use as they are 'run in'.

The Greys reel you mention SHOULD be silky smooth out of the box, but don't expect it to spin too long. Conversely, ALL Okumas should feel absolutely 100% smooth with no catching at all, and a decent bat will make you believe that they will spin forever ... that's a generalisation that applied to pretty much any decent bearing-type reel.

If you pick up a (new) centre pin and it catches at all - put it back. There IS something wrong; it may be something or nothing, but why bother with the potential hassle.

 

Prices WILL vary to a stupid degree, even for the same reel at different retail outlets.The simple fact is that pretty much ANY reel that you can buy retail can be bought VERY much cheaper online. To put it into perspective, the Aventa Pro can often be found new and boxed (even retail, occasionally!) for less than £50! ... you'll pick up the Sheffield without too much bother for less than £100; with regards to the Sheffield, it's a reel that is held in very high regard by many ... I cannot actually recall ever seeing a negative review about the reel anywhere, and it's a reel that is perfectly capable of out-fishing most anglers! The Greys Bewick? Maybe £115 on a bad day.

 

Buying a centre pin? It's a state of affairs somewhere between a nightmare and a minefield Everyone is likely to offer different advice, usually subject to their own preferences; you need to accept that to a large degree, as long as the reel will do what you want, what you buy is very much a personal choice - one reel will suit your mindset, another won't.

The issue with Okuma and availibilty of models is fairly straight forward; MOST of their models are still freely available, though some are harder to come by than others - they are currently importing only the (silver) Sheffield and the RAW.

 

Personally, my advice would be to avoid a new cheaper reel; you can buy far superior quality for a similar price, used - and the reels will usually be in very good condition with few if any vices ... but like anyting bought used, you always run a slight risk.

If you can afford it, and like the reel, buy a Sheffield - you might even be able to source one of the much rarer gold finished ones if you're lucky. It's very unlikely you'll not like the reel, and it will do virtually anything you ask of it ... and if you DO decide to sell, they hold value very well - it's not unusual to see them change hands for £80+ on Ebay!

Spend half that amount? Try and find an Aventa Pro while there are still some in the shops - Go Outdoors have listed them at least twice recently for less than 50 quid, and at that price they're a steal ... or lurk around Ebay and find a very tidy Adcock Stanton for similar money ... their new reels retail around the £300 mark!

 

How long a reel will actually spin for, given a good 'bat' is largely academic - there are other considerations to be taken into account, the prime one being how little effort it takes to start the spool rotating, and to keep it doing so!

 

I've no idea where in The UK you are, but if you're up in the North East at all, drop me a PM - you're welcome to come around and have a play ... I've a tackle room infested with centrepins, so you'll likely be able to see virtually anything that might be of interest to you, and make side-by-side comparisons.

 

Pure co-incidence, just nipped across to Ebay and the first thing I see on there is one of the (gold) Sheffields, new but unboxed - no bids at £99.99, due to end 2pm-ish tomorrow (Wednesday):

 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/okuma-sheffield-centrepin-reel-gold-/121166945222?pt=UK_SportsLeisure_Fishing_Reels_JN&hash=item1c361cdbc6

Edited September 3, 2013 by philocalist

[viney]

_{The Leeds centre pin is a very good entrance pin.I can sell you one (several sizes available) for £30}

Totally agreed, budgie sold me a Leeds a few years ago, best money I've spent on fishing tackle

[Matthew Simmons]

I use a Sheffield - lovely reel.

 

M

[chesters1]

This will do you

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/ANGLER-SCOUT-8-80-CENTER-PIN-REEL-/111155452779?pt=UK_SportsLeisure_Fishing_Reels_JN&hash=item19e1619b6b

[Noel80]

Thanks for everyone's help.

 

Special thanks to philocast for his reply and offer. Sadly, I couldn't be any further away! (Devon). I think I'm going to do a bit more looking and "trying".

 

I'll let you know how I get on........................ Now where did I put that sledgehammer?................

[RUDD]

I use an Aventa pro and have never had any running problems with it.

Also being a Beach angler who uses a multiplier that needs its bearings cleaned every time it is used, on occasion I clean the Aventas bearings in a bit of lighter fluid (or petrol or brake cleaner), dry them by dropping on a paper towel for a few mins whilst cleaner evaporates, then re lube by dropping onto a tespoon of reel oil and warming the spoon gently until small bubbles cease to come out of bearing.

PS on my multiplier I use car engline oil to slow the bearings - leave the likes of rocket fuel to Tournament casters

[barbelbarmy]

Before you Choose a real It may be worth considering what your intended use is. Do you want it for close in trotting, long trotting, ledger work, margins for Carp etc.What requirements do you have i.e. faster retrieve. What style do you like i.e. Ariel type (spoked) or more like the Adcock Stanton? What type of cast do you want to learn?

 

This may effect your choice of reel and limit the options.

 

For example if you want a quick retrieve by using the handles then a Kingpin will drive you mad. If you want to do light stick float work than the Bewick is excellent. if you intend to hold the rod all day then the bewick or BJ lightweight would be better than a Purist.

 

The Bewick is very light so does not spin for as long but run in and with the correct oil needs a lot less weight on the line and less flow to get it to start to revolve. I also find it very easy to Wallis cast with. I got mine off ebay for £80.

[Rusty]

The Bewick is a lovely reel, mine never did spin for very long but the lightest current would take line off it and that was far more important. The one downside is that whilst the drum is 4 1/4 inch diameter where the line sits is a lot less so constantly retrieving from distance becomes hard work.

 

I liked it a lot.

[barbelbarmy]

Rusty, My thoughts on the Bewick precisely. I love it, but if going to trot any distance will use the 4.5 inch BJ Lightweight. For bigger fish the BJ.