Abu Garcia 506 MkII or 706 Reel Advice

[jim444]

So i'm looking to buy a closed face reel for fishing the river don in Sheffield. Any thoughts on which one to get.

[gozzer]

So i'm looking to buy a closed face reel for fishing the river don in Sheffield. Any thoughts on which one to get.

 

 

Hi Jim, and welcome to the forum.

 

My preferred closed face reel is the 501, you can still pick them up on ebay.

 

John.

[chesters1]

The 506 is a little small for long trotting ,as the line capacity is small the more that comes off the more resistance there is to it coming off smoothly ,a bigger spool such as the 507/8 is better but ofcourse have a premium on price because of it.

As said all the 500 series appear on ebay ,i prefer the 1044 to the 501 although i have a couple of them ,avoid the plastic versions they are not in anyway ABU as known from the metal versions

Unless someone has produced third party spool ' chenille' sp? (infact a rubber band with little fingers) avoid the 507 mk2 ,heavy but ok but once those 3 bands you get with a new one wear out theres no more !

Edited August 1, 2016 by chesters1

[Matthew Simmons]

I'll happily use my old 506's for trotting for most stuff - the line does bed down a bit especially if you pick up a rogue chub. But a clean trot through will sort it. The trick is to find a match spool and/or load the reel with no more than 100yds of line.

 

There's a guy who trots the Kennet and successfully lands barbel using the the larger version, but to me it seems quite heavy to hold all day.

 

I've not tried the new 506, but I'm told it performs well. There's a Ryobi that you can still find on ebay that some people rave about.

[Peter Waller]

I'm a great fan of the 1044, much liking its ability to backwind.

[Tigger]

 

 

Hi Jim, and welcome to the forum.

 

My preferred closed face reel is the 501, you can still pick them up on ebay.

 

John.

 

Yeaph....i'm another fan of the original 501. Although I did use mine for trotting imo it wasn't the best tool for the job and I often had line stick problems. I like using mine for still water fishing especially at night when tench fishing with a float. I like the instant line release and pick up which does cut down on tangles when fishing in darkness and especially in windy conditions.

I have a 506 but I prefer the 501....anyone want a very clean 506 i'd be happy to sell them one.

[Martin56]

The Mitchell Match (auto bale arm) is an excellent trotting reel, thought not so easy to source in good condition these days.

 

They're made in the Far East now, so new ones are noticeably not as good in quality as the 80's French versions. IMO.

 

The French (Best ones) are Blue in colour, & is a good clue as to it's provenance.

Edited August 25, 2016 by Martin56

[Steve Walker]

The Mitchell Match is a real classic, I'd love to own one, but it still doesn't answer the main advantage of the closed face - you can engage the pickup pin while you still have the line trapped with your finger.

[chesters1]

The matches are ok but i have had big trouble with the wind blowing the line behind the mechanism and it doesnt like being knocked as the bale is fiddly to set up if it is.

The 840 was my favourite but i flogged mine when the ebay prices went through the roof once the exitement drops down the price gets realistic for what is a heavy old fashioned reel but on the good side it shared a lot of parts with other mitchells so repairable

Edited August 25, 2016 by chesters1

[Martin56]

The Mitchell Match is a real classic, I'd love to own one, but it still doesn't answer the main advantage of the closed face - you can engage the pickup pin while you still have the line trapped with your finger.

Yes of course you can (I have a 501 & also had a 503 when I was Norbut!!)

 

The merest, partial turn of the handle engages the pick up pin.

 

(Sorry read that as "can you"??)

Edited August 25, 2016 by Martin56