Shimano Symetre vs. Stradic....opinions ?

[ksdog]

I'm looking to get a 2500 series spinning reel for better casting distance. I currently have all 1500 series. Trying to decide on paying the extra $40.00 for the stradic over the symetre. Is it worth it or should I be looking at another brand ? Thanks.

[Guest]

I have been beating on a Stradic since the year they came out.. the same reel, I finaly took it apart to clean it a couple weeks ago because the clutch bearing was dirty.

Zero flaws. Is it worth the money? Absolutely. There is absolutely no wear anywhere inside of the reel and it is as smooth as the day I got it 9 years ago(wild guess). I have gotten my moneys worth. I will probably hand it down to my kid in a couple years and get a shiny new one for "daddy".

[delmuts]

i'll say the same thing about the symetre. i have a 1000 and a 2000 . not sure how long i've had them.( 8-10 ?)never had any problems with either of them. i do clean and grease them each year.

[Chev_trucks501]

ks,

I'll agree with Delmuts. I have nothing but symetres and I love them. I am pretty hard on my stuff and have yet to have one fail on me. They are a great reel.

Good Luck

chev

[Tony Boshold]

I use both for my open water fishing and I must tell you I feel that the extra $40 for the Stradic is well worth it. The placement of the extra BB is not just some gimmick like some manufacturers that have "ten BB". I don't like feeling and hearing the gears when I'm trying to feel for a bite. Some like their reels to feel like a winch, I prefer a smooth, quiet and effortless spinning reel. Shimano's BB is well placed in the stradic and worth it. I do a lot of flat line trolling and we snag alot. I have smoked a symmetre in less than one season.

Did I mention "break things" is my middle name.

You are also getting a spare aluminum spool with the stradic and not a spare graphite spool like the Symmetre.

I love my Stradic. Either way you're getting a great drag system and should be happy with the Shimano's.

Just my .02.

[bigdog]

I have used the Symetre for years with no problems. Last spring I tried a friends Stradic. It was noticeably smoother and now I own a couple of them. Both are great reels but if you can afford the Stradic it is worth the money.

[Deitz Dittrich]

Either way you go you will be happy.. My opinion will mirror what others have said.. The Stradic is the best reel for the money on the market.. In my opinion worth the $40 extra if you have $40 extra to spend.

[No_Net]

I have a Symetre that I got last spring. I love it hasen't failed me once. I'm only 15 years old so you can imagen what cind of torcher it goes through and I'm fishing at the river 4-6 days a week.

[Hoffer]

I wont buy anything but a Shimano. With that said, I am not all that pleased with the symetre I purchased at the beginning of last Summer. I used it extensively, and with any kind of somehat larger lure that I throw - when I go to start the retrive and close the bail - in many cases the line gets caught half way and I have to manually place the line in the area where it winds up. It is a pain - because many time I have had a strike at the same moment the lure hits the water - and I will go to try and set the hook and the line spins. I havent had that happen with my other reels - and in fact I bought a Sahara on sale at the end of the Sumer as a backup for one of my older rods - and I started to use that - and liked it much better than the symetre. Maybe I just got a bad reel - or maybe I am using too heavy of a lure for my symetre?? In any case, I do love the Shimano reels - my next one will be another stradic - I have a 5 year old one that is great.

[OnTheWater]

Not sure, but I think shimano will fix your bail spring problem if you send it to them. The problem you described is actually quite a common problem with almost all reels. It would probably be in your best interest to get in the habit of manually closing the bail… I’ve learned this the hard way through of couple of reels. Otherwise, you may want to consider buying one of the new quantum high end reels. They have really improved over the years, and I believe they are the only reels with a magnetic bail trip; so the bail will never fail to flip over upon retrieving. Really though, I think there is no wrong answer to this question; both are great reels, and it really depends on how much you are willing to spend.

[Tyler Holm]

I've got them both. I have the Stratic 1000 on an UL rod and a Symetre 2500 on a walleye jigging rod.

As mentioned above, you'll be happy with either. If I were in the market for another reel of that nature, I'd go with the Symetre. Both reels are extremely smooth and I doubt you could physically tell the difference between the two if you were blind folded.

The stratic looks much nicer with the pearly white / glitter finish. The wood handle is a nice accent.

Take the extra $40 and have the store put line on both spools.

[Lip RIPPER!]

Where did you find the wood handles? The one I bought the other day didn't that the wooden handles. My 3 other ones do have them and I absolutely love that style of handle. I was under the assumption that they don't put the wooden handles on anymore.

[EBass]

I've had a Symetre 4000 that's been stepped on and rained on and beat down. I've had it for approx 7 or so years. It finally gave up on me this past summer. I need to bring it in for repair soon, but it's been a wonderful reel.

That being said, I upgraded to the Sradic 2500 and 4000. I have only used the 2500 since I bought that last year and I'm am really impressed with the compete smoothness (is that a word, smoothness - looks funny)of the drag and when winding the spool. However, I can cast so much farther when I couple it with a 7' medium rod.

Either way both are nice, but if you buy a Stradic you'll want another. Funny though, for baitcasting I like quantum.

[Tyler Holm]

I bought my Stradic 3 years ago at the Texico Express & Bait in Aberdeen, SoDak. I'm not sure if they have any wooden handle left. Look them up or drop me an email if you want more details.

[BIG_EYE]

I owen both of these in the 2500 size and love them both. But a few years ago I bought a Sustain 4000 and think this is the best reel I have. Not just because it's a Sustain, price tag was a little steep , but because of the size. You are looking for longer casts, the bigger spool on the 4000 has been working better for longer casts for me. I do a lot of shore fishing casting raps, and longer casts can make or brake you on some days. I think Shimano has the best reels on the market. IMO.