Shimano 500 size reels

Over the last couple of years I would purchase a new Shimano 500 size reel as a new model became available.
Most have been reels less than $100 and most have been reels with Hagane gears , which are supposed to be smoother than previous models .
Not so fast Shimano .
Lately I’ve taking a few of these reels fishing and what I’ve discovered is that when under tension or load the reels bind up making it difficult to reel in .
The worse has been my Nasci 500 followed by my recent purchase , a Sadona SE500Fl . I also have a Sahara 500Fl .
Some are worse than others but all exhibit some degree of binding .
The Nasci today would bind up while retrieving a small 1/32 beetle spin lure . The reel without any load is super smooth , add a lure and it’s hard to wind .
Am I the only one whose had this kind of bad luck ?
BTW , I also recently purchased a Sienna 500fg . After oiling it up with a couple drops of Lucas reel oil , it’ll out perform all of the more expensive Hagane equipped reels .
Just wondering if it’s just the 500 size reels or all of the new Shimano reels .

I only have one Shimano, a Sedona 500fi. I have not had any binding problems but I do put a few drops of reel oil on the bearings as the season goes on. I bought it for its lower weight to go with my U/L TSS for balance, but truth be told I think the extra ounce of the 1000 wouldn’t have made a significant difference, and I would have liked the larger spool. I would buy the 1000 If I had it to do over. I have been using Gamma 2lb test with it and haven’t had any problems with coiling on the smaller spool.
Bob
PS This reel came with an anti reverse switch, which was a surprise. I like to be able to back reel from time to time.
B

That is exactly why I switched to daiwa reels. All my smaller shimano reels have had binding issues with the exception of the ci4. I never could fix any of mine.

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Originally Posted by VaCrappieMan

That is exactly why I switched to daiwa reels. All my smaller shimano reels have had binding issues with the exception of the ci4. I never could fix any of mine.

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I have always been a Shimano fan , and love my older 500 Saharas , and Symetres . They’ve performed flawless . Even my older model Sienna 500’s have been great reels .
I’ve always kept my reels lubed , and now use Lucas Reel oil exclusively. That stuff is slick .
But I don’t think the issue is with the reels needing lube . It’s something in the gears themselves. They only bind with a load on them and it doesn’t take much of a load .
I have bought a few Diawas since they’ve come out with the LT reels , but I like the small 500 reels and the smallest Daiwa reels aren’t the same as the 1500’s .

And another opinion is there is a difference in a smooth winding reel and an easy winding reel . I prefer to have both .
A lot of the reels I’ve tried have been smooth winders but the effort to turn the handle offsets the smoothness .
The Pflueger President falls into that category. They are smooth reels , but require more effort to turn the handle , with the exception of my Pflueger Supreme XT . But it’s in what I call , the high dollar category :) .

I completely understand the size difference. I had no issues either until all of them crapped on me in a short amount of time. I too kept my lubed up and in good shape but it didn’t help in the long run. I have been super happy with my JDM daiwa reels but they are quite a bit bigger than what you are using. I have almost bought a small 500 size JDM shimano a few times but that would be a lot of dough to shell out to possibly have binding issues.

Years back I had those issues with the Sahara line. But it has been an off and on issue with Shimano US market reels for years. That is how they acquired the nickname “Shibindo”.

Regards

not impressed with siena reel I bought on a st croix rod, binding issues from a buddy clearing out his stuff. More impressed with my President reels as they are consistantly solid with a good sized fish on and no problems.

Have owned various models of Sedonas, Cardiff and Stradics.

Never any issues.

Sent from my SM-G986U using Crappie.com Fishing mobile app

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Originally Posted by gillchaser999

And another opinion is there is a difference in a smooth winding reel and an easy winding reel . I prefer to have both .
A lot of the reels I’ve tried have been smooth winders but the effort to turn the handle offsets the smoothness .
The Pflueger President falls into that category. They are smooth reels , but require more effort to turn the handle , with the exception of my Pflueger Supreme XT . But it’s in what I call , the high dollar category :) .

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This is a real good point. I don’t own a JDM reel but based on hundreds of reviews here I know they have both. Some day maybe….
Bob

I have lots of President reels mostly 20’s and a couple of 25’s. I’ve gotten good service from them but have worn the gears out of the one on my most used rod. I bought a Diawa regal 1000 and spooled it with 3lb crystal fireline and it does well on the TSS. I’m warming up to the idea of a couple of hundred dollars for a little reel but not yet.

My siennas do trolling duty on a couple of the rods in my spread and I’ve no issues with them, nor any expectation of them being a reel to have in my hand all day. Good enough for the job they’re doing. I use some Sahara’s in 3000 size for my saltwater trips and they’re also good for the job and so far, so good.

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Originally Posted by skeetbum

I have lots of President reels mostly 20’s and a couple of 25’s. I’ve gotten good service from them but have worn the gears out of the one on my most used rod. I bought a Diawa regal 1000 and spooled it with 3lb crystal fireline and it does well on the TSS. I’m warming up to the idea of a couple of hundred dollars for a little reel but not yet.

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I am easing in that direction also. But I am not there yet either

I wouldn’t mind spent a couple hundred on a reel if I was only using one but I’ve got a dozen of them on different rods.

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Originally Posted by QuinnTheEskimo

I wouldn’t mind spent a couple hundred on a reel if I was only using one but I’ve got a dozen of them on different rods.

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That would be expensive to say the least

I've used two Sienna (E versions) 500 sized reels for several years and never had a problem with either. Took one apart, cleaned and lubed it. It winds more easily now than when it was new.These have elliptical gears for the spool oscillation. Never saw those before I opened up that reel. Both are on the shelf now since I have moved on to 1000 sized reels for UL fishing.

Below are the insides with the main gear removed and before cleaning. You can see one of the elliptical gears in the upper-middle of the reel. Sorry, no pretty after photos.

Attachment 413830

That is an interesting gear train

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Originally Posted by QuinnTheEskimo

I wouldn’t mind spent a couple hundred on a reel if I was only using one but I’ve got a dozen of them on different rods.

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I occasionally watch a fishing show called “The Obsession of Carter Andrews”. He has a $1,000 Shimano Stella on every rod he owns. :yikes

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Originally Posted by deathb4disco

I occasionally watch a fishing show called “The Obsession of Carter Andrews”. He has a $1,000 Shimano Stella on every rod he owns. :yikes

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Ouch!

Was looking through some older photos and found a few more pix of the gear train. Enjoy.

Attachment 415458
Attachment 415460

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Originally Posted by DockShootinJack

That is an interesting gear train

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I own several of those Shimano Sienna 500’s , and a couple 1000’s . Probably 10 total .
I’ve only experienced an issue with one that was hard to wind . Not unusable , but would tighten up a little at the top of the upstroke . Enough to bother me , but at the price of $30 , I stole the spool off it for an extra spool .
These little Siennas , with a few drops of Lucas reel oil in the right places are just as smooth and functioned as reels that cost four times as much .

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Originally Posted by deathb4disco

I occasionally watch a fishing show called “The Obsession of Carter Andrews”. He has a $1,000 Shimano Stella on every rod he owns. :yikes

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Ouch is right! He must have very deep pockets indeed! And here I am dithering over a 60 or 70 dollar reel!:Rofl Scheeze!
Bob

I watched “ The Obsession of Carter Andrews” this week . He was fishing up north for smallmouth bass .
He said the smallmouth was one of his favorite fish to fish for with ultralight tackle .
Later he told what his rod , reel and line was . He was using 8# braid with an 8# fluorocarbon leader . Not what I would call ultralight . :) .
Shimano sponsors his show . He doesn’t pay for his reels , they are provided for him . He fishes a lot of YoZuri baits too . Another sponsor . Even his boat is provided by a sponsor . No different than Bill Dance and Quantum.

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Originally Posted by gillchaser999

I watched “ The Obsession of Carter Andrews” this week . He was fishing up north for smallmouth bass .
He said the smallmouth was one of his favorite fish to fish for with ultralight tackle .
Later he told what his rod , reel and line was . He was using 8# braid with an 8# fluorocarbon leader . Not what I would call ultralight . :) .
Shimano sponsors his show . He doesn’t pay for his reels , they are provided for him . He fishes a lot of YoZuri baits too . Another sponsor . Even his boat is provided by a sponsor . No different than Bill Dance and Quantum.

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Nobody sponsors me, so I’m no expert, but I thought the “sponsoree” got big discounts on tackle but not free tackle.

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Originally Posted by deathb4disco

Nobody sponsors me, so I’m no expert, but I thought the “sponsoree” got big discounts on tackle but not free tackle.

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I can’t find proof that Carter gets his gear for free , but , there’s a guy on YouTube that’s been doing videos “professionally” for about two years now . Meaning it’s become his only job .
He’s not sponsored by Shimano , but he has said many times his sponsors send him his tackle for him to use in his videos , including a nice Old Town pedal Kayak , that ain’t cheap .
He was just recently picked up by Kastking. Not Shimano , but free tackle is free tackle .
He has unboxing videos of gear and lures his sponsors have sent him to use .
He’s not the only YouTuber that gets free equipment. A lot of them do .
If a YouTuber gets his tackle for free , I’m sure a professional TV personality gets a nice deal on his tackle .

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Originally Posted by gillchaser999

I can’t find proof that Carter gets his gear for free , but , there’s a guy on YouTube that’s been doing videos “professionally” for about two years now . Meaning it’s become his only job .
He’s not sponsored by Shimano , but he has said many times his sponsors send him his tackle for him to use in his videos , including a nice Old Town pedal Kayak , that ain’t cheap .
He was just recently picked up by Kastking. Not Shimano , but free tackle is free tackle .
He has unboxing videos of gear and lures his sponsors have sent him to use .
He’s not the only YouTuber that gets free equipment. A lot of them do .
If a YouTuber gets his tackle for free , I’m sure a professional TV personality gets a nice deal on his tackle .

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I was not familiar with him until I read this thread. I am sure he gets quite a bit of free gear due to his TV presence. Free gear is great as long as it is something you will use. I have had a lot of offers to promote US market reels...rods...lines...jig heads...quite a bit of stuff actually. If I went down that road no doubt my channel would get a lot more subscribers and views, and I would get a lot of free gear. But I would not use any of the gear that has been offered to me. Daiwa Japan has not come calling...nor will they ever. No JDM rod manufacturers have come calling either...LOL. Sponsorship is another story....that involves money. I am involved with two companies and I get some great perks from them...but even if I was not involved with them I would use their product anyway. Most folks would be surprised just how much "stuff" YouTubers are offered. Of course the bigger your channel the better it gets.


Regards

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Originally Posted by Alphahawk

I was not familiar with him until I read this thread. I am sure he gets quite a bit of free gear due to his TV presence. Free gear is great as long as it is something you will use. I have had a lot of offers to promote US market reels...rods...lines...jig heads...quite a bit of stuff actually. If I went down that road no doubt my channel would get a lot more subscribers and views, and I would get a lot of free gear. But I would not use any of the gear that has been offered to me. Daiwa Japan has not come calling...nor will they ever. No JDM rod manufacturers have come calling either...LOL. Sponsorship is another story....that involves money. I am involved with two companies and I get some great perks from them...but even if I was not involved with them I would use their product anyway. Most folks would be surprised just how much "stuff" YouTubers are offered. Of course the bigger your channel the better it gets.


Regards

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Randy , like you said in one of your videos , you can catch fish with any rod and reel , you chose to use JDM equipment that adds to your fishing experience.
I like St Croix rods for the same reason , but own and catch fish on Daiwa , TFO , Fenwick and other brand rods .
No , I’m not sponsored in any of my fishing , but back when I was younger and shot 3D archery tournaments, I did have a sponsor for a couple of years and they provided me with two bows , one target , one camo version . So I know companies out there provide equipment to people to get exposure of their products.