Reels - HELP!!!!

[MN Bassfisher]

I am looking to buy a reel for Pike/Muskie....I'll go with ABU Garcia, but cannot decide on which model to get? The 5500 or 6500 series????And C3 or C4.....I have been told to stay away from the C4 series becuase it is not a proven reel??? Any commnets here?

Bascially looking for advice on which to get and whihc model? 5500/6500 and C3 or C4????

Please help!

Thanks

[Jeff_IN]

I would say go with the 6500 C3. It has a 5:3.1 vs. 6:3.1 (not sure, could be 6:0.1) on the C4. I use them primarily for cats...big cats. They have all been very dependable for me over the years. I know a couple of people who use them for the application you mentioned and are very happy.

[Phil T.]

Last year, I stopped at Reeds and bought a Shimano Calcutta because of all I had read on a musky fishing newsgroup. I also bought an Ambassadeur 6500 C-4. The Shimano is built better than the Abu, but I'm not sure it's twice as good. I bought the C-4 for the higher speed retrieve.

[slick2526]

Hello, Go with the 6500 C3 Abu. Its better for muskies because it has a slower retreive speed than the C4 reel. If you dont belive me goto muskiecentral . c o m and ask den or denny to tell you the differnce between the two reels. He knows his stuff.

[Den]

Depends on if you are going to be casting or trolling. the basic difference between the 55 and the 65 is the line capacity. the 6500 holds a lot more line(wider spool). i have 10 of the reels and most of mine are the 5500 in the c3 models, some are 10 years old, and still work great, just put some oil on them and clean them a couple times a year, and when putting them away for a while loosen the drags completely. i use mine mostly for casting and dont need the large amount of line capacity. good luck and good fishin.
Den