ive been looking in to getting a few more reels for my arsenal and wondered if anyone has had any experience with the shimano casitas it seems to have pretty good reviews online and is only 100$ on ebay.

You mean Castaic? Like the older platform where the thumbar slides for pitching and flipping? Or you mean the Casitas? That came out last year and it's very good reel.

28 minutes ago, ghost said:

You mean Castaic? Like the older platform where the thumbar slides for pitching and flipping? Or you mean the Casitas? That came out last year and it's very good reel.

I'm sorry the spell check on iPhones is the worst sometimes I meant the Casitas

Casitas is really a very good reel, look at TW for reviews. I've been quite happy with mine.

I had one, it cast a mile, felt like it had a lot of flex when it was put under a load though. I sold mine and replaced it with a Pfluegar President. 

Casitas does a good job and can be found well under MSRP.  I had one briefly plus the JDM MGL version.  Sold them to guys just getting into baitcasting. Just something about the feel of the composite frame that didn't agree with me.

 

13 hours ago, fisherrw said:

ive been looking in to getting a few more reels for my arsenal and wondered if anyone has had any experience with the shimano casitas it seems to have pretty good reviews online and is only 100$ on ebay.

 

They perform well, look good, have a small profile, but for me personally, I'd like to get a reel at minimum with an aluminum frame. Id personally be looking at used Curado or citica first. It will last a long time and have no flex under load. 

 

I would just get a Curado, they're 150 due to a price drop and you might be able to find them for cheaper.

Bought it when it first came out and still use it to this day!

 

Though I havent landed anything above 5LBS on it, it has never failed me.

Smooth drag, casts well, lightweight, and looks very nice.

 

My one and only complaint is that you get a very slight "grinding" type feel when you crank the reel.

Maintenance doesn't get rid of it as I do clean my reels every couple months or so.

Maybe some bearing upgrades will do the trick.

 

Hope this helps even a little.

 

-BK

1 hour ago, SOCALFISHIN said:

Bought it when it first came out and still use it to this day!

 

Though I havent landed anything above 5LBS on it, it has never failed me.

Smooth drag, casts well, lightweight, and looks very nice.

 

My one and only complaint is that you get a very slight "grinding" type feel when you crank the reel.

Maintenance doesn't get rid of it as I do clean my reels every couple months or so.

Maybe some bearing upgrades will do the trick.

 

Hope this helps even a little.

 

-BK

 

That sensation is due to the lack of a second pinion support bearing (X-Ship).  Older Shimanos didn't have this issue because their gears were slightly smaller.  With the E series Shimano introduced HEG (High Efficiency Gearing) which involved beefier gears.  The handle sideplate flexes just enough under load to create that feeling. 

I've never used a Casitas but for $119 (same as the list price as the Casitas) you can pick up the Curado and a bit of a step up in quality.  BPS has the Curado listed for only $149, trade in an old reel for $30 off.  Only reason I mention this because I was going to pick the Casitas or Citica until I found out about this deal, and it's over in 3 days.

 

It's a little lighter than the Curado and lower profile but I'd rather have the Curado over the long run.