So I just got the new Kastking Spartacus out on the water and hooked in to many fish! Was working great till I went to cast and the thumb bar clicked back up but the spool kept letting out line then handle was turning and it sounded like the pinion and main gear were grinding a bit. I reeled it back in and same thing happened. Reeled back in and it fished fine but now there is a very geary noise when reeling in. Happened a couple more times today so I think I may be sending it back for an exchange. Also sounds like it has a bad spool bearing. It fishes really well though so I'm kinda upset about this... Hopefully they won't make me pay for return shipping on an exchange or anything due to equipment failure...

 

What could be causing this issue?

Send it back for an exchange could be factory defect it happens with even the most expensive reels. I just recently got a chronarc I had to send back for an exchange because it was defective.