I still see too many people still suggesting the Curado on reddit and the youtube comments, and that has triggered me🙂So here's my list for the entry level, mid range and high tier. The absolute best bang per buck (ordered from Japan of course). 

Entry Tier: The new Tatula 100, 150 or the 200, depending on the capacity you need. That Tat80 is also there if capacity isn't too important, or you want a smaller reel. These are smoother than reels that cost much higher, silent, and most importantly, smoothness that lasts because of their gear set.

Mid Tier: 21Zillion is still king. I know the Zillion HD was just ~$35 more expensive before the tariffs, and that would've been the absolute best per buck reel the industry has ever seen, but nowadays, i don't know for what they're going for, so i'll vote for the 21Zil. Everyone already knows how smooth and long lasting they're, so no explanations are needed on why i consider these as the best for the mid range.

High Tier: 24 Shimano Metanium DC (my personal favorite shimano made to date). Even though these have my nemesis - the micro module, mine is still perfectly smooth after a season, so it has passed the test. Great caster, smooth, perfectly comfy frame to palm. Outside of the gear set, the only thing i would've preferred in this reel is for it to have a metal palming side plate like the Bantam, and i wouldn't care about the added weight.

Daiwa high end has failed with their Steez in my opinion. Amazing frame, looks nice, and casts well, but a non 34mm spool and non adjustable zero adjuster is an automatic garbage bin to me🤢

What's your three reels that you consider as the best for each tier?

By tier you mean price point or skill level?

Entry level ease to learn casting under $150 USD

Skilled caster under $300 USD

Bragging rights no limit starting at  $600 USD.

Tom

I understand the premise, but I only have one tier.

It's called the performance & reliability tier.

YMMV

A-Jay

1 minute ago, WRB-2.0 said:

By tier you mean price point or skill level?

Entry level ease to learn casting under $150 USD

Skilled caster under $300 USD

Bragging rights no limit starting at  $600 USD.

Tom

Always price point.

8 minutes ago, A-Jay said:

I understand the premise, but I only have one tier.

It's called the performance & reliability tier.

YMMV

A-Jay

Is that picture for real? A dozen Bantams? Are those tubes of Mega strike maybe? Now for a performance question, have these been used in Mexico by chance? 

Agreed on entry tier, the 23 tat is a killer value. Agreed also on mid-tier with a very honorable mention (near tie) to the alphas svtw. High tier reels is not financially justifiable to me.

My tiers / price levels are different but here goes. All of these have an aluminum frame as I will probably never buy one with a graphite frame again.

 

Level 1

BPS Pro Qualifier ->great overall budget option around $100...even better when you can get it on sale.

Lews Speed Speed Spool (when it's on sale) -> would technically be in this budget below but if it's basically the same as the previous gen (which appears to be the case) it isn't going to hang w/ those 2 and they tried to set the price too high so as a result you will probably see it on sale often and it will probably be just over $110 which is where I feel like it should be at.

 

Level 2

Shimano SLX XT A -> my first choice here since I've got on and it's a good overall reel at this price.

Tatula X -> haven't used this one yet but would be open to it and am relatively sure it would be worth it.

 

Level 3
Tatula 100 / 150 -> this is the best option for most cases where you want to bomb a lure as far as possible and it's heavy enough that you don't want any extra braking features. 100 most of the time but for something like a Champ XP 736CB glass I'd go with the 150.
Speed Spool RX -> this would be my choice for situations where I want better brakes across the board but sadly it's only in 7.5 for left handed models so looks like I'm probably waiting for the previous gen Tourney Pro to go on sale most of the time here.

Lew's Custom Gen 3 -> lighter w/ slightly lower line cap and great for something like a jerkbait reel or anything where your line and lures might be lighter.

Tatula 150 SV TW -> frog / flipping and pitching reel I landed on since I want a higher gear ratio with improved brakes...bit expensive but working out well anyway.

Level 4
Zillion SV TW -> overall choice and highest price point I'd be willing to look at as I tend to go a bit higher on rods than reels.

Abu Zenon X -> probably going to get people scratching their head on this one. It's 5.5oz so if you can show me something else around the $300 price point I'm willing to look otherwise if you want a really light reel with a standard line cap and the best overall gear ratio out there (6.8) and are ok with what I'd consider to be average brakes this is worth it when you can find it on sale which is often because it's also a bit overpriced otherwise. Great reel though if you want something really light and can wait until it's selling in the $300 range.

There’s alit to be said for staying with one brand and series as AJay has done. Familiarity with your reels is a positive.  I’m a shopper.  What one chooses as a mid tier, I try to find at an entry tier price.  That means I have reels by three manufactures but they have all been great performers from the SLX XT to the Zillions to the Metanium.  It’s all great stuff.

Entry: Lews LFS. Mid: JDM Zillion HD I consider both to be high value per dollar spent. The zillions are my most expensive bass reels. I don't feel any need to spend more, The Z's are outstanding in every department. 

The only more expensive reels I own are my 400 size musky reels. The Penn Fathom wins that contest in the $300 ish category, beating out the Tranx and Lexa HD. 

2 hours ago, F14A-B said:

Is that picture for real? A dozen Bantams? Are those tubes of Mega strike maybe? Now for a performance question, have these been used in Mexico by chance? 

It's real from last winter.

I replaced most of my mostly aging casting reel arsenal.

Very happy about it too.

A-Jay

Heck, I've never messed with reels that cost over $150 new. For me it's Blackmax, BPS Pro Qualifiers, and now Diawa CR80.

I still use the BlackMax 3 I got used 3 years ago when I took back up bass fishing. It still works just fine, though most of the words and numbers have rubbed off and it's getting shiny.

I don't fish as hard as many here, but I fish at couple hours 2-3 times a week on average, and nearly daily in spring and summer.

My tier 1 reels are Shimano SLX 70 MGL, 2 each and a Ark Limited Edition BSF reel,  under $150 new domestic price.

Tier 2/3 are 2 each Shimano Aldebaran BSF reels purchased for under $250 each new, domestic price is $500 each.

That is my current 5 casting reels.

Tom 

Zillion.

Beginner here. I own 2 BC’ers, your Tier 1 is an SLX XT, Tier 2 a Curado MGL. So far no preference between the two, but what do I know.

I only have two tiers and they will out-cast anything on this entire thread:

• Tatula 100
• Tatula Elite

Sold off all my Shimano MGL and Steez SV reels to convert to these two... 

4 hours ago, FryDog62 said:

I only have two tiers and they will out-cast anything on this entire thread:

• Tatula 100
• Tatula Elite

Sold off all my Shimano MGL and Steez SV reels to convert to these two... 

Kinda wish this was where I was at.

1 hour ago, new2BC4bass said:

Kinda wish this was where I was at.

I am going to test my curado mgl 150 vs the tatula 100 (new version) when I get the same line on both. 

Just get the tat 100 and pop in an elite spool, you get elite performance with the hyperdrive gears, you won't regret it.

On 12/20/2025 at 3:25 PM, Micro Module Police said:

I still see too many people still suggesting the Curado on reddit and the youtube comments, and that has triggered me🙂So here's my list for the entry level, mid range and high tier. The absolute best bang per buck (ordered from Japan of course). 

Entry Tier: The new Tatula 100, 150 or the 200, depending on the capacity you need. That Tat80 is also there if capacity isn't too important, or you want a smaller reel. These are smoother than reels that cost much higher, silent, and most importantly, smoothness that lasts because of their gear set.

Mid Tier: 21Zillion is still king. I know the Zillion HD was just ~$35 more expensive before the tariffs, and that would've been the absolute best per buck reel the industry has ever seen, but nowadays, i don't know for what they're going for, so i'll vote for the 21Zil. Everyone already knows how smooth and long lasting they're, so no explanations are needed on why i consider these as the best for the mid range.

High Tier: 24 Shimano Metanium DC (my personal favorite shimano made to date). Even though these have my nemesis - the micro module, mine is still perfectly smooth after a season, so it has passed the test. Great caster, smooth, perfectly comfy frame to palm. Outside of the gear set, the only thing i would've preferred in this reel is for it to have a metal palming side plate like the Bantam, and i wouldn't care about the added weight.

Daiwa high end has failed with their Steez in my opinion. Amazing frame, looks nice, and casts well, but a non 34mm spool and non adjustable zero adjuster is an automatic garbage bin to me🤢

What's your three reels that you consider as the best for each tier?

Steez A II has adjustable “zero adjust”.

I don't understand why recommending a Curado to anyone is a bad thing??? They are workhorses and provide many years of service. I would reccomed a good used one over many new reels. My dad still throws his old green Curados from the late 90s. To me if someone says name a Shimano reel, Curado comes to mind first.

3 hours ago, woolleyfooley said:

Steez A II has adjustable “zero adjust”.

Yea, i had the magnesium version. I was referring to the newest Steez, though. The 2016 steez isn't for me, the front is way too fat, and not too comfy to palm. I also hated it for jerkbaits.

3 hours ago, CaughtMeABiggun said:

I don't understand why recommending a Curado to anyone is a bad thing??? They are workhorses and provide many years of service. I would reccomed a good used one over many new reels. My dad still throws his old green Curados from the late 90s. To me if someone says name a Shimano reel, Curado comes to mind first.

They're not bad reels at all, but with the release of the new Tatutal, they're are far inferior in everything (maybe cast a few feet further, but who is gonna notice that). So the Tatula is the reason, which isn't only superior, but also can be had for noticeably cheaper.

On 12/20/2025 at 3:25 PM, Micro Module Police said:

I still see too many people still suggesting the Curado on reddit and the youtube comments, and that has triggered me🙂So here's my list for the entry level, mid range and high tier. The absolute best bang per buck (ordered from Japan of course). 

Entry Tier: The new Tatula 100, 150 or the 200, depending on the capacity you need. That Tat80 is also there if capacity isn't too important, or you want a smaller reel. These are smoother than reels that cost much higher, silent, and most importantly, smoothness that lasts because of their gear set.

Mid Tier: 21Zillion is still king. I know the Zillion HD was just ~$35 more expensive before the tariffs, and that would've been the absolute best per buck reel the industry has ever seen, but nowadays, i don't know for what they're going for, so i'll vote for the 21Zil. Everyone already knows how smooth and long lasting they're, so no explanations are needed on why i consider these as the best for the mid range.

High Tier: 24 Shimano Metanium DC (my personal favorite shimano made to date). Even though these have my nemesis - the micro module, mine is still perfectly smooth after a season, so it has passed the test. Great caster, smooth, perfectly comfy frame to palm. Outside of the gear set, the only thing i would've preferred in this reel is for it to have a metal palming side plate like the Bantam, and i wouldn't care about the added weight.

Daiwa high end has failed with their Steez in my opinion. Amazing frame, looks nice, and casts well, but a non 34mm spool and non adjustable zero adjuster is an automatic garbage bin to me🤢

What's your three reels that you consider as the best for each tier?

Im the kind of fisherman that wants my gear to last more than a couple seasons. I fish the TVA system of reservoirs so I get all sorts of cover and vegetation. This means I lean towards non graphite frames.  While I’m not dealing with Florida or Texas level of matts I’ve still got a decent level of heavy duty applications. 
 

$100 whatever used or discount aluminum frame reel I can get my grubby paws on. Last gen LFS, Tat, SLX. I can repair something if it breaks but the frame won’t warp if I drag up a 3lber plus 6lbs of slop. 
 

$200 used Zill. Done and done. If I’m feeling frisky and I come across a Bantam in good shape with an upgraded handle I’m also all in. 
 

$300 - $600 nothing here is heads and shoulders above the $200 price point. While it might shine and bling until there is a better workhorse than the brass geared Zill I won’t spend the money. 
 

Reality is a more expensive reel will not increase your bite detection or retrieve torque so I won’t spend money on marketing.  

26 minutes ago, TNBankFishing said:

Im the kind of fisherman that wants my gear to last more than a couple seasons. I fish the TVA system of reservoirs so I get all sorts of cover and vegetation. This means I lean towards non graphite frames.  While I’m not dealing with Florida or Texas level of matts I’ve still got a decent level of heavy duty applications. 
 

$100 whatever used or discount aluminum frame reel I can get my grubby paws on. Last gen LFS, Tat, SLX. I can repair something if it breaks but the frame won’t warp if I drag up a 3lber plus 6lbs of slop. 
 

$200 used Zill. Done and done. If I’m feeling frisky and I come across a Bantam in good shape with an upgraded handle I’m also all in. 
 

$300 - $600 nothing here is heads and shoulders above the $200 price point. While it might shine and bling until there is a better workhorse than the brass geared Zill I won’t spend the money. 
 

Reality is a more expensive reel will not increase your bite detection or retrieve torque so I won’t spend money on marketing.  

More expensive reels won't catch you more fish, but when the bit is dead, they're much more fun to use than a $100 reel. That is the only reason to invest into high end.

On 12/21/2025 at 7:59 PM, CaughtMeABiggun said:

I don't understand why recommending a Curado to anyone is a bad thing??? They are workhorses and provide many years of service. I would reccomed a good used one over many new reels. My dad still throws his old green Curados from the late 90s. To me if someone says name a Shimano reel, Curado comes to mind first.

I had Curados for years too.. they are work-horses.

 

But I ate some of the forbidden fruit of other brands and all of a sudden I found my Curados falling short. I think when they came out with their MGL spool and said they take "15% less start-up inertia" is when I noticed it. The reel actually had super slow start up inertia - even with the new MGL that was supposed to prevent it. That's when I started comparing it to the Tatula Elite - and even the Tatula 100. The Curado just felt so restricted in casting distance... and very slow start up inertia. Almost as choked off as a Tatula SV TW.
 

Made me wonder how slow start up the original Curado was before MGL. So I took one of my older backup Curados out of storage and put it back on one of my crankbait rods... and it was so tough to cast compared to the newer reels, especially the Tat 100 and Elite. 

 

That's when I started trading off all my Curados, Chronarch MGL, etc. They all suddenly seemed obsolete..

I have the Curado 200i PG and its amazing. it was probably the last great Curado lol