Do either of these reels have an aluminum frame (pretty sure they don't)??  Other than color and one single bearing more in the Silver Max, are there any other differences between the Abu Garcia Black Max and the Silver Max??  And lastly, would you recommend either one as a good reel??  They look good but looks don't mean a thing if they suck.

I wanna say yes they do but im not exactly sure. I have never fished any of them but back when they first came out i remember a few members on the board said that the Promax was a great deal. I never heard much about the black/silver max reels.

None of the Max series have an aluminum frame. Don't know about the Black and Silver Max, but I did buy the Pro Max. I brought it home, spooled it up and went out in the yard to test it. Distance on the cast was pretty good but it made an odd grinding noise on the cast. Also, the thumbar wouldn't re-engage about 1 out of 5 casts. I brought in the house and took it apart and checked/lubed/greased, back out to yard, no changes, still noisey and the thumbar still would not re-engage after every cast. So I took it back. If you're set on an Abu Garcia, I'd at least step up the Revo S, I've got one, no complaints. The frame on the Max series is also a litte bigger the the Revo's.

Performance wise they work well. Quality wise, they are more noisy due to the plastic body. Swedish engineering, made in China.

Thanks all.  Just wanted to know about them, they seem nice for the price, but I like an aluminum frame since owning the Bass Pro Shops Extreme.   For the same money, I'd get another one of those before going with a non aluminum frame.