# 7/8 Weight Reel Under $450



## Jdarlin (Nov 12, 2018)

Hey folks,

What 7/8 size reel do you like for under $450? It would be used primarily for redfish in the SC marsh.

I've heard good things about the Nautilus CCF-X2 6/8, Lamson Speedster, Redington Grande, Orvis Hydros SL IV, and Orivs Mirage LT. 

thanks!


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## Colby0303 (Sep 7, 2016)

I have a Lamson Speedster 3.5 on my 8wt and a Nautilus XL Max on my 7wt...never had a complaint on either one of them and handled reds, snooks and tarpon with no issues.


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## Skram (Feb 8, 2019)

Absolutely love my Grande 8wt. Got about a year on it of weekly use and its held up great. Drag is a beast also.


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## hipshot (Sep 29, 2018)

The Orvis Hydros SL, hands down, for the most bang for your buck. Decent price, machined and anodized, sealed drag, easily switched from left hand to right hand retrieve, and a really great drag system -- much more than you need for those reds. And Orvis' retail and corporate level backups are stellar. But........ they are all great choices.


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## wardicus (Jun 3, 2013)

Tibor Everglades eBay


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## sidelock (Jan 31, 2011)

Can't beat these for the price !https://danielsson-flyreels.se/en/produkt/l5w-6nine/ built like a Swiss watch and on sale factory direct for $215.00 US


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## TheAdamsProject (Oct 29, 2007)

2nd hand Tibor Everglades. You and your child you pass it down to will thank me.


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## ifsteve (Jul 1, 2010)

Abel Super 7/8N or SDS. You, your child, and grandchild will thank me. You can find them used on ebay, this forum, and several others fairly often. Buy once and cry once.


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## Lee Singleton (Jul 3, 2018)

Redding Rise


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## Smackdaddy53 (Dec 31, 2012)

3-Tand


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## Vincent A Sawchuk (Jan 29, 2019)

hipshot said:


> The Orvis Hydros SL, hands down, for the most bang for your buck. Decent price, machined and anodized, sealed drag, easily switched from left hand to right hand retrieve, and a really great drag system -- much more than you need for those reds. And Orvis' retail and corporate level backups are stellar. But........ they are all great choices.


I agree and would add that it's nice to retrieve over 10” of line per turn with the Hydros SL


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## sevenweight (Sep 3, 2015)

+1 on the Hydros SL. I have several. You’d have about enough of that $450 left over to get a spare spool and a line.


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## Todd (May 23, 2018)

Orvis Hydros SL, I have several in various sizes, very well made and a great drag system.


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## Flyguy22 (Feb 23, 2008)

Hydros SL. Mirage LT in the limited edition Red, White, Blue is TIGHT!


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## matauman (Nov 4, 2014)

I recently ordered a Monic Henly clear fly line to chase redfish and Bonefish for my 7 weight rod. I decided not to swap my freshwater line off my Lamson reel and ordered a Redington behemoth reel. 
Having just returned from a week in the Bahamas I was quite impressed with both products. I was fishing in some skinny water with some spooky bones and the monic clear tip fly line really delivered. And I found the Redington Behemoth reel, which I think I spent a hundred twenty bucks on, worked just fine. As a point of reference, I use Tibor Everglades for most of my Salt Water Reels. I just felt for this I would go with a cheaper reel. I don't expect it to hold up as well as the Tibor, it is cast so any abuse will probably total the reel but I've had my Tibors for almost 20 years and they look new.


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## RABillstein (Jan 10, 2019)

Of the ones you mentioned, I own the Hydros SL, CCF-X2, and the Grande. All three are good; and are more than enough. The Nautilus isn't better enough (for me) to warrant the price jump. The drag knob has also periodically "gritty" despite regular cleaning (it does get used the most of the three though). The Grande is great but very wide considering the diameter. If I was to need another sealed drag reel, I would buy another Hydros. The only thing I don't love about the Hydros is the asymmetric drag knob.


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## lmborror (Sep 25, 2014)

I have the Lamson Speedster 3.5 on my 8wt and Litespeed on my 7wt. Both are great, lightweight reels that have performed flawlessly for me


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## TidalFly (Sep 1, 2015)

I’ve got a Galvan T-8 for sale in the classifieds on here...in the SC Marsh, for under $450. Great reel, caught lots of redfish on it.


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## sidelock (Jan 31, 2011)

Another reel worth considering is US made Colton Terrapin, presently on sale for $ 315 from $ 485.


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## Garrett Lambert (May 2, 2019)

Galvan t-8


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## Billthechair (Jan 23, 2016)

Hard to beat the Tiber or Nautilus if you can get a deal somewhere. Both excellent reels IMHO.


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## LastCast (Jun 13, 2012)

If you're patient you can find some very nice used Tibor's on Ebay. Set yourself a budget and be patient. Sometimes they come with line and backing so read the discription


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## sevenweight (Sep 3, 2015)

RABillstein said:


> ... If I was to need another sealed drag reel, I would buy another Hydros. The only thing I don't love about the Hydros is the asymmetric drag knob.


That knob ... it's inconceivable that someone at Orvis actually thought the irregular shape would make the knob easier to use. It still feels awkward even after a year. But the reel has other redeeming qualities, IMO.


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## RABillstein (Jan 10, 2019)

sevenweight said:


> That knob ... it's inconceivable that someone at Orvis actually thought the irregular shape would make the knob easier to use. It still feels awkward even after a year. But the reel has other redeeming qualities, IMO.


My theory is that they did it on purpose. If they didn't give the Hydros a single negative quality, they wouldn't have anyone buying their more expensive Mirage reel. (which mysteriously lacks the "ergonomically designed" drag knob)


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## Surffshr (Dec 28, 2017)

The Hydros with a real knob would be hard to beat. Hell, just make it round with whatever grips you want to hype...JC! 

I considered ways to replace/improve but ended up just buying better “knobs” with more $ from ‘merica (Nautilus, Ross). I think Orvis did it on purpose as well.


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## Ruddy Duck LA (Jun 23, 2017)

I have a few Lamsons (7 wt, 8 wt and 11 wt). Very nice reels at great prices. Plan on some maintenance as the bearings require cleaning from time to time. It isn't fully sealed like a Hatch or Mirage. I also feel like the Lamson won't stand up to a beating like those reels as well. With that said, I think they are great values and perform well. I'm certain I'll own more in the future.

I have an older Hydros (5 wt) and find the build quality to be sloppy with a lot of play between the reel and spool. Don't know about the newer ones.


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## Ruddy Duck LA (Jun 23, 2017)

Sierra Trading Post has a Lamson Lightspeed 3.5 on sale for $229.99 right now btw.


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## RABillstein (Jan 10, 2019)

Surffshr said:


> I considered ways to replace/improve but ended up just buying better “knobs” with more $ from ‘merica (Nautilus, Ross). I think Orvis did it on purpose as well.


Orvis (somewhat quietly) started putting the exact same sealed Hydros drag in the Battenkill Disc reel. I have a suspicion that the nice round Battenkill Disc drag knob might work on the Hydros. I haven't asked Orvis or tried though.


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## hipshot (Sep 29, 2018)

"That knob ... it's inconceivable that someone at Orvis actually thought the irregular shape would make the knob easier to use. It still feels awkward even after a year. But the reel has other redeeming qualities, IMO."

I'm old school; I set the drag just tight enough to prevent backlashes while stripping off line and palm the spool for fish on the run (except for BIG fish that make long hard runs, like big tarpon). I can't see where the irregular shape of the SL's irregular drag knob would be all that much of a problem, but I also can't say that I adjust my drag much during a fight. I haven't caught a tarpon since I moved to Texas in '72..... (sniffle, whimper).


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## RABillstein (Jan 10, 2019)

RABillstein said:


> Orvis (somewhat quietly) started putting the exact same sealed Hydros drag in the Battenkill Disc reel. I have a suspicion that the nice round Battenkill Disc drag knob might work on the Hydros. I haven't asked Orvis or tried though.


Sounds like someone at Orvis got the memo. "New reel" dropping March 2020.


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## Sabalo (Sep 6, 2019)

Jdarlin said:


> Hey folks,
> 
> What 7/8 size reel do you like for under $450? It would be used primarily for redfish in the SC marsh.
> 
> ...


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## Shadowcast (Feb 26, 2008)

Nautilus XL Max. Cannot beat it.


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## slewis (Sep 8, 2015)

Everglades


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## jay.bush1434 (Dec 27, 2014)

I've got 4 Lamson reels and really like them all. I've been fishing an older Lamson Velocity 3x for 6-ish years and a Guru 3 for 2 years, both 8wts, really hard. I've used them offshore on mahi, ling, king mackerel, smaller sharks and lots of reds, specks and some nice triple tail inshore. Other than freshwater rinse and a couple times a year deep cleaning, no issues. Made in the USA and great customer service. They are also super easy to change spools on. Obviously, I am a fan.


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## Tailer (Jan 10, 2017)

You can easily find a lightly used Everglades in your budget, hell I think there's one in the Classifieds section on here right now. If you want to save yourself some coin and have a wonderful, classic reel that you can pass down to your kids one day you can find an older direct drive Billy Pate Bonefish for $300-350.


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## Snookdaddy (Jan 5, 2008)

Galvan T-7 or T-8 is what you want..


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## sevenweight (Sep 3, 2015)

RABillstein said:


> Sounds like someone at Orvis got the memo. "New reel" dropping March 2020.


Oh no ... just when I was warming up to the irregular knob!!


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## Guest (Oct 14, 2019)

Jdarlin said:


> Hey folks,
> 
> What 7/8 size reel do you like for under $450? It would be used primarily for redfish in the SC marsh.
> 
> ...


Jd, of all the reels that you listed, I would go with the Nautilus. I however am partial to the Ross lineup of reels. You could go with a Ross Evolution LT 4 [up to 9wt.] for about $350 available at The Fly Shop [800 669 3474].


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## Guest (Oct 14, 2019)

Jdarlin said:


> Hey folks,
> 
> What 7/8 size reel do you like for under $450? It would be used primarily for redfish in the SC marsh.
> 
> ...


The Ross Evolution LT 4 [$350] would leave you with about $100 for a decent line. Just my 2 cents.


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## Sabalo (Sep 6, 2019)

mike_parker said:


> The Ross Evolution LT 4 [$350] would leave you with about $100 for a decent line. Just my 2 cents.


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## sandyharris (Jan 12, 2015)

Galvan T-7.........


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## hipshot (Sep 29, 2018)

After two and a half months, the OP’s either bought a reel or given up fly fishing...


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## Flyboy (Aug 26, 2019)

I fish redfish in SC and I love the Redington Behemoth, especially at the price point.


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## hipshot (Sep 29, 2018)

Question for you current or former Behemoth owners: my understanding is that the reel is cast and powdercoated. In my experience cast reels don’t fare well in saltwater, but several people I’ve spoken to say their Behemoths have been holding up well. So, are those anomalies, or has Redington unlocked the secret of cast reels in salt water?

Not hating on them; honestly asking.


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## Flyboy (Aug 26, 2019)

hipshot said:


> Question for you current or former Behemoth owners: my understanding is that the reel is cast and powdercoated. In my experience cast reels don’t fare well in saltwater, but several people I’ve spoken to say their Behemoths have been holding up well. So, are those anomalies, or has Redington unlocked the secret of cast reels in salt water?
> 
> Not hating on them; honestly asking.



I’ve had mine for about a year and a half and I’m having no issues. Granted I’m not out every day but I wash it down and clean it after each trip. It’s held up and has performed well so far so only time will tell.


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