Snagged2

Originally Posted by Snagged2

They are nice reels, and, have the same frame as most other 6500's
If you fish for large fish mostly, Might enjoy a 7000 sized reel.. as the reel foot is substantially heavier on those. They are beefier all around......

and,,Welcome to the USCA!!!:Happy:

In my dealings with the Abu Garcia 6500 Style reels, I've found very little difference in the various models..
CS or Rockets having the clicker on the side of the left sideplate, is a preference for me, but, all models don't lend themselves to modifying it..
Otherwise, a modern C3 style reel, is about as good as it gets..
I've been fooling around with the 6500 C3 2-speed reels a LOT, and they're a versatile reel.
They can all be modified to suit someone's desires, with extra bearings, in the intermediate gear, worm gear, ceramic bearings and pawl, and a very nice reel can be built up from a Standard unit..
However,, ALL of them have, IMO, a weak frame,, including the Inshore and Big Game Models,,
There's no difference in any of them that I can tell, that enhances the inherent strength of these frames,, say,, in comparison to an Abu 7000 style frame,,

I've developed a couple of modifications that I do to the 6500 reels I use, and feel that it's as Strong as a Solid Reelfoot Frame style..
I beef up the existing frame, and in addition , I add a strengthening plate,That I make, and attach, and it is very effective in adding shear strength to the frame/reelfoot junction. This system gets stronger the tighter it's tightened into the reel seat!!

With a lot of Catfishermen using 100# braid and pushing the intended purpose of these reels, I feel I've overcome the inherent weakness in these nice reels..
Of course, now, the problems will go to the next weakest link, which, I feel would be the Brass main and pinion gears, which I can overcome with the Stainless Steel gears available out of the Inshore model..!!!

Thanks,
Greg