The Shimano Baitrunner is the bar by which all other baitrunner spinning reels are measured. The price isn't bad, really in the middle of the pack at $100 or a bit more, depending on where you shop.
The key questions are:
1. Do you really need the baitrunner feature?
2. Are you going to use mono or braid?
If you plan on using braid, you can get by with a much smaller reel than if you were using mono.
If you don't plan on using the reel in any kind of freespool mode, then you have many more options to choose from. The obvious ones would be Shimano, Daiwa, and Penn, all of which also offer baitrunner reels.
Quantum has just come out with a spinning reel called the Surge, the largest one holds 400 yds of 20lb mono. It looks pretty good to me.
I recommend Daiwa spinning reels, they offer a lot, and they have a ton of models to choose from. They also list the max drag amount of each reel on their website. The Giant really isn't in the same league as the rest of Daiwa's offering like the Emcast, Regals, etc.
Okuma is really becoming a powerhouse in the reel world. Tons of models, tons of features, and the prices are usually right. I haven't bought one yet, but the time is coming....
Another brand that you don't hear too much about is TICA. They just may have the most diverse product line out of all the companies. They OEM stuff under different names, and I've never heard a bad word about them at all. I've handled several models, and they are all tight and well made. They may very well be my next reel purchase.
I've heard a lot of good things about the Bass Pro Sea Lion reels, and they are under $50 for the most part. Just another option.
Since you want to handle the reels, go to your local store, see what they have in stock, handle them, and then come back and tell us what they have. Don't worry, we'll tell you what we think about them.:wink:
