Reel Choice–Sage vs. Orvis
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Need some advice. I’m purchasing a new 7 wt. Steelhead rod and my local Shop has two reels in my price range, the Sage 2080 and the Orvis Large Arbor. A friend of mine has had an Orvis Mid-Arbor for years now and is very pleased. I’m not familiar with Sage’s reels and was wondering if anybody had any experience. Your thoughts are appreciated.
Dave
I have several Orvis reels including both new and old versions of the Large Arbor. I like them, would buy them again. I have had great experience dealing with Orvis Customer Service.
David,
If I recall correctly from my flyshop days, the sage reels are held together by a compression fit, which I really never cared for. There is no latch or way of securing the spool to the frame. I cannot help but think that over time that fitting would loosen up. Just my opinion.As for the Batt. reels, I love them, have too many to count. I have beat them, rolled them across parking lots, drooped them and left them on sand bars, etc. and they work like new. And don’t forget the warranty that comes w/ them.
I do not own the Batt LAs, only mid arbors. I do not have the backing needs that a steelheader would. But, look at the literature for the MA and LA. Typically, the LA holds only 50 or so more yards of backing than the LA, for double the retail price. they have the same drag system. Granted the arbor is slightly larger, meaning slightly less line memory, but for me and my money, I would rather get one MA reel and two additional spare spools for the same money as one LA reel. If your backing needs are that great, go w/ gelspun, and watch your digits when they run!
Good luck!
D.The other thing for me about Orvis reels, and this may be primarily a perception, is that the Orvis reel line is a bit more stable than Sage.
I fish a Sage 3300D on my 5wtand 8wt Sage XP. Yes the same reel b/c I was too cheap to buy two quality reels.
The bottom line is this reel has a drag as smoot as silk, will stop a train, and in my opinion one of the finest reels around. This reel was discontinued this year, and you can get them at a discount now.
Gord
i’m a big fan of the orvis mid arbor.
very smooth drag and easy to manage
not too much of a weight issue
it looks nice
holds a lot of backing and some long/thick belly lines
the price is really really reasonablenever fished a sage reel so i can’t compare
I love the Orvis reels, great bang for the buck. I’m not sure if the Sage is a lighter reel, if not, I’d go with the Orvis.
Randy
I have Orvis, Sage, Lamson, Ross, Billy Pate, and Hardy reels. They all work fine and I personally have no complaints about any of them. I think I like Ross the best but there is no logical reason for it. Except my Evolution is really light and I like light. (Strange statement from someone who owns a Pate).
Couple of things about reels that are used on fresh water. Durability is usually not a problem unless you are a guide or you are one of those lucky people who is retired and you fish all the time. All the above are reasonably well made and I have only heard about one problem on salt which I’ll tell later.
Drag is over hyped in my opinion. I always set my drag light because when a fish takes you to the reel, he is usually carrying the mail. Which means he hits your drag like a freight train so so called “start up torque” is meaningless. Many times you never play a fish off the reel, and that includes many steelhead who tend to want to stay around the redd where they are hooked. It is certainly true of big browns who take off on a dead run only by accident. The greatest drag on earth is your palm on the reel rim. Infinitely and instantly variable. Now all this may be different on lakes (which I don’t fish) but it is certainly true on salt. Those of you who routinely get up in the 50 pound or over class will probably disagree and you are probably right. You couldn’t prove it by me because I am never up in that class.
I did hear a complaint on a Lamson on salt because the screws which hold the reel body to the foot are really small. After some salt water has etched them a bit (even if you do a fresh water rinse religiously), a big fish can jerk the reel right off the foot when the screws shear. That’s if you have some heavy drag set. I had a guide tell me he watched it happen.
One more thing. I have had my Pate save a few fish because of the anti-reverse. When a big steelie does take off, it is usually downstream and you have to chase him. If you are clambering over big rocks and stuff, it is nice to worry about your walking and let Mr. Anti-reverse do it’s thing. You can crank up the drag a bit and just hold the rod up in the air while you practice your water bound marathon.
My $.02
Godspeed,
Bob
I’m not a huge Orvis fam though I spend most my time in their shop here because I’m friends with many of them and besides the 2 Batt LA’s I have most of my prefered would be Sage. Than again some people base their buying on a sale price I prefer to buy on what I know and use the most.
I have an Orvis BMA IV and I love it. I matched it to a St. Croix Legend Ultra 7wt and they cast beautifully together.
Personaly I like the Shilton range… heard them called the South African Able, at half the price…
I have a mate who does plenty of stealheading and he only own Shiltons for them, lives in BC…
I got 2 links.
http://www.shiltonreels.com/
http://www.shiltonflyreels.com/If you can find them, give them a look, you might just like them…
If you’re looking for a lightweight reel the 2580 is a great piece of tackle. I have 3 of them and 6 spools and use them in many saltwater and freshwater situations. The spool change is incredibly simple AND SECURE, you don’t need to worry about that. I did burn out the drag on the first one I owned but I used on things it was not meant to be used on – tuna, mackerel, and lots of bonefish and this golden trevally. The drag was replaced by Kurt van Wyck and if you think of Sage as just a rod company you need to ask why they would employ Kurt van Wyck a rocket engineer to design their reels and why they hired Jack Charlton a few years ago to design the drag on their 3000D series reels.
Probably one of the reasons it failed was its constant submersion for underwater pics.
Lets just say I tested it to destruction but in the end was so happy with it I bought two more because I know that for the everyday hand to hand stuff I di, (barramundi, saratoga, snappers etc as well as lightweight pelagic fish its just perfect.
Spanish mackerel are one of the fastest fish in the ocean – this one on a 2580…..
Morsie
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