Reels have really come a long way over the last few years and I believe you really don’t have to spend more than £200 per real to get something that will stand up to any test you can throw at it. Have a read below of some of the best selling fishing reels and a comparison between them all so you can make the right choice.
Comparison Fishing Reels Under £200
We have created a small comparison of our best picks of fishing reels for under £200
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Brand
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Shimano
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Daiwa
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Sonik
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Daiwa
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Models
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Ultegra XTD Reel
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20 Crosscast 45 SCW QD Reel
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TOURNOS XD 10000
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Daiwa - Emblem 45 SCW - Gold Spool
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Price
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160.00
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120.00
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£140.99
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£180.00
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Extra Spool
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Yes
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No
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Yes
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Yes
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Quick Drag
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Available on
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1. Shimano Ultegra XTD Reel
Shimano Ultegra XTD Reel
" it really is a crime to fish with a feel that is this good looking, instead it should be sat in a bar and brought a drink"
If you are looking for one the best reels ever sold than you have found it, the XTD is the latest in the Ultegra range, I have tested this and even purchased this for my own fishing thats how impressed I was with this reel! The XTD comes in two sizes the 14000 & 5500 and it really does look great will appeal to every carp angeler.
Shimano are the number one carp fishing manufactor and they have listened to exactly what we want when it comes to the Ultegra XTD, the reels comes in a really carpy matt black finish and does look great on the bank, one of the great new improvments is the new line guard, this helps stop and prevent line from getting caught behind the spool, it also just tapers slightly into the reel itself making it look even slicker, if you watch the video below you see Shimano top dog Iain Macmillian saying ” this really is a crime to fish with a feel that is this good looking, instead it should be sat in a bar and brought a drink”
The line lay is one of the most impressive things you will notice with this reel and is another reason why I purchased it myself, its one of the best reels for this this reason and is one of the best in the whole of Shinanos range, the reason for this is because they have managed to slow down its famouse slow oscillation technoicly even slower meaning the slower the line spools up the better the line lay will be with each turn of the reel. One thing I did notice when testing is the distacnce you can get with these reels, this is down to the speed that it comes off the reel and also the it has been built with a parallel body, most reels are built with the spool pointing slighl;y upwards and with the XTD being parallel it helps the line come of so much easier and helps you reach that cast distance.
The reason why the Shimano Ultegra XTD is that its built the amazing X-Ship technology, this is what gives its is absolite solid construction, when playins a fish you get absolute no movement at all and you really are always in full control, you really can notice a differance when using this reel and comes into its own when playing a fish, it has a fantastic instant drag system, you can modify it ever so slighly and with only one turn of the dial you can go from line running away to rock solid stop.
- Parallel Body
- Super slow oscillation
- AR-C spool
- Instant drag
- Extra spool & line reducers
- 1 S A-RB + 3 Shielded Stainless Steel bearings
- 1 roller bearing
- Front drag
- Available in 5500 and 14000
2. Daiwa 20 Crosscast 45 SCW QD Reel
Daiwa 20 Crosscast 45 SCW QD Reel
3. Sonik - Tournos XD 10000 Reel
Sonik - Tournos XD 10000 Reel
Sonik really are doing some great things at the moment, they are continuning to produce some great tackle at a really affordable price.
The Tournos XD 10000 is the top of the line reel from Sonik and at first glimpe it look like some great bit of kit! The carbon constructed Tournos has been built for long distance, its super lightweight and really can go the distance when matched up against some of the more expensive reels.
Similar to the Shimano the reason why its so good at casting is the super slow isolation, this allows more wraps per turn of the handle and the line to be spaced closer together on the spool and this in turn allows it come off it that much easier resulting in a longer cast. Another reason why the slow spool is so good is you get brilliant line lay, we must admit it wasnt as good as the Shimano but still it proformed exceptinaly well!
The reel is fitted with a Sonik quick tauge drag system, this allows you to go from a free running spool to a solid fish playing tenchion within one turn of the drag! The reel also comes with an extra spool so you can mix up between mono and braid or differant strneghs of line. To finish off the reels have a beatiful cork handle for those of you who love the vintage look and also a quick clip folding handle.
- High strength carbon composite body and rotor
- Super-slow oscillation for perfect line lay
- Quick-Torque drag system
- Supplied with spare CNC machined anodised aluminium spool
- QUIK-CLIK™ folding handle with wood grip
- 14+1 Stainless shielded bearings
- Twin spring-loaded line clips
- Dual strength stainless steel main shaft
- Open bail rotor lock
- Oversized twist free line roller
- Floating rotor line guard
- 8000
- Gear Ratio: 4.9:1
- Weight: 665g
- Spool Capacities
- 0.30mm/360m – 0.35mm/260m – 0.40mm/210m
- 0.32mm/500m – 0.35mm/410m – 0.40mm/330m
- 10000
- Gear Ratio: 4.9:1
- Weight: 725g
- Spool Capacities
- 0.30mm/430m – 0.35mm/330m – 0.40mm/270m
- 0.32mm/580m – 0.35mm/490m – 0.40mm/390m
4. Daiwa - Emblem 45 SCW - Gold Spool
Daiwa - Emblem 45 SCW - Gold Spool
Now if you want something that looks outstanding and performs even better, then this is your reel! These reels are a real thing of beauty mixing the classic gold spool with a modern matt black handle along with the timeless folding handle and to finish it off a rosewood handle
The reel comes with two spools, each a different size, the LC & LD each standing for long cast and holds around 300 meters of o.35 line and the LD is long distance and hold around 530 meters of 0.35 of line also. The gold spool is 45mm in diameter and Daiwa claim this is the perfect line for long distance casting, the SCW in the title name stands for slow cross wrap, this refers to the super slow isolation, meaning you get a premium line lay and this reel really proforms well above its price tag!
The QD is the Daiwa quick drag system, the emblem 45 reel goes from free spool to locked up in just over a quarter turn, when we were testing these reels, we did get court out with so do watch yourself but once you’ve used it a few times it is fantastic.
- 45mm LC long cast Gold Spool
- Slow Cross Wrap
- QD Quick drag
- HIP-High Impact Line Clip
- One Touch folding handle
- Features wooden knob
- Air Rotor
- Digigear II
- Supplied with a spare spool
