Best Bass Fishing Reels for 2020: Complete Reviews With Comparisons 

Having the right fishing reel can determine how well your fishing trip is going to go.

When it comes to catching bass, an angler must select the right kind of fishing reel, which should be light and easy to use.

Having the best bass fishing reels can be difficult if you don’t know where to find the good ones.

We will be reviewing five amazing ones for you and also be providing you with a detailed buyer’s guide so that you will make an informed decision before settling on one.

Available in multiple sizes and coming from an amazing brand, you can guarantee that the Penn Battle II is a fantastic Spinning Fishing Reel.

Product Highlights

The Penn Battle II is a durable and high-performing spinning fishing reel that is ideal for bass fishing and most big saltwater game fishing.

The reel is available in a wide range of sizes, from 1000 all the way up to 8000.

The spinning reel has a full metal body, side plate, and rotor and features a heavy-duty aluminum bail wire that offers fantastic durability.

It also comes with an HT 100 carbon fiber drag system that offers a more powerful drag without sacrificing its smoothness.

The spinning reel has fluid cranking with five sealed stainless steel ball bearings and an instant anti-reverse bearing.

This superline spool needs no backing and is braid-ready, and it also has line capacity rings marked at 1/3, 2/3, and full capacity.

What We Like

We particularly like the construction of this spinning reel as it makes it ideal for large fish. It also makes it highly durable.

What We Do Not Like

We feel that the spool should have been a bit sturdier; it tends to flex when the line is under any tension.

Here, we will be discussing the top aspects of bass fishing reels in detail.

This section will be helpful for you to understand the reel better and make a more informed decision before settling on one.

1. Weight

The weight of the reel should be as light as possible; only then will you have a more accurate lifting capacity.

With a lesser weight of the reel, the angler wielding it will be under much lesser strain.

This, in turn, means that their capacity for retrieving the fish from the water will be fast and swift.

The weight of the reel will also define the weight of your entire fishing arsenal; a heavier fishing reel will automatically mean that there is added weight to the fishing rod.

All this weight could further drag you down and tire you out when you are fishing.

With a heavier fishing reel than the fishing rod, you have to ensure that the retracting fishing wire is of a phenomenal quality; otherwise, the chance of any structural damages to the fishing wire and the fishing rod are significantly high.

It becomes very clear with this that having one of the best fishing reels for bass fishing can always be categorized by the weight of it.

2. Handle

It goes without saying that any fishing reel without the handle is simply useless; the handle is the most important part of the reel.

When you purchase a fishing reel, it must come with a handle that has a great grip.

It must be very comfortable to hold and use without causing you any unnecessary issues.

The tighter the grasp, the easier it will be to get more fish.

Having a comfortable handle with a great grip will ensure that you have a higher chance of catching bass and lesser strain on your hands.

3. Maximum Drag Capacity

When we talk about the maximum drag capacity of the fishing reel, we are basically defining the maximum weight of the fish that can be pulled by the help of this.

This is an important factor of a fishing reel and grabs the attention of several anglers who are interested in catching different types of fish.

It is a known fact that every different type of fish differs in their weight.

In fact, we can even say that the weight differs pretty substantially even within a single type of fish.

If the maximum drag capacity of the fishing reel does not seem as efficient and is incapable of pulling in even a fish with moderate weight, then it would not be the most useful for bass fishing.

This makes the maximum drag capacity of the fishing reel one of the prime factors when you’re looking for a fishing reel for bass fishing.

The maximum drag capacity is also heavily dependent on the weight of the fishing reel.

If your fishing reel is categorized by a high amount of weight, then even the capacity of the drag of that reel will be higher.

For instance, let us assume that your fishing reel weighs about eight ounces.

By this, we can easily predict that it is capable of easily lifting fish that weighs eight ounces or more, as the weight will get transmitted to all over the body.

When it comes to bass fishing, 17 pounds is considered to be one of the best options.

4. Bearings

The ability of the fishing reel to catch fish gets effectively enhanced with the number of bearings it houses, but what is the bearing?

Bearings are essentially an element in the machine that constrains the relative motion to only the desired motion, and this helps in the reduction of friction between the parts that move.

The design of the bearings can help in having a free linear movement of the part that moves or free rotation around the fixed axis.

Having the best fishing reel for bass will depend on the number of bearings it comes with inside the unit.

With the basic understanding of what bearings are, it is obvious that having a higher number of bearings in the reel will mean that its mobility will also be higher.

This higher mobility will allow it to move more freely around an axis.

Having a higher number of bearings does not only mean that there is a free and swift movement of the fishing reel; it also means that there is a reduction in the friction between the other elements that move.

In the case of fishing reels for bass fishing, the ideal number of bearings is typically more than five, and this is deemed as perfect for fishing in most situations and different weather conditions.

5. Body Construction

With spinning reels, most high-quality ones will be made using a type of aluminum alloy or graphite composite material.

It should have metal bodies that provide durable housing, and it should resist frame flex better than graphite.

However, it tends to be more susceptible to corrosion and is a bit heavier.

Graphite will typically be less expensive and is more prone to flex under the torque of heavier and larger fish.

Then again, this isn’t much of an issue with bass, as a majority of this fish will be under five pounds.

6. Spool Capacity

When it comes to bass fishing you will want a spool that’s capable of taking a minimum of 100 yards or eight-pound monofilament.

This is considered a decent middle-ground for size for serious bass fishing and is also more than enough to keep you from having the line run out even by the biggest bass in the water body.

This also means that you will be able to spool a highly large amount of the braided line onto the spool of this particular size.

7. Gear Ratio

The ratio of the gear will tell the user how many revolutions of the line guide and rotor you get every single turn of the handle.

For spinning reels used in bass fishing, the gear ratio is in the area of 6:1.

This is a versatile ratio, and it allows the angler to carry a wide range of retrieval techniques and lures.

Gear ratios that are higher will often result in lesser power, while those with lower ratios mean that the reel is capable of handling more cranking power.

The larger models tend to have lower gear ratios compared to smaller models that are used for bass fishing.

8. Monofilament Line Capacity

The capacity of the line is typically defined as the total weight of the line you receive in the fishing reel kit.

It will provide the line’s weight that is used along with it, and this indicates the capacity the spool is capable of holding for that line in yards.

The fishing reel for bass is more often categorized by the line capacity; if there isn’t sufficient line in the fishing reel, it can negatively affect the distance to cast.

Monofilament line capacity is considered as the usage of a single amount of line in the fishing reel.

This kind of line capacity can be used easily to fish where there is a lesser number of accessories necessary.

People who fish once in a while or as a hobby tend to go for this because they find wielding with these reels is far easier and more comfortable.

Additionally, they also provide the correct working approach.

The monofilament line capacity will also guarantee that the fishing line glides in a linear direction; even the reel line’s swing will be lesser because this line uses lesser weight.

With that said, with a lesser weight ratio, if you are catching a heavier fish and retracting it back from the water, it could cause some structural damage to the rod.

The threads of the line that is used in the fishing reel for this line capacity will typically have a lesser diameter.

This lesser diameter is only ideal for catching lighter bass more swiftly and without much discomfort.

9. Braided Line Capacity

Braided lines tend to be stronger compared to the monofilament fishing line.

When two threads or more are wound together, it becomes quite clear that its strength will increase immensely, and this will make catching heavier fish easier.

With a braided line, there are lesser chances of it to break when you’re reeling in the fish.

This also calls for more strength, which will act both while pushing the line to the water body and also while pulling the fish from the water.

Of course, it does add a bit of weight to the reel due to its multidimensional threads that tend to be slightly heavier.

10. Price

Price is another important factor in the fishing reel.

These reels come in a massive price range, especially for bass fishing.

Fishing reels that are expensive will typically come with enhanced features and will also have significantly better quality.

Cheaper options may not come with all these fancy features; however, they are not necessarily bad.

In fact, these tend to be ideal for anglers who fish as a hobby.

We would recommend buying a fishing reel that suits your fishing style.

Do not buy the most expensive fishing reel in the market just because you can afford it.

All these extra bells and whistles could confuse someone who is new to fishing and can also render all these features useless.

1. What are the 4 types of reels?

While there are obviously more than four types of fishing reels, the ones that are considered to be the most popular among anglers include the spin-casting reel, baitcasting reel, spinning reels, and flying reels.

2. Are spincast reels any good?

Yes, spincast reels are of the best ones among the four types of reels.

This is the reel that most new anglers tend to use when they started fishing.

Actually, even experienced anglers tend to make use of this fishing reel.

Spincast reels are extremely easy to use; all you need to do is press and hold down the button, rear back to cast, and then, as you move forward, let go of the button.

To stop the cast from going any further, you will need to hit the button once again.

3. What's better baitcast or spinning reel?

When it comes to choosing between spinning reel or baitcasting reel, we believe that it is all about personal preference.

The use of each one is dictated by the kind of fishing you are doing along with the situation.

That said, since we are particularly talking about catching bass, we would recommend using the spinning reel, as it offers ease of use and is ideal for lighter fish.

4. What is the best size spinning reel for bass fishing?

Since there is a wide range of spinning reel sizes that range from 1500 to 4000, it can be a bit difficult to choose from.

While the spinning reel size entirely depends on the size of the bass and the conditions where you’re fishing, the ideal size according to use is the 1500 or the 2500 size.

This is the perfect size for beginners and can catch bass that weighs up to nine pounds.

5. How do you match a reel to a rod?

Take the reel that you plan on using along with you to the tackle shop and then check to be sure that the centerline axis matches the guide set up on the fishing rod you’re planning on buying.

We hope that our reviews of the best bass fishing reels, along with the detailed buyer’s guide, has helped you understand it better and make selecting one of the reels easier for you.

If you are interested in reading more about fishing products and reviews, we recommend bookmarking this website for constant updates.