Piscifun Sword Fly Fishing Reel, CNC-Machined Aluminum Alloy Fly Reel, 3/4, 5/6, 7/8, 9/10 Weight, Black, Gunmetal, Space Gray

Niles Crane said something like, "If I knew fishing involved this much shopping, I would have..."There are so many supreme quality rods and reels that will take your arm or leg, and this brand is not one of them. Excellent quality, lovely price, machined beauty to behold, Piscifun fly reel will do everything other reels with eye-popping prices would do. I just took up on fly fishing, and initially, I bought from the seller 7/8 reel. Then 3/4, and 9/10 Sword reels from the same seller, because of the already mentioned qualities.4/5/6 reel came with the rod I bought in a big box store. better known as "can't-get-out-under-$200 store." I did not intend to spend an exorbitant amount of money to equip myself for this brand-new hobby. The build quality, mechanical function, appearance--all beyond my satisfaction as a novice.The 3/4 reel, paired with Eagle Claw Featherlite 3 (yeah, cheap, but so nice) works charmingly. If I am going up the Sierras, I am taking this combo. I do not imagine I will ever saltwater fly fish, but I just wanted to have 9/10 reel, for the sake of the ownership. With the 7/8 reel, of course, I am going to land some monsters in the future.I especially liked the drag on these reels, so sensitive and positive in braking, from barely noticeable to the full stop; and very quiet and easy to adjust. People say pre-loaded lines are garbage, but I find them very good for my purpose.I have not caught any fish with these yet, but I am practicing, and getting better each time. Fishes, quake in your little holes! I'll be coming after you!

You cannot beat this reel for the money. Nothing even comes close. It’s machined, not cast like most inexpensive reels. It spins smoothly and it’s lightweight. The drag seems good (although at 5 wt and below I wouldn’t know if it was bad) and the gunmetal finish looks great with any rod. Two things to note: The reel doesn’t click or whine when the line is reeled in (although there is a quiet click when pulling against the drag). What could be better: A larger arbor - this is sort of a medium arbor design; one button reel removal (you have to unscrew a cap to remove the reel). But overall this is a fantastic reel and would be great buy at twice the price.

First let me start by declaring that I have not been bribed by this company to give a good review. I bought the product via Prime and am somewhat alarmed that Amazon is allowing vendors to bend reviews by giving product away for free or at a discount. I don't care that people claim to be giving a "fair and balanced" review, you still have to add an appropriate discount to their cheerleading. For reference, I have about 20 premium, moderate and inexpensive fly reels and bought this one (and a few others from China) out of curiosity.This reel is very well machined, especially when you factor in the cost. I worked in a machine shop a long time ago and have a critical eye for poorly machined metal. The job on this Sword reel (I have the green one) is better than good. I am not convinced that the Sword is hard anodized or that it has a cork disc drag, however, I think the finish will be durable enough and out of the box the drag feels smooth.My 2 caveats with this reel are based on the drag system. The drag adjustment dial is loosely threaded such that it spins easily and quickly goes from light to heavy. I would not want to be on a big steelhead and accidentally bump the dial or lock it down by mistake while adjusting it with a fish on. Secondly, there are no instructions on disassembling the complicated drag system to clean it and it is difficult to figure this out yourself. My experience with two other inexpensive Chinese fly reels is that the drag washers need to be periodically cleaned and lubed since the drag is not fully enclosed like more expensive reels. I occasionally use another one from Piscifun for trout fishing and if I don't clean the drag every few times, it will lock up due to the oxidation on the washers. To say that the Sword drag is as good as reels costing 5 times as much is ridiculous. If you buy a Lamson fly reel for example, you get an almost foolproof drag system that needs zero maintenance and can be counted on to work the same way every time.I also have an Okuma SLV reel that costs a few dollars more than the Sword, but has a better multi-disc drag system that is easy to disassemble and clean and has held up to big saltwater fish without a hiccup. The SLV isn't as pretty and has a little more play in the parts, but is rugged and proven to work under tough conditions. The Piscifun Sword is prettier with tighter tolerances and is cheaper, but with money on the line I'd rather use the Okuma.If you're not angling for fast running fish or are a casual fly fisherman this reel will look good on your rod and will probably do a decent job. If you're a serious fly fisherman I'd look elsewhere.Update: 05.29.16: I've used this 3 times for monster cutthroats (3-13lbs) at Pyramid Lake NV and have come to the conclusion that the drag sucks. It is inconsistent both in startup inertia and also spins with inconsistent tension when the fish runs. None of this caused me to lose any of the big cuts, however, I was using 12lb tippet and cutthroats are not big screamers. I've got this at the bottom of my reel drawer at this point.

I was a bit skeptical about a reel as inexpensive as this one...but figured I would give it a try. I wanted a few more large arbor reels for extra poles. I purchased both the 7/8 and the 9/10 line size reels.I've been very pleased with these reels so far. I've used them for several days fishing so far and the reels works great. It has a very smooth reeling action and the drag is very nice. The reel is very solid and seems to be just as good of quality as the $200+ reels I own. The overall construction, looks and feels very similar to my Hardy and Pflueger reels. So far, it was a great purchase for a good price. Time will tell if the bearings and the drag components have a long lifespan similar to the expensive reels. So far I'm really impressed with this reel. I honestly can't tell the difference between it and my expensive reels when actually using it other than it doesn't make any sound when reeling in, only when the line is being pulled out does it make the click sound. I actually prefer this to having to hear the clicking while reeling in.

For the money, it's a pretty good fly reel. The build quality is really good. The drag is smooth and the tolerance of the build is excellent. I think only the design quality isn't there but that's reflected in the price. What I mean is the way the spool is just flat. It's got the cut outs for water to drain out and for drying out but it's flat. It doesn't really help with line retrieval. The handle is also aluminum, which makes for a solid handle but feels cold. Also a little too much grease. Other than those issues, the reel does provide a lot of value for the price.