Shimano Caenan baitcast reel

[Team houston]

Has anybody heard anything good or bad about these? Does anybody have any first hand knowledge?

[mikesmiph]

This was going to be my reel of choice to buy this winter. I've read a couple very good reviews on it, but no first hand knowledge yet.

[Team houston]

Anybody else? I am thinking about buying two myself Mike. I will wait till the spring sale though. I will try to round up some more feedback over the Winter.

[motocross269]

Think about going with the Citica instaed of the Caenan...For a few dollars more you get alot more reel....JMHO....

[LipRip]

I was playing with the caenan and the orra at cabelas about a month ago cause i needed another reel for around $100. I decided on the orra because it felt a LOT smoother than the caenan. The Caenan to me was rough and cheap feeling. Needless to say I used the orra once and anti reverse broke.....i took it back and got a revo s.

I dont know if this helps at all! lol.....i just dont think u can get a decent reel that will hold up to tourny fishing for under $120!

[Team houston]

This is the kind of info I am looking for. Thanks guys.

[McCarter]

Think about going with the Citica instaed of the Caenan...For a few dollars more you get alot more reel....JMHO....

you may want to go one step further and get a Curado for even a few bucks more ( they sell new on ebay for $147 w/ free shipping ).  I bought 2 Citicas about a month ago and they are already giving me problems.

Go with the good bearings, its worth it in the long run

McCarter himself

[Team houston]

I do have lots of green Curados and one Citica. The Citica has not given me any trouble yet. What kind of problems are we talking about?

[fiker]

When Shimano quit making the green Curados, and went to the $200 version, (which they soon quit making), the rep at Shimano told me that the Citica basicaly replaced the old 200B's.  He flat out told me that if I liked the Curado B's that I'd be more than happy with the improved Citicas.

[Waterfoul]

I have many of the Green "Bantam" curados and love them.  I also have one of the "improved" Citicas.  Other than the weight (the Bantam weighs less) they seem to fish the same to me.  Both are great reels.

Our Shimano rep told me this about the Caenan:

Shimano engineers their products from the top down.... meaning they design the expensive reels first and let the technology "trickle down" into the cheaper reels as the tooling gets paid for (meaning once the tools to produce the expensive reel parts are paid off, they can use those parts in lesser reels).  This is the case with the Caenan.  It's basically the older Citica and the newer Citica is almost the same as the older Bantam Curado.

I buy almost exclusively Shimano reels and rods, and own many, many of them.  Therefore I have a lot of experience with a lot of their products.  I hope this helps.

[Team houston]

Thanks guys thats helpfull information. I am leaning towards getting one each Curado and Citica. I still first need to get a Caenan in my hands and check out how it feels.

[McCarter]

both of my citicas are already "squealing" on the cast and neither are near as smooth as when i got them a month ago. 

the curados have the upgraded bearings in them.  as far as i know that is the only difference between the curados and the citicas other than color. 

the ARB bearings are used in the Curados while the Citicas uses a cheaper SS bearing.  it seems to make quite a difference. 

i know its getting away from your price range, but if $24 can buy you some piece of mind, its a small price to pay.

Just my opinion.

McCarter himself

[fiker]

I wonder Brian if you could buy and install the better bearings into your Citicas? 

[McCarter]

sure can, and i may do that.  just tryin to save this guy the headache.  Chris checked out the Boca Bearings for me and they end up being $15 each, which he says i can get by with 2 for each reel.  I paid 119.99 for the Citicas.  You can buy the Curados for $144 new on ebay with free shipping.  Wish i would have known that before buying the Citicas.  I just didnt want to drop $180 for a reel if i could get the same for $120.  But i didnt know the Citicas used a different bearing.  didnt do my homework.  oh well, lesson learned.  Just getting back into the Shimanos.  I went the Abu revos for a couple years and tell you the truth, the Revo S is still an unblelievable reel for the money.  I have had 0 issues with them.  But the SX and Premier have given me nothing but problems.  I also have a Revo Winch and have nothing bad to say about that.  But the other 2 models left me with a bad taste in my mouth, especially for the price of the Premiers.  thought it was time to make my way back to shimano.  But as with anything, you get what you pay for and i went with the less expensive reel.  Dont get me wrong, Citicas are a great value for the money, but if you can upgrade for $24 why wouldnt you?!?!

McCarter himself

[thedude]

mikes real repair has shimano bearings (abec 7s i think) for a lot cheaper. i bought a 10 pack of them for various reels that need upgrades - 3x10x4 abec 7 ceramics = 55$

[Team houston]

You are right McCarter. I guess I knew that all along and just needed a little push. Two new Curados for me, check please.  Thanks again for the useful info.

[McCarter]

glad i could help.  just bring honest, not trying to knock shimano at all.  love there reels, always have and reckon i always will. 

McCarter himself

[REEL_MAN]

the squeal is lack of oil. Many of the new reels that are on the shelf are a year old.  When I get a new reel I lube the reel as if it had been used for a year. When you oil the bearings use a needle oiler, to much oil will slow the spool and reduce distance. Putting in new bearins is fine but maintenance is more important,new or old. Todays reel are, to say the least expensive so take care of them.

Reelman
<))))>{

[McCarter]

i hear ya REEL_MAN.  i did lube both of them the day i bought them with the Shimano reel oil.  and again about 2 weeks later but used very little.

Whats your opinion on the oil Shimano gives with the reel?  I have heard mixed reviews on it.

Also, which reel oil would you recommend?

I do not have the brain capacity to take them apart and really lube them up so i just do what i can with the side plate removed.

McCarter himself

[Cheetam]

Love me some yellow rocket fuel.