I ordered the Maxcatch Gaze fly reel about two months ago having never used any of their products. I wasn't really sure what to expect. But my initial impressions are good. So far I like the reel quite a bit. It is a budget fly reel, it sells for regularly $59.00. I got mine on sale for $53.00 off the Maxcatch website.
First lets start with the reels specifications. I ordered the 6seven model. It comes in black only. Is rated for use on a 6/7 wt rod and has a spool capacity of 100 yards of 20lb fly line backing. The drag system is the MAX LDS which Maxcatch touts as a maintenance-free, fully sealed light weight drag system.
The reel is made from a precision CNC and diecasting combined processing. It sports a large arbor design for quick line retrieval. The drag system has a stacked teflon drag disc that Maxcatch says offers big power with smooth performance. The drag system also offers quick opening for easy changes from left to right hand retrieve.
The outside diameter of the reel is 94 mm with an inside diameter of 52 mm and a weight of 139 grams. It is also listed a a fully waterproof reel and came with the nice carrying case seen below.
So like I said earlier, my initial impressions are great! The reel is extremely light weight and reels very smoothly. The drag system is smooth and operates as advertised. I tested it on the river fishing for smallmouth bass. With some of the larger smallmouth I caught I got them on the reel for the fight to see how the drag system performed and it performed great! I had no worries about it sticking or maybe breaking my leader. The drag also ratchets up very tightly if you were going to use heavy leaders for big fish.
The spool comes off and on with ease. And the reel seems very tight. Nothing, including the turning knob is loose at all. I have used other budge fly reels and they always seem a little loose in operation. Kind of how a new car seems tighter to drive than an old one. I also dunked the reel in the river many times throughout the day and found it to still operate smoothly.
Now the one thing I cannot attest to is durability. I haven't used the reel enough to have an educated opinion on that. But I did fish it hard for about 7 hours the day I tested it. Stripping of line at many new holes and reeling in to change spots and it still stayed tight and smooth in operation throughout the day.
Overall I really like the reel. I plan on using it as my primary reel for one of my sink tip lines. I think the reel is perfect size for any bass or trout fishing applications. And if you are in the market for a budget minded back up reel I think this reel would perform fantastic in that roll. So if you are in the market for a new reel, check out Maxcatch's website. I think they have good quality reels for the price. They also offer some of their other models of reels in some really cool colors if you are into that kind of thing. I hope this review helps out anyone considering purchasing a new reel. Or if you had seen some of Maxcatch's stuff and were wondering about the quality. Tight lines!
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