I got a new Martin reel.

A little over a month ago I bought a new Martin 5/6 WT Large Arbor Mountain Brook reel. I wanted to fish it for a bit before posting here. I paid about $35 dollars for the reel including the shipping and I am a little skeptical of the lower end priced reels.

Well, not so with this one. This reel is all aluminum, machined, balanced and has a decent disc drag. Easy to switch retrieve directions, light weight and strips/retrieves the line with a very smooth action. It has an very nice finish on it and the exposed rim makes thumbing/palming the spool easy. Spools easily detach for swapping spools.

The drag is a little vague, but that is to be expected from a lower priced reel. Heck I have seen reels that cost hundreds have what I would call somewhat vague drag systems.

All in all a very nice reel especially considering the less than $50 dollar price tag. Don't be afraid to buy this one folks. Would make a great reel for the beginner and up.