Best reel for me?

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Light Monkey gets my vote! Great reel with awesome customer support.

That IS a nice reel. I see it comes with #36 line option. My feet/pounds calc puts that at about 140-some feet. Small enough to pre-rig with a bag and stuff into a pocket. Nice.

But they would let you use a Dive Rite exploding reel? ...//...

Just buy a bag of external snap rings. :wink: BTDT.

...//... Manta Mini would be a better choice for the OP

I like that one too, not as compact. I'm intrigued by the LM....
 
Quick question for anyone who actually did this: Can you send up a 50-100 # lift bag on the LM reel (while holding the reel 'cup handed' in heavy coldwater gloves) and 'stall' it at the surface so that it doesn't spill?

Or will the spinning handle 'beat you up' too badly? The LM looks like a good cross between a finger spool and a standard reel...
 
A LOT of people use the manta reels here for shooting SMB's. Several local DM's that use them several times a week, and many other divers as well. I've got one and so do my 3 main dive buddies. I would choose a finger spool over a freespooling reel.

Do they work in a cave? Apparently not, but who cares. (The OP didn't ask about use in a cave.)

I have seen fancy cave reels get tangled on several occasions, learned on a terrible DR reel, but definitely prefer the Manta.
 
Quick question for anyone who actually did this: Can you send up a 50-100 # lift bag on the LM reel (while holding the reel 'cup handed' in heavy coldwater gloves) and 'stall' it at the surface so that it doesn't spill?

Or will the spinning handle 'beat you up' too badly? The LM looks like a good cross between a finger spool and a standard reel...

I might not be able to offer the right help since I dive warm water with thin gloves, and I am not sure what "cup handed" means. I use my Light Monkey reel all the time and have yet to have any issues with it. I have sent 50# lift bags to the surface many times and never had one tip and spill. I merely let my thumb ride on the spool part of it to apply the necessary drag. Yesterday to help raise myself without adding to my wing, I "thumbed" it pretty hard to help drag my butt up during my ascent. This was just holding it with one hand.
 
I might not be able to offer the right help since I dive warm water with thin gloves, and I am not sure what "cup handed" means. I use my Light Monkey reel all the time and have yet to have any issues with it. I have sent 50# lift bags to the surface many times and never had one tip and spill. I merely let my thumb ride on the spool part of it to apply the necessary drag. Yesterday to help raise myself without adding to my wing, I "thumbed" it pretty hard to help drag my butt up during my ascent. This was just holding it with one hand.

"cup handed" : Grab it with both gloves and hope it doesn't escape, squish hard the instant it slows... :wink:

A LOT of people use the manta reels here for shooting SMB's. Several local DM's that use them several times a week, and many other divers as well. I've got one and so do my 3 main dive buddies. I would choose a finger spool over a freespooling reel.

Do they work in a cave? Apparently not, but who cares. (The OP didn't ask about use in a cave.)

I have seen fancy cave reels get tangled on several occasions, learned on a terrible DR reel, but definitely prefer the Manta.

I like Manta also, see pic.

As this thread is about uplines, I'm really looking for something that is functional but isn't a total nuisance. Uplines are something that you never want to use, so I dislike giving them a lot of 'real estate' on my rig.

Exploration/Lift reels, however, are prime. I really like Manta, the OMS shown, and love the clear things.

See the finger-spool in the middle, that just isn't my idea of an upline. The Light Monkey may get a place in the pile...
 

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Quick question for anyone who actually did this: Can you send up a 50-100 # lift bag on the LM reel (while holding the reel 'cup handed' in heavy coldwater gloves) and 'stall' it at the surface so that it doesn't spill?

Or will the spinning handle 'beat you up' too badly? The LM looks like a good cross between a finger spool and a standard reel...

Thanks to everyone for their input and it was a tough decision but I've decided to go with the LM for just this reason. I actually like the simplicity of the finger spool but want to try something a little more substantial.

Manta Nano or Nano Plus. I have both and the CR1. Sold my Dive Rite's to buy them and have not regretted it.

The nano plus was very tempting and I am keeping it as an option for the future but had trouble finding it for sale. Jim, do you sale it? I did not see it listed on your website?
 
Thanks to everyone for their input and it was a tough decision but I've decided to go with the LM for just this reason. I actually like the simplicity of the finger spool but want to try something a little more substantial.



The nano plus was very tempting and I am keeping it as an option for the future but had trouble finding it for sale. Jim, do you sale it? I did not see it listed on your website?

I am approved as a Manta dealer but need to get a minimum order in that I am not yet ready to do. Until then I refer people to Piranha Dive Mfg for any Manta products. Soon as I get some things sorted out I will be bringing in some Manta reels and other products of theirs.

Sent from my DROID X2 using Tapatalk 2
 
Anyone tried the new Halcyon pro spool/reels? I got one just to see what they're like but haven't got it wet yet

Halcyon Defender Pro Spools | Wreck Diver Supply

A couple of my dive buddies use them, and are really happy with them. I have tried them a few times, but I just don't like the side handle on those for shooting a bag.

It's probably because I'm used to using the regular style finger spools.

What I didn't like was having to loosen the knurled knob to allow to spool to spin freely.
When reeling it in, you have to lock it down again and wind the line the way you normally would.

The handle isn't much use to me when winding the line back on the spool. I'm just used to grabbing the flange on the spool with my left hand, and using the double ender to wind the line up.

I don't want to use the double ender as a handle extension.

That being said, the handle is removable, which allows it to be used like the regular finger spools.

I'll just stick with my Dive Rite finger spools.

** Thanks for posting your Apex guide. I'm planning to get some XTX200's, but wasn't sure about which 1st stages to get.....hose routing, and all that! :wink:

Cheers,
Mitch
 

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