Daiwa Crosscast Carp Reels

Yes, we all covet the latest, shiny Daiwa big pit reels, but how many of us can actually afford something that has tech on it that fell off the back of a spaceship? Not many, buuuut, the best thing about buying from a company at the cutting edge of technology is that the design features and game-changing materials filter down through to the lower-end reels too, so we all benefit in the end! So, when the Crosscast reel landed at ‘Ology HQ, we knew that we were looking at something that, despite the price, would out-perform many of the mid-range big pits out there. Yes, the reel has many features that we could wax lyrical about, but the price is the most arresting thing here, these reels are just £89.99. So why else buy one? Well…

The Big Four

1. It’s Daiwa
If you’re going to buy a budget big pit, then you really should consider buying it from one of the two biggest players in the reel market globally. Daiwa has sunk all of its research and development knowhow and manufacturing prowess into producing a reel that other manufacturers, couldn’t hope to compete with. You can trust the Daiwa badge and after sales service. Buying a reel is kinda like buying a car, you need to go with the pedigree or you could get severely burnt.

2. The tech!
As we mentioned, the cutting-edge tech eventually filters down through the reel range, and you can rest assured that you’re getting a top-notch reel here, despite the fact that you can buy three for well under £300. Perhaps the most notable bit of tech that’s trickled down from the flagship reels is the QD Drag, which is damn useful when you want to go from free-spool to locked up in a few clicks. Unusually, for a more affordable reel, you get three ball-bearings too, as well as machined aluminium spool and handle.

3. The line capacity is savage!
You guys who like to boat your baits out need to take notice here. Actually, let’s face it, even if you only have one trip per year to an island sea, you can still justify buying a set of Crosscasts at this price! With the standard spool you’ll get a mighty 300m of 0.35mm, 15lb line on there, now if you step up to the deeper,
LD spool, you’ll get a shocking 530m of 0.35mm line on there!

4. It has cranking power
If you’re going to be fishing at looooong range, then you really need to be able to get those rigs back quickly, saving some seriously boring time spent winding! With a single turn of the Crosscast handle, you’ll be recovering 106cm of line, so those rigs will be back in and re-baited in a jiffy. These kind of stats are often overlooked, but having a reel with the guts that the Crosscast has is a real-world application of the sort of technology that Daiwa might well have saved for its flagship reels! Thankfully, they didn’t eh?