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[oddjob]

army and navy in new west is selling C 3's for $ 99.99 , makes a good christmas present for yourself or a friend.

[Sterling C]

Wow thats cheaper than most people here are trying to flog them for used.

[Headshake]

Excuse my ignorance, but what are C3's?

[Fish Assassin]

Excuse my ignorance, but what are C3's?

A model of Ambassador level wind reels.

[Steelhead King]

they are all 6501-C3 left hand reel....

[cohoslayer1]

you can get the better newer modols of c3 for thirty bucks more

[Floater]

Why not save the 30 bucks? A 6501 C3 is perfect for salmon fishing.

[cohoslayer1]

the new one has better gears and better drag also it is way smoother reeling in

[Rodney]

If you are a lefty.

6501c3 weighs about 298 grams. It's a good entry level reel, if you are just trying out river salmon fishing for the first time. It's a good reel that will handle just about all salmon species.

I feel that its line capacity is more than what you will ever need. The reel is somewhat wide, and little on the heavy side. That being said, I do own a 6500c3 as a backup, which I will pull out once awhile for chinook and chum salmon.

For coho and steelhead, my favorites are still the low profile baitcasting reels made by Shimano. This Scorpion Metanium XT has done well for me in the past two seasons.



It weighs about 235 grams. The line capacity is small, but enough to handle coho and steelhead, even chinook at times.

[Trout Slayer]

Personal opinion but working in the industry within the last year I believe Abu Garcia reels are garbage. For reel repairs they always have the bin overflowing. From gears, to pawls, you name it they dont stand up worth my smelly socks!

[Floater]

Personal opinion but working in the industry within the last year I believe Abu Garcia reels are garbage. For reel repairs they always have the bin overflowing. From gears, to pawls, you name it they dont stand up worth my smelly socks!

You must be kidding me IM probably the biggest abuser of gear i know. You should see my 6500C4 its been droped into everything Sand , Mud  and water. Sure the surface is worked over but i havent had a problem yet and i havent cleaned it in about 4 years .

[Trout Slayer]

No, I'm not kidding. The older Abu's were well made, they keep going downhill each year.

[Fish Assassin]

Agree with Trout Slayer. I've got several of the older models; they are built sturdy. I'm currently using the Shimano 400. The recent models of the Ambassador are crap.

[Steelhead King]

6501 C3 is a good reel to start drift fishing for those who are left handed and don't want to spend a whole lot for their set up.. $99 its a steal.  i agreed with Fish Assassin, the older Abu are great, i own couple of them from the late 60s, and early 70s.. The recent years' reel on the other hand, are good but not as good as the older one. If you willing to pay a higher price about $200, the D5, D6 are great, i don't mind them but again when you paying that much, you have more choices. ie; Shimano Calcutta, curado, Quantum Energy PT, Okuma Induron...    In my opinion, Shimano reels are they best,no question asked; from spinning to bait-casting to deep-sea reel not one company out there make reels in such quality with such a prices point.  Got get your hands onto one, you will know the differences and i can only tell you so much. 

[Sterling C]

Another vote for the ever dropping quality of the Abu's. I own one that is 6 years old and it probably been in the shop at least 5 times.