A closed face reel is the choice some fishermen make over an open face reel because of the ease of casting the line with a button instead of having an exposed line that requires guiding the line with your finger while casting. A closed face fishing reel is commonly less expensive than an open face fishing reel, which makes it a frequent choice among beginner and intermediate fishermen.
We browsed many closed face reels to find the top 10 reels for you, and we determined our choices based on a few key factors. Value is important, and we compare the price of the reel to the quality. Besides value, we make our choice based on the ease of use, reliability, versatility, and strength. Our top choices must be easy to use, reliable for the long haul, be able to use in multiple fishing scenarios, and must have the strength and durability to handle larger and stronger fish.
From the range of options you have for closed face reels, you will find the best product for your individual fishing needs in our list of top 10 best closed face reels.
Zebco Omega Pro Spincast Fishing Reel
Zebco Big Cat XT Spincast Fishing Reel
Pflueger President Spincast Fishing Reel
Pflueger Trion Spincast Fishing Reel
Zebco Roam 3Sz Spincast Reel 10#C
Zebco Authentic Spincast Fishing Reel
Rhino Spincast Fishing Reel Size-2
Lew’s Fishing American Hero Metal Spincast Reel
KastKing Brutus Spincast Fishing Reel
Zebco Omega Pro Spincast Reel
An open face reel is what many advanced and experienced fishermen use. It requires flipping the bail while holding the line with your finger. Just as you cast your rod forward, you release your finger to let the line out. Depending on the circumstance and scenario, you will either grab the line again with your finger followed by flipping the bail back over to lock the line into place.
With a closed face reel, instead of worrying about flipping the bail or holding the line with your fingers, you simply push a button on your reel that releases your line, and release your thumb from the button when you want to line to lock again.
This feature makes closed face reels the best for beginners, children, and even intermediate and expert fishermen in certain situations where a closed face reel makes more sense to use.
When looking for a closed face fishing reel, you want to look for a few specific factors and features. These include the number of bearings, construction, weight, durability, reliability, and versatility.
While a heavy reel can sometimes be too clunky for people, it can add to the power and hold up through extensive fishing trips and many years of use. A heavier aluminum reel can also add to the corrosion resistance that allows for extended use in water, and can make great closed face saltwater reels.
One thing you will see advertised in each reel listing is how many bearings come with the retrieval system. Essentially, the more bearings there are, the smoother the retrieval of your line will be. One-bearing systems can still be smooth, but they will never be as smooth as a 5 or 7-bearing retrieval.
One more thing to look for is the retrieve rate. Besides how smooth your line is retrieved, the retrieve rate tells you how fast you will be able to retrieve your line. A 10-inch retrieve rate will move slowly, and you will have to rotate your handle twice as much as a 20-inch retrieve rate reel. A 19-inch retrieve rate means you get 19 inches of line retrieved for every one full rotation of your handle when reeling in.
While you don’t absolutely need a multiple bearing system, it can be worthwhile, even for children and absolute beginners. A multiple bearing system allows you to retrieve your line smoother. A good closed face fishing reel has between 3 to 5 bearings, but the best closed face fishing reel will have more than 5 bearings.
We find that a 7-bearing retrieval system with a 19-inch retrieve rate will give you an extremely smooth feel and fast retrieval rate. This allows you to make more casts and have a consistently smooth cast.
Some reels mention that their retrieval system includes a fast pickup or quick retrieve, which allows for an immediate hook set. What this means is that when a fish nibbles and eventually bites your bait and hook, you have a split second to react and set the hook in the fish’s mouth. Not setting the hook quick enough can result in a lost fish or a hook that gets stuck in the gills of the fish. Neither are good for you, which is why having a fast pickup and hook set can provide you with a better fishing experience, more caught fish, and more casts and therefore chances of catching more fish.
Gear ratios tell you how fast a reel picks up line or retrieves line. It is similar to what is advertised as a “retrieve rate.” Some product descriptions will tell you that a line has a 14 or 19-inch retrieve rate, while others give you a gear ratio like 8.3:1, which is telling you that the spool rotates 8.3 times for every 360-degree turn of the reel handle.
Both the gear ratio and retrieve rate can tell you more about the speed at which you reel in your line. The greater the first number in the ratio, and the greater the inches in your retrieve rate, the faster your line will be able to reel in. More is better.
If you like to switch your hands when fishing, and have your handle on the right sometimes and on the left other times, you will want a reel that has an interchangeable system that is easy to switch.
The most important features are retrieve rate, smoothness, durability, and reliability. With the number of fishing reels on the market, there are a lot of cheaply made reels. One of the biggest complaints in reels is not retrieve rate, smoothness, or gear ratios; it is how well put together the fishing reel is. Some reels fall apart much quicker than others, and it helps to get a reel that is going to last many fishing trips, which is why we compiled some of the best closed face fishing reel options you can find.
Image | Title | Bearings | Score | View On Amazon |
---|---|---|---|---|
Zebco Omega Pro Spincast Fishing Reel | 7 bearings (6 + clutch) | 4.4/5 | View Product On Amazon | |
Zebco Big Cat XT Spincast Fishing Reel | 4 bearings (3 + Clutch) | 4.6/5 | View Product On Amazon | |
Pflueger President Spincast Fishing Reel | 5 bearings | 4.3/5 | View Product On Amazon | |
Pflueger Trion Spincast Fishing Reel | 2 bearings | 4.1/5 | View Product On Amazon | |
Zebco Roam 3Sz Spincast Reel 10#C | 3 bearings | 4.3/5 | View Product On Amazon | |
Zebco Authentic Spincast Fishing Reel | 1 bearing | 4.5/5 | View Product On Amazon | |
Rhino Spincast Fishing Reel Size-2 | 4 bearings | 4.6/5 | View Product On Amazon | |
Lew’s Fishing American Hero Metal Spincast Reel | 2 bearings | 4/5 | View Product On Amazon | |
KastKing Brutus Spincast Fishing Reel | 5 bearings | 4.7/5 | View Product On Amazon | |
Zebco Omega Pro Spincast Reel | 7 bearings (6 + clutch), | 4.5/5 | View Product On Amazon |
The Zebco Omega Pro Spincast Fishing Reel was built with versatility in mind so that you can fish for both smaller and larger species of fish. The 7 bearings and all-metal gears were built for a smoother retrieval, and the lighter build makes this easier to handle for beginner and intermediate fishermen.
The affordable Zebco Big Cat XT is a spincast closed face fishing reel with 4 bearings at size 80. It has a 110/25 mono capacity and 19-inch retrieve rate, making this easy to cast and retrieve for beginner and intermediate fishermen. If you are looking to catch larger fish, the pre-spooled 25-pound Cajun fishing line is an added bonus.
This Pflueger President Spincast fishing reel can be used by beginners and advanced fishermen alike and is professionally built with high quality corrosion resistant materials. Aluminum frame and front cone with dual titanium pins give this reel its high quality, and the one-way clutch ball bearing allows for an instant hook set when the fish bites.
The Pflueger Trion Spincast fishing reel is an affordable closed face reel that is great for beginners and children and can also be used by intermediate fishermen. This is also a new model which is easier to handle and more reliable than previous models. You can also interchange the retrieve for right or left hand.
The Zebco Roam 3Sz spincast reel is a closed face fishing reel, pre-spooled with 10-pound fishing line. The 3-bearing, 19-inch retrieve rate and 110/10 mono capacity is best used for light to medium sized fish like panfish, bass, and trout, and the instant quickset anti-reverse technology makes for faster hook sets.
This Zebco spincast fishing reel is perfect for beginners and children who are just getting into fishing. The reel is built with quality like other Zebco reels and fishing products, yet it is lightweight and simplistic with its design. This reel comes pre-spooled with 10lb red fishing line for easy visibility for inexperienced fishermen.
This Zebco Rhino spincast fishing reel is a smaller constructed reel with some of the same high-quality features as more advanced reels. This is good for both beginners and intermediate fishermen, and comes with a 4-bearing drive, aluminum cover and handle, and a changeable retrieve for right or left hand. The roller-adjustable drag makes it easy to change the drag even for beginners.
The Lew’s Fishing American Hero model of closed face spincast reel is an affordable option for beginners and children. It is a lightweight reel made of mostly aluminum, and has a dual pin line pick up system for fast hook sets when fishing.
The KastKing Brutus closed face reel is the best closed face fishing reel for fishermen of any experience level. Every feature that you can ask for is included in this reel, and on top of the features, the style and black and red color scheme of the reel is very professional looking and appealing.
The Zebco Omega Pro is the best closed face fishing reel in the Zebco line-up of reels, and features a powerful aluminum design and a smoother retrieval system than any of the other models in our top 10 lineup. Like other professional model Zebco reels, this one comes with the instant anti-reverse technology to provide a quick hook set and smooth feel when reeling in your catch.
Retrieve rate is simply the speed at which you can retrieve your line. While gear ratio, as we explained before, can be a great contributor to how fast your line can be retrieved, the real factor to look for is the retrieval rate in inches.
A reel that is advertised as a 12-inch retrieval rate means that for every 360-degree spin of your handle, you will retrieve 12 inches of line. If you cast 100 feet of line and your retrieval rate is 12 inches, you must spin your handle 100 times before you get your line back. The same scenario with a 24-inch retrieval rate will make you rotate your handle only 50 times to retrieve your line.
As you can see, the greater the retrieve rate, the more casts you can make, the more chances you have to catch a fish, and the faster you can retrieve fish.
Many professionals look for the fastest retrieval rate they can get, because they can always adjust how fast or slow they reel in their line based on the specific scenario.
Your line weight will be determined by what kind of fish you are trying to catch. When going for much larger fish like 40lb tuna, you will want a very heavy line, like 30lb test line. When going for something like trout, a 4lb line is more than enough. Bass fishing can vary, but an 8 to 10lb line is a good start, and based on the type of bass you are fishing for, you can change up the line.
It is recommended that you bring multiple lines with you in case you need to switch out your line in the middle of a fishing trip to better accommodate the type of fish you are baiting.
The heaviness of the reel depends entirely on the comfortability of the individual fisherman. For a young child, a smaller and lighter reel is going to do more good for them, because they won’t get tired as quickly, and can cast their line further. They also won’t get tired of holding their lightweight reel while waiting for a bite.
If you can handle a heavier weight reel, that’s a better option because of the overall durability. Heavier weight reels last longer and are commonly built better. While some find very heavy reels to be clunky, they can be the best closed face fishing reel that you can use on many fishing trips.
So, what’s the final verdict of the best closed face reel?
While what we listed are a great variety of reels to choose from, the best closed face reel comes down to two of these:
The Zebco Omega Pro Spincast Reel is our number one choice because of the smooth retrieval system, good line capacity, fast retrieve rate, and durability. It is an extremely powerful reel that will last you a very long time.
However, this reel is also more expensive than many of the other reels on the list. So, if you can’t afford to get the Zebco Omega, the next best reel is the KastKing Brutus Spincast Fishing Reel. At half the price of the Zebco Omega, this high performance reel has almost as smooth retrieval, with the addition of a larger line capacity for fishing in deeper waters.
Whether you go with the Zebco or KastKing reel, either of these should last you a very long time and give you great value and fun times on many fishing trips to come. Take a look at both of these reels, you can’t go wrong with either one.
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