Bass Fishing Forums > Reels
Piscifun Phantom Carbon Baitcasting Reel Review
JackJ:
After watching many many Youtube video's of lower cost Chinese and Korean baitcasters (less than $70) that have hit the market fairly recently, namely KastKing, Piscifun, Haibo, and Tsurlinoya, with all having pretty much very good reviews, I thought I would purchase one to check it out.
I bought the Piscifun Phantom to try. I paid $54 at the time delivered. I bought this one because it has dual type of braking system, both the centrifugal and the magnetic brake. Having both types does help dial it in a bit better to me.
It's a 7 bearing reel, holds 120 yards of 10lb line, and being total carbon fiber body, it only weights 5.7oz.
Now most of my other reels while not being top end, are not exactly bottom end either (Mostly Shimano Curados, and Daiwa Tatulas SV TW and CT Type-R's, and Lews Tournament Pros). So this is really all I can compare this reel to at the moment. This reel cast very well, and it is pretty smooth I can say. It's not quite as smooth as the others I just mentioned, but for $54 its at least a third of the price as the others. I have not added any oil or lube anything yet, so just a little Boca Lightning Lube may help this reel out a little.
I have it spooled with 14lb Sunline fluro line and was able to get very good distance with a 1/8" shakey head setup. I could throw this reel with the magnetic brakes completely off (which I think may still offer a little resistance), but for the less experienced angler I would recommend at least turn the centrifugal brake to 4, and the magnets to 6 or 7 to start off.
The only thing that was a bit off for me was the handle knobs. All my others have flat grips and this one has a bit of a curve on the handle knob pretty much standard on most of the China OEM reel lines. So that takes a little getting used to for me, but if your used to that type it should be no problem. It's just a personal preference to me that I like the flat grips. I will more than likely change them out pretty soon to that style.
So I would say for a young angler, or a high school angler, or even an experienced angler that just doesn't want to break the bank this would be a decent reel. If you are used to using very high end reels then this probably wouldn't be the reel for you.
Jig Man:
Thanks for the review Jack. I have some high schoolers who are learning to make baits. I'll pass that info on to them.
Curt:
Thanks for posting this, Jack! This reel looks a lot like the KastKing Assassin baitcasting reel, which is also a Carbon Fiber reel that weighs 5.7 oz. That reel has 11 bearings, I think. I have really grown to like that reel a lot.
Please keep us updated as you use this reel more! :nod:
Curt:
@JackJ What's your opinion on this reel now that you've had more time on the water with it? Have you had time to use it much?
JackJ:
Well I find myself not using it much at all.
Between then and now I purchased a couple more Daiwas, one a Fuego CT (Purchased for $60 something dollars) and one a Tatula CT (Purchased for $99.99).
Both are way smoother than the Phantom. So for just a few more dollars I would for sure go with the Fuego CT over the Phantom any day.
I still think the Phantom is a decent reel for the price, but the others are just better. I am using the Phantom on a setup for guest that might fish with me that I question whether or not they can cast a baitcaster, so I keep it spooled up with cheaper line just in case , lol
Navigation
[0] Message Index
[#] Next page
Go to full version