These reels are great value for the money paid. I own both the 10 and 20 size reels. Both sizes are great. A couple ball bearings here and there help these retrieve quite smoothly. I mounted the 20 size on a berkley cherrywood hd medium heavy 7' single piece rod and it's about the nicest spincast setup you could ask for at $60ish all taxes and shipping included. I haven't landed any big fish, but I had a small/medium sized snapping turtle on the end of the line and reeled it in no trouble as it often goes when turtle farming. I got it up on the bank no issues whatsoever. I probably had the drag cranked up too high, but in trying to get ahold of the line without getting snapped by the turtle, it had started back towards the water. The rod and reel held up, but I wouldn't go subjecting them to that kind of abuse repeatedly. I was sure that turtle was going to snap that rod, I was scrambling to try and hit the release button to let the line slack out.
I usually add a couple drops of oil where appropriate as I'm mounting these to rods, it seems to help smooth them out that much more.
These reels are nicer than quite a few on the market, even at more expensive prices. I wouldn't hesitate to take the 20 size catfishing, I use this setup hunting for carp and trust it to haul a big one in.
A bit on the heavy side, there's plenty of metal in the build of these, a good thing in my opinion. But if you're worried about fatigue, the 20 size might be a bit much.
If you're on the fence, go for it.
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