Primary Reel

[xiSkiGuy]

I'm about to purchase a new primary reel and I'm curious:

What reel do you use for cave diving and what do you like about it?

 

[PerroneFord]

I've used the Halcyon, the Salvo, and Dive Rites. I am going to be purchasing a couple Salvo reels. I just find them to be the smoothest. I know the Halcyon did not fully lock down tightly and was heavier. I do not like the Dive Rite's shape. And their new sidewinder reel isn't as beefy as the other two.

I've heard a lot of good things about the Larry Green reels, but I have not had one in my hands. It's shaped like the Dive Rites, which I don't care for.

Take all this with a HUGE grain of salt. I am a brand new cave diver, and these are just my initial impressions.

 

[scubafool]

Brother, you haven't lived till you have tried to untangle a DiveRite safety reel while doing a lost line search! I managed to do it one time, the next time I ended up going to my backup spool.

Anyway, I have a DiveRite that I use, but only because it was what I could get my hands on in my area a few years back. The Halcyon, the Salvo, the Ralph Hood, or the onethatIdon'trememberthenameof that Cave Excursions East is now carrying look much nicer. I have used both a Ralph Hood reel and a onethatIdon'trememberthenameof reel, and liked both of them. They are a side handle reel, and while there is a large space for the line to fall off into, there is also a large space for you to get your fingers into to clear the jam. The Halcyon, Salvo, and the DiveRite Sidewinder are much less likely to get jammed due to the really tight clearance between the spool and the handle.

 

[deepdiver4]

dive rite is what i use

 

[eandiver]

Check out www.northernatlanticdive.com and their jasper handle reels. Thanks Johnny for the heads up on that.

My first cave dive in basic class and as the last diver upon exiting I went to untie my primary from the gold line in the ear. As I picked up the DR reel it simply fell apart in my hands. The shaft had unscrewed from the spool and it was a "challenge" to wrap line as the flow moved me out.

 

[eandiver]

www.northernatlanticdive.com works better

 

[hunter991]

I think the salvo and the halcyon are the best reels currently being made, at least for my uses. I like their design the best due to the handle style and the tight clearances. They are basically identical except that the salvo will completely lock down and is lighter. Oh and the fact that I sell the salvo and not the halcyon.

Brent

 

[scubafool]

. As I picked up the DR reel it simply fell apart in my hands. The shaft had unscrewed from the spool

Was this a standard DR top handle reel? I just yanked mine apart (just had to check this out) and the spindle is hard mounted to the frame, no threads to come apart.

 

[scubafool]

www.northernatlanticdive.com works better

But http://www.northernatlanticdive.com/reels.htm might save you a little time. Those reels with the jasper, or side handle, are what I was referring to when I mentioned Ralph Hood and the nameIcan'tremember reels.

 

[Jason B]

I've heard a lot of good things about the Larry Green reels, but I have not had one in my hands. It's shaped like the Dive Rites, which I don't care for.

I highly recommend the Larry Green reels (or the Ralph Hood - same reels). They are not shaped like the DR reels so I'm not sure where that came from.

http://cavediveflorida.com/reels.htm