I bought a Guide Series baitcasting rod and reel combo at Gander Mountain and the first time I brought it out the reel broke.  I traded it in for another one and the first time I brought it out it broke also.  When I return this one I would like to get a baitcasting combo that will last more than an hour and that is my question.  For convenience I would like to get one at Gander Mountain if possible, so does anyone have any experience with a Pflueger Endeavor, Quantum Burst, Pflueger Echelon, or Abu Garcia MAX.  If all of these are garbage I could spring for a Shimano Caenan but it is an additional $70 whereas the rest would be paid for by the return.  I am not experienced with baitcasters so any help would be appreciated.

I can tell you from experience that the Echelon and Max are both good reels...I don't know about the Endeavor and Burst...never tried those.

In my opinion, you would be wise to spend the extra for the Caenan. At $90 MSRP, it is right at the bottom of what I would consider the price range for a decent entry level reel and the rod it is paired with is probably a step up also. You get what you pay for.

Well...PG got me thinkin'...so I did a little research. The specs on the Caenan, Echelon, and Silver Max are almost identical...composite frame, 6 bearings, 10-15lbs. max drag...all very capable reels. The only difference I could find other than name was price. The Silver Max and Echelon both go for $59.99...the Caenan goes for $89.99.

Thanks for you help everyone. The Shimano Caenan was on a huge unadvertised sale so I bought it for just a little more than the other options.

Good deal bbunton! 

B sure hope this setup works for ya! would like to hear how it turns out!

anything by Pflueger is gold. I have 4 Pfluegers and don’t have any problems with any of them. yeah you got a good deal

anything by Pflueger is gold. I have 4 Pfluegers and don’t have any problems with any of them. yeah you got a good deal.

Sounds to me like you should stick to spinning reels for awhile, ...just sayin' :-)

cant beat the MAX if you ever need a new cheap reel

i own the shimano myself and i love it

i am a new member, ive been doing some research on baitcasters and was set with the max bt thanks to the insite i think im going to spend a lil more and get one that im going to be happy with for a long time.

I have the silver max and like it and use it a lot.been thinking about buying a caenan and trying it.maybe when I get some extra money.