KastKing Royale Legend II Baitcasting Reels, New Compact Design Baitcaster Fishing Reel, 17.64LB Carbon Fiber Drag, Cross-Fire 8 Magnet Braking System, Available in 5.4:1 and 7.2:1

So far, so good. Reel is very smooth and well built. KK have a good reputation for minimizing backlashes. After casting over and over in a practice session I m starting to believe it. Nice reel and reasonable price.

No lie, first fish was a 7 lb bass. Didn’t really have to do with the reel but it held up great. Super smooth casting without having to hold the line back if adjusted correctly. I like that the adjustment knob clicks instead of just constantly turning. Color is a nice gloss black. Performs well even casting into the wind. Great reel for the price!

Reel took quite a few casts to dial in. Once done it worked great. Primary casting drag adjustment would be easier if it clicked or had a visual dial for setting. Magnetic drag worked fine. Good product for the price.

My reel arrived on time and was packaged well. Earlier this year I wanted to get a BFS reel and bought my first KastKing. Because of the low price I was very surprised how well it performed straight out of the box and how well it handled a season of fishing. That made it an easy decision to go with them again when it came time to upgrade the baitcaster on my medium setup. Again, I was impressed straight from the box. 1. Smooth casting. Not only did I have controlled casts with heavier jigs but I was able to get good distance with my light floating jerkbaits. I was even able to cast some of my ultralight lures that I use on the BFS! 2. Easy to adjust so changing lure sizes is quick. 3. Sturdy but with a low profile. It is a good size if you plan on throwing baits all day. Another small thing that I like is that the spool is easy to remove.and lock.back in place. There is a release lever (shown in second pick) so no fumbling with screws or other removable pieces.

This reel is silky smooth and easy to tune in for casting. Out of the box this thing looked great, set it up with some 25lb braid and top shot of 25 mono for local shore fishing...nothing to big, maybe a few sharks, guitarfish, calicos, etc...and maybe the oft halibut or bonito.....small stuff. This reel slings out line like a fat kid loves cake.....big time! Make sure to dial it in just right and you are going to love this reel. I did not take it apart and grease it like I do most reels out of the box as I wanted to see what it was like for most people. I may not have to do so, at least not immediately with this thing, thats how smooth it is and confident i am it was made right. Maintenance down the road is going to be done but rest assured it is good to go out of the box. Final update: this little reel is the little engine that could. It performed flawlessly and was easy to adjust drag in the moment while I was battling a 35lb bat ray behemoth. Mind you, this reel is spooled with only 25lb braid and 25 mono topshot. It's paired with the kastking telescopic heavy power rod and the two work well together. This has now earned my respect and confidence when traveling and fishing. If you have ever hooked into large rays and sharks, you know they pull extremely hard and can run forever! This thing clamped down on the fish and was easy to adjust during the fight. It has a nice decently fast retrieve as well. Twice the fish went on mad runs and I was able to gain back line quickly to avoid a spooling. -Tight line ya'll

This is really a good reel... You have to learn how to dial it in and use your thumb on the spool. To beginners like myself: This is NOT plug and play, there is an art form to using it. EVEN if you watch all the videos on setting it up, you are going to get BACKLASH the 1st few times you use it. It is a right of passage.. It is going to happen until you have the SKILL of using the reel. It happens to EVERYONE it is going to happen to you. It is just part of the learning experience. I spent 2 weeks on the lake in the back just practicing my casting. Went through 4 reels of line. MOST important: Only fill the spool up 1/2 way until you get the hang of it.. (Less line, less backlash to deal with.) Keep the brake on FULL ( Dial on the left side of the reel) You wont cast far, but you wont get backlash as easily. The knob on the right hand side adjusts how freely the spool spins when you cast it.. You have to adjust this for every lure type you use. The bait stops when it hits the water, the SPOOL does NOT and you have backlash.

I have taken a liking to KastKing products! I bought this as a gift and after seeing the reel and how the person liked it, I started buying KastKing products for myself. They cast well, look great and work great with little effort required to avoid backlash.

My first KastKing reel. So far, it has performed well and has had no issues. I would recommend this reel!