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Sonik SK4 Large Arbor Fly Fishing Reel Review
The SK4 large Arbor fly reel is a great quality product from Sonik Sports who test their equipment to breaking point. Lite, Strong and Precision made!
PRODUCT REVIEW: Sonik SK4 Large Arbor Fly Reel
MANUFACTURER: SONIK SPORTS
WHO WOULD BUY THIS: Anyone who is looking to upgrade their fishing reel to a mid-price ranged reel.
SCORE: 4 out of 5
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INTRODUCTION:
The Sonik SK4 large arbor fly fishing reel is precision engineered from anodized light high-grade aluminum and comes with its own neoprene case.
PROS
- The spool is released with the push button in the center and comes out nicely. You can purchase extra spools so changing lines can be easily done.
- The tension control is on the back of the reel and easily adjusted to tighten and lose the tension when controlling a fish. When tightening the knob to full I was able to still pull line from the reel however as the reel was a 7-8 weight it would be able to control any target species up to 20kg I would suspect.
- Large arbor spool for easy line retrieves, slow start-up inertia and low line coil memory!
- Quick change over from left-hand wind to right-hand wind NB. remember to re-spool the line after doing so!
CONS
- I did find it difficult to put the reel back in the case and close the clasp when putting it away again, however. You have to make sure and put the reel handle to the bottom of the case and stretch the case over the reel. Could have done with a bit more room however only a minor problem.
WARRANTY:
Sonik does not hold a warranty on their fly reels reserving that honor to their fly rods only. However having contacted customer support was told,
“Regarding the reels, we try to help the customer as much as possible, supplying spare parts, refurbishing the reel and mending or sorting out any problems you may be experiencing”,
so this means you are not left high and dry with a faulty reel as customer support will do their best to fix the problem.
The Sonik SK4 large arbor fly reel is a nicely put-together fly fishing reel. I would recommend it for anyone moving up from a budget reel and has moved on to intermediate standard. However if budget allows I would also recommend it for a beginner as some reels have been well reduced of late due to new reels being released by Sonik Sports.
VALUE FOR THE MONEY? This quality reel is strong well made and will put up with a lot of abuse. Well worth the money when it was £110 now that it’s down to £75 it’s a bargain!
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Looks like a nice piece of kit Mark. How expensive can reels get? Whats the typical lifetime of one?
That is interesting about the warranty but I guess if they help you as best as they can and assuming it’s a good piece of kit in the first place, it might be fair enough.
Hey Colm Reels can go up to several hundred dollars. In fact the Hardy Bougle Limited Edition is going for £1500 from Farlows in London at the minute. These are collectors items and will probably not see water. However you can expect to pay a few hundred for a good quality reel. This one was recommended at £99 and I would put it down as a good intermediate reel for someone who has fished for a while and passed the beginners stage.
Thanks for the detailed information Mark.
It does seem pricey enough but, as with anything, you can expect to pay a bit more for quality.
That’s amazing that there’s a reel that’s a collectors item for £1500, wow! I know it won’t see water as you say but I guess it would be a thrill to actually fish with it.
Buying something without an warranty is kind of scary, but I guess when you have moving parts like that, it’s hard to warranty it. It sounds like they are pretty good about helping people out though. Good idea to actually call customer service and add that part in your review.
Its kind of common with lower priced items in the fishing trade. However I have always found if an item you purchase breaks and you take it back to where you bought it you will usually get a replacement or they will try to fix it so warranty does exist to an extent. The difference in non conditional warranty when they will replace if anything goes wrong is different to store owner help. As long as you have somewhere to go there is no problem. It would not put me off buying Sonik reels though as stated they do test them vigorously and if in doubt just ask before you purchase to see how they respond.
Looks like some heavy duty stuff. Being able to use this fly reel to catch fish weighing up to 20 KG, it must be super strong. Have you caught anything so big?
My biggest fish was 7KG so I have not got the experience of catching one that big. However its the tackle combined, rod, reel, line and knots that all need to be working correctly to land such a fish. The technique is not pulling too hard but letting the fish tire itself out before trying to land. That way you can land large fish on light tackle. The only downside is over tiring the fish so it can’t recover and be let go to swim away. That is when it would be better to take it home for the pot than let it go off to die.
When I get back to the states I’m going to give this fly fishing thing a serious go. I have been wanting a hobby that get’s me outdoors. You can bet I’ll be using a lot of the equipment and tips I’ve seen on your site.
I have to say though I’m wondering about this warranty thing. Is it common for a reel to come with no warranty?
No worries Ty when you are in the market for fly fishing gear give me a shout and I’ll advise you the best I can.
On the warranty it all depends on the manufacturer most of the higher priced reels would come with warranty. As the Sonik SK4 large arbor would be classed low to mid price range they have deemed not to cover it with a warranty. However as stated in the email with support they will do their best to sort out any problems so in effect they are standing over their reels too.
To be fair there are not that many moving parts on a fly reel so if it works from the box it should work. The problems come when it is not looked after properly with regular cleaning and protection in its neoprene case while traveling etc.