The Sougayilang CatTyrant Round Baitcasting Reel is one I wanted to try.
As a longtime Shimano and Daiwa guy, I have trolling reels that I have caught fish and what caught my attention is that this is more of a hybrid of a baitcaster and trolling reel.
Before I start reviewing this product, I have to say that these trolling reels are not meant for beginners. If you are a beginner, start off with a spincast or a spinning reel, then learn on how a baitcaster works. But then you can eventually try a trolling reel.
OK, now here is something that you will need to prepare for and this will determine if you want to pursue this type of reel, trolling reels are meant to drop a line with a weight or hook or hard lure from a boat or a pier and not for casting.
Can you cast? Sure, you can cast but this is after you learn on how to use a baitcaster and learn how to cast, especially pendulum and side swing casting.
Personally, if you are going to catch catfish, I recommend a spinning reel with a lot of drag paired with a 7 – 8 ft. medium heavy rod.
Now, for the Sougayilang CatTyrant Round Baitcasting Reel, my goal is for catfish and carp. Chunky ones and again, I recommend the 7 to 8 foot medium heavy rod.
So, with a spinning reel, if you are right handed, you want the handle on the left. For baitcaster, you want the handle on the right if you are a right hander.
For a trolling reel, I recommend if you are a right hander to have the handle on the left but since this is more of a hybrid trolling wheel and baitcaster, you can use it on the right but I recommend right handers choose the left-handed version. My expensive trolling reels work that way, and I like to keep things consistent in that manner.
Spooling the Sougayilang CatTyrant Round Baitcasting Reel (CT-60) and this is what I recommend for any reel that don’t have holes or any type of way that holds on to the line perfectly and that is to spool the first string and tie your knot but then apply electrical tape to the spool area to hold that line in, wind a few revolutions and make sure the spool is tight and the spool is not loose and line is holding tight. Then you can continue your spooling.
Now what do I use for spooling? You can use fluoro, monofilament or braid. But for catfish and carp, I am a pure braid user. I prefer to use 50-60 lb. braid (standard average for braid of this weight is 0.36mm, equivalent to a 12 lb. monofilament line which is allowable on this reel), with a 1/4 oz. weight, bead to a hook or carp rig with spring bait that attracts both carp and catfish. I use the latter.
So, as mentioned, this is a hybrid. With my trolling reels, it’s a lever you press that allows you to cast but not far. Again, if you want to cast far, this is where spinning reels are key. Trolling reels are primarily for dropping or shorter casting ranges, especially with heavier line. But this one has a button below like a baitcast reel.
How trolling reels and this particular reel works is you have the tension knob like a baitcaster and the centrifugal brake on the star. This also has a switch on the other end ala Slide Buzzer Lock that will let you know when you catch a fish. Some prefer to keep things quiet, and that is no problem, to switch it to this mode without the clicking sound. This reel does not come with a line counter but Sougayilang does release trolling reels that do.
Again, learn how to use a baitcaster, so you can adjust the tension knob to learn how to not get a birds nest. Learn how to use a baitcaster and familiarize yourself with it before buying this as you can learn about thumb placement to stop a line and wear fishing gloves as added protection!
I was able to cast the Sougayilang CatTyrant Round Baitcasting Reel (CT-60) and it was part of my quiver for weekend early morning fishing which got me my personal best of 17 fish.
This was much lighter than I expected and I’m glad I got the CT-60, because anything smaller, not sure if I would enjoyed it as much. I paired this with my DAIWA Tatula XT 7’3″ Medium Heavy (any 7-8 ft. medium heavy will work) and it worked very well! I have to say that I liked the bigger two knobs and grateful there are two instead of one.
I will say that the tension knob is similar to other Sougayilang/SOUGA products and that its reverse (even the baitcasting magnetic tension placements are reverse), so you want to twist down versus twisting up to tighten the tension, but again, do the line drop (with a weight) to make sure your reel is not having any birds nest issues.
But overall, I was able to successfully catch fish with this reel. But I do not recommend this reel for beginners. Those who have familiarity with a casting reel and if you are able to fish without birds nest and know how to swing, then I can recommend using this reel. I felt the side swing cast worked better with this reel vs. pendulum swing. But that is subjective.
For the price of $46, it worked very well, but I also have tried Sougayilang heavy duty, heavy drag spinning reels which I felt were more robust in strength, but as long as you pair it with a medium heavy rod for better backbone and corn kernels on the hook, you can catch a lot of catfish and carp.
