When 13 Fishing announced their newest baitcasting reel at the 2015 ICAST show in Orlando, I was anxious to test the new Inception reel afterward. I got my reels early in 2016 and have used them for a couple of months now through the winter months with a variety of techniques. The Inception reel has a bunch of great features that will definitely warrant your attention if you’re in the market for a new reel
Specifications
The 13 Fishing Inception Baitcaster features an 8-ball-bearing casting system on an HD aluminum frame with graphite side plates. The drag consists of multi-material oversized drag washers that provide an impressive 18-pounds of drag. 13 Fishing dressed the reel up with a beautiful dark grey matte finish with red and black accents and wrapped it all up with Japanese Hamai Cut Gearing and High Speed Spin Spool system for maximum fluidity, casting distance and accuracy in a reel priced very competitively at $119.
The handles incorporate lightweight but durable and gripable EVA knobs which is a bit of a departure from their well-known cork grips. But I actually like the paddles and tackiness of the grips a lot. The reel comes in both left and right hand models out of the gate in both 6.6:1 and 8.1:1 gear ratios.
What I liked
The Inception reel is going to be a workhorse reel for a bunch of anglers I predict. It has the same amazing casting ability as the other reels in the 13 Fishing line along with their Arrowhead line guide system that gives the reel great distance and accuracy on the cast and fluid performance on the retrieve.
The reel looks great on the rod and it feels very solid in your hands. The matte finish seems very durable already and gives the reel a really nice feel while you fish. The handles are comfortable to fish with all day and the 6-pin centrifugal brakes were easy to access and set under the side plate.
I’ve used this reel a bunch with everything from shallow crankbaits and jerkbaits to casting and flipping jigs and even throwing big swimbaits and umbrella rigs this winter. I paired it with various rods including a 13 Fishing MH Envy rod, a No. 8 Tackle Blackout MH rod and a 13 Fishing Omen M rod. It balances well on a various combos, feels good and is palmable in your hand easily. With this reel and a moderately priced rod you can have a great setup for between $200-250.
I think anglers will really like the performance they get out of the sturdy 13 Fishing Inception reel at a price point that allows you to own a few. I don’t fish with a lot of reels with graphite side plates, but this is one of the better ones I fished with lately and will have a few on my deck this season for sure.
I really like the red accents on the Inception with the matte grey finish. The reel is compatible with their Trick Shop components, so you can interchange parts to give it even more cosmetic appeal to your desire.
The reels have sold well already, and they have been restocked at TackleWarehouse.com. They are available at local retailers that carry 13 Fishing reels now. If you’re in the market for a baitcasting reel in that $100-$120 price range, the Inception might be the reel for you.
