Upgrading my bait caster set up and have come across Bates a few different times online. I've owned Lew's, Shimano's, and a Daiwa in the past. No issues with any one of them, although the shimano's aren't as good as they used to me in my opinion. But always willing to try to something newer, any feedback?

I have a Bates Salty Hundo. It reminds me of an old school Chronarch. Built like a tank and I can sling a lure farther than any other reel I own. Only downside is weight.

Nothing is built like it used to be
But if you haven't tried Shimano curado DC I would recommend it
We have several and fish all different waters and applications and they are great and have been using them for years
On latest reel purchase my son considered bates but still opted for DC. Not sure exactly what bates model but he said it was more than the DC and he didn't see any specs that made him think he'd be upgrading

I'll 2nd your comment on the Curado DC. It will flat spoil you.
And I don't know enough about Bates to comment anything on them.

Buddy of mine swears by the Hundo

Have 2 friends with Salty Hundos. They will cast a mile, but I do think they need lots of frequent maintenance if you wade with them.

Bates are maintenance pits. Not forgiving enough for imperfect conditions.....which is every trip on saltwater. Everyone i know that fish a lot raved about em at first....and quickly got frustrsted.

Lews for me.

I have a Curado DC and Daiwa Steez A and my son has a couple of Salty Hundos. He can outcast me by quite a bit.

I throw my Lew's primarily because I like a lighter reel, but I'm curious what maintenance issues you've heard. I've got plenty of casts on my Bates and it hasn't missed a beat

Simply that they arent holding up comparatively. And then needing cleaning more often. And seemingly more delicate and finicky internals.

Thats been a while as the 3 or 4 folks I know that tried em moved on a while back. These guys fish a lot and can be hard on gear. They weren't impressed. For the price they went back to Lews.

We are fishing the salty hundos a lot and so far it's the best reel I have used. No maintenance issues with any of them……yet.