Our take on the JC Elite Spin MG

227 grams on a magnesium body is exactly what changes a full day of drop shot at the end of your arm. SPRO has built a tournament-grade tool here, with a compactness and a finish rarely seen in this price range. If you fish finesse regularly, it pays for itself from the very first session.

Magnesium body, 227 g, 10+1 bearings

• Sealed magnesium body and rotor, matte black finish
• 2000BD: 227 g, 7.2 kg drag, 84 cm retrieve per turn
• 3000BD: 232 g, 7.7 kg drag, 89 cm retrieve per turn
• 10 ball bearings plus 1 anti-reverse bearing
• 6.2:1 gear ratio on both sizes
• Braid-ready carbon spool, braid tied straight on without backing
• Swept carbon handle and oversized textured knob
• One-piece bail wire

• Techniques: drop shot, ned rig, neko rig, shaking, micro-jig, finesse soft baits
• Species: perch, black bass, zander, lake trout
• Designed and fished by Jason Christie in the BASS Elite Series

On the water, fishing finesse

227 g of magnesium, what it changes over a long session

Magnesium brings the weight below 230 g where a conventional aluminium body of the same size sits closer to 250 to 270 g. On a vertical search pattern or a slow shaking approach, where your arm works non-stop for six or eight hours, the difference shows clearly by the end of the day. The weight saving also serves the balance of the whole setup: mounted on a 2 m finesse rod rated 3-14 g, the balance point moves back towards the grip and the tip stays free to work. The oversized textured knob keeps its bite when your hands are wet, a detail that matters in early season. It is currently one of the lightest of our spinning reels.

Drop shot, ned rig and shaking: its home ground

The 6.2:1 ratio and 84 cm per turn place this reel in a versatile window: fast enough to pick up line quickly after a drift, moderate enough to keep torque on a fish that digs under the boat. The 10+1 bearings and slow oscillation make the retrieve even, with no jolt when the drag starts up, which protects thin leaders of 6 to 10 hundredths.

• 2000BD for perch and trout, 6 lb braid with a fluorocarbon leader
• 3000BD for black bass and zander, 10 to 12 lb braid
• Braid-ready carbon spool: braid ties straight onto the spool

The one-piece bail wire prevents fine braid from catching on the cast, a classic wear point on finesse reels. Pair it with a quality fine braid to make the most of the direct contact this rigid body and carbon spool combination gives you.