i just bought one of these that was supposed to be barely used still in box and overall i think it is going to be a good reel. as far as casting goes it is a rocket. i was able to make very long casts with a 1/4 oz. weight with a plastic 3 inch craw. caught 2 bass first trip out. 2 pd smallmouth and 2pd largemouth. seemed very stong when fighting them. me and a freind both have the exact same reel and mine seems a little noisey when retreiving at high speed but his is quiet on the retreive. i dont know how much the used reel i bought was actually used but it looked brand new and was still in box. so i guess before buying it test it to see if it it noisey when cranking. overall i love this reel and the twitchin feature seems like a feature i will use a lot. hope this helps with your decision. later jc