Lew’s Super Duty Wide 7.1:1 Left Hand

There’s a specific point where a big bait stops being a bass lure and starts being a genuine predator lure – a full-size glidebait, an umbrella rig, a swimbait built to imitate something that eats other fish rather than insects – and that’s exactly the point the Super Duty Wide is built for. Lew’s is direct about the brief: heavy jigs on big line, cumbersome umbrella rigs, giant swimbaits. For UK anglers running big glidebaits at pike or similarly outsized predators on baitcasting tackle, this is one of the more genuinely applicable reels in the whole range, not a bass reel being asked to do a job it wasn’t built for.

The construction reflects that heavier brief throughout: an aluminium sideplate on the handle side gives no-flex support exactly where the load actually is under a heavy retrieve, while the palm-side graphite sideplate keeps the reel from feeling like dead weight in your hand over a long session, finished in a SoftTouch coating for a comfortable palming surface through hours of casting. The 35mm U-shape spool is machined, double-anodized and braid-ready with genuinely large capacity, solid brass Speed Gears deliver the cranking strength this class of bait demands, and an externally adjustable Magnetic Control System gives straightforward, repeatable brake settings once you’ve found what works for a given bait’s weight – simpler to dial in than a multi-pin centrifugal system, which matters when you’re switching between several big baits through a session.

Detailed Specifications

• Retrieve: Left Hand
• Gear ratio: 7.1:1
• Bearings: 11, stainless steel double-shielded with Zero Reverse one-way clutch
• Frame: One-piece aluminium
• Sideplates: Aluminium (handle side), graphite with SoftTouch finish (palm side)
• Spool: 35mm U-shape, double anodised, machined, braid-ready, large capacity
• Braking: Externally adjustable Magnetic Control System
• Gears: Solid brass Speed Gears, Hamai CNC cut
• Handle: 95mm bowed anodised aluminium, EVA power knobs
• Line guide: Titanium-coated zirconia
• Drag: Carbon fibre drag system

Where to Use It

• Big glidebaits and swimbaits fished for pike-class predators
• Flipping heavy jigs on heavy line
• Umbrella rigs and other bulky, wind-resistant lures
• Big crankbaits needing genuine gear strength on the retrieve

Gerry’s Pro Tip

Palm the SoftTouch graphite side of the reel through a normal retrieve as you would any reel – the aluminium sideplate on the handle side is doing the structural work of resisting flex under load, so you get that support exactly where the strain is without extra bulk in your palming hand.

FAQs

Q: Is this reel genuinely suited to pike or other predator fishing with glidebaits?
A: Yes – Lew’s built this specifically for heavy jigs, umbrella rigs and giant swimbaits, which lines up directly with what UK anglers running big glidebaits for pike-class predators need from a baitcasting reel.

Q: What does “Wide” mean compared to a standard Super Duty?
A: It refers to the large-capacity spool built to handle bulkier lines and lures comfortably, rather than a diameter change aimed at casting distance or speed.

Q: Is there a published max drag figure?
A: Lew’s doesn’t specify an exact drag weight for this model – only that it runs a carbon fibre drag system. If a precise figure matters for your setup, it’s worth checking the specific listing before buying.

Q: Is this available in right-hand retrieve?
A: This particular listing is the left-hand version.