Van Staal is known throughout the east coast as a manufacturer of some of the best surf fishing tackle in the world. Through the generosity and kindness of Rudy Koelewyn, the President of Van Staal Fishing Tackle, I have been given a VS-250 spinning reel to evaluate and review. This review is a compilation of many fishing trips which lasted over the last 2 years, soo, you can bet I know this product rather well...
The VS-250 arrived in a small box via UPS, and upon opening, it was immediately obvious that I had something special here. My reel was packaged in it's own blue, rip stop nylon pouch with draw string, which doubles as a storage sack. This may be easily slipped over the reel and synched, to keep dirt and the weather off.
The first thing I noticed was the absence of bells, whistles, and other extraneous paraphernalia, that is often found on the competitions product. This reel is manufactured using the tried and true adage of K.I.S.S. (Keep-It-Simple-Stupid) and is an engineering masterpiece. Inspection of my reel revealed all the attention to detail that Van Staal is known for. My reel had a deep black, gunmetal blued finish, that was flawless. A light sheen of oil gives a rich luster. The handle must be turned to the open position and locked to rotate the crank. This is held in place with a star shaped wing nut. The rotor cup is machined aluminum with diagonal lightening holes. With the first turn of the crank I was in love. This reel is so smooth, it feels as though the parts are friction less. The anti-reverse feature on the crank is superior. There was no tendency of the rotor to back-up, making the anti-reverse positive and precise. This reel is bailess, and the roller guide is of fine quality, with bearings that are smooooth. You can flick this roller and watch it spin effortlessly. The spool fit perfectly to the rotor shaft, without a bit of play, up or down, or side to side. The drag is situated on the front of the spool a-la Penn-Krack.
I loaded my reel for Bear. I use about 300 yds. of 20 lb. Berkley Big Game Mono as a backing, filling the spool to just below the outer edge of the lightening holes on the front. To this I added 150 yds. of Berkeley Fireline as my casting material. Do you think this is enough? A 10 ft., med action, graphite rod was a perfect match for this reel. I have also used an 11 ft. rod with outstanding results, but for general use, the 10 ft. is great. Off to the beach we go!
The first cast revealed that the VS-250 is a true
beach Machine! I could throw a 1
1/2 oz bucktail 100 turns (90 yds) consistently. The retrieve was effortless
and silky. Throwing plugs brought the same results. A Musso Darter would
do about 100-110 turns with no wind. The lack of a bail takes a little getting
used too, but this to feature is more asset more than liability. There is
less to go wrong, such as a faulty bail breaking off that expensive plug.
Watch when you cast into a strong headwind though. This can cause the line
to wrap the drag nut, so keep an eye out on those windy nights! With the
anti-reverse feature, hook-ups are instantaneous and sharp.
Fighting a fish brought out the VS-250's one bad fault, the drag system. The drag on the Van Staal is essentially a Penn drag. The washers are even interchangeable between the Penn 704-750 and the VS-250-300. The difference is the size of the spool, which I believe causes the VS-250 drag to have a jerky stop and go feel. I found that fighting a big fish was best done with a lighter drag setting than I would normally prefer. This did not cause any undue problems, but did prolong the fight. Taking the reel home, I called Van Staal and they sent me the Beehive replacement drag washers which did improve the performance somewhat. I was told by Ron Dietrich that Van Staal will be coming out with a new, sealed drag system for the 200-300 in early 2000. There will be a retrofit available also for older reels. This should fix the problem. I have used this drag system on a VS-150 and it is sweet! One other small problem was ware to the roller and its bearings. The fact that I use braided superline on my reel seems to cause more ware to the roller guide than expected. I believe this is due to the chrome plating on the roller. Van Staal is aware of this deficiency and is retrofitting all returned reels with a titanium roller to solve the problem.
Those of you who know me, know just how hard I fish. I
am an "extremist", in that I will often be found
submerged up to my neck in the water (swim-fishing, rock climbing, surf
pounding, etc...) In this respect, the VS-250 is a winner! The water tight
system is a big plus for those of you who pursue that lunker beyond the
beach. I have often fought fish with the reel fully immersed, and I have
had no problems with corrosion. 
I
found that all I need do to maintain the reel was a wash down with fresh
water, and a good squirt of Teflon spray lube, when I get home. The blued
finish does show scratches rather easily. I would suggest the gold finish
for those of you who are concerned with this. I would also highly recommend
that you return your VS to the factory for service at the end of the season,
each year. This is required to keep the warranty valid(which by the way
is LIFETIME!). Van Staal will clean and service the reel,
and exchange any broken or worn parts for a nominal fee.
In conclusion I will state that the VS-250 is one of the most durable and reliable reels on the market today. I have been using this reel for two years now and I love it. There is no other reel on the market today that would stand up to the abuse that I have put my VS-250 through... The $489 price tag does remove it from the average man's pocketbook, but for those of you who require the best, I would say you are getting your money's worth!