To me the drag is very important on a reel. I checked a couple of my cheaper reels out and the drag was metal to metal. Not good. To check this pull the spool off and look inside. Around the shaft is where the drag should be. On better reels there's a little disk (plastic washer) in there. If yours doesn't have the washer go to your local Ace hardware store and look where they have the small nuts and bolts. Look for the smallest washer you can find. It will fit over the shaft of your reel and make for a very smooth drag. I put some reel lube on the washer. Cost .05