I like how fast the magnum 5 retrieves and how fast you can get to the depth quickly and the price is great, also the magnum 5 does not come with the swivel base you have to buy the magnum 10 to get the swivel base or pay for the swivel base separately but I will get a swivel base at a later time, the magnum 5 works great for what I like to fish for, trout, great product and well made.

Great product! It does take a little time to get used to the really fast retrieve, but once you do fishing deep water >40 feet has never been easier. Bought two of them and can't tell which one I'm using. Would definitely recommend them and I finally got my wife to use a downrigger. She didn't like to raise a 10 lb weight by hand. I don't quite understand the technology behind the system that stops the weight at the surface, but it sure works well. The amount of adjustment on the riggers is unbelievable and I frequently use both by myself, while running the trolling motor.. If they were a little lighter they would be five stars.

Works well overall. One of the two I ordered was missing a nut in the housing for attaching the rod holder. All the rubber washers on the screws in the housing were overtightened, seriously deforming the washers. Their customer service was easy to work with to get the missing hardware but it was an unnecessary delay.

Having fished Cannon manual downriggers for decades, the MAG 5 ST downrigger is the bomb!
Should have bought one a decade or more ago but the manual downriggers are just too easy for freshwater lakes when fishing in the 30-50' ranges!

But then again, no substitute for electric downriggers as they are just so easy to use and the ability to instantly retrieve the downrigger ball with just a push of a button, equipped with water line level stop, when a fish strikes is worth every extra penny! Especially when u r fishing larger species like king salmon or Lakers and u don't want to risk a lost fish breaking off against your downrigger line.! It just makes clearing downrigger lines from the water so convenient and efficient when there's a "fish on" that I wish I'd gone the electric route from the very beginning but "you don't know what you don't know" when first starting out!

The MAG 5 ST ease of use, level stop, and build quality of Cannon downriggers is top shelf!

Combine the MAG5 ST with the aftermarket telescopic boom, Cannon p/n 2210821, from Fish307, and you've basically got a MAG 10 STX electric downrigger for about $100 less! All the boom parts on the MAG 5 ST can be use to complete the telescopic boom installation so no need for additional parts just purchase the telescopic boom and u r good to go!

Use the Blacks Marine adjustable release clip and you can fish braided and standard fishing line interchangeable and you've got the best of all worlds! Couple of different options from Blacks pending on how much distance u want from the downrigger ball to the release clip? Available on Amazon.

Having used various downriggers from many of the downrigger manufacturers, Cannon downriggers are the "best of the best"!
Buy with confidence!

Very happy with my new downriggers. Well I think I am not used it yet as the fishing season is over now. But have tested them on my boat. Some say that it is a bit fast. But thats what I need. But think I will be best to lower the ball by just backing off on the clutch.