I put together a 500 size Shimano reels using what I thought was the best of both and I think it turned out great !
I used the body from my Shimano Soare BB 500spg which weighs 5.4oz and has a gear ratio of 4.7/1 . 4/1 bearing count . The Soare BB had a shallow spool that would only hold about 75 yards of line at best .
I swapped the spool and handle with a Shimano Nasci 500 that weighs 6.0 oz and has a gear ratio 5.6/1 and a 4/1 bearing count , but I added a bearing to the handle.
What I got was a 500 size reel that weighs 5.4oz , holds about 190 yards of 2# line , and has a longer tuned handle . The bearing count went to 5/1 .
This reel is as smooth as my Soare XR .
The drag isn’t super loud , but it’s super smooth, I can live with that .
I filled it with 2# Floroclear and paired it up with a 6’3” Abu Garcia MB3 light rod .
A beautiful morning, sunny , a little breezy , mid sixties .
I used the same handtied black streamer jig with a 4mm Tungsten bead the entire two hours .
It was a green fish day and I caught eleven and had two get off .
I also caught two shellcrackers and a couple of nice bluegills .
I really like this reel configuration, it has everything I wanted in a 500 size reel .
I think it looks pretty good too!