I have made previous posts with general and even specific references to these reels. Within those posts I named these two models--the Johnson 710 and the Johnson Commander 150 Spin-cast Reel--as part of the Johnson SANGA Spin-cast reel family. I will make some links to these posts as well as repeat bits of them as relevant. In this post, I will compare the two reels side by side. I will first differentiate the earliest Johnson Model 710 from the later model.
The reels are very similar internally as far as I can tell, but the cosmetic appearance at least has changed. As Tim, a commenter here who also has another blog site relevant to the subject pointed out regarding the later design, the release button does not protrude above the rest of the rear reel body, making it less prone to snagging and thereby being damaged. Tim went on to state the earlier line-release button having been a weak point of design and that he had seen quite a few of them damaged. I respect Tim's opinion, but I have not personally found this to be the case. I personally prefer the earlier design--the one that more nearly resembles the earliest Johnson Century reels. I have no rational basis for this. I just prefer the earlier design. On the other-hand, Tim prefers the later design. I don't think the Commander 150 was made in the later design, but I could be wrong. I will picture those that I have in hand.
The Johnson 710 is the regular-sized version of the larger SANGA reel model. As best I can tell, except for size, the Johnson 710 reel is design just like the larger SANGA model. The Johnson Commander 150 appears to be exactly the same as the Johnson 710 reel mechanically--with the exception of the Accu-cast feature. This feature is evident in the pictures. It involves a slightly larger opening in the bell where the line exits the reel. This larger opening has a female recptacle that fits the the concave line spool nut. These two parts squeeze the line together when the line release button is pressed. This stops the line in the event of casting too hard or far. The obvious intent was to
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