Fat tommy, i use the penn metal reels for stripers and blues in the salt, and they are TOUGH. -Smooth , reliable drags, and they can handle anything in freshwater,the 650 model is my smallest, and it's big,maybe too big for you are looking for,but they make smaller models with the same gearing/drag systems.
With that said, I don't think you can beat a baitcaster for trolling,if birdsnests are the problem, try a model with a clicker, and for trolling, you'll never have a problem.-I'm partial to the garcia c-4 series.