FrnkNsteen

Same! I use a single thin layer on all my cork handled rods

I just bought one recently. Haven't even had a chance to fish it yet. I sold a St Croix Legend Glass on the consignment rack of a local shop because as much as I wanted to, I just never grew to like it. When I went to pick up the cash for it, I saw that someone had a Destroyer Crankin Elseil on the rack for what I thought was a reasonable price considering it was like new. I threw in the extra cash and took it home with me. All I have done so far was put my Zillion SV on it and cast a casting plug around the yard. I like the feel of it, but won't be able to test it for a while now that winter has started kicking in here in Indiana!

By the way... Now that I know the trick... Here is the TDZ 103ML

The screenshot method and then cropping seemed to work pretty good. Let's see if this works...

Thanks @redmeansdistortion. That sounds good. Please let me know if you have one and what you would want for it. Just drop me a direct message when you get a chance. My phone is a Pixel 9 Pro. I have done a lot of reading online and confirmed there isn't a clean way to resize pics. I like your idea of doing a screen shot. Let me try that and see if it reduces the file sizes enough that I can get them below the max for posting!

Thanks for the info @redmeansdistortionI appreciate that. I actually have some of the 7.2 gears coming from Tackle Trap that I had JUST bought for my other Sol reels before buying this new one. I will look for 33mm spools as backups. @Eric 26.... I will take a couple pictures when I can. My new phone takes too big of pictures and doesn't have a way to resize them, so taking pics and posting them unfortunately forces me to email them to my home computer for resizing, then sending them back to my phone to post. No,... Bought them because who doesn't want a mint old classic?! Only thought about the concern with using them after the fact. My wife agrees with all of you and that I should use them when I want. You all make some good points. I have extra spools for the TDZ, so I may leave the original in the box with the clear band and label on it and use one of the others in it's place so as not to deface it. Thanks everyone!!

That's not good, and sad to hear!!

Ok Guys, Just bought a new in box left handed Team Daiwa Sol and got it for what I think is a VERY reasonable price. Just received it and as described, it seems to be absolutely new. Still in the original bag with the instruction sheet still in its original bag as well as the little bottle oil in its small little bag. The box is even pristine Took the reel out and it is spotless!! So here comes the question.... Do I fish it or keep it new in box? I've got a new in box TDZ 103ML that I just can't make myself use because "They are only new once". But the other side of me says what good does it do sitting on a shelf. That's like seeing an original 60's Muscle car come across the auction with almost no miles. I always think it's a shame it sat all those years and nobody ever had the chance to enjoy it! Thoughts? Opinions?

Looks good to me. In my experience,... You will know when it has gotten old and thickened because it won't apply the same.

Very true!! My first thought was, I wonder if that TD Zillion and those T3 reels are left handed! 😁

The Gen3 Revo S and Revo STX are the most recent offerings from them that I still have and use. I still like their feel, they are smooth and cast well. If I remember correctly, they started switching around braking setups between the models after that and I just stopped following them. I liked the centrifugal brakes Revo S with the 6spd for casting moving baits. The STX had the dual braking that was in a nice light frame. 7spd reel in a 6.4oz frame worked nice for a lot of things!! I have checked out a couple of their newer models with the asymmetric bodies, but just didn't get a good enough feeling to pull the trigger.

I agree. I hate a tip heavy spinning reel in most instances. Small cranks or jerk baits might be the exception because I tend to run them tip down. For example,... I have a couple Phoenix Feather spinning rods that are very light. My issue with them is the handle and butt of those rods are SO light that a light reel doesn't balance right and they always feel tip heavy. I put a paiir of Stradic 2500 reels on them because the heavier Stradics balance the setup better than the Tatula or Vanford I tried on there. I like them now because they balance much better. I guess I'd rather have a slightly heavier rig that is balanced than just a lighter weight rig overall.

I've used some of their soft plastics and as someone said above, they seem to split and tear just trying to load them on the hook. Don't know why. Had the same issue with Berkley Deal swimbaits. Couldn't seem to get them around the bend of the hook and onto the keeper of a jig without the splitting and tearing. I think I had tried the Bandito bug in both sizes, Krackin Kraw, or whatever it's called and a couple other I can't remember. Gave it all away and stuck with other products I liked better.

Sorry, but impossible to tell someone which reels to keep or get rid of. Only you know which are in better or worse shape, or which you prefer in YOUR HANDS and on YOUR RODS. All are good reels in their own right. It's up to you to decide which you like better than the others. Get rid of the ones you don't like as much.

Agreed! And I don't mean to offend anyone, but even if you did... Why couldn't the customer differentiate between the new and used items? I bought LOTS of stuff from them, both online and on site since they are only a couple hours south of us. Only had one issue with a rod getting broken in shipment, and it was a used one at that. They credited me instantly so I could order something else to replace it if I wanted. Then they emailed me a shipping label so I could just cut down the shipping tube and ship the broken one back after the fact. Brian was always very friendly and helpful when dealing with him. Not saying that means he can successfully run a business, but I will definitely give him a chance!! Does anyone know if they have reopened yet?

Is the 6.8 the one you just got? Was it used? Maybe sticky or worn brakes shoes. Maybe try turning off those shoes and turning on different ones to see if it changes?

I have rods of various material, but I much prefer cork, just due to feel

If you didn't like the new Tatula 100 or the 80,... You probably aren't going to like the Zillion. They aren't exactly the same, but at least in my opinion,... If you don't like one, you probably won't like the other either. They aren't THAT different.

Sad to hear!! I've bought A LOT of new and used rods and reels through them, as well as trading in a handful. They were only about 1:1/2 hours south of us, so we would run down there every so often, get some lunch somewhere, maybe some ice cream at Cold Stone, then stop by ALF to look around. Always liked going there and looking through the used stuff!!

The newer Daiwa reels with T-wing DO have that different "Wide at the front" feel than other brands, but it honestly has never bothered me. It's just different. Given the fact that pretty much ALL Daiwa reels have the Twing now, except maybe the Fuego and maybe a couple others... I'd say it is here to stay, at least for the short term until they come up with something else to distinguish themselves.

Interesting. I had assumed the thought was that the torque applied to the rod blank, as you said, was transferring that same torque to your handle, therefore torquing the rod in your grip. Never used one, so only speaking from my thinking, not experience. I figured the eyelets being on the bottom was the intent to help keep some of the load off the rod and put it more on the guides themselves without the line contacting the rod, this needing more guides.

I have seen a few in the used rod racks at American Legacy, but I don't have any myself. I know a couple people who do and they like them for trolling. One uses them for trolling big musky lures and the other for trolling Walleye. Come to think of it... I seem to remember my nephew saying he has one he uses for fishing sturgeon in the river currents. I think the benefit is the rod doesn't try to torque around in your hands while under heavy loads. I think they like them for trolling because they tend to sit in the rod holders in a better orientation to grab quick when they load up. I could be wrong on that though.

These were a couple old Team Daiwa reels I picked up. One was an old original TD Fuego and the other was a TD Z 103HL. I never had the money for those old TD reels back in the day and had forgotten about them. Stumbled across one at a swap and it started me down a bit of a rabbit hole of all those old TDZ, TDX, Sol, T3, and Alphas reels. A couple of the ones I picked up had some casting issues when I got them where they would intermittently fluff real bad or flat out birdsnest. Turned out it seemed to be the brake inductors sticking. God only knows how they were stored over the years or what may have caused the sticking. They work great now and I use them fairly regularly. The Fuego is on a swim jig rod and the TDZ 103HL (the LH reels with the clutch lever up on the top) is used for pitching jigs on an Ark Invoker L.E. rod.

Probably not the right way!! 😜😜 I sprayed mine with a bit of brake cleaner, worked the inductor in and out a few times and moved things around a bit and blew it back out. THEN,... I thought about that there are a few plastic pieces in there that probably don't like brake cleaner very much and could have gotten very unhappy!! Fortunately, mine seemed to be fine and had no issues. Hindsight being 20/20,.... I would probably choose something a little safer to plastics like maybe isopropyl alcohol or something. Mine was giving me random backlashes as Fishtank described so I was looking at the brakes and noticed the inductor was sticky and didn't want to come out like it should. Not very smart, but I sprayed it without thinking about it and it freed it up. Tried it and it was casting great with no more fluffing or backlash issues. Ideally,... You would be better off disassembling it and clean the parts individually. I don't have one here at work with me, but if I remember correctly, there is a little e-type retainer clip that holds things in place that can be removed and slide the components off the shaft for cleaning.

I had a couple Daiwa act that way and it turned out to be the inductor sticking and not extending on the cast so it never got the braking effect from the magnets. I cleaned all the parts in the inductor assy and it stopped having the issue. Just a thought