SuperWetBlanket

Not a problem. I discovered JDM in 2013-2014, and bought my first reel directly from Japan (ebay) in 2015. Ever since, i didn't buy a single rod or reel locally. Massive waste of money, and a warranty is never needed with reels.

What do you mean "in their mind"? That's factual information. If other brands offered anything on par or better, they wouldn't be a side dish. And there's a big difference of Shimano/Daiwa, and brand loyalists in other markets such as cars, watches, etc. Those other markets have high competition of a lot of different brands that offer top quality, while in fishing, those side brands don't even design their reels for the most part, let alone being able to manufacture them. So what exactly are you supposed to expect from that? Nothing. Not expecting this to change for the next 20 years either. Side Dish Brands like 13fishing, Ark, etc will rise, go under, and be forgotten, while Shimano/Daiwa ain't going anywhere, and are only improving *for the most part* with every generation.

Why buy a dedicated reel for a travel rod? I have a bunch of travel rods in 4-5pc, and i just use whatever reel i own and like on them. No reason not to.

You can't be both, a shimano and a daiwa fanboy. That's like mixing water and oil.

Sure, i live in the best bubble on the market. Why would i move out of it, and get into inferior products? I don't have time nor money to waste on that.

Good decision. On my end, i wouldn't even be considering them when shimano and daiwa performs as well as they do.

It's crazy how expensive they're selling these now. I remember they were like ~$75canadian when first released. You know it doesn't cost them anything to make em in China, so the profits margins must be sweet.

Zero experience with them, but at least they aren't ugly reels.

Generally speaking, the shape of the reel. Fat front, with a thin back is not comfy at all to me. But the biggest issue for jerkbaits was the palming side plate. The portion belows digs into the palm when jerking all day with it.

Trust me, i have tried, and made my own spacers, telling myself this is the reason. I was so annoyed for two seasons in a row, using my pixy for smallies and walleye, and you kept feeling the d**n tick once every handle turn. I then bought the collar that is on your amo spool from Plat, and the tick is completely gone. That red collar from the PX68 Finesse Special spool is a mess. Even with the original bearing, two out of the three spools i had, had the tick. It genuinely made me go insnane, i even bought a new gear set thinking it was that. So for anyone using that collar, watch out.

That's all i use for a long time. In case you get the daiwa tick when using this spool, its the red bearing retainer that is on these spools. Took me ages to find the issue, but out of three of these i've had, two had the tick, but only with that retainer.

More expensive reels won't catch you more fish, but when the bit is dead, they're much more fun to use than a $100 reel. That is the only reason to invest into high end.

Yea, i had the magnesium version. I was referring to the newest Steez, though. The 2016 steez isn't for me, the front is way too fat, and not too comfy to palm. I also hated it for jerkbaits. They're not bad reels at all, but with the release of the new Tatutal, they're are far inferior in everything (maybe cast a few feet further, but who is gonna notice that). So the Tatula is the reason, which isn't only superior, but also can be had for noticeably cheaper.

Price is one of the main reasons why shimano and daiwa is better. Years ago, these two didn't have anything "cheap", so if your budget is low, you had no choice but to choose another brand. Daiwa now has the Tatula 80-100 and Shimano has the SLX. For a low price, you're not gonna beat this with another brand.

Why buy a brand that doesn't even design their reels? Let alone manufacture them.

Always price point.

I still see too many people still suggesting the Curado on reddit and the youtube comments, and that has triggered me🙂So here's my list for the entry level, mid range and high tier. The absolute best bang per buck (ordered from Japan of course). Entry Tier: The new Tatula 100, 150 or the 200, depending on the capacity you need. That Tat80 is also there if capacity isn't too important, or you want a smaller reel. These are smoother than reels that cost much higher, silent, and most importantly, smoothness that lasts because of their gear set. Mid Tier: 21Zillion is still king. I know the Zillion HD was just ~$35 more expensive before the tariffs, and that would've been the absolute best per buck reel the industry has ever seen, but nowadays, i don't know for what they're going for, so i'll vote for the 21Zil. Everyone already knows how smooth and long lasting they're, so no explanations are needed on why i consider these as the best for the mid range. High Tier: 24 Shimano Metanium DC (my personal favorite shimano made to date). Even though these have my nemesis - the micro module, mine is still perfectly smooth after a season, so it has passed the test. Great caster, smooth, perfectly comfy frame to palm. Outside of the gear set, the only thing i would've preferred in this reel is for it to have a metal palming side plate like the Bantam, and i wouldn't care about the added weight. Daiwa high end has failed with their Steez in my opinion. Amazing frame, looks nice, and casts well, but a non 34mm spool and non adjustable zero adjuster is an automatic garbage bin to me🤢 What's your three reels that you consider as the best for each tier?

Standards of a lot of people are extremely low when it comes to smoothness and noise on a reel. Especially true from those who consider their reels as "tools" and nothing else. They simply don't pay attention to any of it, until the reel breaks, and only then they'll complain about the reel.

Shimano ACE-2 exclusively, and this goes to all reels, not just shimano's.

Until the gear set becomes noisy as hell, then i'll come here to complain, of course.

If its not a shimano or a daiwa, its not worth a cent. Of course there are exceptions, especially for SW, but in general, i don't know why one would bother on any other brand when you have quality low end, great mid range, and excellent high end from both companies.

Got rid of all my spinning gear at the end of 2012 season. Ever since, been using nothing but BFS. I see no disadvantages, not even a tiny one. Amazingly fun to fish walleye with.

The X Ship should be a given. Had a lot of trouble understanding why it took Shimano this long when Daiwa had it since what? The 90s? Crazy.

I am not a massive fan of OG shimano's because of their braking system, but if they were to relaunch the same E series with their newer SVS brakes, with an external braking dial, that would be crazy. Outside of the Metanium, i wouldn't even consider anything else from Shimano if they did it.

For full fluoro line, i like it for just two reasons. I feel like the action on jerkbaits is superior. There's more slashing on a jerk. Secondly, i like the feel of it when grinding rocks with squarebills. That's it, i don't use full fluoro for anything else. The main reason i use a fluoro leader at all times is for abrasion resistance, and it helps against pike/musky teeth (sometimes lol).