So I just got an okuma krios of the bay and took it for a spin today. Noticed three weird things. One the handle moves parallel to the shaft (horizontally) meaning it has some play. The drag has to be put super tight (in fact I can't spin the star anymore) in order for the line to not easily slip. Third and last, I backlashed the reel (user error) and noticed theres a small opening between the reel spool and the frame of the reel, big enough for the line (12lb fluoro) to slip into. Did I get a dud, a pirated reel or just plain lousy one? any ideas what to do? thanks for you time.

Sounds like it's not been assembled properly.

 

Do yourself a favour though and only buy reels made by Daiwa or Shimano in the future. It just makes life easier and less disappointing. 

The space in between the spool and frame sounds like you have the spool tension extremely loose. 

You might be able to add/change drag washers to be able to tighten the drag down without cinching it down, but as long as it is tightening I'd probably not be real worried about that.

I've had very good luck with Okuma reels, but haven't tried one of their more inexpensive reels, so not sure if those are known issues with that reel or unique to your reel. 

Was this a used reel? I ask because of the drag situation. When I'm done fishing and come home the first thing I do is back off the drags on all my reels, spinning and casting. If the reel was used, the drag was probably tightened down and never backed off and over time the washers will stay in a compressed state not offering enough resistance to keep line from being pulled. If that is the case you can contact Okuma and buy a new drag stack or if the reel is new you can tell them the problem and they will take care of it, Okuma has excellent customer service.

6 hours ago, Tim Kelly said:

Sounds like it's not been assembled properly.

 

Do yourself a favour though and only buy reels made by Daiwa or Shimano in the future. It just makes life easier and less disappointing. 

Although I tend to only buy Shimano because of personal experience and preference.  I disagree, I've owned other reel brands and generally there wasn't quality issues.  

 

For or the OP my advice return it for another if you bought new.  If used then send it to reputable reel expert for fix.

I think the best option will be to take it to an Okuma certified service center, and hope for the best. Thanks all for your opinions and answers. Cheers.