Got another zillion, and its performance is great, but it's almost like the second stage of the spring isn't working. Great distance, but lots of fluffing, even at 15. It's like it's 7 or so notches above what's on the dial - at 10 (halfway) it should be difficult to backlash throwing a good jerkbait. At 10 it was like "woah I better get some thumb involved". Never actually backlashed, just fluffy.

 

Stuck magnet? Funky spring? Some ramp that has a burr on it? 

Tug on the spool rotor and compare it to another example to see if there is a difference on how the rotor feels.  You can also swap spools between reels to see if it's a spool or reel issue 

Try tightening the ZERO ADJUSTER just a small amount.  I found that on a little goes a long way. Also, jerkbaits can be strange to cast, at least for me. If I am bomb casting one,  it tends to go all over the place, even jerkbaits with casting transfer weights. This can cause some fluffing at the end of the cast.