and me without my hip-boots

The optimal level wind design is no level wind! All my salt water reeks from a Squider to International off shore reeks do not have a level wind. I learned to cast a bait caster without a level wind my Langley 340 Target that could cast as good as any of the new design reels. You learn to your fingers to maintain even load of line in the spool.

Tom

 

9 hours ago, Micro Module Police said:

ARK is no better than Aliexpress pepper grinders.

Prove it then. Post a vid of your personal Ark reel GRINDING.

I don't give opinions about things I haven't owned, serviced, or fished with. Mine have been smooth as goose sh...

@WRB-2.0 - you move that into threadline braid matched w/ 100-200-yd spools, and managing working line level disappears with a good concave hand base-wrap:  

 

I was fishing the red 2500CIT in April, casting to 200' (measured on Google Earth), and hooking fish at 180' - never gave line management a 2nd thought, though I need to get it on my line winder and lay a new base wrap before I take out again at the end of the month.  

On 9/4/2025 at 6:03 AM, MassYak85 said:

 

2. I have not had any issues with the T-wing down to sub-feezing temps. Ice accumulates but no more than any other line guide.

 

3. Not sure how this is the case since it's locked around the levelwind housing and and rides on a pawl the same as any other line guide. 

 

4. This is my only major gripe. I simply use a shorter leader (6'). 

 

5. Not really. I service all my reels and never have an issue. The levelwind housing just has a part of it that interlocks with the thumb bar assembly and you have to remember to interlock the two when reassembling. It isn't difficult at all. 

 

6. Never had an issue doing the "bow" method with a T-wing. 

The difference between ice accumulation on the standard line guide and the t-wing is that the line lay gets completely destroyed on the t-wing, while not much is happening on standard line guides. I don't understand how this is not something that has happened to you.

Because there isn't just lateral play like on a normal line guide, but a decent amount of vertical play as well.

It isn't difficult, it's just more stuff to do for no pros.

Did you check the front top of your reels? By doing the bow technique, unless it's done at an angle, you cut the top section with line. On metal, it will only mess up the paint, but when the hood is made out of plastic like on the zillion, you will slice through it.

 

On 9/4/2025 at 7:50 AM, PhishLI said:

Prove it then. Post a vid of your personal Ark reel GRINDING.

I don't give opinions about things I haven't owned, serviced, or fished with. Mine have been smooth as goose sh...

I don't want one even for free. Nothing to prove, it's just yet another 13fishing tier noname brand. If it's not a Shimano or a Daiwa, it better be super cheaper for me to even bother with, which is usually not the case.

5 hours ago, PhishLI said:

Mine have been smooth as goose sh...

I have two, both smooth as a goose sh...

 

If one is not, I wonder if it has been taken apart when new to "clean and lube it properly." 

11 hours ago, Micro Module Police said:

Nothing to prove

Thaaaat's what I figured.

 

Eh, you're free to fantasize about things you've never touched just like anyone else with a heartbeat and a keyboard, but that doesn't add credibility to your arguments. I doubt that's your goal anyway in these tedious, kooky, brand-bashing, whining complaint posts.

 

I should've known better to bother. I know better.

maybe fatigue is in the thread itself?  

 

 

^^ what he said ^^

Or, may be... other.

 

When I worked in a rod and reel repair shop years ago we did stopwatch tests on various reel techs when putting together reels from a pile of individual parts.

 

Hands down Daiwa nearly ALWAYS took longer than Shimano and most other brands. More labor. Less profit margin in that alone, especially for the techs paid by the reel on commission.

33 minutes ago, FloridaFishinFool said:

Hands down Daiwa nearly ALWAYS took longer than Shimano and most other brands.

Everyone is entitled to their preferences for whatever reason, but AFAIK, nobody here is doing production reel repair though. Baitcasters, even Daiwas, must be the most dumb-simple machines I've ever worked on.

2 minutes ago, PhishLI said:

Baitcasters, even Daiwas, must be the most dumb-simple machines I've ever worked on.

Ya - compared to the machines I helped build at one place....casting reels are Erector sets compared to an internal-combustion engine.

15 minutes ago, PhishLI said:

Daiwas, must be the most dumb-simple machines I've ever worked on.

 

You may be right! I think you are onto something. Maybe that's why they are so popular?

On 9/4/2025 at 1:17 AM, Micro Module Police said:

There's no way that you're fishing in freezing weather, and have not had any issues with the t-wing.

I spend plenty of time in freezing weather, majority of my casting reels have T-Wing.

 

If its cold enough to ice - your guides, tip, levelwind, worm gears, etc are all going to have issues  - My experience is that the T-Wing movement when you engage it actually shakes some of the ice off occasionally.... So at worst its the same as any other reel...At best its a little better.  But when you're in these conditions nothing works as it should.  I've been out on days where I actually found that I could ONLY use T-Wing reels because everything else was freezing too much....Though it was still challenging.

 

I generally don't get into gear arguments but was compelled comment because to me, the T-Wing actually has tangible benefit in icy weather.  

6 minutes ago, Logan S said:

I spend plenty of time in freezing weather, majority of my casting reels have T-Wing.

 

I generally don't get into gear arguments but was compelled comment because to me, the T-Wing actually has tangible benefit in icy weather.  

 

Thanks for the great laugh this morning! 🤣  Your Daiwa issue is NOT something us Florida boys have to deal with thankfully! I am still laughing at this one. A good one!

 

I never knew ice could be a determining factor! This is a new one on me! Thanks!

12 minutes ago, FloridaFishinFool said:

 

Thanks for the great laugh this morning! 🤣  Your Daiwa issue is NOT something us Florida boys have to deal with thankfully! I am still laughing at this one. A good one!

 

I never knew ice could be a determining factor! This is a new one on me! Thanks!

First place I ever experienced guides icing up was on the St Johns, I grew up down there ....Don't jinx yourself.  

Huh. I've been here living along that river my whole life since 1964 and I never had ice on my reels. Maybe I just never went out when it was THAT cold. The bass always went some place to hide on me! I guess I did too!

22 minutes ago, Logan S said:

First place I ever experienced guides icing up was on the St Johns, I grew up down there ....Don't jinx yourself.  

I was stationed down there and have wade fished the St. John’s in both January and February. I also first hand watched the space shuttle explode from the flight line at NAS Cecil Field, Florida. ( Think far west side of Jax ) 

We were trying to launch two S3A aircraft to run MAD BOOM operations for fuel tank locations. It was brutally cold that morning. Lots of aircraft issues. But it can certainly get very cold in Florida. Cold enough to ice. 
I remember the orange groves all lit up too.. 

10 minutes ago, F14A-B said:

I was stationed down there and have wade fished the St. John’s in both January and February. I also first hand watched the space shuttle explode from the flight line at NAS Cecil Field, Florida. ( Think far west side of Jax ) 

 

 

Oh man you had to go there! You and I both shared the same point of view on that fateful cold morning. I was just a couple of miles from where you stood to watch the same tragedy from Cecil Air Field.

 

My father spent most of his career at NAS JAX from 1956 to 1982 before transferring to Orlando Naval Training Center to finish out his career there in 1988. One of these days I will have to tell you what my father did out there. It was mind blowing! Especially for an 11 year old kid when my father took me to work with him out there back in 1975. A life changing experience for me.

Just now, FloridaFishinFool said:

 

Oh man you had to go there! You and I both shared the same point of view on that fateful cold morning. I was just a couple of miles of where you stood to watch the same tragedy.

I lived on Jammes road at that time. But I never knew where in the city you lived, I had heard you mentioned Orange Park before. That’s Clay county right? I ultimately moved to Green Cove Springs. County line road 209A I think 😂😂 can’t hardly remember. I remember San Juan too. Some rough bars I been into. 😂 anyway I’m getting sideways on the thread. 

6 minutes ago, FloridaFishinFool said:

 

Oh man you had to go there! You and I both shared the same point of view on that fateful cold morning. I was just a couple of miles from where you stood to watch the same tragedy from Cecil Air Field.

 

My father spent most of his career at NAS JAX from 1956 to 1982 before transferring to Orlando Naval Training Center to finish out his career there in 1988. One of these days I will have to tell you what my father did out there. It was mind blowing! Especially for an 11 year old kid when my father took me to work with him out there back in 1975. A life changing experience for me.

Awesome! Look forward to hearing about it. 

 

Yep. Orange Park close to river.

 

 

On 9/4/2025 at 6:28 AM, Lead Head said:

Put me in the t-wing fatigue camp. The way I fish bottom contact makes any reel with a t-wing completely unusable. I would love a modern zillion without the t-wing. 

^^I will agree with this^^ 

 

I used to put a finger under the line and lift slightly to feel the line when fishing bottom contact. When I used my first Twing for this, I started noticing line lay issues.

 

Started looking and realized when I did that on a Twing, I was lifting the line out of the narrow portion and it then rode loose in the wide upper portion affecting line lay.

 

Took a bit to get used to, but I started resting a finger on top of the line to feel it instead of under. Works fine ever since.

 

I personally have no other issues with the Twing.

4 hours ago, Logan S said:

I spend plenty of time in freezing weather, majority of my casting reels have T-Wing.

 

If its cold enough to ice - your guides, tip, levelwind, worm gears, etc are all going to have issues  - My experience is that the T-Wing movement when you engage it actually shakes some of the ice off occasionally.... So at worst its the same as any other reel...At best its a little better.  But when you're in these conditions nothing works as it should.  I've been out on days where I actually found that I could ONLY use T-Wing reels because everything else was freezing too much....Though it was still challenging.

 

I generally don't get into gear arguments but was compelled comment because to me, the T-Wing actually has tangible benefit in icy weather.  

So polishing ice with a swiffer does have entertainment value??

8 hours ago, Logan S said:

I spend plenty of time in freezing weather, majority of my casting reels have T-Wing.

 

If its cold enough to ice - your guides, tip, levelwind, worm gears, etc are all going to have issues  - My experience is that the T-Wing movement when you engage it actually shakes some of the ice off occasionally.... So at worst its the same as any other reel...At best its a little better.  But when you're in these conditions nothing works as it should.  I've been out on days where I actually found that I could ONLY use T-Wing reels because everything else was freezing too much....Though it was still challenging.

 

I generally don't get into gear arguments but was compelled comment because to me, the T-Wing actually has tangible benefit in icy weather.  

And this is with fluoro mainly? Cuz i almost always use braid to a fluoro leader, and braid absorbs more water, especially thicker diameters. It's just crazy to me that you've never had it when the line lay on the spool becomes disastrous after the narrow section of the t-wing is frozen.

22 hours ago, Micro Module Police said:

And this is with fluoro mainly? Cuz i almost always use braid to a fluoro leader, and braid absorbs more water, especially thicker diameters. It's just crazy to me that you've never had it when the line lay on the spool becomes disastrous after the narrow section of the t-wing is frozen.

To me, flouro is the cold weather line, it sheds/repels water the best.  If your guides are icing then braid is too and it's probably making your guide icing worse.  I guess you could use mono, but outside of topwater I personally don't...And topwater ain't too thigh on the list if I'm worried about ice.

 

T-Wing isn't immune to ice but it's a wider opening on the cast which helps...And the snap back and forth it does when engaging the reel shakes some ice off if you're lucky.  

 

When you're out in those kinds of conditions everything sort of sucks, so I've taken care to notice these little things that make it suck slightly less.