1 hour ago, FrnkNsteen said:

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

 

 

1 hour ago, FrnkNsteen said:

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

 

I remember drooling over those in the BPS catalog back in the day. Both of those are absolutely amazing looking!

Just bought a brand new in box 2011 Calcutta DC. Paranoid fishing begins with this one in April 2026.

@FrnkNsteen dude that thing is sweet! 

 

@Eric 26 so you're resizing the pic when actually loading to the site correct. 

3 hours ago, FrnkNsteen said:

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

 

Orange anodize always looks sharp.  

23 hours ago, FrnkNsteen said:

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?

Customize that puppy out.  The longer you wait the harder it will be to find those reels in good shape at good prices.  The 1st thing I would do is get 15 Alphas SV gears for it.  That gear set is special and super smooth.  From there you can do whatever you want from making a BFS reel, skipping reel or a crankbait reel.  It's an old Alphas and the sky is the limit.  

 

Here is a pic of my favorite Sol a member on a another forum has.  It's a beautiful and has almost got me to buy and build one myself. 

I didn't even see the TD-Z.  That's a 103 so it uses the standard 34mm spool modern Daiwas use.  Being a lefty you also have the option of the left hand only faster 7:1 gear ratio.  Nice find.

Loan it to me.  With the condition it will be in when you get it back, your only decision will be, keep it or throw it away.

7 hours ago, Kev-mo said:

@FrnkNsteen dude that thing is sweet! 

 

@Eric 26 so you're resizing the pic when actually loading to the site correct. 

Sorry for the late response but yes.

12 hours ago, Bigbox99 said:

Customize that puppy out.  The longer you wait the harder it will be to find those reels in good shape at good prices.  The 1st thing I would do is get 15 Alphas SV gears for it.  That gear set is special and super smooth.  From there you can do whatever you want from making a BFS reel, skipping reel or a crankbait reel.  It's an old Alphas and the sky is the limit.  

I have three other Sol reels that I had picked up along the way that I plan to play with and tweak. This new one is so pristine and smooth, it will likely stay as is.

 

That said though... on the others I have... The handles are riveted and have become a little sloppy, so I am looking at replacing them.

 

For now, I have found a few that fit. The nicest and most convenient, are actually a couple Revo STX handles I had laying around that I had replaced with some lighter carbon fiber handles. They bolt right on the the Sol and even clear the flat drag star (Barely!). They have bearings and have been shimmed to remove all slop. Very smooth!

 

I have 3 sets of 7.2:1 gear sets coming from Tackle Trap that I noticed they still have in stock.

 

Having trouble finding many options for the 33mm spools that @redmeansdistortion said these take. I did some searches on Amazon, the big auction site, as well as Google and didn't find much. The few I DID find were a little ridiculous on price. Have a hard time paying more for a spool than I did for ANY of these Sol reels, including the NIB one I just got.

 

I do really like these reels! They are small, compact, and the ones I have are pretty smooth. I believe these are 5.8 gear ratio if I'm not wrong, which is fine on the light crank rod I have one on, but I have another on a Kistler Jerkbait Special rod and one on a top water that could maybe use a little faster gear.

 

Overall I am pretty happy with these!

5.8 is correct which is why I also use them mostly for crankbaits.  Since you already have 3, saving a pristine one as a collectible is not a bad thing.  I'm a fan of the Alphas reels.  Besides the 2 Sols, I have the SV105, Type F, ito 103Ai, and 3 of the Purple ones.  Seems I'm way behind you, tho.  

 

 

6 hours ago, FrnkNsteen said:

I have three other Sol reels that I had picked up along the way that I plan to play with and tweak. This new one is so pristine and smooth, it will likely stay as is.

 

That said though... on the others I have... The handles are riveted and have become a little sloppy, so I am looking at replacing them.

 

For now, I have found a few that fit. The nicest and most convenient, are actually a couple Revo STX handles I had laying around that I had replaced with some lighter carbon fiber handles. They bolt right on the the Sol and even clear the flat drag star (Barely!). They have bearings and have been shimmed to remove all slop. Very smooth!

 

I have 3 sets of 7.2:1 gear sets coming from Tackle Trap that I noticed they still have in stock.

 

Having trouble finding many options for the 33mm spools that @redmeansdistortion said these take. I did some searches on Amazon, the big auction site, as well as Google and didn't find much. The few I DID find were a little ridiculous on price. Have a hard time paying more for a spool than I did for ANY of these Sol reels, including the NIB one I just got.

 

I do really like these reels! They are small, compact, and the ones I have are pretty smooth. I believe these are 5.8 gear ratio if I'm not wrong, which is fine on the light crank rod I have one on, but I have another on a Kistler Jerkbait Special rod and one on a top water that could maybe use a little faster gear.

 

Overall I am pretty happy with these!

You can find 33mm x 25mm spools around.  Finding the Daiwa color 15 Alphas SV spools is difficult because they called the 15 Alphas SV105 the SV105 in the US so the color spools are called SV105 spools.  Daiwa has never called the US version of an Alphas an Alphas and has given it names like Sol and SV105.  The problem with SV105 is that there are also 34mm shallow spools for the Steez/TD-Z that are called 105 SV spools so the two are easily confused.  Another thing you could do is track down a used 15 Alphas SV105 and use its spool, gears and spool tension knob parts from the reel.  You can even buy a used Pixy and put the Sol side plates on the magnesium Pixy frame to make an even lighter reel and use 31mm Pixy spools.  The red and yellow Pixies and orange Sol are popular reels for people to mess with an make custom reels out of parts since so many of the Pixy and Alphas parts are compatible.

 

https://www.tackletour.com/reviewpixypx68breakdown.html

 

 

59 minutes ago, new2BC4bass said:

5.8 is correct which is why I also use them mostly for crankbaits.  Since you already have 3, saving a pristine one as a collectible is not a bad thing.  I'm a fan of the Alphas reels.  Besides the 2 Sols, I have the SV105, Type F, ito 103Ai, and 3 of the Purple ones.  Seems I'm way behind you, tho.  

 

 

I wouldn't say that! I have some of the Sol reels, and I recently picked up a clean LH Alphas SV105, but I'm not even sure what a Type F, Ito 103Ai are,... Nor do I have any of the purple ones I have seen.

 

I DID like the Alphas SV105 though. I put it on a little 6'6" ML Phenix Ultra MBX rod I had picked up a year or two ago. VERY light setup. I think the combo weighs in around 9.5oz!

 

Probably a good thing though as it would just make me want more of them!! 😁 Sounds like we have a mutual liking for the old Daiwa reels, along with many others on here!

28 minutes ago, Bigbox99 said:

You can find 33mm x 25mm spools around.  Finding the Daiwa color 15 Alphas SV spools is difficult because they called the 15 Alphas SV105 the SV105 in the US so the color spools are called SV105 spools.  Daiwa has never called the US version of an Alphas an Alphas and has given it names like Sol and SV105.  The problem with SV105 is that there are also 34mm shallow spools for the Steez/TD-Z that are called 105 SV spools so the two are easily confused. 

 

 

You are absolutely correct. I ordered an orange spool that was called an SV105 spool, hoping it would fit the Sol. When it arrived, I found it didn't fit in the Sol, but fit perfectly in the TDZ.

 

I made the mistake of thinking it saying it was for SV105, that it was automatically for the Alphas, but instead they were likely speaking of the Zillion bodied style SV105. It fit fine in my SV103.

30 minutes ago, FrnkNsteen said:

I wouldn't say that! I have some of the Sol reels, and I recently picked up a clean LH Alphas SV105, but I'm not even sure what a Type F, Ito 103Ai are,... Nor do I have any of the purple ones I have seen.

 

I DID like the Alphas SV105 though. I put it on a little 6'6" ML Phenix Ultra MBX rod I had picked up a year or two ago. VERY light setup. I think the combo weighs in around 9.5oz!

 

Probably a good thing though as it would just make me want more of them!! 😁 Sounds like we have a mutual liking for the old Daiwa reels, along with many others on here!

You are absolutely correct. I ordered an orange spool that was called an SV105 spool, hoping it would fit the Sol. When it arrived, I found it didn't fit in the Sol, but fit perfectly in the TDZ.

 

I made the mistake of thinking it saying it was for SV105, that it was automatically for the Alphas, but instead they were likely speaking of the Zillion bodied style SV105. It fit fine in my SV103.

Type F

https://jdmfishing.com/vault/alphas-type-f/

ito Ai...bare aluminum with clear plastic side plate.

https://www.tackletour.com/reviewdaiwaalphasIto.html

I'm assuming the SV105 spool fits the SV103 reel.

 

My Alphas SV105 had to be sent out.  Was too easy to backlash.  Had it tuned and upgraded.  Excellent reel now.

9 minutes ago, new2BC4bass said:

I'm assuming the SV105 spool fits the SV103 reel.

The one I bought did. It seemed to be a standard 34mm that fit in all the normal crowd (SV103, TDZ, newer Zillion SVTW)

1 hour ago, FrnkNsteen said:

The one I bought did. It seemed to be a standard 34mm that fit in all the normal crowd (SV103, TDZ, newer Zillion SVTW)

I guess that means you have to do an orange themed TD-Z build.  Sort of like the JDM Steez SV.