Picture 1 in this post is the pinion. Very heavy aluminum alloy that is machined as is obvious from the machining marks and the solid feel. The Emblem series has aluminum ally pinions too, but not as big/heavy as those of the DF. Picture 2 is the main shaft. Made of stainless steel. The spool seat and clicking gear are one piece secured in place by a cross pin. Again very impressive as they could have pressed the upper part of the shaft then dropped a simple gear with a square hole and no one would've complained Picture 3 is the simple one washer drag with it's pressure disk. The drag washer is made from a solid material, not felt. The entire drag performance is quite good and starts with no jerks and keeps going quite smoothly. Picture 4 is what I originaly opened the reel for; replacing the factory lubes with high quality synthetic ones. Here are my Ardent reel grease and oil, they should secure much less wear in the gears than the regular factory lubes. Picture 5 is the gear box after I cleaned and and replaced the grease with the synthetic stuff. The dark thing you see on the pinion's base (where it meets the rotor) is the lithium bearing grease I used to lube the single ball bearing this reel has, placed naturally around the pinion for the rotor to spin on More to come............
Frst picture in this last part is the spring loaded drag knob. They saved money by not providing a cover to hide the spring but it works just fine. Picture 2 is the line roller. The well known daiwa anti-twist and looks braid friendly. Haven't tried braid on the reel yet. Picture 3 is a protective cver for the roller held down by a small screw. I'm impressed again Picture 4 impresses me even more. The rotor cam is tastefully ported as can be found on elite $$$ reels Picture 5 is the reel's foot. Again effort was done to make it look elegant instead of just casting the country of origin into the foot. Now I want you to guess the price of this reel. Do you think $450 for it would be a good deal? Well, I paid a little less than this. Exactly $19.99 (nineteen dollars ninety nine cents) brand new at my local shop. Basspro sells them for $9 more than this but you can easily find a local shop that sells them at $19.99 Now for my rating, on a scale of 10 it scored this in my book; Strength: 6/10 (Full metal & strong parts, but main gear could have been even thicker to match the pinion) Durability: 7/10 (Brass gears would have made it a perfect 10) Versatility: 4/10 (The massive size limits its use) Features: 3/10 (No features, simple and straight forward. Yet the internal bail trip is a nice touch) Build quality: 7/10 (could use a tighter tolerance on the ball bearing housing) Total: 54/100 hope you've enjoyed the reading. Find my past work here http://www.360tuna.com/forum/f60/saltigaz-review-look-inside-700-reel-997/
Cool, how much drag can you get out of it???? Fished it at 10-15 lbs drag. Haven't tested the maximum but I believe it could put about 25 pounds.
What's amazing to me is that anyone could make this or any spinning reel and sell it for 20 bucks. I will have to say, that it is a bargin. In fact, its a steal for anyone that needs a large capacity reel. If it breaks, just toss it overboard and grab another one. Most good jigs and poppers cost more than the reel. I've been waiting for the new ZeeBaas Model ZX3 spinning reel that is due out in July. It is going to have the largest capacity of any spinning reel. The only problem with the Zeebaas is that will probably cost about 80 times this 100A. Will I buy the Zeebaas or 80 of these reels? One thing, I don't think I have room in my fishing closet for 80 more reels.
A reel that doubles in value when you put line on it? Wow! I used to have an old Volkswagen that would do that when I filled it up with gas. DBG
Now I want you to guess the price of this reel. Mmmm.. $ 19.99? Ops, I guessed it right! I think that's what this reel is worth.. Lack of features and outdated engineering. Ah.. don't put on braid with that first generation locomotive system, the line would dig in no time.. and you would need a degree in mining to ever see it again
Ah.. don't put on braid with that first generation locomotive system, If you are refering to the line cross lay system, then the guys at Van Staal and ZeeBass (both using it) would like a word with you
Not that I want burn it, but that cast pot-metal drive gear ain't holdin up to 20# of drag for very long before it explodes.... reminds me of that ATC jighunter reel. looks good, price is great, total junk looks like the F/N Os-95 is heading in that direction as well. Beware the mean Sea-Gods, they live in reels like these. if you make them work, they will ruin your day! JMO -Brian
I used to have a "Drunk Log" in my back yard when I was in my mid 20's. Every time someone came over and we got wasted, we would take turns at that log with an Axe. It was fun and provided needed entertainment for a bunch of young bucks that loved to destroy things. I'm old enough now that I don't feel the need to go outside and waste energy chipping away on a log. I now find it fun to destroy worthless products after a few drinks. This reel would be a perfect thing to put in the "Things to Destroy" pile. Scrap metal now sells for .07 per 100 pounds. If that reel weights one pound, it is worth .0007. You would have to buy 7 of them to get ONE PENNY.
I used to have a "Drunk Log" in my back yard when I was in my mid 20's. Every time someone came over and we got wasted, we would take turns at that log with an Axe. It was fun and provided needed entertainment for a bunch of young bucks that loved to destroy things. I'm old enough now that I don't feel the need to go outside and waste energy chipping away on a log. I now find it fun to destroy worthless products after a few drinks. This reel would be a perfect thing to put in the "Things to Destroy" pile. Scrap metal now sells for .07 per 100 pounds. If that reel weights one pound, it is worth .0007. You would have to buy 7 of them to get ONE PENNY.
Sami, Lets rename this thread "Worlds biggest piece of Junk". I used to have a "Drunk Log" in my back yard when I was in my mid 20's. Every time someone came over and we got wasted, we would take turns at that log with an Axe. It was fun and provided needed entertainment for a bunch of young bucks that loved to destroy things. I'm old enough now that I don't feel the need to go outside and waste energy chipping away on a log. I now find it fun to destroy worthless products after a few drinks. This reel would be a perfect thing to put in the "Things to Destroy" pile. Scrap metal now sells for .07 per 100 pounds. If that reel weights one pound, it is worth .0007. You would have to buy 7 of them to get ONE PENNY.
If you are refering to the line cross lay system, then the guys at Van Staal and ZeeBass (both using it) would like a word with you Well.. Van Staals are not known for being braid friendly, don't know what's the shape of their slider. The ZB have a S shaped slider.
Sami, This reel would be a perfect thing to put in the "Things to Destroy" pile. I have a very good feeling that you will never see one of these reels unless someone wants to see you in destruct mode!!!!!!
Thanks for the review Sami! What fish have you caught with it and what fishing technique? One drag washer gets 20#'s drag and is able to sustain that during a fish's run? I bet it would do better in surf fishing because of its lightness and line capacity.
Sami, What type of fishing? Mostly deep fishing for groupers around wrecks, dead bait. Did some pier float fishing with it too
I have a very good feeling that you will never see one of these reels unless someone wants to see you in destruct mode!!!!!! What is up with you seamen and bury bad reels offshore or destroying them in your backyard??
Thanks for the review Sami! What fish have you caught with it and what fishing technique? . Beat me by a minute! Just posted the answer to fathom One drag washer gets 20#'s drag and is able to sustain that during a fish's run? I don't know if it can sustain 20# with consistency, as mentioned above I fished it 10-15. It can generate more if you lock the nut down but I would not trust it on higher settings. After all it's a cheapo that scored only 54/100 on my scale Cheers
Well.. Van Staals are not known for being braid friendly, don't know what's the shape of their slider. The ZB have a S shaped slider. Old VS (such as mine) have straight slider paths. Newer ones have slight S shaped ones. Both VS and ZB give the same ratio; one full handle turn = one full cycle of the spool up/down. The S shape helps in pushing upper and lower limits a bit further.
