Your favorite obscure reels

[Johnny A]

Kudos to new2BC4bass for mentioning the ABU Black Max 1600c. I've never known anyone else who used these but they are tiny "tanks." I bought a couple on clearance in the early 90s. Loaded them with spiderwire and mounted them on Shimano Crucial rods. SUPER comfortable to palm. Awesome drag. Built like tanks.

Black Max, Pro Max, this one, the “Proto-REVO” circa 1997/98 or so.

[LowRange]

Wouldn't the proto revo be the 1st Revo that was a Cabelas or some other retailer exclusive?

[Johnny A]

Wouldn't the proto revo be the 1st Revo that was a Cabelas or some other retailer exclusive?

Proto Revo? PaleoRevo. Antediluvian Revo.

[hoohoorjoo]

Wouldn't the proto revo be the 1st Revo that was a Cabelas or some other retailer exclusive?

You mean the red gen 1 Revo SC? It was basically a Revo S, only with mag braking. That was a solid reel, though I didn't like that the reel was finicky with stiff lines like P-line CXX.

[Polkfish1]

Wouldn't the proto revo be the 1st Revo that was a Cabelas or some other retailer exclusive?

Proto Revo? PaleoRevo. Antediluvian Revo.

[dragon1]

Team Daiwa X 1300i spinning...in OG Black and Gold Classic Daiwa colors.

Take the legendary Whisker SS 1300 and add in Daiwa's first IAR, Gyro balance, all metal body, higher gear ratio, ball bearing line roller, and carry over a very smooth and strong drag, long cast spool and tough brass worm gear oscillation...I still use this reel regularly as it's an excellent performer, reliable and durable, and for many years to come.

[Hogsticker2]

Reels aren't necessarily obscure, but I customize to be one of a kind, including custom paint jobs. So obscure to everyone else!

[Real]

I still like my Core FV. Not too many of them out there.

[dragon1]

I still like my Core FV. Not too many of them out there.

Yeppers, that reel always reminds me of the TD-ITO LH flipping model in Daiwa's lineup during roughly the same era.

[LowRange]

I like my weird Procaster based JDM TD-S. I put a TDZ Type R+ spool in it. Just a nice casting reel with that spool. It looks like Procaster cosplaying as a TD-Z or TD Zillion.

[Big-Bass]

Kudos to new2BC4bass for mentioning the ABU Black Max 1600c. I've never known anyone else who used these but they are tiny "tanks." I bought a couple on clearance in the early 90s. Loaded them with spiderwire and mounted them on Shimano Crucial rods. SUPER comfortable to palm. Awesome drag. Built like tanks.

Black Max, Pro Max, this one, the “Proto-REVO” circa 1997/98 or so.

This "proto-Revo" is a 1995-1996 SM3000C. This the last "Made in Sweden" low profile reels followed by the Tournament, Tournament Pro, then the Torno Series (not sure if made in Sweden). They were excellent craftsmanship at the time and could compete with many models. They were phased out about 2003. The Revo arrived in 2006. The Gen1 and 2 are still the best. These older reels still have a following and better build than many models out there now.

[dragon1]

I like my weird Procaster based JDM TD-S. I put a TDZ Type R+ spool in it. Just a nice casting reel with that spool. It looks like Procaster cosplaying as a TD-Z or TD Zillion.

That Procaster you have is likely the predecessor of the next gen TDS/TDX HIA/HVA/HSD/HSDF which was the platform I believe Daiwa built on to create the Zillion. The TDZ was its own idea and dream come to fruition as it literally created the MG LP reel market and revolutionized the bass/FW reel market in general, and of course the Zillion took on the body/frame form of the TDZ but with the workhorse feel and heft of the last iteration of the TDX, the HSDF model.

Kool SCHITE fosho.

[dragon1]

Kudos to new2BC4bass for mentioning the ABU Black Max 1600c. I've never known anyone else who used these but they are tiny "tanks." I bought a couple on clearance in the early 90s. Loaded them with spiderwire and mounted them on Shimano Crucial rods. SUPER comfortable to palm. Awesome drag. Built like tanks.

Black Max, Pro Max, this one, the “Proto-REVO” circa 1997/98 or so.

This "proto-Revo" is a 1995-1996 SM3000C. This the last "Made in Sweden" low profile reels followed by the Tournament, Tournament Pro, then the Torno Series (not sure if made in Sweden). They were excellent craftsmanship at the time and could compete with many models. They were phased out about 2003. The Revo arrived in 2006. The Gen1 and 2 are still the best. These older reels still have a following and better build than many models out there now.

Yeppers, had a Tournament Pro 3600, it was a fantastic little reel, and even nicer than the Pro Max 3600 and 5600 I owned prior...should have never sold it. I remember Gary Klein (looked up Larry Nixon and Gary Roach on the Abu staff as well?) using these reels?

I also wrote a post on the pre-release of the 2006 Revos (long gone in one of the massive TT crashes) and said that the Japanese two-headed dragon would have new type competition moving forward, and that the FW fishing market would never be the same again with the introduction of OEMs into the playing field.

[dragon1]

"SM" ~ Silver Max, IIRC?

[tincanary]

"SM" ~ Silver Max, IIRC?

Yep. Fun fact about these, well the Black Max and Pro Max anyway. They were first released in '91 and predate the Shimano Calcutta. The contemporary Ambassadeur is rooted in this model; the Ultracast spool and drag stack were all firsts for Abu in the OG Black Max and worked their way to the Ambassadeur for the '92 to present models.