Daiwa SS Air TW

[Pastrmka]

Aldebaran has 1 bushing in worm gear, I've added it and have not noticed much difference. When i replace 2 bushings with bearings in worm gear in daiwa's with t-wing i always notice improvement.

[DirtyD64]

Isn't the Aldebaran maxed out on bearings, and the SS is missing 4? And even tho brand new bushings do not feel rough, the reel does feel more connected/high end (or whatever the way you can describe it) when its full of quality bearings. Its like my 21 zillion. When i first bought it, it felt inferior to my steez tw even when compared to a reel that i've used a whole season. Added the missing bearings into the zillion, and it instantly felt more mechanical and less spongey (again, hard to describe the feeling, but there is a difference). Now i can clearly tell that the zillion is smoother under load, which is probably related to its aluminum body.

The newest Zillion I have, a 7.1 JDM version, has been unreal smooth. I have said before, the only reel I have better is a Conquest 100. To be honest, the Zillion might have more of a butter/feel nothing gear feel, while the Conquest has a glassy mechanical feel. My Alphas SVTW is next to those, and the Aldebaran would be behind it for me at least.

[Firstoutfisher]

Just put line on my new SS air TW, excited to try it out. I paired it with my evergreen phase fieldin star BFS rod. Got the reel to replace my SLX bfs after watching hobie's video and hearing him describe it as being able to effortless switch between pitching,skipping and regular casting. As the SLX bfs failed in this department.

My SS AIR TW has been reefing bass from under docks and gears are still smooth. It feels like it did from day one.

Any advice you can give me about setting up my SS air TW? Where do you usually run the brakes? How do you have your spool tension set? When and why do you change either of these? I've found with my experience with BFS reels its not always as obvious when to lower or raise the brakes like on a traditional baitcaster. I've found my SLX bfs performs better when the spool is set looser than I normally would run.

[Firstoutfisher]

Also if anyone has been looking digitaka and asian fishing portal both have the SS air TW in stock.

[Hobie-Wan Kenobi]

Just put line on my new SS air TW, excited to try it out. I paired it with my evergreen phase fieldin star BFS rod. Got the reel to replace my SLX bfs after watching hobie's video and hearing him describe it as being able to effortless switch between pitching,skipping and regular casting. As the SLX bfs failed in this department.

My SS AIR TW has been reefing bass from under docks and gears are still smooth. It feels like it did from day one.

Any advice you can give me about setting up my SS air TW? Where do you usually run the brakes? How do you have your spool tension set? When and why do you change either of these? I've found with my experience with BFS reels its not always as obvious when to lower or raise the brakes like on a traditional baitcaster. I've found my SLX bfs performs better when the spool is set looser than I normally would run.

I usually run around 10-12 if skipping. I'll turn it down to about 5 for distance. Lure weight will change that a little. I haven't used it much for tiny lures mostly weightless bass plastics and small rigs like nes rigs and such. I have the spool tension knob to have hardly and side play.

[Pekka von Habsburg]

I'm looking for a new reel to pair with my Orochi X10 Kirisame Bait Finesse, mainly for perch fishing. I'll be throwing small plastics, ned rigs, and such mainly, occasionally small spinners and blades as well. Used weights are roughly between 1/10oz and 3/8oz, perhaps sometimes a bit more than that but 1/2 is the max (which I probably never reach). The new reel will replace Alphas Air TW, which is an okay reel but I'm a bit unsatisfied with the overall feel and casting/winding performance of it and the lack of drag clicker is another disadvantage (I know, I could add one myself but I'd like to use that money for a completely new reel). In comparison, my Silver Creek reel which shares the same frame is an overall improvement in basically every way, maybe except distance and even that is a negligible difference.

So, I've been examining the Daiwa lineup. I'm in EU, and I prefer ordering from Japan because the EUR-YEN rate is so favourable. Excluding the Steez Line (too expensive), this SS Air TW looks to me a direct improvenment over the Alphas Air TW, but I also like the looks of it. Another bonus is the possibility to use my existing Daiwa spare/ decorative part stock. I'm also familiar with servicing Daiwa baitcasters. I'd probably pulled the trigger already, but the SS Air TW isn't particularly cheap. Actually, it's considerably more pricey than the Aldebaran, and almost on par with Calcutta Conquest BFS. I've been eyeing the latter for light stream use (to complement my UL stream setups, I have an L rated custom stream rod in the making), so I could probably purchase it for both applications for the same price.

Another issue is the reported manufacturing probelms with the magnetic brake, and overall mixed reviews about the reel. Nobody have said it's bad, but just a bit lackluster (the initial hype taken into account) and perhaps a bit lost with it's intended identity. I know it's a skipping/ pitching reel really and not a real distance caster, which is okay because I'd be going to use it from a boat mainly, and I like the low stress and ease of the cast.

That said, I'm asking your opinions, should I buy SS Air TW for the use I initially described? Or should I go for Shimanos (Aldebaran / Metanium shallow for perch fishing, Calcutta Conquest BFS for both perch and trout fishing)? The last option could have the most bang for the buck, probably. What do you think? Thanks in Advance!

[LowRange]

What about that gekkabijin? Same platform but with a more distance oriented braking profile and PE spool.

[bulldog1935]

Everybody I know fishing Daiwa BFS likes their aftermarket spools better than the Air/PE spools Daiwa supplies.
My Silver Wolf stock spool stays loaded in a spool can for back-up

Compact frame/spool is your choice, but a 34-mm-dia spool doesn't have to spin as fast as a 32-mm spool to achieve the same line speed and lure "muzzle velocity"
SS magforce makes sense on paper, but in practice, SV gives you more options.

More personal experience, increased LW pitch on Air/BFS reels lets you fish lines smaller than PE#0.8.
I've had no problems with std. Zillion LW pitch fishing PE#0.8 - no line dig - and the straighter line lay also comes off the spool faster for a distance edge.

Magforce/Z/SV -when Daiwa's patents expire, their brake will be as pervasive on all B/C reels as Marhoff's level wind and Douglas' pinion-lift freespool. It's too brilliantly simple and too brilliantly effective to not become universal.

[dragon1]

Excellent input, thanks for sharing.

Which aftermarket spools are you running in the Silver Wolf? A Roro perhaps?

[bulldog1935]

Roro makes a great spool.
I have the cheaper AMO fixed-rotor spool in Silver Wolf, PE#0.6, lawn-casting this 6'5" rod yesterday, it was sending 2 g past 100'.
I was impressed w/ this rod, 2 g was a sweet spot for it.