Your opinion about the Z2020 in 2023.

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jvelth74
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Re: Your opinion about the Z2020 in 2023.

Post by jvelth74 » Mon May 22, 2023 9:54 am

Yep, It's not light. I paired it this time with Daiwa Whisker Salmon 9' which isn't light either. But combination was really nice. (And I had super light combination also with me.) Have to say that Z2020 palms really nicely, but it's different palming than in smaller reels. But after rod is nicely balanced, so reels heavy weight doesn't matter too much. But I really wouldn't like to palm this reel in sub 0 conditions :D

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Re: Your opinion about the Z2020 in 2023.

Post by dragon1 » Fri Jun 23, 2023 5:10 pm

I just broke my TN PB largie today and had a good outing on day 2 of post rain/swollen water of the Stones River...my OG Z2020H from May 2010, all original gears, paired with an OG (made in Costa Rica/Gamakatsu hooks) Strike King Bottom Dweller 1 3/8 oz spinnerbait, 15lb CXX, and a very stout Gen III Phenix Ultra MBX Classic 707H, powered a 5.25 river largie out of heavy current beneath the foot of a small waterfall, and then bullied/horsed it over a couple of willow bushes when it ran downstream and down the secondary river drop area.

The Z2020H is a bull and still has a place, and conspicuously outshined my tuned/modded OG Zillion Type R today in the cranking power dept., even with the Type R tossing a lighter 3/4 oz DW Picasso spinnerbait.

Pics on Greg's new TP if you're a member. 8-)
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Re: Your opinion about the Z2020 in 2023.

Post by ras » Sat Jun 24, 2023 11:22 pm

ninjaman wrote:
Sat May 20, 2023 6:13 am

Thanks, but I treat them all the same. Spool tension only to minimize lateral movement on the spool axis and let the centrifugal/magnetic/combo-brake take care of the rest under a well trained thumb ;)

I took the z2020hl to the water along with some different rods. My conclusion is the following:
The z throws great, long casts. The problem is that I compare it to a tuned ambassadeur 5501 which I use for the same kind of fishing/baits. However the comparison is unfair, as the ambassadeur is better suited for long casts with heavier baits.
The comparison is roughly like a 100 size Daiwa to the 200 size Z. Bigger spool yields longer casts. So I guess it casts good for its size but I still think its main benefit is the power compared to size. If I remember correctly the main gear and pinion are the same as on Ryoga 2020.
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Sorry for off-topic: is that YGK Oddport you're using on the Z? If yes, how do you like that line?

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Re: Your opinion about the Z2020 in 2023.

Post by kakaryan » Thu Jun 29, 2023 8:55 pm

I have like ~30 baitcasters and the Z2020 is never one of my favourite since day one.

Not mentioning the size or weight, but the spool is heavy and slow, which doesn't cast as good and far as it was claimed.

Almost retire it now and haven't fished it for years. If I am going to buy a baitcaster in 2023 for the 20lb 100m capacity, Anates DC MD(2023) and Conquest DC (2019) hands down.

There are plenty of rumors on TT in these years like some old reels remain the best or the 1st gen. DC still outcast the newest.....Nope. Just buy and try, and I did that, the current DC (Conquest and Antares) outcast the old ones.

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Re: Your opinion about the Z2020 in 2023.

Post by dragon1 » Fri Jun 30, 2023 6:31 pm

kakaryan wrote:
Thu Jun 29, 2023 8:55 pm
I have like ~30 baitcasters and the Z2020 is never one of my favourite since day one.

Not mentioning the size or weight, but the spool is heavy and slow, which doesn't cast as good and far as it was claimed.

Almost retire it now and haven't fished it for years. If I am going to buy a baitcaster in 2023 for the 20lb 100m capacity, Anates DC MD(2023) and Conquest DC (2019) hands down.

There are plenty of rumors on TT in these years like some old reels remain the best or the 1st gen. DC still outcast the newest.....Nope. Just buy and try, and I did that, the current DC (Conquest and Antares) outcast the old ones.
Junk and treasures...one man to the next. Z2020 spool in my hands, with 3/8 up is actually faster than the OG Zillion and comparable to the 100M spool. At 1/2 + lipless, longer rod and right line, a mag settings of 10 or less and in long cast mode, it will rip very long casts.

I had an Exsence DC 8.1 and the Calcutta Conquest 100 DC, and several CQs Gen one and two, and none cast as far with a 3/4-1 oz lipless as my Z2020, same line and rod. It all depends on the individual user experience, as it always does.

I would love to get another Conquest but I don't trust any MM gears under heavy load...and frankly, the DC whine in my ears after a bit of use just kills me, and completely destroys the tranquility during some fishing moments.

I would love to find another reel comparable to the Z2020/Z200 in power, line capacity, performance, refinement, etc, that is lighter and perhaps a bit lower in ergos, but I haven't found it yet...unless perhaps I need to give the Antares MD DC a shot (does it have an option of "silent" mode)?
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Re: Your opinion about the Z2020 in 2023.

Post by jvelth74 » Sat Jul 01, 2023 12:52 pm

The only thing I really disliked in Z2020 was standard knobs. But now I installed Gomexus knobs, and those I like much:
Gomexus knobs.jpg
Gomexus knobs.jpg (36.47 KiB) Viewed 1610 times

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Re: Your opinion about the Z2020 in 2023.

Post by SSS » Sun Jul 02, 2023 8:04 am

The only negative about this reel is the clutch. Its too damn mushy.

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Re: Your opinion about the Z2020 in 2023.

Post by Hata Takuma » Sun Jul 02, 2023 12:20 pm

Yup! Bought 4 ( no kidding) z2020, 2 lefty and 2 righty, don’t laugh, when you are single you can afford to spend all your money in fishing gear, still miss those days since I got married 😀, anyhow was saying I bought 4 Z2020 and was extremely happy of my purchase till I started to use them intensively for peacock bass fishing, and this is when little and big problems started to emerge . Small problem: the paint started to peel off in a couple of them only. I know, it ain’t a big deal, but you know when you pay equivalent of today $500, I’m getting a bit irritated. Big problem: as the last reviewer said, the thumb clutch is junk! Sorry Daiwa fans, don’t start saying I should cast with handle parallel to cast plane, and not orthogonal, I don’t buy t, it is a huge product defect, period! And matter of fact same issues never happened with my Shimano Antares DC, w/ or w/o MD. I don’t mind about the size of Z2020, I have relatively big hands, so never had problems to hold them. Anyhow, I sold a couple of them and the rest are in my collection display and they are gorgeous, really. There is something in those Z2020 that makes them timeless and look like bad boys (yes, only look like bad boys).

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Re: Your opinion about the Z2020 in 2023.

Post by dragon1 » Sun Jul 02, 2023 8:33 pm

SSS wrote:
Sun Jul 02, 2023 8:04 am
The only negative about this reel is the clutch. Its too damn mushy.
Agreed there, I have learned to keep pressure on the thumb bar throughout the cast as a strong forward motion will cause the handle to engage the clutch. For me, from day one when I received my first Z2020H from Brooklyn Bill in April 2010...the one shortcoming, is the flimsy plastic palm plate, granted I understand it is for saving weight and doesn't bear any pressure from the reel frame itself, but still.
Last edited by dragon1 on Sun Jul 02, 2023 8:40 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Your opinion about the Z2020 in 2023.

Post by dragon1 » Sun Jul 02, 2023 8:37 pm

Hata Takuma wrote:
Sun Jul 02, 2023 12:20 pm
Yup! Bought 4 ( no kidding) z2020, 2 lefty and 2 righty, don’t laugh, when you are single you can afford to spend all your money in fishing gear, still miss those days since I got married 😀, anyhow was saying I bought 4 Z2020 and was extremely happy of my purchase till I started to use them intensively for peacock bass fishing, and this is when little and big problems started to emerge . Small problem: the paint started to peel off in a couple of them only. I know, it ain’t a big deal, but you know when you pay equivalent of today $500, I’m getting a bit irritated. Big problem: as the last reviewer said, the thumb clutch is junk! Sorry Daiwa fans, don’t start saying I should cast with handle parallel to cast plane, and not orthogonal, I don’t buy t, it is a huge product defect, period! And matter of fact same issues never happened with my Shimano Antares DC, w/ or w/o MD. I don’t mind about the size of Z2020, I have relatively big hands, so never had problems to hold them. Anyhow, I sold a couple of them and the rest are in my collection display and they are gorgeous, really. There is something in those Z2020 that makes them timeless and look like bad boys (yes, only look like bad boys).
I haven't purchased a painted model because of the weak paint, and yes the thumb bar clutch is a bit weak (when depressed)...it is unfortunate that Daiwa never introduced a Gen II with improvements (that doesn't require an "A.I. interface")...this reel is now a 13 year old platform. On my OG 2010 Z2020H, I polished off all the matte surface into a "liquid Z", the exterior is much more durable now, IMO.

http://www.tackletour.net/viewtopic.php ... +Z#p299211

Also, what year Antares MD do you have? I see the previous 2018 models had standard sized main and pinion gear, same as the non MD model, and that the MM gears wore out prematurely.

http://www.tackletour.net/viewtopic.php ... MD#p693483
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Re: Your opinion about the Z2020 in 2023.

Post by Hata Takuma » Tue Jul 04, 2023 5:59 am

I own all versions of Antares DC, from 2006 ( DC7 LV) to 2022.For MD I only have the 2018, still waiting to pull the trigger for the latest ‘23. The ‘18 MD I have not used/abused intensively so can’t tell about reliability of MM, but the ‘16 Antares DC who has MM, and latest ‘22, I used them quite a lot and not have any issue so far.Thanks for the link to make Z2020 look as shiny as Antares, I still keep my last 2 Z2020 in the exhibition shelf 😀.

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Re: Your opinion about the Z2020 in 2023.

Post by SSS » Tue Jul 04, 2023 9:24 am

dragon1 wrote:
Sun Jul 02, 2023 8:33 pm
SSS wrote:
Sun Jul 02, 2023 8:04 am
The only negative about this reel is the clutch. Its too damn mushy.
Agreed there, I have learned to keep pressure on the thumb bar throughout the cast as a strong forward motion will cause the handle to engage the clutch. For me, from day one when I received my first Z2020H from Brooklyn Bill in April 2010...the one shortcoming, is the flimsy plastic palm plate, granted I understand it is for saving weight and doesn't bear any pressure from the reel frame itself, but still.
Actually, the clutch engaging on its own from the handle turning on a cast has never happened to me, and i am using a 103mm handle from studio composite and large power knobs. Its just when you apply a bit of pressure on the thumb bar, there are some mush to it, and its not snappy like from the ryoga, tdz, steez and many other reels from daiwa. Not big deal, but considering that these are considered as one of the higher end reels from daiwa, kinda wanted it to be better.

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Re: Your opinion about the Z2020 in 2023.

Post by SSS » Tue Jul 04, 2023 9:49 am

Hata Takuma wrote:
Sun Jul 02, 2023 12:20 pm
Yup! Bought 4 ( no kidding) z2020, 2 lefty and 2 righty, don’t laugh, when you are single you can afford to spend all your money in fishing gear, still miss those days since I got married 😀, anyhow was saying I bought 4 Z2020 and was extremely happy of my purchase till I started to use them intensively for peacock bass fishing, and this is when little and big problems started to emerge . Small problem: the paint started to peel off in a couple of them only. I know, it ain’t a big deal, but you know when you pay equivalent of today $500, I’m getting a bit irritated. Big problem: as the last reviewer said, the thumb clutch is junk! Sorry Daiwa fans, don’t start saying I should cast with handle parallel to cast plane, and not orthogonal, I don’t buy t, it is a huge product defect, period! And matter of fact same issues never happened with my Shimano Antares DC, w/ or w/o MD. I don’t mind about the size of Z2020, I have relatively big hands, so never had problems to hold them. Anyhow, I sold a couple of them and the rest are in my collection display and they are gorgeous, really. There is something in those Z2020 that makes them timeless and look like bad boys (yes, only look like bad boys).
The paint flaking off is perfectly normal for this reel. They anodized all metal parts and painted on top of an anodized surface without even using a primer. No paint will ever hold, BUT it allows you to use the reel in saltwater without ever being worried about corrosion. As for the thumb bar issue you had, i can't say i ever had your problem, and i am primarily using my Z for musky, so if there was any kind of problems, lets just say it'd be apparant within days. I sent in my Z to be custom painted with cerakote, and the reel looks amazing, and cerakote ain't going anywhere.

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Re: Your opinion about the Z2020 in 2023.

Post by goldrod » Thu Jul 06, 2023 5:32 am

Just the fact that we are still talking about this reel despite many of its faults speaks volumes I think
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Re: Your opinion about the Z2020 in 2023.

Post by dragon1 » Sat Jul 08, 2023 6:47 pm

goldrod wrote:
Thu Jul 06, 2023 5:32 am
Just the fact that we are still talking about this reel despite many of its faults speaks volumes I think
Yep.
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