Daiwa SV103 vs Zillion SV TW

[dragon1]

I have 7 SV103s and they are by far the best reel for bass fishing ever made.

IMG_20230115_43154.jpg

Muy Excelente my friend! Good to see you around a bit on TT.

[RMCatchNrelease]

Good seeing you post as well Dragon1.

I have 2 new Zillions for topwater and jerkbait rods that are custom and super light.

Everything else is a SV103. I have spare gear sets for each reel. I even bought a few 7.3 gears from plat.

The 7.3 gears are the perfect all around set for me. They seem to last a bit longer that the 7.9 when frog fishing.

The 6.3 is he reel I let someone try for a feeling of true JDM greatness. The 6.3 is so incredibly smooth most people just chuckle. It is the best spinnerbait reel.

Lastly, the spool comparability is #1. I have R+ to ZPI 002 to Rays BFS.

I really don't mind the weight on rods over 7' it usually balances the rod better that the new Zillion.

[Big-Bass]

I have been saying the same thing for years. The Daiwa SV103H and SV103XS are the best reels Daiwa has ever made. I have 11 of them. They are not as light as a Steez or even some modern offerings but when they made them back in 2015, I think they took the best of the TD-Z and the OG Zillion and made the SV103. Brass gears, aluminum frame and plates, 34mm swappable spool, metal star wheel, 90mm handle, made in Japan, all under 8oz. If they made these now with the same materials, they would be $450. They are the smoothest and strongest reels I own and use. I think down the road, many anglers will be looking to get their hands on them when they realize how well they were made. I was just thinking about posting something similar to this the other day and I stumbled on this old/new thread this morning. Best wishes on the water!

[dragon1]

Agreed gents, great to read from both of you.

[Big-Bass]

Agreed gents, great to read from both of you.

Same here dragon1!

[DaveT63]

Is there somewhere to buy the 7.9 gears to swap into my 6.3 gear 103?

[DirtyD64]

Is there somewhere to buy the 7.9 gears to swap into my 6.3 gear 103?

If TackleTrap gets back up and running (hope and pray so), they carried the 7.9 gears. I am not sure on stock or details due to the website/business being down for a while.

I really think the SV103 will go down as an all time great. Should definitely be mentioned in best reels of all time, considering price, value, durability, versatility, etc. The only issue I remember people mentioning was that the spool was a tad overbraked. The Zillion SVTW spool made a good upgrade. Till the day I die, I will regret picking a 9.1 Zillion TWS over an SV103. Honestly I bought 2 Zillion TWS, should have just grabbed 2 7.9 SV103s. They were so cheap for a while.

[Soardo]

Hmmmm...funny what seven years of reality does to the smell and feel of "newer is better". Also, peeps were talking about the Zillion SV TW putting out longer casts, when all one has to do is take out the SV103 spool and drop in an OG 103 Type R/Type R+.

What say y'all now? Personally, no way then or now or in the future, would I choose the Zillion SV TW over the OG Zillion SV103.

Yep brother, as you know I’m an OG Zillion nerd and love the SV103 for that reason. The weight actually balances better on some rods. The 34 spools open this thing up even more than the OGs, so a number of these are in my lineup now. I still do have a couple SV TW on skipping rods but sold the bulk of those reels.

Can’t go wrong with either one, it’s all about your use cases and personal preferences.

[Soardo]

Is there somewhere to buy the 7.9 gears to swap into my 6.3 gear 103?

If TackleTrap gets back up and running (hope and pray so), they carried the 7.9 gears. I am not sure on stock or details due to the website/business being down for a while.

I really think the SV103 will go down as an all time great. Should definitely be mentioned in best reels of all time, considering price, value, durability, versatility, etc. The only issue I remember people mentioning was that the spool was a tad overbraked. The Zillion SVTW spool made a good upgrade. Till the day I die, I will regret picking a 9.1 Zillion TWS over an SV103. Honestly I bought 2 Zillion TWS, should have just grabbed 2 7.9 SV103s. They were so cheap for a while.

Agree completely. I have a handful of them and wish I had more.

[dragon1]

Hmmmm...funny what seven years of reality does to the smell and feel of "newer is better". Also, peeps were talking about the Zillion SV TW putting out longer casts, when all one has to do is take out the SV103 spool and drop in an OG 103 Type R/Type R+.

What say y'all now? Personally, no way then or now or in the future, would I choose the Zillion SV TW over the OG Zillion SV103.

Yep brother, as you know I’m an OG Zillion nerd and love the SV103 for that reason. The weight actually balances better on some rods. The 34 spools open this thing up even more than the OGs, so a number of these are in my lineup now. I still do have a couple SV TW on skipping rods but sold the bulk of those reels.

Can’t go wrong with either one, it’s all about your use cases and personal preferences.

Hells yeah for sure bro...the challenge is that now the cat is out of the bag, ain't no way that the SV103 desirability can be faded at this juncture or anytime soon.

[aqua71]

I can't speak for the Zillion SV TW, but I have (8) SV103 reels. They're (still) super smooth and built like tanks. They palm just like the OG Zillion, so they're perfect (for me). They're slightly heavier than some modern reels, but they balance out perfectly with my 7'2" and longer rods.

[LowRange]

There has only been two gens of Zillions. Those other ones where Tatulas.

[dragon1]

There has only been two gens of Zillions. Those other ones where Tatulas.

I had the first Gen Tat TWS in the larger size and then picked up a new Gen 1 Tatillion/Zillula when they were on clearance. I didn't like either one, traded the Tat and gave the Tatillion to my sales manager (at the time) that wanted to get back into bass fishing.

[RMCatchNrelease]

Shhh....I still lurk the bowels of the net hoping to find a gem. I think I paid on average $225 for all of my SV103.

I did sell an IP63 and IP79 to fund the purchase of 4 SV103. I sometimes regret selling those but much prefer the 34mm spool choices. The IP are pretty wild with floro and anything under 1/2oz.

The new Zillion is a topwater and jerkbait reel for me. Only going on lighter rods. Like Dragon1 said, the SV103 makes most 7'+ rods feel better in hand.

[RMCatchNrelease]

You can purchase the 7.9 gears from the JDream on plat. They are part 38/52 and are sold as a set for 3630yen.

https://www.plat.co.jp/shop/catalog/opt ... siries/15/

I've purchased several sets. I also bought the the 6.3 out of the PE Special as they are the C6 Bronze gears.