Zillion TW HD ‘22

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Freddie
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Re: Zillion TW HD ‘22

Post by Freddie » Sun May 29, 2022 9:06 pm

Also, why is this rated at 6 kg of drag vs the 5 kg of the standard Zillion, anyone?

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Re: Zillion TW HD ‘22

Post by Freddie » Sun May 29, 2022 9:40 pm

I’m puzzled by the change in drag strength. Is it legit or just an attempt to make it seem more “HD”. Also, can someone please confirm that it does have a drag clicker?

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Re: Zillion TW HD ‘22

Post by Freddie » Sun May 29, 2022 9:57 pm

The Steez A, ‘19 Morethan, Steez A HLC, and now ‘22 Zillion HD all have 6 kg of rated drag. The ‘21 Zillion and ‘16 Steez SV TW have 5 kg of rated drag. What’s the difference, anyone? Slightly larger drag washers, different material, etc…???

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Re: Zillion TW HD ‘22

Post by Tejota Bettio » Mon May 30, 2022 7:29 am

- good point. Would like to know about drag update too!!

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Re: Zillion TW HD ‘22

Post by Polkfish1 » Tue May 31, 2022 4:27 pm

Freddie wrote:
Sun May 29, 2022 9:40 pm
I’m puzzled by the change in drag strength. Is it legit or just an attempt to make it seem more “HD”. Also, can someone please confirm that it does have a drag clicker?
Yes; drag clicks. It’s actually quite a nice sound similar to a spinner; much more so than a steez ct. Have not disassembled it to see if the stack is different from non hd predecessors with 5lb rating.

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Re: Zillion TW HD ‘22

Post by Drakestar » Thu Jun 09, 2022 5:58 pm

I've caught my first dozen frog fish on this reel and it's been everything I hoped for in a frogging reel. Casts further than any of my previous reels, feels heavy duty without having too much bulk, and the handle is great for pulling them out of the thick stuff - I got the 8:1 which makes it a bit harder to reel against resistance, but I can still get tons of torque with the 100mm handle. Only small issue was the drag, it'd like more of it. I thought I had it locked down in the beginning but the drag slipped on me on the first couple fish until I clamped down on the drag star even more than I thought I'd have to.

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Re: Zillion TW HD ‘22

Post by jrk » Sun Jun 19, 2022 9:29 am

Drakestar wrote:
Thu Jun 09, 2022 5:58 pm
I've caught my first dozen frog fish on this reel and it's been everything I hoped for in a frogging reel. Casts further than any of my previous reels, feels heavy duty without having too much bulk, and the handle is great for pulling them out of the thick stuff - I got the 8:1 which makes it a bit harder to reel against resistance, but I can still get tons of torque with the 100mm handle. Only small issue was the drag, it'd like more of it. I thought I had it locked down in the beginning but the drag slipped on me on the first couple fish until I clamped down on the drag star even more than I thought I'd have to.
Interested in hearing what other reels you have or have had that this reel casts further than. I've been giving this reel thought and mainly for potential casting distance and durability.

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Re: Zillion TW HD ‘22

Post by Johnny A » Sun Jun 19, 2022 11:41 am

jrk wrote:
Sun Jun 19, 2022 9:29 am
Drakestar wrote:
Thu Jun 09, 2022 5:58 pm
I've caught my first dozen frog fish on this reel and it's been everything I hoped for in a frogging reel. Casts further than any of my previous reels, feels heavy duty without having too much bulk, and the handle is great for pulling them out of the thick stuff - I got the 8:1 which makes it a bit harder to reel against resistance, but I can still get tons of torque with the 100mm handle. Only small issue was the drag, it'd like more of it. I thought I had it locked down in the beginning but the drag slipped on me on the first couple fish until I clamped down on the drag star even more than I thought I'd have to.
Interested in hearing what other reels you have or have had that this reel casts further than. I've been giving this reel thought and mainly for potential casting distance and durability.
I’ve been using HDs for med-cranks, like the OSP Blitz DR, topwaters such as the 777 Shower Blows, Justines, One’s Bug and OSP Louder 70, jigs and soft plastics. I’ve removed the 100mm handle and big round knobs and went to 90mm and I-shaped knobs.
Great set ups

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Re: Zillion TW HD ‘22

Post by Drakestar » Sun Jun 19, 2022 9:29 pm

jrk wrote:
Sun Jun 19, 2022 9:29 am
Drakestar wrote:
Thu Jun 09, 2022 5:58 pm
I've caught my first dozen frog fish on this reel and it's been everything I hoped for in a frogging reel. Casts further than any of my previous reels, feels heavy duty without having too much bulk, and the handle is great for pulling them out of the thick stuff - I got the 8:1 which makes it a bit harder to reel against resistance, but I can still get tons of torque with the 100mm handle. Only small issue was the drag, it'd like more of it. I thought I had it locked down in the beginning but the drag slipped on me on the first couple fish until I clamped down on the drag star even more than I thought I'd have to.
Interested in hearing what other reels you have or have had that this reel casts further than. I've been giving this reel thought and mainly for potential casting distance and durability.
I probably I didn't express myself well, I meant that this is the best-casting frog reel I've ever had on my frog rod. Didn't mean to open the "farthest-casting reel ever!" can of worms. (And I have a bunch of BCs that cast very well that I simply haven't ever used on my frog rod, so I don't have the perfect set of data.)

As for the "frog reel" angle, I've still been having a ton of fun with the 22 Zillion HD. My son had a baseball tournament in Stockton this weekend and I took my frog rod for some in-between Delta fishing off the bank, and I was able to bomb frogs further than I'd ever done. Doesn't mean that the 22 Zillion is the farthest-casting reel for every application, though - depending on your needs the Antares, Steez HLC, Morethan PE or even a n ABU MGXtreme 2 might be a better choice. I'd post a thread with what you're looking to do and ask for suggestions, or search the board - Steez A vs Steez HLC has come up frequently, for example.

(FWIW I got those other reels I mentioned above and the 22 Zillion feels like it can compete in that league when it comes to casting. But I consider the Zillion to be heavier-duty than those other reels, except for maybe the Morethan which has similar uses.)

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Re: Zillion TW HD ‘22

Post by robertjb7771 » Mon Jun 20, 2022 10:41 am

I got a chance to finally field test my hd 22 xg punching thick Mats using 1 ounce weight with 60lb braid on a 7’11 Daiwa steez punching rod. The drag was slipping slightly even after lock down , not sure if it still needs a wear in period but I’ll report back. The previous 18hd which I still have appears to have a stronger drag.

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Re: Zillion TW HD ‘22

Post by BARRAMANIAC » Mon Jun 20, 2022 6:12 pm

robertjb7771 wrote:
Mon Jun 20, 2022 10:41 am
I got a chance to finally field test my hd 22 xg punching thick Mats using 1 ounce weight with 60lb braid on a 7’11 Daiwa steez punching rod. The drag was slipping slightly even after lock down , not sure if it still needs a wear in period but I’ll report back. The previous 18hd which I still have appears to have a stronger drag.
The 18 Zillion HD has a stronger drag because it has much larger gears that contain larger surface area drag washers.

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Re: Zillion TW HD ‘22

Post by robertjb7771 » Mon Jun 20, 2022 7:03 pm

BARRAMANIAC wrote:
Mon Jun 20, 2022 6:12 pm
robertjb7771 wrote:
Mon Jun 20, 2022 10:41 am
I got a chance to finally field test my hd 22 xg punching thick Mats using 1 ounce weight with 60lb braid on a 7’11 Daiwa steez punching rod. The drag was slipping slightly even after lock down , not sure if it still needs a wear in period but I’ll report back. The previous 18hd which I still have appears to have a stronger drag.
The 18 Zillion HD has a stronger drag because it has much larger gears that contain larger surface area drag washers.

Yeah forsure the 18 is an amazing reel , just a little heavier than I like for my steez rod, if the drag keeps slipping I’ll just repurpose it for a Texas rig setup and look for another reel that balances out my steez rod , A pity. Maybe I’ll get a steez A or SV and change out the handle to the 100mm.

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Re: Zillion TW HD ‘22

Post by BARRAMANIAC » Mon Jun 20, 2022 8:21 pm

robertjb7771 wrote:
Mon Jun 20, 2022 7:03 pm
BARRAMANIAC wrote:
Mon Jun 20, 2022 6:12 pm
robertjb7771 wrote:
Mon Jun 20, 2022 10:41 am
I got a chance to finally field test my hd 22 xg punching thick Mats using 1 ounce weight with 60lb braid on a 7’11 Daiwa steez punching rod. The drag was slipping slightly even after lock down , not sure if it still needs a wear in period but I’ll report back. The previous 18hd which I still have appears to have a stronger drag.
The 18 Zillion HD has a stronger drag because it has much larger gears that contain larger surface area drag washers.

Yeah forsure the 18 is an amazing reel , just a little heavier than I like for my steez rod, if the drag keeps slipping I’ll just repurpose it for a Texas rig setup and look for another reel that balances out my steez rod , A pity. Maybe I’ll get a steez A or SV and change out the handle to the 100mm.
best drag mod you can do with the current crop of daiwa reels is to replaced the fiber washer under the main gear with carbontex

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Re: Zillion TW HD ‘22

Post by LowRange » Tue Jun 21, 2022 7:06 am

I'll never understand how people can get their drags to slip. I punch with 1.5 oz in thick mats and frog in thick stuff but have never had a drag slip on reels only capable of 9 lbs. I don't put that much energy into hooking fish I guess. I would shatter a rod. People must be heaving their whole bodies into hooksets and trying to rip fish out of the water. I just stick them and then lift and winch until they come to me or I get dragged to them and we meet in the middle.

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Re: Zillion TW HD ‘22

Post by robertjb7771 » Tue Jun 21, 2022 3:49 pm

Yeah I’m not setting the hook like a savage , I’m just leaning into it like one is supposed to and that’s with a 1 ounce weight , 100% certain it’s the reel and I fish from a kayak , so definitely no crazy hooksets or I’ll end up in the water.

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