Zillion TW HD ‘22

Reels are the hottest topic for TackleTour. Everyone wants to know what the latest and greatest is and how they compare to the old guard. What's the best for light stuff, or what's your suggestion for heavy cover. Do we really need different retrieve ratios? It's all in here.
jrk
Senior Angler
Senior Angler
Posts: 85
Joined: Fri Mar 18, 2011 2:05 am

Re: Zillion TW HD ‘22

Post by jrk » Tue Jun 21, 2022 5:18 pm

Drakestar wrote:
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.)
Thanks for the reply. Nope...no can of worms opened from my point of context. I've have/had most of the Calais/Antares/Calcutta DC reels and enjoy them. But not much experience with Daiwa and is why I ask. I've got an 2016 Coastal 200 TW that I've used for my inshore drum hunts, throwing 1/4 - over 1 ounce, and I've been very impressed with the ease of use in general the reel provides and distance is great. This peaked my interest and I sprung for the Morethan (later model that came out a couple of years ago, but evidently they came out with a slightly updated version just recently?). Was not that impressed...just found it finicky, etc. So, I've been interested in this new Zillion for similar reasons...and thus my question.

Drakestar
Platinum Angler
Platinum Angler
Posts: 889
Joined: Sun Jan 05, 2020 11:54 am

Re: Zillion TW HD ‘22

Post by Drakestar » Thu Jun 23, 2022 12:58 pm

With the disclaimer that I don’t do a ton of inshore fishing (go for Striper every so often) and that I don’t know how well these non-saltwater-rated reels will do with inshore: yeah, this 22 Zillion very much feels like a reel I’d use for that. Just be aware of spool size; I once almost got spooled by a bat ray on a much bigger (trolling) reel, the 22 Zillion spool might run out on you easily on unintended side catches.

AMMOGUY
Angler
Angler
Posts: 40
Joined: Tue Jun 28, 2022 1:19 pm

Re: Zillion TW HD ‘22

Post by AMMOGUY » Wed Jun 29, 2022 8:51 pm

Boy.
I think you guys just cost me $300. 🥴


I’m a long time lurker/ Daiwa fan. I’ve been through a gauntlet of various noisy Tats. I think the HD might just be what I needed to make the step into “good” reels, and try my first JDM.

I’d really prefer a US G, but the HD ends up being about $50 less, and honestly looks better.

AMMOGUY
Angler
Angler
Posts: 40
Joined: Tue Jun 28, 2022 1:19 pm

Re: Zillion TW HD ‘22

Post by AMMOGUY » Thu Jul 07, 2022 5:07 am

Got an HD in yesterday from Digi.
Man. That is one pretty reel.

I think I actually really like the giant EVA knobs. Seems trivial, but the aluminum drag star improves the perceived fit and finish of the reel over the Zion stars. Unloaded its so smooth it’s like the handle is detached from the drivetrain. However, if I load the spool just a touch with my thumb, I get a slight gear buzz. Hopefully that doesn’t show up while retrieving draggy lures. That’s what I was trying to get away from in the Tatula reels.

Proof will be in the pudding. Going to put some 20lb sniper on it and go sling a jig for a while.

evilcatfish
Elite Angler
Elite Angler
Posts: 438
Joined: Tue Apr 09, 2013 12:47 pm
Location: St. Louis, MO

Re: Zillion TW HD ‘22

Post by evilcatfish » Fri Jul 08, 2022 8:20 am

So I've been eyeing this reel for a little while and keep thinking it could pair beautifully with my Evergreen Orion Black Rose. That said, I'm a little concerned about the spool. How does it perform compared to the Mag Z Boost spool in the Steez A HLC? I had the Steez HLC for a little while but for my application, the spool was a little too wild. The Steez HLC was definitely a solid reel, but I need more versatility to do things other than bomb casting. Hopefully someone here has experience with both reels, I'd appreciate any help!

Drakestar
Platinum Angler
Platinum Angler
Posts: 889
Joined: Sun Jan 05, 2020 11:54 am

Re: Zillion TW HD ‘22

Post by Drakestar » Fri Jul 08, 2022 3:54 pm

evilcatfish wrote:
Fri Jul 08, 2022 8:20 am
So I've been eyeing this reel for a little while and keep thinking it could pair beautifully with my Evergreen Orion Black Rose. That said, I'm a little concerned about the spool. How does it perform compared to the Mag Z Boost spool in the Steez A HLC? I had the Steez HLC for a little while but for my application, the spool was a little too wild. The Steez HLC was definitely a solid reel, but I need more versatility to do things other than bomb casting. Hopefully someone here has experience with both reels, I'd appreciate any help!
I got both and the Zillion is more well-behaved for sure. HLC feels like an outlier to me because of the intended use and the brake profile they put on the spool. Haven’t had any finicky behavior with the Zillion (while the HLC needs to be dialed in carefully).

Dalleinf
Platinum Angler
Platinum Angler
Posts: 1460
Joined: Wed Dec 10, 2014 1:12 pm
Location: Denmark

Re: Zillion TW HD ‘22

Post by Dalleinf » Fri Jul 08, 2022 6:54 pm

If you “keep thinking it could pair beautifully with my Evergreen Orion Black Rose”.
But have concerns about the spool.
Buy the reel and if necessary change the spool.

Cristo
Pro Angler
Pro Angler
Posts: 1919
Joined: Thu Dec 08, 2016 6:13 am

Re: Zillion TW HD ‘22

Post by Cristo » Mon Jul 11, 2022 9:24 am

Despite all this talk I think I'm getting pretty close to pulling a trigger on one I figured I'll run 40 lb at the most for braid that is feel like that would give me a decent amount of line to work with :-k

moderators on that note can you please combine the two threads it looks like we have a couple discussing the same topic more or less, werdz 8-)

Post Reply