original Concept Z

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mark poulson
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original Concept Z

Post by mark poulson » Thu Jun 23, 2022 4:56 pm

Has anyone here fished this reel?

DirtyD64
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Re: original Concept Z

Post by DirtyD64 » Sat Jun 25, 2022 6:24 am

mark poulson wrote:
Thu Jun 23, 2022 4:56 pm
Has anyone here fished this reel?
I am surprised no one answered you, I know there were people on here who tried them. You are talking about the original orange Concept Z that was supposed to be the best thing to ever happen to reels?

I have cast one a few times, buddy had one on a 7'9" cranking rod, and it threw pretty far. Just didn't feel built the best to me. I don't mean to ride the Shimano/Daiwa train hard, but once you get above even $150 now, those two brands are hard to beat. That is why when people release $300-350 reels they feel very lacking to say a new Zillion or the current Bantam.

Back to the Z though, I remember them claiming it would toss 1/8oz to heavier lures, and withstand corrosion amazingly. I don't think it was that superb, but if I found one at a yardsale or super cheap I might grab it for fun. There are plenty of videos testing it that can tell you more than me.

dragon1
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Re: original Concept Z

Post by dragon1 » Sat Jun 25, 2022 8:13 am

Take it with a grain of salt that the "Concept Z" was the end all be all for its time. Personally, I would consider some Doyo and Banax products before any Concept reel.
"It is like a finger pointing away to the Moon...don't concentrate on the finger, or you will miss all of that heavenly glory."

mark poulson
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Re: original Concept Z

Post by mark poulson » Mon Jun 27, 2022 3:25 pm

I was never tempted to fish any of the Concept reels. To me they were just another multi- bearing bait caster in gaudy colors.
Well, I'm a sucker for a new idea, so I actually preordered one from TW in2018, and paid the full $200 price. Anyone who knows me would be shocked, since I am cheap!
When it came, I opened it up, put a drop of oil on the spool bushings per online recommendations.
I spooled it up with 50lb braid with a 20lb fluoro leader, and put it on one of my Powell 733 spinnerbait rods.
It got a workout that year, and never gave me whiff of a problem.
My friend found them the next year for sale at half price, and so I bought a bunch, including a left hander for punching. So did he. We paid $99 each, including shipping.
He has a half dozen, and I have more.
They have all performed flawlessly, and the drags have held up, too. I fish tulles and weeds. I have them pretty tight, so I can pull big fish out of the slop, and there has never been an issue with slipping. I can't bend over and lip fish anymore, so I do a lot of boat flipping. I also keep a lot of rigged rods on deck, because I fish alone in the wind, and changing baits I a pain in the wind.
The biggest bass I've caught on one of them was 8lbs even, on a 1.5 crank in 5' of water. I did net that one.
The bushings have held up better than any ball bearings I've used. Granted I don't uses ceramic bearings, but I fish a lot of reels with ball bearings. All of them need at least twice a year lubing.
I have not had to oil anything on the Z reels since the initial drop of oil, and they all are as quiet as the day I first fished them.
All this is to say keep an open mind when you read stuff online.
A lot of people will fall on their sword defending their favorite brand of reel, but that doesn't mean they're right.

dragon1
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Re: original Concept Z

Post by dragon1 » Mon Jun 27, 2022 10:15 pm

mark poulson wrote:
Mon Jun 27, 2022 3:25 pm
I was never tempted to fish any of the Concept reels. To me they were just another multi- bearing bait caster in gaudy colors.
Well, I'm a sucker for a new idea, so I actually preordered one from TW in2018, and paid the full $200 price. Anyone who knows me would be shocked, since I am cheap!
When it came, I opened it up, put a drop of oil on the spool bushings per online recommendations.
I spooled it up with 50lb braid with a 20lb fluoro leader, and put it on one of my Powell 733 spinnerbait rods.
It got a workout that year, and never gave me whiff of a problem.
My friend found them the next year for sale at half price, and so I bought a bunch, including a left hander for punching. So did he. We paid $99 each, including shipping.
He has a half dozen, and I have more.
They have all performed flawlessly, and the drags have held up, too. I fish tulles and weeds. I have them pretty tight, so I can pull big fish out of the slop, and there has never been an issue with slipping. I can't bend over and lip fish anymore, so I do a lot of boat flipping. I also keep a lot of rigged rods on deck, because I fish alone in the wind, and changing baits I a pain in the wind.
The biggest bass I've caught on one of them was 8lbs even, on a 1.5 crank in 5' of water. I did net that one.
The bushings have held up better than any ball bearings I've used. Granted I don't uses ceramic bearings, but I fish a lot of reels with ball bearings. All of them need at least twice a year lubing.
I have not had to oil anything on the Z reels since the initial drop of oil, and they all are as quiet as the day I first fished them.
All this is to say keep an open mind when you read stuff online.
A lot of people will fall on their sword defending their favorite brand of reel, but that doesn't mean they're right.
It's a good thing that it's worked out for you with the Concept reels, and yes bushings, especially quality brass ones, will outlast bearings with very little maintenance. I have handled and cast several Concept reels that some local fishing buddies had (in CO), I just don't like the feel of them overall mechanically and I absolutely don't like the aesthetics. If you are a fan of the Concept reels, the great news is that they can be had cheap in the used market, and there is likely not as much competition for them vs used Daiwa and Shimano reels.

FWIW, I have six Daiwa PT 33 SH reels that are over three decades old, been fished hard for (combined) thousands of hours, and the parts are all original and still completely functional. The only upgrades on a couple of the SH's and one C model, are SIC side plate bearing and hand cut Carbontex from Ian, and an added 102 mm Hawgtech CF handle with Shimano power knobs.

This said, I don't bring those old PT 33s out much anymore as they were specifically paired with my custom Seeker CFC 807 rods with braid+leader for power fishing 3/4-1 oz lipless on LONG BOMB casts and ripping over emerging weeds in the spring in some of the waters I fished for decades in Colorado.
"It is like a finger pointing away to the Moon...don't concentrate on the finger, or you will miss all of that heavenly glory."

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