Joined
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6,295 Posts
Moved over from old site......
I wrote:
I bought a Daiwa Branzino reel 18 months ago, now I do love this reel, it has been an absolute joy to use and has helped me catch many fish. The thing is, after only 3 weeks the drag collapsed, I mean actually collapsed, a drag washer made of felt actually got squeezed out of the front of the spool, this has also happened to a friends of mine too. Now I am not knocking the reel, but for £500 I would expect this not to happen. The bail arn over the last few months has decided to crunch as I open it, to the extent that I have to close it manualy now. The bail roller collapsed after about 6 months and I have had to replace the bearings twice since then, also Daiwa have not and have never had these bearings in stock since I have enquired about them, and this is their flagship reel!! I will be giving the reel a complete over haul soon, and hopefully it will last me another 18 months or longer.
Motto of this story....we abuse our gear, and just because it cost a shed load of money it doesnt mean its bullet proof, and I still would buy another Branzino.
Myfish wrote:
I have to post this because, I fished with your Branzino. I liked it as a reel but..
18 months of use ?
No m8..
You just don't fish all that often really do you. Even then, mostly, its good weather stuff and from the comfort of the 'black pig'.
Great reels they might be but for me, no, not worth the price.
If it had survived 18 months of fishing, different story.
How many actual 'hours' of 'actual fishing' does a reel do in 18 months ?
a) for a bumbler
b) normal angler (no offence intended..LOL)
c) hardcore plugger
18 months category c, no issue. 5 times a week hard fishing, 18 months would see most gear crack under the strain of hard salt water fishing.
category a and b, i'm not so sure. I'd rather have a VS.
I wrote:
Um, you work it out. I first used the branzino in Ireland in July 08, it went completely underwater within the first half hour, and I never washed it afterwards. On that trip it went underwater another 4 times I suppose. Since then it has been used most weekends and some other times between. So thats 16 months, say on average 6 times a month, so about 96 trips, and roughly on average 6 hours a trip, so thats what....576 hours of use with only the odd wash down and an oil up once or twice. Correct me if my maths are wrong I did it all in my head. So thats nearly a pound an hour!!!! Now remember the reel is still working, and I have abused it, and I mean given it no TLC at all. Bob got his the same time as mine and does look after it, his is still perfect.
Neverenoughfishing wrote:
At least you are being honest!
I agree it should have lasted longer but would also raise the question, was it the right reel for the job? It doesn't matter how much a reel costs or how much engineering goes into it, if it is not looked after or (not deliberately) abused it may need more TLC than it has had up to now.
Send it off to Daiwa for a service and see what they say.
I definitely think for a lot of your fishing a Saltiga would be the better choice but they aren't cheap either.
I wrote:
I bought a Daiwa Branzino reel 18 months ago, now I do love this reel, it has been an absolute joy to use and has helped me catch many fish. The thing is, after only 3 weeks the drag collapsed, I mean actually collapsed, a drag washer made of felt actually got squeezed out of the front of the spool, this has also happened to a friends of mine too. Now I am not knocking the reel, but for £500 I would expect this not to happen. The bail arn over the last few months has decided to crunch as I open it, to the extent that I have to close it manualy now. The bail roller collapsed after about 6 months and I have had to replace the bearings twice since then, also Daiwa have not and have never had these bearings in stock since I have enquired about them, and this is their flagship reel!! I will be giving the reel a complete over haul soon, and hopefully it will last me another 18 months or longer.
Motto of this story....we abuse our gear, and just because it cost a shed load of money it doesnt mean its bullet proof, and I still would buy another Branzino.
Myfish wrote:
I have to post this because, I fished with your Branzino. I liked it as a reel but..
18 months of use ?
No m8..
You just don't fish all that often really do you. Even then, mostly, its good weather stuff and from the comfort of the 'black pig'.
Great reels they might be but for me, no, not worth the price.
If it had survived 18 months of fishing, different story.
How many actual 'hours' of 'actual fishing' does a reel do in 18 months ?
a) for a bumbler
b) normal angler (no offence intended..LOL)
c) hardcore plugger
18 months category c, no issue. 5 times a week hard fishing, 18 months would see most gear crack under the strain of hard salt water fishing.
category a and b, i'm not so sure. I'd rather have a VS.
I wrote:
Um, you work it out. I first used the branzino in Ireland in July 08, it went completely underwater within the first half hour, and I never washed it afterwards. On that trip it went underwater another 4 times I suppose. Since then it has been used most weekends and some other times between. So thats 16 months, say on average 6 times a month, so about 96 trips, and roughly on average 6 hours a trip, so thats what....576 hours of use with only the odd wash down and an oil up once or twice. Correct me if my maths are wrong I did it all in my head. So thats nearly a pound an hour!!!! Now remember the reel is still working, and I have abused it, and I mean given it no TLC at all. Bob got his the same time as mine and does look after it, his is still perfect.
Neverenoughfishing wrote:
At least you are being honest!
I agree it should have lasted longer but would also raise the question, was it the right reel for the job? It doesn't matter how much a reel costs or how much engineering goes into it, if it is not looked after or (not deliberately) abused it may need more TLC than it has had up to now.
Send it off to Daiwa for a service and see what they say.
I definitely think for a lot of your fishing a Saltiga would be the better choice but they aren't cheap either.
