TackleTour

Hopefully somebody can answer this! are the Zillion sv tws gears noisy like the Tatulas are? I have A Tat. CT R and a Cabelas Arachnid both 8.0 :1 and they both sound geary on the retrieve!, the CT R much more that the Arachnid. I'm thinking about ordering a JDM 9.0 :1 Zillion but that gear noise drives me nuts! Is the Zillion any better?

Thanks, Kurt

My Tatula CT type R and Tatula CT are both silent on the retrieve. I'm sorry I can't tell you if it's normal or not stock. I tore them down right away and added bearings over the bushings right away. Both reels are very quiet and very smooth.

I own 2 Zillion SV TW reels, both are VERY quiet, I would even guess I can hear my Chronarch MGL just a TINY bit more... I fish with a friend who has an arsenal of Tatula's, old, CT, CT-R, SV, etc. One or two were a bit geary, but after maintenance (done by a shop, I figure they just added grease) they got quieter. I would check for grease on the main gear, strangely my stock Tatula Type R (non CT) is still super quiet and will free spin ridiculously long, its been used 3 years hard and only had clean/lube done by me each season.

DirtyD64 wrote:I own 2 Zillion SV TW reels, both are VERY quiet, I would even guess I can hear my Chronarch MGL just a TINY bit more... I fish with a friend who has an arsenal of Tatula's, old, CT, CT-R, SV, etc. One or two were a bit geary, but after maintenance (done by a shop, I figure they just added grease) they got quieter. I would check for grease on the main gear, strangely my stock Tatula Type R (non CT) is still super quiet and will free spin ridiculously long, its been used 3 years hard and only had clean/lube done by me each season.

This right here. I broke mine down and added grease. Made a noticeable difference. It still wasn't on the level of my 9.1 Zillion SV.

Even my Steez SV TW''s needed grease. Those things were BONE dry. I did some test casting and I was scared that I got a dud because the reel casted so badly. I checked the inductor and it was not stuck. Luckily, I had some oil on me and I gave the spool bearings a dab, opened the reel tremendously.

Good deal, I hope I will get lucky and receive a Zillion 9.0 that's smooth, I have not had good luck with JDM Shimano's
I think I will wait to see what black Friday sales show up before hitting the order button... still a little shy on the JDM stuff having been burned three times and needing Shimano USA fix them right out of the box.

Kurt

Kurt L wrote:Good deal, I hope I will get lucky and receive a Zillion 9.0 that's smooth, I have not had good luck with JDM Shimano's
I think I will wait to see what black Friday sales show up before hitting the order button... still a little shy on the JDM stuff having been burned three times and needing Shimano USA fix them right out of the box.

Kurt

I got plenty of JDM Daiwa reels and they have been fine. It may need a quick lube and be ready to go.

I have a 9.1:1 Zillion TWS SV and it is pretty loud. I had to send it in to TTT to get a defective pinion gear replaced and it did come back a little quieter, but it is still louder then any other Daiwa reel that I own.

I really don't care for it at all, it feels so much more sloppy and loose as well compared to reels in the same price range, in my case a SV103 and a pair of SV105s. Once I can get my endless 34mm spool drama sorted out, I am going to sell it.

Houndfish wrote:I have a 9.1:1 Zillion TWS SV and it is pretty loud. I had to send it in to TTT to get a defective pinion gear replaced and it did come back a little quieter, but it is still louder then any other Daiwa reel that I own.

I really don't care for it at all, it feels so much more sloppy and loose as well compared to reels in the same price range, in my case a SV103 and a pair of SV105s. Once I can get my endless 34mm spool drama sorted out, I am going to sell it.

Ugh, that is exactly what I was worried about, receiving another JDM turd my last three Shimano' s needed the gears replaced right out of the box... I don't know how they leave the assembly line without anyone doing the slightest QC, I suspect some of the discount JDM sites are dumping grounds for factory seconds

Kurt

Kurt L wrote:

Houndfish wrote:I have a 9.1:1 Zillion TWS SV and it is pretty loud. I had to send it in to TTT to get a defective pinion gear replaced and it did come back a little quieter, but it is still louder then any other Daiwa reel that I own.

I really don't care for it at all, it feels so much more sloppy and loose as well compared to reels in the same price range, in my case a SV103 and a pair of SV105s. Once I can get my endless 34mm spool drama sorted out, I am going to sell it.

Ugh, that is exactly what I was worried about, receiving another JDM turd my last three Shimano' s needed the gears replaced right out of the box... I don't know how they leave the assembly line without anyone doing the slightest QC, I suspect some of the discount JDM sites are dumping grounds for factory seconds

Kurt

I have wondered this same thing. I am no conspiracy theorist, but they have to do better QC than products received sometimes. Maybe I have just been lucky, but ALL of my Daiwa/Shimano USDM reels have been perfect. Daiwa even gave my old Type R the newer T-wing for free. Shimano offered to fix my old Stradic Ci4+ outside of warranty, but it ended up being a screw loose on the bail, after I had given it a cleaning and lube. To be honest all of my Lew's reels and Abu reels haven't been terrible either.

Buying from a domestic dealer, like the Tackle Trap, gives you the reassurance that you'll get first quality, and good service, because they stand behind what they sell.

The one Tatula Type-R that I have was one of the first out of the factory. I fished it hard a few times in the first few months with midsize swimbaits up to 2 oz., and I caught lots of solid bass in the the 5-8 lb. range with no issues. The Tatula stays in my rod locker most of the time because I prefer the OG Zillion platform that I have many of.
I was throwing a deep crank with 12 lb. Sniper on the Tatula about 6 months ago. I hooked a catfish that weighed about 15 lbs. at the end of a long cast on the top of the head (gives the fish more leverage) and the fight was long and hard. The reel has been really geary ever since. My OG Zillions, OG Fuegos, and SV103's have caught plenty of big fish, and they haven't become geary. I've never fished the newer Zillion's because I don't like the way that the platform fits in my hand. I can only speak for the 6.3 gears becoming noisy because I don't have any other ratios.

Shimano USA's service has always been excellent and fixed the reels so i'm a big fan of them, but it's sure a bummer to be excited about a new reel and the one you receive has issues right out of the box! I'm now thinking about a USDM Steez SV or possibly a Chronarch MGL?

I'm a light line/Tackle (8-10lb test) Salmon guy and low pro reels are perfect but its not uncommon to stick a good fish and have a long fight on your hands and the very next cast after landing it... that smooth reel you started with is now rough and geary, I bet the off shore guys have seen it that as well. Just looking for a new high "IPT" weapon for next year that's going to hold up!

Kurt

I've had long fights with big catfish and never had any issues with some of my older baitcasters, the ones with brass gears.
I've had two newer reels, with aluminum gears, feel geary after a fight with a big catfish. I think aluminum doesn't like to work too hard.

I don't fish super hard, non stop, but my original Tatula Type R has been in some epic battles and still fishes smooth. My Zillion TWS reels are also solid still. The only reel I own that has shown its fights is a Revo STX20 spinning reel (aluminum gears). I think Shimano's cold forging would really help this issue. That is one feature I feel is legit, properties of metals have been proven again and again by science.

old thread I know, just want to explain reason behind loud gear during retrieve:
1. pinion gear design
2. high ratio >8

https://youtu.be/xJ1_YAKKtu4