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Topwater Caranx Ignobilis: Giant Trevally (GT) => Tackle & Techniques => Topic started by: Brandon Khoo on January 23, 2012, 05:07:31 PM
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Back around September last year, after this spool was released, I said I would acquire one of the above spools, give it a proper workout and report back on how it went. I was hoping to test the spool out in October but the trip got cancelled so I had to wait till this month before I had an opportunity to use it.
The primary objective of the test and review was to assess if the spool was a viable (and cheaper) alternative to Studio Ocean Mark's brilliant 16000 No Limits spool. It was not to test whether the spool could actually handle the drag pressure claimed by the manufacturer (something ridiculous like 35kg). First, I'd struggle like hell to managehalf that pressure myself and two, I expect that a drag pressure of that magnitude would destroy my 10000XG.
The spool pretty much has an identical capacity to the SOM 16000. I got about 240m of Varivas GT PE8 onto the spool. Cosmetically, I don't think it looks anywhere as good as the SOM No Limits but that is a personal thing. The finish on the SOM just looks so good whereas the JM just doesn't looks as well finished.
I decided it would be best if I just fished the JM in an identical fashion to my SOMs. I matched the reel which carried the JM onto a prototype Carpenter rod and used it primarily for throwing various lures from 160g to 200g.
So how did it go? Well, I really am going to have to eat some humble pie. I was pretty sure that the JM would fail to match it up to the SOM No limits. I sort of expected that the spool might survive the trip but that the drag wouldn't be as smooth. Well, I was wrong.
I was fortunate enough to be able to give the reel a really tough working over including one fish that in one run, almost managed to spool me. A the fish continued to take line, I continued to wind the drag down till I had the drag wound down to such a degree that I actually had to point the rod at the fish. Overall, the performance of the spool was terrific. It was silky smooth and through the five days I used it, it performed flawlessly. At no time did I have the drag wound down anywhere near its maximum capacity but it was already at a level beyond what I would normally be fishing.
Will the spool pull 35kg? Well, I don't know but that is irrelevant in any case. What I can say is that based on my experience over this trip, the JM spool matched the SOMs in performance in every way and I have no hesitation in recommending the spool for anyone looking for a larger aftermarket spool for their 8000/10000 Stella. Since release, I have used the SOMs and have learnt to trust the spool. The highest praise I can give the JM is that I actually forgot I was using the JM during the trip.
I had some doubts about the number of cosmetic holes in the spool as I was concerned that it might permit water to get into the drag. The reel it was on got drenched continually when we were moving spots during the trip but there was absolutely no impact on the performance of the drag.
I will continue to use this spool and report back on it periodically to see how it performs long term. I will strip the drag back when I have a moment to see how that looks but for now, my congratulations to Jigging Master for bringing a top line aftermarket product onto the market.
My thanks to Fishhead for sourcing the spool for me.
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Many thanks Brandon. I think that will make a few minds up, including my own.
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Brandon,
Thanks for the review. I have a couple of these for jigging and stickbaiting as in NZ we can't access the SOM spool. So was pleased you were happy with them.
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Thanks for posting that.
Good to have a cheaper option out there, and good to hear about the performance - however I'm with you on the looks!
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Thanks for the report Brandon. Very informative!
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Thanks Brandon! Appreciate it! Been waiting patiently for your performance appraisal of the reel and after reading your review, i can only heave a huge sigh of relief! Now, i can safely fish in peace.. thank you once again..
Robin
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cheers for the report Brandon. I've been eyeing up the silver one..
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Good to hear - hope Fish Head are stocking up after a review like that! :)
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Now I just need to get my hands onto one of those weird looking Nature Boy spools .....
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Thanks a lot for this close-up Brandon, very informative :)
From the pictures I saw, the spool's lip of JM looks like stella original spools, instead of SOM and Nature Boys spool. My be JM spool has better casting performance compare to the 16000 SOM spool?
Thanks
Antonino
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I did not notice any difference is casting performance, Antonino.
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Hi Brandon,
Thanks so much for the review, and very stoked to hear that the spool has stood up to your very concise and no doubt hard testing.... its fantastic to have a great priced option out there for after market spools....Thanks for doing the test and putting up the review.
As to the looks, I don't think they look bad at all... fitted mine this morning, and with the handle arm to match, reckon it looks pretty damn good!
(http://i105.photobucket.com/albums/m209/Steelprod/ANDRE%20FISH%20STUFF/JMUpgrades2.jpg)
(http://i105.photobucket.com/albums/m209/Steelprod/ANDRE%20FISH%20STUFF/JMUpgrades1.jpg)
(http://i105.photobucket.com/albums/m209/Steelprod/ANDRE%20FISH%20STUFF/JMUpgrades3.jpg)
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Looks great on your Stella there Andre. And I really like the look of the spool lip for castability - very similar to Stella spool.
I will certainly be getting my hands on one of these soon.
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Nice one Andre - what's the feel of the handle like relative to the standard Stella? I've got a gold one on the way for my 8k - haven't commited to a handle yet though....
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The handle looks very similar to the MC Works handles. Do they feel as durable and solid as the MC ones?
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Ben,
They certainly do have that sturdy feel to them. I can't work out if it is just psychological or not, but reels do feel stronger with them.
The 103 Jigging Master handle is 1cm longer than the standard 10000 Stella handle as well which gives the angler more leverage when fighting a big fish.
Cheers
Duncan
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As to the looks, I don't think they look bad at all... fitted mine this morning, and with the handle arm to match, reckon it looks pretty damn good!
Agreed... love my SOM spool and can't say I will rush out to replace it any time soon but I must say that the JM spool looks pretty nice! 8)
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yea that reel is pimpin!!! upgrades ahoy!!! 8)
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Brandon,
How do these aftermarket spools compare to the standard ones?
Besides extra capacity, are they on par or even better?
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Jonathan, the whole point of size 16000 aftermarket spools is that Shimano do not make one.
They fit onto Stella SW and Twinpower SW 10000 size reels but give an increased line capacity that is much more suitable for GT fishing. As for performance, I can only speak for the SOM No Limits 16000 but the JM seems pretty equivalent to that from Brandon's review. And I would say the performance is no worse or no better than the factory Stella and Twinpower spools. The key benefit is enough line capacity for PE8 GT fishing.
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I can only add to what Mark has written. What the 16000 spools do is they being PE8 into play for the 8000/10000 Stellas. The standard spools are just a bit too small for PE8. I also think the aftermarket spools have a superior drag to the standard spool but I emphasise that is a personal view.
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Hi,
Do you know if this spool would fit a twinpower 12000?
Thanks
Nick
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Yes it will Nick. Stella SW and Twinpower SW bodies take identical spools.
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Hey Brandon, Great report on JM 16000 spool. Just bought a SOM 16000 NL in the DT colour before I knew you were going to do a report on this one. Looks really heavy duty. Can't wait to see the report on the Nature Boys alternative. :D
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Hi all
just received the jm spool, handle and knob all in silver looking really nice on my twinpower.
Anyone knows if it has to be greased like the som or if it is out of the box.
Cheers
Michael
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Hi Michael, I couldn't help myself but when I received my SOM NL spool of recent, I had to pull it apart. I thought I had to put grease in it but all the carbon washers were all lightly smeared. So I just left it alone. If the drag is of similar design to the SOM then they are dead easy to work on. Just take the wire spring off the top using a butter knife or flat screw driver and all the washers should fall out. Just make sure they go back in the same order. I generally use Cals universal drag grease but I wonder if Daiwa Real Four tournament drag grease III is any good? Does anybody use this?
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Thanks Brandon really useful review as I had ummed and ahhhed for my TP 12K ...
Dre ... You tart!
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Looking at the Monster spool, It appears to be a capable piece of hardware, Thanks Brandon for your input. always value the your reports of the members . In looking on the Internet for picts of the spool, I also saw the jigging master handle and a knob that peaked my interest but can't quite identify. Any one know who makes this knob?
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That's a Fisherman!
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Thanks Brandon, I thought it looked liked a Fisherman, but couldn't confirm this while looking on the US web sites. SaltyWater etc.... apparently it mates up with the Jiigging Master handle.
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I still regard this knob as the best on the market. I like it much more than the knob on my MC Works handle. After seeing the picture you posted, I should check out if I can fit it on!
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Hi Brandon, hi Lee,
The FISHERMAN knob does indeed match up perfectly to the JM Handle Arm ( thats my reel in the pic ), and is an awesome match..... feels super solid all the way through now...
Lee sorry for the tardy reply to your PM, but just replied now, hope you're well my friend.
Dre
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Dre, where do you pick up the JM handle, looks nice, I presume if the fisherman knob fits it other aftermarket knobs will also.
Any chance of getting center to center handle length on the JM?
Thanks
Hi Brandon, hi Lee,
The FISHERMAN knob does indeed match up perfectly to the JM Handle Arm ( thats my reel in the pic ), and is an awesome match..... feels super solid all the way through now...
Lee sorry for the tardy reply to your PM, but just replied now, hope you're well my friend.
Dre
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Hey Andy,
We ( JigStar AFrica) are agents for JM here in Africa, so got it in that way... we bought a bunch of the spools and hadnle arms in and they have been incredibly well recieved here....
I'll try measure up the centre to centre for you and let you know tomorrow.
Cheers
Dre
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Hi @ all,
got my JM 16000 today and opened the drag to check if it's already greased or not but i was bone dry!
Brandon did you use your spool out of the box or did you put on some extra drag grease?
Thanks!
Greetings from Germany
Robert
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I just checked my JM25000 spool and it was bone dry too. I think it would be good practice on any aftermarket spool to check the drag washers before use. My SOM16000 spool was also dry when I purchased it a while back. My buddy just purchased a SOM20000 spool used, when he checked the drag washers they were pretty much dust along with corrosion in the inside of the spool which is consistent with the previous owner not checking/greasing the washers before use.
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Hi Rob
My spool had a dry drag out of the box and it was tested that way. If the manufacturers release them that way, I will test them accordingly. SOMs come that way too.
I would point out that I have since added a very, very thin film of Cal's grease.
On thing to watch out for with the SOM is that once a bit of water gets into the drag, it's dead! It won't even pull 8kg once it is wet. I expect that the JM would be similarly afflicted, as would most if not all spools.
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Brandon, your comments about the water got me thinking.
You might remember that a while ago there were a couple of reports here on the SOM drag seeming to not engage properly. A bit after that the same thing happened to me. At full lock I reckon the spool was putting out about 5 kgs of drag. Then mysteriously, it fixed itself!
I am now thinking that was simply because the drag stack got wet and then dried itself out. Sounds plausible?
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That could well be a reason for it, Mark