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Topwater Caranx Ignobilis: Giant Trevally (GT) => Tackle & Techniques => Topic started by: John Adams Smith on March 26, 2011, 05:36:09 PM

Title: U.S. Market Stella Vs JDM and Australian
Post by: John Adams Smith on March 26, 2011, 05:36:09 PM
Any differences between the Stella's in the three markets besides cosmetic such as the carbon fiber knob on the JDM Stella.
Title: Re: U.S. Market Stella Vs JDM and Australian
Post by: Mark Harris on March 26, 2011, 06:07:28 PM
As far as I understand it there are only two versions of the SW Stellas - the JDM and the export version that goes everywhere else.

I have been assured by a Shimano tech that the only difference is in the livery - i.e the orangey gold all over the export versions. A carbon knob does seem to come as standard on some of the small JDM models but not on the big ones.  The message is that if you can bear the nasty orange handle, buy the export version as it is always cheaper.
Title: Re: U.S. Market Stella Vs JDM and Australian
Post by: Sha Zhang on March 26, 2011, 08:56:16 PM
Save the coin and buy theexport model, that way the coins you save from the JDM model you can put it towards a spare spool. I personally don't mind the gold handles on the export model.
Title: Re: U.S. Market Stella Vs JDM and Australian
Post by: Dave Hoo on March 26, 2011, 11:48:45 PM
Hi,
I second the idea of getting the export model Stellas SW and save the $$ for spare spool or line.

However, there were always "rumours" of the JDMs being more refined than the export model and this makes decision making complicated...

I read somewhere that both are the same in terms of materials and engineering so I would start buying the export models..

cheers
Title: Re: U.S. Market Stella Vs JDM and Australian
Post by: John Adams Smith on March 27, 2011, 11:51:52 AM
I too have heard the rumors that JDM reels were built to better standards than the exports.  My personal feeling is that as long as it gets the job done then the product is good.
Title: Re: U.S. Market Stella Vs JDM and Australian
Post by: William Espina on March 27, 2011, 12:23:31 PM
i have both the jdm and us stellas, sw10000xg and 10000sw. there is no difference that i can see.
Title: Re: U.S. Market Stella Vs JDM and Australian
Post by: Mark Harris on March 27, 2011, 12:25:59 PM
Those rumours have flown around for a long while.  If anyone knows for sure that they are anything other than rumours it would be great to know.

A reel technician who I trust (although he is semi-employed by Shimano) has assured me that the JDM and Export parts are identical.

Title: Re: U.S. Market Stella Vs JDM and Australian
Post by: John Adams Smith on March 27, 2011, 03:35:06 PM
A carbon fiber knob on the us model would be nice.  I have a 10kFA with a 16k spool with 80# daiwa boat braid as my gt popping set-up and a 20ksw as my jigging set-up.  Have a fisherman knob on the 10 but the carbon knob just looks cooler.
Title: Re: U.S. Market Stella Vs JDM and Australian
Post by: Luke Wyrsta on March 27, 2011, 09:27:04 PM
I can promise you they are the same except for minor cosmetic to differentiate between JDM and export :)
Title: Re: U.S. Market Stella Vs JDM and Australian
Post by: gus cisneros on March 31, 2011, 05:14:55 PM
both are the same thing.
Title: Re: U.S. Market Stella Vs JDM and Australian
Post by: Allan Chan Hian Lian on April 01, 2011, 01:17:59 AM
If both are the same can anyone explain why the price differential by 20-30%? It'll take a big sucker to buy a JDM..
BTW, I'm a big, big sucker...  :-[
Can Shimano stand up and stop all this query.
Title: Re: U.S. Market Stella Vs JDM and Australian
Post by: Chuen Fan on April 01, 2011, 10:34:55 AM
I think the JDM models come with a few other accessories (extra handle knob etc), hence the price difference. I could be totally wrong!
Title: Re: U.S. Market Stella Vs JDM and Australian
Post by: Mark Gonsalves on April 02, 2011, 04:02:52 PM
When comparing the schematics from my SW8000HG JDM and the schematics that accompanied my other Stellas the parts look like the same ones except for the knobs....................and maybe some cosmetics.  When I sent in my JDM 8000 for servicing,  they replaced many parts and sent the reel back right away.  I purchased a 10000 spare spool US market and it works on the JDM 8000.
Title: Re: U.S. Market Stella Vs JDM and Australian
Post by: Mark Gwynne on April 02, 2011, 07:01:26 PM
This should cover it. Safe to say they are the same mechanically so you are not getting an inferior product when you buy the export version. The carbon knob is actually pretty expensive. I guess with the cheap US dollar the difference in price between the two is even more exaggerated.

Cheers, Mark.

http://stripersonline.com/surftalk/showthread.php?t=647666&highlight=stella+review+alan (http://stripersonline.com/surftalk/showthread.php?t=647666&highlight=stella+review+alan)
Title: Re: U.S. Market Stella Vs JDM and Australian
Post by: Sha Zhang on April 02, 2011, 07:59:07 PM
The Carbon Knob on the JDM is $200 on its own, so i would assume the extra you pay for JDM model is because of this upgrade/s and any other possible bling upgrades . I don't own any JDM models but i do have standard export models.
Title: Re: U.S. Market Stella Vs JDM and Australian
Post by: Mark Harris on April 02, 2011, 11:31:42 PM
The big JDM Stellas (18000 and 20000) do not come with extra knobs as far as  I know? My local tackle shop sells the two versions side by side and there is about US$ 200 price difference. You would have to be either nuts or totally offended by the gross orange handle on the export version to buy the JDM version  :D.

I think Luke is 100% correct - there are absolutely no differences bar the cosmetics, except for some of the smaller JDM models apparently having carbon knobs (about US$ 200 to buy seperately)
Title: Re: U.S. Market Stella Vs JDM and Australian
Post by: Dave Hoo on April 04, 2011, 04:53:39 PM
Hi All,
My friend bought a used stella SW10000PG and showed it to me.

I was quite surprised by the look of the reel as it does not looked like a JDM model at all in terms of the sW10000 spool does not have any PG stated and the line caps is stated in Lbs and not P.E.

I have not seen any JDM PG models and can someone with the JDM PG model confirm if the JDM spool for PG model should have the PG and the PE line stated for line caps?

The reel foot of the reel only States Shimano SW10000 and not Shimano SW10000PG. Is this the correct body?

We suspect that the seller puts his export model Stella SW10000 body and spool into the JDM Stella SW10000PG box with the JDM gray handle and sold it to my friend as the PG model.

Needed some insights and help to know if this is the case and how do we verify if the gear ration is indeed PG or the XG (which is the export SW10000 gear ratio)?

thanks for all the inputs and help

In the event that the reel is indeed the export SW10000 with the high gear ratio, does anyone know what are the parts number for the gears to convert it into a PG model and the costs of the gears?

have a good day
Title: Re: U.S. Market Stella Vs JDM and Australian
Post by: Mark Harris on April 04, 2011, 05:14:33 PM
Hmmm..... sounds a bit dodgy to me Dave. I do not have a 10000PG but I am pretty sure that the spool should state PG and that the line cap on a JDM reel should be shown in both lbs and PE (it is on my JDM SW20000). 

I guess the quick and easy way to check the gearing is to count the number of rotations around the spool from one turn of the  handle. There is a whole rotation of difference between the PG and XG models (4.9 versus 5.8 ) so it will be very easy to tell. The export SW10000 is XG only - 5.8.
Title: Re: U.S. Market Stella Vs JDM and Australian
Post by: Dave Hoo on April 05, 2011, 06:26:15 AM
Hi all,
many thanks for the information.

I am quite sure the reel is an export model and not a PG.

Does anyone know where I can order a set of the needed gears to convert the reel into a PG ? What will be the costs involved.

The reel was actually plan for the April 15 fishing trip thanks
Title: Re: U.S. Market Stella Vs JDM and Australian
Post by: Joseph Ngan on April 05, 2011, 09:35:07 AM
I assume you are referring to the current Stella (2008 - now) as you reference gray handle and "XG". The dead give away is there should be a serial number on the reel foot where it states the model(on JDM models) amongst all the cosmetic differences. Yes you are corret that PGs will state PG on the reel foot as well, same goes for XG and HG. You should also be able to easily tell by winding as there is a significant difference in ratio between PG and XG. Try high speed spinning a heavy metal and see how fast you need to wind. If you get tired after 10 casts then its a PG for sure!  ;)

Dont know where you are based but the closest Shimano office should be able to quote and insert new gears for you. Wont be cheap and i dont think that will be done within your timeframe unless you take it there in person and wait.

There are differences between the JDM and export more so in models 4000 - 8000. The JDM market offers a wider variety of sizes. I liken a JDM stella to a base custom rod, same blank, subtle differences, and not as common ex Japan.

I personally didnt want to ask this question that has popped up all over the internet so i took the liberty of just buying all JDM stellas. The amount of time spent reading and researching would have cost me well over $200. Thats just my 2 cents.  :o



Title: Re: U.S. Market Stella Vs JDM and Australian
Post by: Tony Giang on April 05, 2011, 02:19:37 PM
Hi all,
many thanks for the information.

I am quite sure the reel is an export model and not a PG.

Does anyone know where I can order a set of the needed gears to convert the reel into a PG ? What will be the costs involved.

The reel was actually plan for the April 15 fishing trip thanks

Wouldn't you be better off to sell the reel and buy a new one instead of changing the gears over?
I'm pretty sure it would be alot cheaper that way.
Title: Re: U.S. Market Stella Vs JDM and Australian
Post by: Mark Harris on April 05, 2011, 02:23:48 PM
Or demand your money back from the seller as you have been sold something very different from what you ordered.
Title: Re: U.S. Market Stella Vs JDM and Australian
Post by: Adrian Braun on April 05, 2011, 02:58:41 PM
Or demand your money back from the seller as you have been sold something very different from what you ordered.

Agree. I wouldn't let him get away with it.
Title: Re: U.S. Market Stella Vs JDM and Australian
Post by: Dave Hoo on April 05, 2011, 03:40:53 PM
Hi all,
thanks for the information and advice.

I dont think my friend will be able to look for the seller as he bought the reel 6 months ago and kept it in storage until last weekend when we met and he showed me the reel that he wanted to use for jigging in Maldives.
I had a export SW10000 and was comparing his reel with mine which started all these.

I think he would just want to buy a set of PG gears and convert the reel.

we are based in Singapore and the Singapore Shimano agent does not have any ready parts and ordering it will take 6-8 weeks. =(

He is willing to pay for shipping to get the gear set in so that it can be changed and reel can be used for the april trip.

Will be grateful if someone can point us to the shimano agent in AU and we can try to import the gears.

thanks
Title: Re: U.S. Market Stella Vs JDM and Australian
Post by: Mark Harris on April 05, 2011, 04:08:53 PM
http://www.shimanofish.com.au/ (http://www.shimanofish.com.au/)

I do have a feeling that such an unusual order will involve a special shipment from Shimano in Japan and a significant waiting period. But the best of luck trying.
Title: Re: U.S. Market Stella Vs JDM and Australian
Post by: Jay Burgess on April 05, 2011, 05:15:56 PM

Will be grateful if someone can point us to the shimano agent in AU and we can try to import the gears.

thanks

Hi Dave, send Tim from Dunphy Sports an email.

[email protected]

This is where I get my Stellas serviced in Australia.
Title: Re: U.S. Market Stella Vs JDM and Australian
Post by: Jeff Larsen on April 10, 2011, 02:38:55 PM
Personally I have not seen any difference between the two.
Title: Re: U.S. Market Stella Vs JDM and Australian
Post by: Damian Fantozzi on April 13, 2011, 12:51:44 PM
Hi All,
My friend bought a used stella SW10000PG and showed it to me.

I was quite surprised by the look of the reel as it does not looked like a JDM model at all in terms of the sW10000 spool does not have any PG stated and the line caps is stated in Lbs and not P.E.

I have not seen any JDM PG models and can someone with the JDM PG model confirm if the JDM spool for PG model should have the PG and the PE line stated for line caps?

The reel foot of the reel only States Shimano SW10000 and not Shimano SW10000PG. Is this the correct body?

We suspect that the seller puts his export model Stella SW10000 body and spool into the JDM Stella SW10000PG box with the JDM gray handle and sold it to my friend as the PG model.

Needed some insights and help to know if this is the case and how do we verify if the gear ration is indeed PG or the XG (which is the export SW10000 gear ratio)?

thanks for all the inputs and help

In the event that the reel is indeed the export SW10000 with the high gear ratio, does anyone know what are the parts number for the gears to convert it into a PG model and the costs of the gears?

have a good day

all you need to do is make one full revolution with the handle and count the revolutions made by the rotor.
Title: Re: U.S. Market Stella Vs JDM and Australian
Post by: Damian Fantozzi on April 13, 2011, 01:00:37 PM
as for changing gears- PG is 4.8:1 and HG/ export 10000sw is 5.8:1, apparently a 20cm difference in retrieve.

I would only change gears if it was completely essential

Title: Re: U.S. Market Stella Vs JDM and Australian
Post by: Dave Hoo on April 14, 2011, 11:40:33 AM
Hi,
The reason for changing gears to PG is that I wanted to use the reel for jigging.

I dont think the 5.8 gear ratio will be good to jig 250g jigs and I will end up wearing out the gears.

I still have my XG which I will use for popping n this extra set of gears can be a backup.

Emailed tim but no reply.. anyone know where else I can get my hands on the PG gears set?

thanks
Title: Re: U.S. Market Stella Vs JDM and Australian
Post by: Luke Wyrsta on April 14, 2011, 11:41:47 AM
Hi,
The reason for changing gears to PG is that I wanted to use the reel for jigging.

I dont think the 5.8 gear ratio will be good to jig 250g jigs and I will end up wearing out the gears.

I still have my XG which I will use for popping n this extra set of gears can be a backup.

Emailed tim but no reply.. anyone know where else I can get my hands on the PG gears set?

thanks

Tim no longer works there.

Email: [email protected]
Title: Re: U.S. Market Stella Vs JDM and Australian
Post by: Jay Burgess on April 14, 2011, 12:02:19 PM

Tim no longer works there.

Email: [email protected]

Ahhh cheers for clearing that up Luke.
Title: Re: U.S. Market Stella Vs JDM and Australian
Post by: Luke Wyrsta on April 14, 2011, 12:06:12 PM

Tim no longer works there.

Email: [email protected]

Ahhh cheers for clearing that up Luke.

No worries buddy. Would've corrected it earlier if i had've seen the post  8)
Title: Re: U.S. Market Stella Vs JDM and Australian
Post by: Damian Fantozzi on April 15, 2011, 10:48:07 AM
Dave

it would be interesting to get Luke's view on wearing out high gears jigging?

Luke? Anyone?

Title: Re: U.S. Market Stella Vs JDM and Australian
Post by: Darren Douche on April 15, 2011, 11:18:29 AM
Used my 18000 for sambo jigging in Perth, must of caught over 50 and still like brand new!
Title: Re: U.S. Market Stella Vs JDM and Australian
Post by: Kenny Koh Kee Koong on November 09, 2011, 06:05:57 PM
sorry to dig up an old post.
but is there any differents for the JDM 20000PG and the export 20000???
and is there any 200000HG for popping...???
i'm very new into the game and i have been reading alot and don't know what is right ;D

thanks
kenny
Title: Re: U.S. Market Stella Vs JDM and Australian
Post by: Wan Izhan on November 09, 2011, 07:15:43 PM
i dont think there is 20000HG.
I have both JDM SW10000XG and US version 10000SW.

please read below for comparison
http://wanizhan.blogspot.com/2011/07/stunning-discovery-stella-sw2008-jdm.html (http://wanizhan.blogspot.com/2011/07/stunning-discovery-stella-sw2008-jdm.html)

cheers
izhan
Title: Re: U.S. Market Stella Vs JDM and Australian
Post by: Brandon Khoo on November 09, 2011, 07:40:03 PM
If you want a 20000HG, buy an 18000 and a 20000 spool to go with it
Title: Re: U.S. Market Stella Vs JDM and Australian
Post by: Wan Izhan on November 09, 2011, 08:09:14 PM
agreed with Brandon.
Yumeya spool specification

Model                  Drag      Weight    Line Capacity
SW 20000 MAX      ~15kg   205g    PE5-750m PE6-600m PE8-410m
SW 20000        ~17kg      193g    PE5-600m PE6-500m PE8-350m
SW 18000        ~17KG      182G    PE5-500m PE6-400m PE8-300m

Alternative is to search for Studio Ocean Mark (SOM) 20000 spool.

cheers
izhan
Title: Re: U.S. Market Stella Vs JDM and Australian
Post by: Kenny Koh Kee Koong on November 10, 2011, 09:02:49 PM
Thanks alot for the good info
I think I will settle for a 18000sw then hunt down a 20000spool
Thank you again

Kenny
Title: Re: U.S. Market Stella Vs JDM and Australian
Post by: Mark Harris on November 10, 2011, 11:00:26 PM
Kenny there is not too much to be gained by a size 20000 spool over an 18000.  If you want to fish PE10 then I suppose the extra line capacity of a 20000 is helpful. But that's about it as far as I can see.