2010 Saltiga vs. Stella SW

[Luke Wyrsta]

I will comment briefly on prices in Australia for starters there is a serious lack of competition no fishing tackle wholesaler or daiwa and shimano will sell products to you as a business unless you have a physical retail store address as a result their are not a huge amount of online shops those that exist are part of a retail tackle store  which means anglers cannot shop around within Australia much  not to mention similar to car dealships for reels location plays a key on weather they will supply you even if you do have a retail store
 secondly you cannot go ahead and just import the reels from a wholesaler overseas for example this is considered an infringement of intellectual property Rights and trademark identity shimano in Australia have notices lodge with the customs office for everyone of their products so if you do arrange for some to be imported order them fill out your import documents they will not clear customs .   shimano  notice lodged with custom's link shows all there product list http://www.customs.gov.au/webdata/miniSites/ipData/T00262-01.asp  here's the link for all companies notice Daiwa not on it but legally they can file a notice at any time so first shipment fine second doesn't clear big gamble http://www.customs.gov.au/webdata/miniSites/ipData/
so you are limited here in Australia to a few online stores provided my actual retail outlets  as you cannot just set up online store yourself so  you have to travel from  store to store  wether it is the tacklestores pushing the price or shimano /daiwa  i cannot comment i have heard  various debates on this.

Let's not hi-jack the thread.

And...coming from the tackle industry for one of the aforementioned parties in the past - I grossly disagree with you about many points.

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At the end of the day, we all have little jibes here and there (myself included) but the two top running manufacturers produce some superb products. And my professional stance is just that - you can agree to disagree but there is top of the line equipment coming out of either camps.

Cut me and I'll bleed Shimano - I couldn't care less what is going on in the world of Daiwa because I'm comfortable that what I use personally is the best out there for the application. If it breaks, then feedback will be passed along the chain to make the improvement and innovation - that is what makes these products so fantastic is today's modern age. Coupled with more extreme environments and anglers willing to fish the extra mile - it wouldn't be of interest to me if I beat a GT or Doggie every opportunity I encountered them 

No product out there is impervious, and even the next rich bloke's Ferrari or Lambo needs upkeep, maintanance and TLC to perform at it's peak. You can't be responsible for the dope that's left a nail on the bitumen and gives you a flat!

Those are only general comments about all this Shimano vs. Daiwa banter. I'm not interested in the discussion about second rate parts or pricing - I'm not commenting about that.

Let's please keep the discussion objective and keep the emotion out. Thanks Boys 

[Gareth Branicki]

sorry for the hijack luke previous posts were talking about prices  should have kept my opinons to myself

[Luke Wyrsta]

sorry for the hijack luke previous posts were talking about prices  should have kept my opinons to myself
cheers

No worries mate. Just trying to keep this on track.

[Peter Childs]

Hey guys, had the opprtunity to fish the both the stella SW 10000 and new Saltiga 5000H side by side in NZ.  I love em both!  One of each thanks.

I remember the days of getting smoked by fair to middling fish on my 850 SS Spinfisher loaded with 30lb Maxima mono attached to a butterworth 7'6" full glass rod (and that was state of the art at the time - drool worthy)!  Boy how times have changed - and the captures we now enjoy.

Gotta say, every one of those kings in NZ would have kicked my arse on that gear - that is assuming I could even lob the stickbait out in front of them!

Bring on the innovation, we've got it so good now!

[Brandon Khoo]

..... and that about sums it up, Peter.

I've owned every model of the big Stella released since the original F series and have found them to be an exemplary reel. My experience on Daiwa isn't anywhere near as extensive but I have been very happy with the Dogfights. Both reels are proven beyond doubt. That said, at some time of another, every reel has had a fault but that is hardly a surprise when you look at what we subject them to.

I just have no time for these guys pushing fables. A few years back, I allowed myself to be drawn into a debate with a idiot on another forum who didn't deserve the time I wasted on him. He was clearly an unabashed Daiwa fan but he was making the most ludicruous claims about the Saltiga as he wanted to refute some of the debates going on about its drag system. He made a statement that his drag washers had been used to the point that they were wafer thin but that they continued to operate brilliantly and those who had changed to carbontex washers didn't know what they were doing. Right...... he obviously hadn't even fished the reel enough to know how sensitive reels of this build tolerance are to coning. If his drag washers had indeed been worn to such a point, the coning effect would have the reel unfishable.

[Ben Earl]

My experience with the new Saltiga 5000h is limited to one day's use (borrowed from a tackle shop owner from Tokyo) and I am nothing but impressed with it, with the minor exception of a plasticky feeling hand grip (couldn't bring myself to say :knob" ). If I had to choose one brand I would probably pick daiwa but I am happy to use either the stella or the saltiga. I am quite sure that no reasonable person would find major fault with either.
Just a point on Alan Hawke's review, it seemed thorough and he made some interesting observations but there seem to be a lot of people ready to give up on the new Saltiga based purely one one man's review. I personally appreciate the detail that he goes into but would never base any decisions on his opinion alone (or anyone else's). I am more interested to see how real users feel about it and what their experiences are.   

[Gareth Branicki]

I own both a Stella 18000 and have just bought a spare 20000 spool for it i also have the dogfight and love both  . some ppl I have noticed can be obsessive in their support of one manufacturer over another i am very much  in agreement with Peter's earlier post  i love the fact that there  are 2 top reels and i will always try to buy both and compare and its just fun to pick up my other rod which  has a different reel on it as they feel differently especially if you are spinning metals lures all day.

Both of the top reels are remarkable in their workmanship yes i do know that the dogfight drag can spike and will  be changing the drag when i have time interestingly i did read  Alan's  reviews regards to the saltiga when it came out vs the Stella FA and then his review of of the Stella SW . this is one person  who has put over the years a lot of effort in and i do appreciate that fact and love the photos and he was defiantly right in regards to the saltist reels quite  a few  of ppl where hoping for a low cost high speed spinning reel . I use  it only for tailor spinning but never been happy enough with to test it out properly however my son 11 and already 5 foot so next year when he hits the rocks for the first time he can run amok with it .

 Will i make a judgement based solely on this no i will continue to buy both as one releases a new reel i will get and when the next does so on as long as the wife doesn't audit my credit card  I am totally neutral and love the difference and as Luke pointed out no reel with perform at its best unless you take the time and effort to look after it and maintain it

[David Noble]

Alan's other job is being the tough judge on Masterchef...
"Now lets talk about that bouillabaisse shall we....."   

[Scott Schrapel]

I have several of each. Both are fantastic reels & I personally cant fault either one.

There is always room for each manufacture in my collection.

I love them both equally…… 

[Mark Harris]

Both of the top reels are remarkable in their workmanship yes i do know that the dogfight drag can spike and will  be changing the drag when i have time interestingly i did read  Alan's  reviews regards to the saltiga when it came out vs the Stella FA and then his review of of the Stella SW .

If you bought your Dogfight fairly recently, there should be no need to change the drag as Daiwa seemingly solved that issue.  I certainly do not have that problem with mine which was purchased early this year and it has been used extensively.

Like several others have said, I also have no particular brand loyalty fishing the Dogfight alongside a SW18000. I like both in different ways. They are after all very different reels.

[Gareth Branicki]

Hi mark bought it feb last year so should i change or is it fine

[Travis Heaps]

With both companies bringing out top end products it almost comes down to secondary factors - for me anyway.  After sale service, warranty, how they treat the customer starts to become a deciding factor. 

Currently my three main reels i use are daiwas but the fact they have raised their prices when shimano has dropped theirs and amazing warranty service I've received on both a tcurve and Stella claim, where heavy handed fishing was probably the main factor in the failure means I'm starting to come back to the shimano camp.  Now if only they'd get rid of that hideous gold sw colour scheme.

[Geoff Volter]

Now if only they'd get rid of that hideous gold sw colour scheme.

I like that colour scheme!!

[Adrian Braun]

and amazing warranty service I've received on both a tcurve and Stella claim, where heavy handed fishing was probably the main factor in the failure

What model of stella is this? FA or SW? what sort of failure happened? thanks a lot.

[Mark Harris]

Now if only they'd get rid of that hideous gold sw colour scheme.

So with you on that point Travis. Even worse is that Shimano seem to think that non-Japanese actually like this orangey gold colour. The domestic colour scheme is so much better.