Daiwa Dogfight - what is it good for?

[Cam Foley]

Hi Matv what happened to the Accurates ,i have a 665 and have given it hell and never had a problem with it.If you want a reel with no slop in the handle the Accurate SR30 twin spin would have to be the one,this thing doesn't move a bit.

[MattV]

Hi Cam,

One reel was an 870 N and had the reel seat break away from the body. The other (not sure whether it was an 870 N or a 665 N) had the handle break off. A couple of other Accurate O/H reels in use didn't have any problems. They seem to have a good drag on them.

I've never seen a Twin Spin in the flesh, however the pics of it look like it's pretty solid.

[Cam Foley]

Hi Mattv i recon NZ has copped a bad batch of Accurate reels I've herd of so many dramas with them in NZ ,i got mine in Aus ,one tackle shop i spoke to in Auckland said he had sold 6 of them and all 6 had came back broken ,in some way, when i was in Aus i had never herd of any problems with them.
What do you recon?

[MattV]

Hi Cam,

The two reels that broke belonged to American anglers. I'm not sure where they bought them; supposedly the good ole US of A. Only know of one Kiwi who has a NZ imported older model and he's had no trouble with his. Have heard of other Kiwis, through the grapevine, who've had trouble with theirs though.

Shame as they have great drags on them and are light too.

[Brandon Khoo]

the early Twinspins apparently had a few issues with them as well.

[Cam Foley]

Hey Brandon I'm going to take mine [Accurate SR30] to Marion next May do you think i should load it up with 130 lb braid,although  at the moment i only have it on a T-Curve 400 will more than likely have to get a heavier rod for it. Any suggestions i was thinking maybe one from the smith range. 

[Brandon Khoo]

Hi Cam - my suggestiion would be for you to look for a heavier popping rod for Marion. There is no point fishing 130lb line on a rod that can't handle the weight of the line. in terms of a rod, well, you have a number of options. If you like Smith, my recommendation would a Komodo Dragon but a Carpenter like a SP78-UHL or WIld Violence will do the job well too.

[Luke Wyrsta]

I personally find the Stella vs Saltiga debate (as it were) quite interesting. I own a Dogfight and a Stella 20000FA and a 4000FB. There is no doubt that the Stella has a smoother feel to it; this is because it uses a softer metal for the main gear. The Saltiga equivalents use marine grade bronze for the main gear which is very hard but undoubtedly is more durable. Take your pick.

True.

Since the Stella has never had any gear issues that i am aware of ,and from my point of view, my take is that the whole Saltiga range feeling 'stronger and more powerful' is simply a state of mind - i know which one i will be picking.

I won't deny that Stella hasn't seen problems - but i would be struggling to even think of a several off the top of my head. The Saltiga on the other hand, i may run out of fingers to count them on?

[Luke Wyrsta]

I checked all my Stellas and there was no such issue present. I don't doubt that you reels have this problem though.

Do you know what may be the underlying cause?

[Luke Wyrsta]

Although a reel still worthy of being included in a GT setup, the Twinspin still has a lot to catch up on.

I don't think Accurate knew how hard it would be to produce a reel as close to qaulity and perfomance as the Stella and Saltigas.

Will watch closely to see what they come up with in the future.

[Luke Wyrsta]

Hey Brandon I'm going to take mine [Accurate SR30] to Marion next May do you think i should load it up with 130 lb braid,although  at the moment i only have it on a T-Curve 400 will more than likely have to get a heavier rod for it. Any suggestions i was thinking maybe one from the smith range. 

Brandon is right, you will need another rod. Also, the 400 is too short for popping - a better bet would be the Bluewater Spin 15-24kg stick, but i wouldn't advise anything over PE6 (with that being a bit optimistic).

I also suggest that you don't go grabbing the bull by the horns and fish 130lb simply because others do it. Most of the guys using 130lb are very experienced. I would suggest that you bring along another reel/or spare spools of 80 and 100lb respectively in addition to any 130lb. Start off a 80lb and only work your way up if you are confident and the fish are the size of trucks.

Good luck.

[Neil Griffiths]

Maybe we should start a new thread about Accurates

Being the only retail Accurate service centre in Oz, I think I can answer any question about reliability, especially in the overhead range.
Unfortunately most problems result from a lack of maintenance, some jig guys and heavy bottom bashers did have problems with the handle to main shaft double D cutouts rounding out, but we have got Accurate to remedy this problem. You should see the shop you purchased from for any upgrade possibility. The only other common problem is bearing corrosion but this is the most common problem across all reels soaked regularly in the briny.
My own personal 665 and 870 were pushed to the limit for 2 years of jigging and not one part failed. These high end reels, being hammered by jigging and popping, and tortured on big fish, will need more maintenance than any other equipment in your kit, get a bit slack and the next sea monster may get away.

[Brandon Khoo]

None of mine have any play in them either but I did notice it on a couple of the ones which Nomad had on the boat. I doubt there would be too many more abused Stellas than the ones which Damon has on his charters though so I really do think it is a wear and tear thing.

I often read that people reckon the Stellas are more fragile than the Saltigas. I personally think this is perception rather than reality. Damon was telling me that they have only ever had one failure on a Stella which I was amazed about when you look at what the reels are subjected to.

I checked all my Stellas and there was no such issue present. I don't doubt that you reels have this problem though.

Do you know what may be the underlying cause?

[Cam Foley]

Hey Brandon I'm going to take mine [Accurate SR30] to Marion next May do you think i should load it up with 130 lb braid,although  at the moment i only have it on a T-Curve 400 will more than likely have to get a heavier rod for it. Any suggestions i was thinking maybe one from the smith range. 

Brandon is right, you will need another rod. Also, the 400 is too short for popping - a better bet would be the Bluewater Spin 15-24kg stick, but i wouldn't advise anything over PE6 (with that being a bit optimistic).

I also suggest that you don't go grabbing the bull by the horns and fish 130lb simply because others do it. Most of the guys using 130lb are very experienced. I would suggest that you bring along another reel/or spare spools of 80 and 100lb respectively in addition to any 130lb. Start off a 80lb and only work your way up if you are confident and the fish are the size of trucks.

Good luck.
Yes i no what you mean Luke i have very little experience in real heavy braid.That sounds like the wise thing to do ,start of with 80lb and work my way up.Hopefully on day 5 of the trip i will have the balls to as heavy as possible hopefully

[Greg Burt]

Cam, Nomad supply two Stellas with 80 & 100lb braid and a Bluewater Spin 15-24kg stick [same as yours so start practicing], so if we take a couple of our Stellas or spools, the Acc TS30 and extra line we should be covered.
Rod wise we so far have the Nomad Bluewater Spins, my Calstar 700H, and a friend [ ]told me they would bring along a certain X-heavy duty rod to use so they could get a good laugh at us , I have to check that one.