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As Paul Kerry wiped the rainwater off the end of his nose, he revealed: “It’s the only reel I have taken straight out of the box that’s given me an instant five to 10 extra yards.”
This was surprising news, for I knew that the Norwich big-hitter had mentioned a few niggles with Daiwa’s expensive new Millionaire, the very smart and designer cut Super Tuned, which we will call the ST from now on. Actually, one wag in the office commented when I took the reel from its box and put it on my desk:
“That’s like an Audi, I’d put it on my drive and look at it through the lounge window.” For Paul, who has been Daiwa’s top sea consultant for what must be 20 years, it wasn’t so easy. He’s test driven several sets of STs, some of which he described as noisy.
Now Daiwa’s technical people aren’t daft when it comes to research and development and they know that when they hand a project reel to Paul not only will the product get tested to the limit and beyond, but also he will produce an honest report. For despite taking the consultancy cash, Paul is not shy in letting the bosses back at Daiwa know exactly what he thinks.
If there’s a problem, then he tells them. As we tested a trio of reels on a wild and wet day on North Norfolk’s Weybourne beach, Paul told me: “The first early sample pair of reels cast very well, and over grass they showed a significant improvement in distance over my blue 7HT Mag and original fishing 7HT Millionaires.
“What initially impressed me was how the reels have been machined to such fine tolerances and how friction had been reduced to an absolute minimum. The gap between the spool and main cage must be less than a cat’s whisker; amazing.”
Then Paul found he had a problem. A second pair of reels he had for testing was noisy. Now what appears noisy to Paul probably sounds fine to us, but, aware that the new STs are expensive, he wanted to help the Daiwa boffins create a perfect multiplier. “I tested the next pair of reels over grass and on the beach,” said Paul, who in his earlier years was one of the best and fastest casters on the tournament casting court.
“I paid special care to loading on the line and even swapped spools to get more distance and dampen down the noise. “I expressed my concerns to the engineers at Daiwa in Scotland and the result is the latest out of the box ST marvels, which are fantastically fast, smooth and silent.”
To Paul and the guys in Glasgow and Japan this is just normal research and development, but for the end-user the reel is the equivalent of a Formula One racing car flying off the grid. Just let the reel go While Paul was fishing with two STs I had a third reel. Pendulum casting is something I have never been able to master so in true Norfolk-style I used the reel for backcasting.
Having been weaned on the original 7HT Millionaires I knew the reel would work, but being brand new and only out of the box long enough to put 15lb F1 Ultima line on it, I slowly tuned the reel into my way of casting.
With the magnets half on, I made a gentle lob just to wet the line. Carefully winding it back on, I tried a little harder next time, and already I realised I had something a little special in my hand.
By the fourth cast I was ready to give it the Russ away-day treatment and as I pulled the rod round low, I gripped the spool tight with my thumb, brought the rod tip round to 11 o’clock and then took my thumb off the trigger.
The reel’s Magnofuge braking system kicked in instantly, controlling its initial surge of power perfectly, then as the 150g sinker reached its zenith and started to slow down the brake automatically eased off and the sinker seemed to slide through the sky.
It was a moment to remember because there was no drama, no noise, and no vibration as the intelligent braking system released the spool into free flow and the sinker just flew. You always know when you have got a good one away – you stand looking seawards watching line spill from the spool in total amazement, then when you have finished the test cast you have to wind the whole lot back on the spool again.
The lead weight went a long way to where the dabs were eagerly taking our fat yellowtail lugworms. Sheltering out of the driving rain I swapped experiences with Paul.
“There’s a lot of engineering in the ST and it shows. Not only does the reel look very sporting almost to a must-have level, it is beautifully engineered. The smoothness and speed during mid-cast is something to be believed,” I told him.
I think we both agreed this is a winning reel for anglers who want to fish with the very best.
The silence and joy of watching line racing off the spool during mid-cast is the result of a reel that you feel has been virtually hand-built.
