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By Steve Hunt
For the past four runoff seasons in the Northern Territory I have had the pleasure of using a Team Daiwa Zillion 100H PE baitcaster matched to a Team Daiwa Zillion 601MHFB rod. It has proved itself to be the perfect all round casting outfit for barramundi, threadfin salmon and Mangrove jack.
The outfit is light enough to cast barramundi lures around fish holding structure all day long, for many days on end without suffering casting arm fatigue. This is thanks to the Daiwa neo concept ergonomic reel seat, Airform grips and the Fuji premium silicone carbide titanium new concept guides.
The Zillion is built on a high volume fibre blank and the rod is very fast and tippy which assists the angler immensely when casting small lures around snags. But when they load up under pressure the whole of this classy looking rod will share the load. It takes up that beautiful working curve every time you hook up.
The Team Daiwa Zillion 100H PE is the beefed up PE version and it matched the rod perfectly both during casting and in the heat of battle. With the 11 + 1 ball bearings, eight disc Hyper Tournament drag system, the new Magforce system and the new line roller this reel is as smooth as silk to use.
The outfit has caught hundreds of barramundi up to the magical metre mark on my many trips to Shady Camp, the South Alligator River and the Tiwi Islands. Every time I hook up on one of these iconic fish I marvel at the outfits ability to turn the battle my way. It is without doubt the best baitcasting outfit I have ever owned.
But one of the biggest tests for this reel came one afternoon in Darwin Harbour. We were fishing for those speedsters of the tropics the Milkfish, a fish renowned for awesome speed, stamina and raw power. The little 100H had countless sizzling runs that afternoon and assisted me in landing two big milkfish over one metre long.
That was one hell of a workout for the little reel and of course it came through with flying colours……… |
