JDM vs USDM reel gearing

[ErieCan]

I was online reel shopping and was considering a JDM Daiwa Zillion SV TW.  While researching it, I found a review on tackletour that stated the JDM version has alloy gears and the USDM version has brass. See quote at bottom. 

 

I had also considered a JDM Tatula 80 TW. But I was unable to find any info on the differences (if any) between the USDM version. 

 

I ended up ordering a Shimano 20 Metanium mgl.  The JDM version has a shallower spool and smaller handle knobs apparently, but otherwise the guts are the same.  The crazy thing is, that reel goes for around $600 CDN up here + our crazy high tax. I paid $335 CDN shipped from Japan. 

 

"It is also important to note that this Hyperdrive Digigear is a design that can be made in any material, and why the same execution is found on the brass gears in the US model, and aluminum alloy gears in the JDM version. The reason for the varying gear choices is the differences in applications. Daiwa believes that the stronger brass material is better suited for larger lures, heavier lines, and power fishing techniques that are popular in America. In addition the average fish that are caught with the reel are also larger so it made sense to equip the reel with more robust gearing." - source: tackletour.com

 

 

[JustJames]

Note also for zillion, JDM in made in Japan but USDM made in Thailand. I would have get USDM zillion if it was available at the time I ordered. I like brass gear better for Zillion while my alphas sv tw come with brass gear but I prefer Aluminum.

[Tatulatard]

Jdm 80 has brass gears but gets a shorter handle.  See how much a handle will cost you and then see if the price savings is worth it.  ($199 vs $150 shipped)

[Eric 26]

1 hour ago, Tatulatard said:

Jdm 80 has brass gears but gets a shorter handle.  See how much a handle will cost you and then see if the price savings is worth it.  ($199 vs $150 shipped)

Or live with the shorter handle ?

[ErieCan]

1 hour ago, Eric 26 said:

Or live with the shorter handle ?

 

My JDM Alphas SV TW has the smaller handle and I don't mind it at all. 

[AmmoGuy]

A lot of the Daiwa reels aren't Japan manufacture even if purchased from some of the "JDM" sites. The Zillion SV TW is, but the Alphas SV TW and Tatulas are Thailand reels, even through sites like Digitaka. 

 

As a side note, I wonder if reels purchased from Japan sites will qualify for the "Tatula Promo" for the Simms Hoodie? 

[LCG]

6 hours ago, ErieCan said:

The crazy thing is, that reel goes for around $600 CDN up here + our crazy high tax. I paid $335 CDN shipped from Japan. 

Fellow Canadian that feels your pain let us know how you like the new reel. Debating between the Metanium and Bantam 2022 myself. Did you get hit with taxes upon arrival? 

[PressuredFishing]

The reason behind regional global marketing is because different cultures buy different equipment or find certain products more desirable. But in a nutshell buying jdm reels is not ideal unless you really really are in love with it for two reasons

1. Shipping price upcharge

2. Lack of replacement parts if something breaks

 

[Eric 26]

2 hours ago, AmmoGuy said:

 

 

As a side note, I wonder if reels purchased from Japan sites will qualify for the "Tatula Promo" for the Simms Hoodie? 

Wondering this myself.

 

18 minutes ago, PressuredFishing said:

The reason behind regional global marketing is because different cultures buy different equipment or find certain products more desirable. But in a nutshell buying jdm reels is not ideal unless you really really are in love with it for two reasons

1. Shipping price upcharge

2. Lack of replacement parts if something breaks

 

I’m interested to see if anyone responds about the lack of replacement parts?

[Tatulatard]

32 minutes ago, PressuredFishing said:

The reason behind regional global marketing is because different cultures buy different equipment or find certain products more desirable. But in a nutshell buying jdm reels is not ideal unless you really really are in love with it for two reasons

1. Shipping price upcharge

2. Lack of replacement parts if something breaks

 

The jdm reels are often considerably cheaper than the usdm reels.  Any increase in shipping cost of beyond offset by the lower pricing.  On high end reels there is often a cost savings in the hundreds.  Check out the going rate on the zillion 1000, metanium b, steez ct, steez hlc ect.  HUGE savings over buying the usdm reel.  

 

It is true that jdm specific parts have to be purchased from Japan but these are Japanese companies anyways.  Fire up the internet and head over to platt and there is all the jdm parts you could want.  Even then the differences between a usdm and jdm reel are typically very few and parts are compatible anyways. 

 

Then we have reels that can be bought overseas but aren't jdm.  Tatula elites are going for under $180 in usd on that chinease site which is below the going rate for one in the US markets.  Us reel pricing is out of control. 

 

[FishTank]

7 minutes ago, Eric 26 said:

Wondering this myself.

 

I’m interested to see if anyone responds about the lack of replacement parts?

 

Plat in Japan often has a lot of parts for JDM reels. Great service but difficult website to navigate.  Depending on the reel, a lot of parts crossover to US parts. Downside to JDM is no warranty but I have seen both Shimano and Daiwa try to help where they can. 

[Tatulatard]

8 minutes ago, Eric 26 said:

Wondering this myself.

 

I’m interested to see if anyone responds about the lack of replacement parts?

There is no lack of parts.  I actually find it easier to order parts because platt.jp as a parts page on their site with many reel going back a ways with parts manuals to pull part numbers. 

[ErieCan]

2 hours ago, LCG said:

Fellow Canadian that feels your pain let us know how you like the new reel. Debating between the Metanium and Bantam 2022 myself. Did you get hit with taxes upon arrival? 

 

They shipped FedEx, so yes, I'll pay roughly $50 bucks. So the reel would be $380 CAD all in. Still better than the $600 the stores are charging here. 

I tried to find a 2018 Bantam but every where was sold out of lefties. There's a 2022 model coming soon though. 

 

3 hours ago, AmmoGuy said:

As a side note, I wonder if reels purchased from Japan sites will qualify for the "Tatula Promo" for the Simms Hoodie? 

 

That's for US residents only. So I can't get that anyways. 

[PressuredFishing]

1 hour ago, Tatulatard said:

There is no lack of parts.  I actually find it easier to order parts because platt.jp as a parts page on their site with many reel going back a ways with parts manuals to pull part numbers.

Poor phrasing on my end, more of a hassle and longer shipping times plus the heightened chance of having to buy through a third party

 

1 hour ago, Tatulatard said:

HUGE savings over buying the usdm reel.  

Have personally not seen that yet, not saying good deals don't exist but have not seen that materialize in all of my jdm purchases, if anything they may be roughly the same price or a little higher with shipping included, but never less

[ErieCan]

6 minutes ago, PressuredFishing said:

Have personally not seen that yet, not saying good deals don't exist but have not seen that materialize in all of my jdm purchases, if anything they may be roughly the same price or a little higher with shipping included, but never less

 

The Japanese Yen is about as low to the US dollar as its been in years. That's the advantage right now.

[PressuredFishing]

5 minutes ago, ErieCan said:

 

The Japanese Yen is about as low to the US dollar as its been in years. That's the advantage right now.

That makes sense, Im surprised its dropping, expecially because our U.S dollar is not doing so hot as well, I have been eyeballing some diawa jdm spinning rods, i may fool around in the cart and see if a discount materializes.

[newapti5]

2 hours ago, Tatulatard said:

Then we have reels that can be bought overseas but aren't jdm.  Tatula elites are going for under $180 in usd on that chinease site which is below the going rate for one in the US markets.  Us reel pricing is out of control. 

 

Reels on Chinese market are mostly the same as JDM reels, as the fishing scenario there tends to be the same as Japan - a lot of finesse tackles and techniques, although recent years Daiwa began to develop certain models just for Chinese market, mostly in red for some reasons. 

[JustJames]

25 minutes ago, PressuredFishing said:

Poor phrasing on my end, more of a hassle and longer shipping times plus the heightened chance of having to buy through a third party

I purchased 2 Curado 70, SLX MGL, 2 bantam MGL and 3 Daiwa all from JDM, never need any parts.

If I need parts Plat Japan and June from Japan Tackle would take care that quick.

I don’t say it will never happen but most likely not.

 

[newapti5]

1 minute ago, Bass_Fishing_Socal said:

Do you ever own Shimano-Daiwa JDM reel? Do you ever need parts for those reel?

I purchased 2 Curado 70, SLX MGL, 2 bantam MGL and 3 Daiwa all from JDM, never need any parts.

If I need parts Plat Japan and June from Japan Tackle would take care that quick.

I don’t say it will never happen but most likely not.

 

 

Nice purple tension knob on the Zillion  

[PressuredFishing]

Just now, Bass_Fishing_Socal said:

Do you ever need parts for those reel?

Yes I have and it was a fiasco,  the little plastic gear on the levelwind chipped. Tooth, payed 20$ and was shipped the wrong piece number, so just ended up dealing with the "rough" retrieve. I have not had a great experience with ordering jdm parts.

[jigheadworm]

As far as parts on Metaniums  i have 1 usdm and 3 soon to be 4 jdm metaniums and with the exception of the spool and handle every part is exactly the same.

[WRB]

Brass alloy is heavier weight then aluminum alloy however brass self lubricates with less wear, aluminum gulls, lower wear and corrodes. Weight being the driver aluminum gears are popular. Drive gears have nothing to do with casting performance, only retrieving.

Tom 

[redmeansdistortion]

15 hours ago, Tatulatard said:

There is no lack of parts.  I actually find it easier to order parts because platt.jp as a parts page on their site with many reel going back a ways with parts manuals to pull part numbers. 

I get parts faster from Plat than I do Daiwa themselves, and the shipping isn't too bad either all things considered.  Daiwa USA sends stuff Fedex Smartpost and normally takes about 10 to 14 business days.  Plat sends DHL and I have them within 5 days.  I buy a lot of parts like pawls, clutch springs, suicide screws, gears, driveshafts, inductor springs, handle nuts, and handle nut retainers from them.  

[RDB]

19 hours ago, PressuredFishing said:

Have personally not seen that yet, not saying good deals don't exist but have not seen that materialize in all of my jdm purchases, if anything they may be roughly the same price or a little higher with shipping included, but never less

It may depend on where you are buying it.  I can only speak about Digitaka but they are pretty much always cheaper than USDM and Digitaka doesn’t charge for shipping (at least in the US).  Listed prices today:  Metanium $256 v. $440; new Bantum $273 v. $350; Zillion HD $325 v. $400.  I get shipments from Digitaka faster than from Tackle Warehouse.  Regarding the reason for the price difference, as was said earlier, I think a big reason is the exchange rate…value of the dollar v. yen.

 

As far as brass v. aluminum, it’s a non factor for me for bass fishing.  As far as replacement parts, I have no experience because I have never needed them.

[SproDD79]

On the Shimano Japan site it states the Metanium has "Furthermore, while maintaining its light weight and weight, it is equipped with an ultra-high-strength brass drive gear to improve its toughness."  ( had to use google translate)     I have some JDM Bantams that I use for heavy punching , I think they have brass gears as well, or I would of stripped them  a while ago. 

 

https://fish.shimano.com/ja-JP/product/reel/baitlurecasting/a075f00002xcbu7qac.html