Project: Millver Wolf

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The last of my parts finally arrived today for a Millionaire SW 103 I acquired with the intention of building a finesse reel for use on the Detroit River.  For those not in the know, the Millionaire CV-Z 103 platform dates to 1998 and shares parts with the '03-'19 Alphas/Pixy and spools with the Steez and Zillion.  My intent with this was to build a reel that Daiwa doesn't, from parts taken directly from the Daiwa parts bin.  The only exception was the drag clicker which was never offered on more contemporary Daiwa reels until just a few years ago. 

 

 

A little rundown of the parts.  

SLP Works SV Boost PE 1000.  This is the spool used in the Daiwa Silver Wolf 

 

TD Sol 5.8:1 bronze gear set.  The longer pinion gear is needed with SLP spools since the shaft is slightly shorter than factory Millionaire CV-Z spools.

 

Alphas pinion shaft.  This is needed when using spools not original to the Millionaire.  While the Millionaire uses a 34mm spool, the shaft is about 1mm longer than those used in the Steez and Zillion.  The longer Alphas pinion shaft is required to center the spool when using a SLP spool.

 

Alphas SV105SH worm gear.  A worm with a wider pitch will be best when running thin braid.  This does come at a small expense to distance, but I'd rather not chance potential line dig-in.  

 

Alphas Air handle and SS SV star wheel.  Not really required, but they give the reel a nicer more modern touch.

 

SLP micro bearings.  These are best for a faster spool startup.  The factory bearings in this reel are Daiwa CRBBs, but they aren't conducive to my end goal.  The crank side bearing required a little shimming to take out the slop so the spool fit correctly.

 

Drag clicker.  Definitely not necessary, but they make for bigger smiles when a fish is on the run.

 

My end goal was a reel that would be right at home fishing smallmouth and white bass on the Detroit River.  I chose 5.8:1 gears due to the very fast current of the river, they have a fair amount more torque than the 7.2:1 gears on this platform.  This reel should bring in about 24" per turn with a full spool, plenty enough for me. 

 

Here it is all finished up.  Pretty soon I'll be filling it with #1.2 YGK X-braid and enjoying the white bass slam fest on the Detroit River next month.  This was a fun project and further cements my opinion of the Millionaire being nearly as blank of a slate as the Ambassadeur.  What a fine reel. 

 

 

[Bigbox99]

Looks nice.  Have you fished the TDZ Type R+ spool before?  I've rediscovered my love for that old spool and noticed it is reminiscent of the SV Boost in how it casts but is also better with lighter weight baits.  Curious to see how it stacks up to the Silverwolf spool.

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Just now, Bigbox99 said:

Looks nice.  Have you fished the TDZ Type R+ spool before?  I've rediscovered my love for that old spool and noticed it is reminiscent of the SV Boost in how it casts but is also better with lighter weight baits.  Curious to see how it stacks up to the Silverwolf spool.

I haven't, but I use the inductor spring from that spool on some SV spools to make it a little more free.  The SV spools turn into bomb throwing machines with that inductor spring.

[bulldog1935]

Now you have a Black Cherry, too, Robert.  

btw, YGK 1st version Oddport WXP1 is closing out most places (when introduced in 2018, it was $1/yd) - 100 m now is closing out for $28 at most shops.  

If you can get your spool to end on an even 50-m increment, it  gets the candy-cane finish.  

 

Editing in about the Silver Wolf spool (34 mm).  it casts very well, reliable, but weighs 13 g.  It won't quite cast 1/8 oz w/ a Ray's SV spool, and a fixed-rotor Roro or AMO spool (5 g) will cast 1/16 oz farther than Wilver Wolf spool will cast 1/8 oz.  

 

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35 minutes ago, bulldog1935 said:

Editing in about the Silver Wolf spool (34 mm).  it casts very well, reliable, but weighs 13 g.  It won't quite cast 1/8 oz w/ a Ray's SV spool, and a fixed-rotor Roro or AMO spool (5 g) will cast 1/16 oz farther than Wilver Wolf spool will cast 1/8 oz.  

My target weight range with this reel is the 3-14g range, so it should do pretty well for my uses.  Most baits will be between 5g and 10g or so.

[bulldog1935]

It's a perfect spool for that range.  

In my inshore ML niche, Ray's is a better choice, and finesse shore-casting, my hottest spool now is the AMO I show above.  I keep my stock Silver Wolf spool loaded w/ PE#1.2, 120 m - capacity is greater than Daiwa lists - it stays handy in a spool can for backing up my ML reels.  

On all my Ambassadeurs, down to 1500CI, I prefer the solid Avail spools to honeycomb.  

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I did a quick test with the Silver Wolf spool in my Millionaire Ringa and it was very wild when used with the Millionaire CT SV magnet assembly.  I'll be sticking with the factory SW 103 magnets with this spool.