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Daiwa expands their brightly colored lineup with the new
Tierra spinning reel
| Date: |
10/29/06 |
| Tackle type: |
Reels |
| Manufacturer: |
Daiwa |
| Reviewer: |
Zander |
Total Score: 8.66
Introduction:
Daiwa introduces the TD
Tierra, the newest reel in their brightly colored lineup. First their was the
Sol, and Fuego spinning reels… now the blue Tierra slots into the price point
once occupied by the top selling Capricorn, and ups the number of premium
features including the company’s new sealed drag system, and Digigear gear
design.
|
Daiwa Tierra
1500
Specifications |
| Line
Capacity (lb/yds) |
4/155, 6/100, 8/80 |
| Gear
Ratio |
4.7:1 |
| Line
retrieve per crank |
23.6
inches |
|
Weight |
8.7
oz |
|
Bearings |
2CRBB,
5BB, 1RB |
|
Additional Features |
All aluminum construction,
sealed drag system, airbail, CRBB, Digigear, Twistbuster, Gyro-Spin balanced
spare spool
|
|
Origin |
Made
in China |
| MSRP |
$114.95 |
The Daiwa Tierra mounted on the
Steez Spinning rod
Impressions:
Continuing their
Spanish naming tradition the word “tierra” means “Earth.” No surprise then that
the reel is painted a deep blue color to symbolize the Earth’s vast waters. The
Tierra’s blue finish is more deep blue matte in appearance than bright blue. I
much prefer this finish over the vivid blue Viento color. Love it or hate them,
Daiwa started a serious trend when they introduced brightly colored performance
reels three seasons ago. It seems just about every manufacturer out there now
has their own assortment of brightly colored blue and red reels.
The Tierra features a matte blue finish quite
unlike anything else in the Daiwa lineup
Get
beyond the color and the Tierra sports plenty of features once only found in the
TD-Sol and Fuego spinning reels. This includes Digigear gear design, and the
company’s sealed drag system, which allows washing of the reel without fear of
moisture, salt, or debris getting inside the drag system. Familiar features
include Hardbodyz metal design, CRBB bearings, and the popular AirBail.
The Tierra features a slim profile
design
Also included with the Tierra
is a duplicate spare spool. The smaller sized Tierra reels feature the familiar
ABS spool, while the larger reels feature an oversized ABS spool for even more
line capacity for saltwater applications. The Tierra is available in 6 sizes
ranging from the ultralight TDTR1500 to the saltwater capable TDTR4000. No
matter what the size each of these reels comes loaded with 7 bearings (2CRBB,
5BBm and 1RB.)
Metal plating protects both the contact
angles of the frame and rotor
Overall the Tierra comes out
of the box as a nice total package. The only gripe we had at this point was the
inclusion of generic “Universal” spinning reel instructions rather than a
dedicated Tierra description. This is a very minor concern as few anglers ever
really read their manual, but it was nice to see a separate pamphlet with the
Tierra’s detailed schematics.
The familiar ergonomic Daiwa barrel knob
(larger models feature power paddle grips)
Real World Test: Designed for
a wide range of applications we decided to get the reel that best matched our
new Steez
STZ 681MLFSA
test rod. The Tierra 1500 weighed in at 8.70oz and balanced the lightweight rod
perfectly. We fished for largemouth and spots in a number of local lakes and the
California Delta. We loaded the spools with 4lb Yozuri for drop shotting and 8lb
for tossing hardbaits.
Prepare to cast....
Casting: The 1500 is
the worst caster of the Tierra lineup, simply because it has the smallest
diameter spool and is more prone to line twists. That said, this reel casts as
well as any spinning reel in it’s similar size class. Even line lay helps make
this reel a respectable caster, and we were able to toss everything from darter
heads to lipless cranks without difficulty.
|
 |
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The Tierra was
a decent caster, and was best suited for light line applications
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When fishing drop shot rigs
we were doing more lob casts and direct drops than long distance casting. For
this application the Tierra paired with the Steez rod were a match made in
tackle heaven. The well balanced rig made it easy to position the drop and start
working the tip immediately.
A look at the
bail
Next Section: Let's
get into the retrieve!
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