Thanks for the discussion. The only newly identified situation that comes close to qualifying as a "need" for a disc drag relates to the guide having his newbies use them. I hadn't considered that one. Otherwise I believe we still stand at king salmon in freshwater and several saltwater applications as being the only real need. FJ15, it may be nice to have that disc drag when the 5 pound coho hits fast water, but that is a far cry from a need in my opinion, more like newbie, I think. Did you know that baitcasting reels did not used to have any built in drag? It was all done with the thumb, hence thumb-burning resulted from hooking large, fast fish. Come on now, you aren't helpless. How hard is it to apply a little resistance to a palming surface of the spool or the line/backing on the spool?

Sincerely,

Salmo g.