Well fellow fisherman, I am asking for the opinion of those that might use one of the two reels listed in the subject, the Shimano Torium or Tekota.

Does anyone have any feedback on either reel? I believe both models are new models, maybe a year or so old, and since there really arent any consumer reports for these, I was hoping to put this on the floor and get the help of my fellow fish chasers.

Thanks in advance for your help.

JW

I played around with the Tekota at the shimano booth at the sportsmen show last week and I was somewhat impressed. It would be a nice reel for salmon downrigger fishing or perhaps Springer/fall B-10 fishing in the Columbia. The drag was "calcutta" smooth. My buddy bought the the Tekota last summer and used it at B-10 and it performed well. The only problem was that we couldn't get the drag tight enough to keep the spool from slowly turning due to the tremendous pull our Delta Divers were putting on our lines and rods. The single knob turn on the Tekota makes it one dimensional in my opinion, meaning it would be a bare to use if you were trying to use it as a casting reel off of the bank for Fraser or Columbia salmon.

Personally I still think the Shimano Bantam 50 is just as nice, appears to be more durable, is half the price, and is more diverse when it comes to fresh and saltwater salmon fishing. I have two Bantam 50's I've been beating the crap out of for about 8 years now and they still work great! However, some of the Tekotas have a line counter and the Bantam 50's don't. Didn't look at the Corium so no input there.

Bought a new Shimano Talora rod at the show that I think I'm going to be very happy with this fall at B-10.

BD

Bobber down,

Thanks for the fantastic review. I hadn't thought about the columbia fisher, and the use of large divers. This may change my decision, although 97% of the time, I would be fishing off a downrigger in the salt...

I missed the show and didnt have a chance to play with new gadgets, much to my dismay.

Thanks again,

JW