Daiwa Saltiga 15 HL

It features a precision machine-cut aluminium body, Daiwa’s proprietary MAGSEAL ball bearing on its pinion, Hyper Digigear, an all new ‘automatic drag system’ which Daiwa calls ‘ATD’, a spool lock function and the ability to change spools with some quick turns on the 3 secured hexagon screws on its sideplate. Daiwa’s ATD uses a new proprietary grease that enables the reel to apply smooth and consistent start up drag pressure right from the start. For example, if the reel’s drag pressure is set to 5kg, there is very little variation in the initial start up drag to achieve a consistent 5kg drag pressure compared to the previous generation UTD drag system. The new 2015 Saltiga is available in 2 sizes – 10 and 15, in 2 retrieve ratios: 5.1 (retrieves 80cm per turn) and 6.4 (retrieves 100cm per turn). And yes, they have leftie models too in the 6.4 ratio models! This baby is going to be one beast of a jigging reel in a super compact profile!

The size 10 is capable of spooling 300m of PE #2 line or 200m of PE #3 while the size 15 takes 500m of PE #2 line and 300m of PE #3. While the Daiwa catalog does not specifically indicate the actual weight of the reels, we’ve been told they weigh less than 450g. Pretty lightweight for a rock-solid reel.