New wire diver reels.. Saltist?

[CK3080]

Hey all, i'm starting to phase out some old 30 convector diver reels on my boat this season and was looking to buy two new inside diver reels.  Looking at everything on the market, is the new 30 Saltist the best way to go nowadays?  I see the new okuma stormrunner 30s on Fishusa as well, but I think from what I've read, the Saltist is probably a better reel.  All I really have experience with so far is Okuma Convectors, with a little bit of time on others boats with the older saltists.

[Legacy]

So as an Okuma guy I run Okuma Convector CV-30DS. I use the high speed models and I find them great for wire. Convectors are all I run and are a work horse for me. 

 https://www.fishusa.com/Okuma-Convector-Linecounter-Reels/

 

With that being said the Saltist is a great reel and you wont be disappointed.

[John E Powell]

I'm going to presume you're looking for a reel to pull magnum-size divers since you wrote that they will be inside diver rods. A magnum diver rod is the heaviest loaded rod on the boat. For that use, I'd prefer a moderate-speed higher-torque reel to a high-speed reel like the Saltist. Also, I'm not a fan of the Saltist's line counter location and size, I find it gets in the way of my wrist and I have to hold the front grip in an uncomfortable and less-than-ideal manner to reach around the line counter. 

 

My friend replaced his Saltists with Shimano Tekota 600 for the same reasons, low on torque with magnum-sized divers and awkward for him to use. I went with Okuma Cataline CT-305Da. I think both are better reels for inside magnum wire diver use.

[CK3080]

Great info, thanks guys.  Thinking about ordering one new saltist and one tekota 600 and seeing which I like the best this spring before replacing any others on the boat.

 

John, you are correct, looking for mag dipsey reels.  Figured i would replace the hardest working heaviest loaded reels on the boat first before replacing any others.  Rigger reels dont get nearly the punishment that my inside mag dipsey reels pulling meat rigs do.

[13owhunter]

I asked myself the same question and went with 2 of the new saltists.  They are real nice but I havent used them yet.  FWIW the new (bluish) ones have the line counter in the "normal" spot so hurting your wrist like the old models shouldnt be an issue.  I also have 2 of the new tekotas I use for rigger reels.  I got the non line counter reels but wish i went with the line counters as i think that they would be useful for using on a rigger and provide added flexibility should i plan on using them for something else (like snap weights)

[John E Powell]

 

27 minutes ago, 13owhunter said:

I asked myself the same question and went with 2 of the [new saltists]. 

I wasn't aware that the long-planned redesign of the Saltists are finally available. Looking at the specifications of the new models, I can see that Daiwa was listening to our feedback and has indeed relocated the line counter to the top of the frame, and lowered the retrieve rate on the size 30 to a more moderate 35" retrieve per turn. It looks like the new Saltist 30 should be better suited for diver rod duty than the previous model. Based on the new model's specifications, I think the size 30 is worth considering.

Edited January 24 by John E Powell