a buddy of mine is seriously looking at a z-bass reel. he already has a van stall.
any coments would be greatly appreciated.
not for me, i have rich friends, and the trickle down is not working.

I've got a ZX25 and love it. No problems in the year plus I've been using it. I'd definitely buy another one.

Love my ZB
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I just bought a ZX22 to pair with a 9 fter. I have only fished it once but I love it. I have it on good authority the company has been bought and the new ownership is doing some different things with the Manufacture and QC that make this reel what it is supposed to be. I bought one based on two individuals I know that have them and have had a great Experience. I am looking forward to fishing mine a hell of a lot more.

PS For ten bucks extra he can get the off shore handle and it is sweet.

My experience has been positive but not perfect.

They are a good rugged tool, and RonD has greatly improved their quality control.
The original premise of buying an expensive sealed reel that will never fail you and require no maintenance is a pipe dream, however.
Use them enough and they will eventually leak. Mine did (no damage) and Sauerkraut's did (frozen bearing).
You need to check them and maintain them....either yourself or by sending them back. Costs @$40
Accept that and you will likely be pleased.
You could fairly say exactly the same thing about a VS.
I don't think there is any major fishing advantage to one or the other (the ZB is just a little more refined), but I haven't owned a VS.

As for the Stella option. I tried that as well and although I love my 5000sw, it did leak and fail once after pretty moderate wave exposure. Shimano fixed it just fine at minor expense but with about 2 weeks turn around (all mail time).

a buddy of mine is seriously looking at a z-bass reel. he already has a van stall.
any coments would be greatly appreciated.
not for me, i have rich friends, and the trickle down is not working.

TM?
If so, he must be splurging now that all the kids have graduated....

They're pretty good. I'm on my 4th (5th?) year with mine and it has caught some nice fish.

If it is TM, I think he would like it.

I have to agree with numby..... I have 3 VS's and every single one of them has had water in them at the end of the season at some point, but they get abused. I think I rinsed one once.....

they have all served me well. Aside from the minor repairs The only complaint I have is in the chinese 250. There is way to much wobble in the spool/shaft and after a new bushing and service it still wobbles but is within VS limits. Personally I dont think its close to acceptable.

I just picked up a zx 27 and plan on drowning that one too. Will be sure to let you know how it performs.
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One aspect about the Z vs. VS that doesn't get a lot of attention but to me is critical is casting distance. The Z, for me, far outcasts a comparable size VS. Why? Because of the line lay on the Z, you are able to fill the spool right to the edge vs. the VS "Hourglass" line lay. There have been many occasions where the extra 10yds was the difference for me. I also seem to get far fewer wind knots with the Z. It's not perfect, had water intrusion a few times, replaced a clutch and some seals, but when it is good, the performance is outstanding.

I loved both the ZX25 and my VS250, but the ergonomics of the VS were better for me.

The ZB's spool/roller was too far back under my hand to easily use my pointer finger to manipulate the line onto/off of the roller.

With the VS I easily removed the line from the roller and then returned to the roller after casting with my pointer. Very intuitive and easy.
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I've had both, seized and abused both, broken stuff in both and caught tons of fish on them.

I prefer the zee over the vs.

The drag on the zee is so much smoother and has a ton of stopping power.

The line lay and casting distance is better on the zee, fewer or almost zero wind knots.

I have a 27 dual roller which i prefer over the single, fast line pick up and less fumbling around.

I have seized the clutch twice on my zee, but i also only fish in a wetsuit and the reel is constantly dunked and swam with and sometimes retrieved underwater. The reel has taken some serious abuse. Took 5 months before i seized the first clutch, reel had water intrusion and was pretty shot. But that was about 100 trips worth of being wet and dunked.

I'm also hard on my gear and rarely wash anything down properly.

My 250 vs seized after 2 months of similar conditions.

The customer service from zee is amazing, one day turn around time or go there in CT.

Rob is no longer with the company.

Ron D took over and is a great stand up guy, him and Wendy are doing a great job.

They recently changed to some new seals and gaskets, and built a pressure test tank to make sure the reels leave with no issues.

I love my zee and have sold my vs reels.
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I loved both the ZX25 and my VS250, but the ergonomics of the VS were better for me.

The ZB's spool/roller was too far back under my hand to easily use my pointer finger to manipulate the line onto/off of the roller.

With the VS I easily removed the line from the roller and then returned to the roller after casting with my pointer. Very intuitive and easy.
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x2.

I like the reel stem to be in between my pinky and ring finger rather than my middle and ring which I think is the most popular. If I held it that way I don't think it woudl be an issue.

Have to say I love the drag on the ZB.

Rob is no longer with the company.

Ron D took over and is a great stand up guy, him and Wendy are doing a great job.


My error. I meant Ron D. He deserves a lot of credit for improving quality control.

A big plus, in my mind, about the ZB is the ability to work on it yourself. They are pretty simple once you get the seal replacement bit down.
Ron was very helpful talking me through things.
I keep some spare bearings and seals at home that I think will let me fix the reel quickly if I break it.

A big plus, in my mind, about the ZB is the ability to work on it yourself. They are pretty simple once you get the seal replacement bit down.


Insert brain surgeon joke here. :grins:



sorry numby had too