With the visit of AndriesH to Namibia last December, he brought me two Omoto reels to test. The one is a Omoto OSM 15 standard spool and the other a OSM 15 tapered spool. One reel was kept by me (tapered spool) and the other given to Spyker Kruger for testing and evaluation.
Initially the test was only going to be done for the duration of December, but we all (myself, AndriesH and Spyker) decided that to give a true reflection on the reel’s durability will be to test it for a period of three (3) months continuously. Now from Dec to end of March is 4 months but one month is thrown away for periods not fishing.
During the test period, both these reels were to be treated as any other reel in our tackle boxes. Don’t nurse them and don’t abuse them was the general motto to give a meaningful and honest answer after the test. The test would also show the difference between a reel being used on a daily basis and one which gets used for a holiday a year or only on weekends.
As I mostly fish edibles and Spyker is the all rounder it would also be a good test to see the different results on this test scenario. I am not going into the technical specifications in this report and will leave that to AndriesH to address, should there be any questions. We (Spyker and I) want to give our opinions on the direct findings of the reel while in use.
During the test, numerous fish were caught of different sizes. To name a few, Spotted Gullet sharks, Smooth Hounds, Cob, Steenbra and Galjoen. Weights varied from 500g to 25kg.
When fishing hard, numerous casts are made daily, as much as 30. The reels performed all these tasks effortlessly. We would guess and say that between the two reels more than 400 fish were caught during the test period. An estimated 1500 casts were made.
Would I describe this reel as an entry level reel? In my opinion NO, more of an excellent back-up reel with the amount of fishing I do. For the angler who fishes 3 to 4 times a year, definitely a good quality buy and no need to be afraid that the reel will let him down. Spyker, on the other hand, describes this as a good quality entry reel considering he fishes everyday of the week.
We both agree that the drag on the reel is more than sufficient and was also agreed by all using the reel during the test (mostly clients of Spyker). However, the true test of any drag system comes with time and how many times and to what pressure it is used.
For me, fishing mostly for edibles, line capacity is more than adequate but, according to Spyker, it lacks capacity for tackling large sharks, however the reel handled Spotted gulley sharks and Smooth hounds with ease.
The construction of the reel is very sturdy and stands its ground to any other reel when it comes to that. During the testing time, no greater care was given than would be given to existing reels. Assembling and disassembling is similar to most multipliers. I only opened the new (unused) reels and applied a drop or two of oil, but they seemed well lubricated coming out of the packaging.
Spyker however, would like to have the DOG system of the reel looked at. After all the use during this time, the DOG system on his reel is now starting to get sluggish and sticks on the odd occasion.
We both agree that the outstanding feature of the reel lies in the cast. Very smooth line release and your sinker flies for a mile. This reel handles a cast so well that I will be bold and say that an angler battling to get distance due to reel operation should give one of these a try.
Conclusion:
This reel will be a good buy and will give any angler many hours of good service. It does not require any more servicing or looking after than what you will do with any of your existing reels. It performed exceptionally well with all the work we gave it. It won’t stand back for any fish on the end of the line and will perform to everything required to land it.
We both would like to thank AndriesH for supplying the reels for the test and for his patience while these tests were done. Guys like him, who introduce new equipment to the market helps all of us broaden our knowledge on what is available out there in the market place.
Specifications:
Test Report by Simen on Sealine
Reels supplied by Adrenalin
