Hello, miss Stella!

Hi my good band of panfish enthusiasts!
I just took delivery of a second hand vintage (read: old) Shimano Stella in 1000s size from Japan and want to share my first impression if you will. This not a reel review by all mean, it’s just I feel most folks here are somewhat die-hard Daiwa fans when it comes to JDM ultralight spinning reels. I love both Daiwa and Shimano but it seems there’s a invisible line was drawn when these 2 tackle giants set out to compete for your hard earn greens. If you value lighter weight reviews will tend to recommend one stay with Daiwa or if saltwater fishing is your thing, stay with Shimano.
I happen to love fishing for both freshwater and saltwater as long as it’s ultralight, but purchasing the ‘14 Stella was not one or the other reason, it’s because I’ve always wanted one but couldn’t justify $800 price tag when introduced. It turned out i not just got a great deal on it but a free spool of expensive JDM PE line I wasn’t willing to pay shipping out of Japan! I put it to its pace and thank goodness weather permitted I landed over 25 green sunfish up to 7 inches and a handful of smaller bluegills which put my trusty Abu XUL rod rated for 3.5lb line to a good bend! Enjoy the pictures!
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So, my initial impression after fishing this Stella for a little over 2 hours tells me it’s definitely smoother than my low end Ultegra but not as smooth as the 2020 Twinpower c2000s and that’s it’s a bit noisy. I’ve come to conclusion that’s probably because it saw 7 or 8 years of use and the TP still new, however in the hand the Stella feel sturdier. It’s the same weight as the Twinpower but somehow feel put together better. Oh and the the Twinpower is definitely more advanced in term of technology such as “silent drive” and “X-protect “ features, after all it was dubbed the 2018 Shimano Stella without the ball bearings and extra corrosion coating. I think I’ll hold on to it just to see how many more years I’ll be able fish it before this 1000s Stella will eventually succumb to gear failure.
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In the mean time one can only imagine how good or better the current generation Shimano Stella really is comparing to a very capable sibling: the Twinpower series of reels! Last TP outing…


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Very nice reel

I have two Stellas, a 2004 1000FA and a C2018S and love them. I don't use the 2004 model as much as I used to but it's still as smooth as ever, maybe more. I'm sure you will get a lot of use with yours.

Congrats on your “new” reel. Push come to shove if you aren’t totally happy you could send it to an authorized repair service and have it overhauled.
Bob

Quote:

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Originally Posted by JUNGLEJIMJIGS

I have two Stellas, a 2004 1000FA and a C2018S and love them. I don't use the 2004 model as much as I used to but it's still as smooth as ever, maybe more. I'm sure you will get a lot of use with yours.

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JJJ, Alphahawk was on point when he mentioned numerous times once you fished with something like the Daiwa Presso, Luvias, or in this case S. Stella you just can't go back. I know most folks think they are overkill for crappies or panfish but man the smoothness do make a big different once hooked into something like the 18 inch catfish i caught while finessing for the big BG.

Awesome photos, thanks for sharing

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NEOHFbhWiG0