The Okuma Titus T 30 II - A Sign of Things to Come

Okuma Titus T 30 II - a solid 15kg reel

I hesitated only slightly when given one of Okuma's latest offerings: a graphite two-speed leverdrag reel called the Titus T 30 II. The reason for my hesitation stemmed from the fact that, despite believing that many of Okuma's spinning reels are superb value for money, I hadn't as yet been similarly convinced by their freespool models. But the reason for that hesitation only being 'slight' this time, was due to the fact that even from first impressions, Okuma appear to have finally cracked it in this area, too.

Their latest leverdrag series (both the Gold and the Silver) impress me. They feel smooth, do what they're supposed to, and have an appearance that has been upgraded. (I'm a fishing ponce and don't like to have gear that looks ugly!).

Consequently, I loaded up the 'loaner' with 600 metres of 15-kg line and headed off for some tuna or kingie action down in Whakatane. As it turned out, the tuna were far from co-operative, but when an opportunity did present itself I was one of two lucky anglers to hook up. As the yellowfin crackled off line at high speed, I mentally noted how beautifully smooth the drag was. While not a huge fish at around 36kg or so, it was still an exciting and challenging opponent. High-speed turns and abrupt manoeuvres around the boat's hull kept me on my toes and often out of the rod bucket, and prevented me from using the reel's low-speed 'granny' gear. (That was a shame - I needed the rest!).

However, the reel's performance was flawless throughout the 25-minute fight, and lived up to the high hopes I had for it (especially as this performance was later supported by the capture of a second, similarly-sized fish on a following expedition).

To be perfectly honest, I'd have liked to use this reel for longer, but a few things are already apparent. For a (big) start, Okuma appears to have sorted out the problem they've had with a bigger than ideal tolerance gap between the spool and the frame on many previous models. If the line can go in behind the spool, that's a real hassle. But with the Titus T 30 II, it never even looked like happening, even though the 15-kg line I was using was unusually thin for its breaking strain.

The reel feels good overall, too. Four ball bearings and machine-cut stainless steel main gears combine for a smooth, solid feel - although the noise of the double-dog anti-reverse when retrieving does take a little getting used to.

The two-speed retrieve facility's as good as I've seen, being both quick and simple. There's a 3.8:1 ratio for normal/fast winding, and a 1.7:1 ratio for when the going gets tough. I look forward to needing the latter one day!

And with the ability to take 600-metres of 15-kg line, this reel should provide particularly good value for money on kingies, tuna and hapuku, and possibly even decent-sized sharks and marlin - that's if you're good enough!....Mark Kitteridge.