Shimano Tekota TEK500

                                                        Shimano Tekota TEK500

My Impressions

I got bamboozled into doing a free cleaning in exchange for being able to do a review on this reel. Still not sure what I got out of this deal. LOL But anyway, Thanks to go the tncathunter for giving up this reel for 2 weeks.

The Tekota is one of those reels I have thought about getting for some time but for some reason didn't. Now that Abu Garcia has decided to drop the original Alphamar, that will change. When you first pick up the Tekota it gives the impression of being solid and well built. The handle is solid with out being overly heavy and it has a very comfortable grip.

Teardown and Inspection

The frame is diecast aluminum, and the drive side plate is stamped aluminum. The non-handle side plate is aluminum braced graphite. The graphite plate is thick and in-cased on the outside in aluminum so it is quite strong. The reel foot is stainless steel and riveted to the frame.

One thing that impressed me was the release mechanism was simple and the parts were heavy, so there should be no problems with it. The spool shaft is well supported by the frame, thereby keeping flex to a minimum.

Overall the Tekota is not a complicated to reel tear down but (there's always a but) look out for the drag clicker spring and pin when you remove the drag star. They are small and easy to loose. The reel will work just as well without them, the drag star just won't click when you turn it.

Drag

Shimano uses their Dartainium drag washers and they are known for being good drags. Not knowing how much the reel had been used, I wasn't sure how the drag would perform. It did however pull it's advertised 18 lbs of drag and was smooth throughout the drags entire rating.

Caution with this and all reels, never exceed the factory recommended drag settings.

Gear Set

The Tekota has a 4.2:1 gear ratio and retrieves 25 inches of line per turn. Which makes it a little faster than the Abu 7000iC3 and a little slower than a Fathom. The gears are about the same size as the gears in the 7000i C3 so they should give no problem. 

 

Anti-Reverse

The Tekota has an anti-reverse bearing and a anti reverse dog. Its always a good idea to have a back up to the IAR bearing.

Clickers

The Tekota has 2 clickers, the line out alarm is a simple design and loud enough to wake you up. Should you want to catch a few zzzz's at 2AM. It also has a clicker on the drag star. This will allow you to count clicks and return the drag to it's original position.

 

Line capacity

The spool has a mushroom post on it so braid users can tie directly to it and will not have to use a backing or warp the spool with electrical tape.

Test/Yards

mono 14/340, 16/285

braid 50/385, 65/365

Casting

This was a used reel so I couldn't check the casting in its fresh out of the box condition. So I gave it a good cleaning and lubed it in the same manor as I would a Penn Fathom. Casting distance fell right between the Abu 7000i C3's and an Alphamar 12. It was set with a little side to side spool play. Casting weights between 2 and 5 ounces, I never had to use my thumb to keep the spool under control.

Like Abu's Alphamar the Tekota does not have an auto engage when you turn the handle. Instead you must flip the lever back up to it's original position to engage the reel after casting. Myself I don't miss the auto-engage. It doesn't take long and flipping the lever becomes as natural as turning the handle to engage the spool.

Conclusion

The Tekota TEK 500, is about the same size as a Penn Fathom 15 or to put it another way. A little bit wider han a narrow spool 7000i HSN and a bit narrower than a 7000I C3. If you need more capacity there is a 600 size as well. The Tekota TEK 500 not only gives the impression of being well built, it is well built, smooth and great buy for anyone looking for a reel this size.