HAVING used the Team Daiwa Sol outfits previously, I was interested to see what the Sol Type II rods offered when compared to the earlier models, so I recently took possession of a TD Sol Type II 701 HFS model for comparison against its predecessor. When I first picked this rod up and flexed the tip it was apparent that these blanks were a new design with a faster action and more responsive tip section – I was happy to see the new blanks were quite different and not simply an aesthetic rehash.
The Sol Type II outfit accompanied me on every trip out over summer and was put through its paces shallow water jigging and popping for kings along with flicking heavier soft plastics in search of snapper and jewies.
As a popping and plastics outfit the rod worked as treat – the tip section had enough flex to load up and pelt a 10cm popper towards structure whilst retaining sufficient stiffness for the popper to be worked effectively. The rod had a deceptive amount of power in reserve and I could readily apply a decent amount of pressure to brute force a rat king away from a marker or the bottom. A kingy fishing binge towards the early part of the season saw something like 40 rat kings caught using the rod over a number of consecutive trips.
The high modulus graphite and firm grips enhance the sensitivity of the outfit while the responsive tip section meant I had no problems detecting the timid bite of a school jewie and obtaining a positive hook-set when flicking plastics. The rod features a twist lock foregrip to secure the reel and, as expected, the grips were firm and comfortable to use. Chrome single footed Fuji silicone carbide guides round out the features list. The HFS model is rated as a 10-20lb outfit and cast weights of 3/8-1oz.
I have matched this rod to a 3000 TD Sol reel loaded with 20lb braid and currently use it in a variety of situations both inside the estuaries and outside on the inshore reefs. This rod slots into my rod rack as a heavy plastics and estuary poppering outfit having caught a number of hard fighting fish with no issues to date.
Contact: Daiwa on (02) 8644 8644; www.daiwafishing.com.au
By Sami Omari
