Is the tranx worth the extra money
- Thread starter Hillbillymad
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I can’t speak to the daiwa because I have never owned one but I have the 400 and 500 Tranx and love them
We have two Tranx reels and they are the most used combos on our boat.
500HG with Phenix AXIS for Dad
400HG with Phenix M1 for son
Shimano also has great service, we sent them the 400HG for service and they sent it back serviced at no charge.
We also have the Daiwa that is comparable to the 400HG and it has held up nicely.
500HG with Phenix AXIS for Dad
400HG with Phenix M1 for son
Shimano also has great service, we sent them the 400HG for service and they sent it back serviced at no charge.
We also have the Daiwa that is comparable to the 400HG and it has held up nicely.
I had 2 lexa 400, and never used them,
And sold them , because I Heard
That they don’t hold up in salt water,
And picked up , the 300, 400, and 500
Tranx , and enjoy them, big time.
I have caught many YT, and BFT with the Lexa. But I smoked the last lexa drags after 4 BFT. I returned it to Amazon as defective.
I had both, Tranx 500, Lexa HD's. Sold the tranx because the lexa casts better and has enough drag pressure. The Lexa is smaller, but can kill a 100# tuna with no problem.
The new Lexa is even better than my HD.
The Tranx required more maintenance. The bearing is a bitch to replace.
The tranx is larger, but the both flex under heavy load.
The lexa more more accurate and adjusting the cast control was better.
I'm hoping Daiwa brings out a Lexa 500.
I sold my tranx at what I paid for it, so you can't go wrong with taking it for a two year spin.
The new Lexa is even better than my HD.
The Tranx required more maintenance. The bearing is a bitch to replace.
The tranx is larger, but the both flex under heavy load.
The lexa more more accurate and adjusting the cast control was better.
I'm hoping Daiwa brings out a Lexa 500.
I sold my tranx at what I paid for it, so you can't go wrong with taking it for a two year spin.
Personally, I think the Lexa HD 400 is a better (gears, drags, capacity) and better casting, reel than the TranX 400. I’ve caught scores of YT and 3 Wahoo with the Lexa 400. The TranX 500 is in it’s own class. With both the Lexa 400 and TranX 500 I can throw a surface iron “hand free” and only thumb the spool to stop it on splash down.
tranx 500 hg is the best conventional popper reel imo.
I only have a Tranx 500 because the Lexa does not come in a 500 series. But I have to admit, the Tranx feels like a much more solid reel, not only bigger but more solid when engaging from free spool and overall. I busted off 50lb when getting spooled on a big BF and was not a problem, the side place did get a little warm though.
On the Lexa 400, I fished 40lb to the max, but the reel felt a little under gunned, but no issues, I would say 40lb is max for the Lexa 400.
60lb is max for the Tranx 500 but imo does not hold enough 65lb braid for offshore fishing, but I can get over 400yds of 50lb braid on it and a 50lb short top shot.
Overall, because Daiwa does not make a 500 Lexa series, the extra money for a Tranx 500 is worth it.
On the Lexa 400, I fished 40lb to the max, but the reel felt a little under gunned, but no issues, I would say 40lb is max for the Lexa 400.
60lb is max for the Tranx 500 but imo does not hold enough 65lb braid for offshore fishing, but I can get over 400yds of 50lb braid on it and a 50lb short top shot.
Overall, because Daiwa does not make a 500 Lexa series, the extra money for a Tranx 500 is worth it.
You can see all these reels in action on YouTube. I said it before that some of the videos could be commercials for these reels.
I’ve fished almost all of the 300/400 sized low pro baitcasters with the exception of the new Lexas, and I settled on the Tranx line. For my uses (SoCal skiff inshore, kayak, and light party boats), I havent found a better performing and more sealed reel. To me they’re worth the additional cost. They’re not bulletproof though, so stay on top pf servicing.
There's got to be a reason that TranX don't usually sell right away. Unless they're really priced low.
But Lexas usually sell right away. For more than i bought my reels for brand new.
But Lexas usually sell right away. For more than i bought my reels for brand new.
Jaysons999
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Resale value can be an odd metric for reel performance, but for the sake of debate, I made a quick frequency distribution of the first 50 threads in the BD Classifieds under the search terms "Lexa" and "Tranx", respectively. Based the tags that currently appear on the first 50 threads of each search term, here's what the data show:
As a disclaimer, I did not open each thread individually to scan the text for additional details to support the status of the thread tags. In essence, a thread tagged "For Sale" may actually in fact be sold, but for the sake of efficiency, I did not go into that level of detail. That will cost you extra. However, assuming that there is no real difference in the nature of Lexa owners compared to Tranx owners as it pertains to thread tagging behavior, we can assume that the thread tags are more or less accurate.
That aside, we can see your claim that "Lexas usually sell right away" is not supported by this data sample. In fact, it appears that the opposite may be the case: the Tranx sells more quickly than the Lexa. Assuming that all the "Sold" threads began as "For Sale" threads, 75% of Tranx sellers were able to sell their reels whereas only 45% of Lexa owners were able to sell their reels. The amount of "WTB" thread tags further supports the counterpoint that the Tranx sells more quickly because there is excess demand for the Tranx (29 searching, 20 in circulation) and conversely excess supply for the Lexa (17 searching, 31 in circulation).
I did not do a price analysis to verify your claim that "[the] TranX don't usually sell right away. Unless they're really priced low", but if we were to believe the economic tenets of supply and demand, it would follow that the Tranx should yield a higher resale price as a result of excess demand compared to the Lexa.
The difference in demand and supply may be a result of Daiwa's confusing nomenclature for the Lexa that is sold under multiple models at prices ranging from $189.99 up to $299.99. There have been at least 3 different models for the 300/400 sizes (Original, Winn, HD) some of which have been updated with newer iterations while others have not. I believe this attributes to some secondary market confusion for potential buyers, the result of which again would be lower confidence and therefore lower resale prices.
Simply put, the data just doesn't support the assertion that Lexas hold their value better than Tranxs in the secondary market. I would say buy what you like, and don't worry too much about the resale value. You'll still probably get most of your money back either route you take. If you can afford to, buy the better reel (IMO the Tranx). If not, buy the one you can afford. After all, if we were so worried about resale value we'd all be driving Toyotas and Hondas rather than European cars, but where's the fun in that?
I’ve had the Komodo 471 Tranx 500 and lexa 400, I like the lexa the best and use it for school size fish. Sold the other 2. Lexa 400 For the small stuff and a 20a or 25n for everything else
Many YouTube videos ARE commercials, they're just not labelled as such.
IMO if $$ is not a issue get the Tranx 500, i have been using them for over 6 years with zero problems.... WSB to 60#....wahoo to 45#.....yellowtail to 42#.....YFT to 50# no issues plenty of drag and great casting.....I like the PG not the HG.........second choice would be Komoto 463......soild reel for the money IMO superior to the Lexa.......JMO
Based on what I've used, Lexa 400, Toro Beast 60, and Tranx 400...
Line Capacity: tranx, lexa, beast
Smoothness: tranx, beast, lexa
Cost(lowest): lexa, beast, tranx
Power: all very similar with edge to beast/tranx
Various options: lexa
Grip/handle: lexa, beast (beast comes with three)
Bft and bonitos like the toro beast
Yt/yft/dorados like the lexa
Wsb of last year liked the tranx
I like all of them.
I am not a specialist nor a professional fisherman. I blame my equipment when fishing is bad.
Tranx is a notch above the rest.
Bye for now.
Line Capacity: tranx, lexa, beast
Smoothness: tranx, beast, lexa
Cost(lowest): lexa, beast, tranx
Power: all very similar with edge to beast/tranx
Various options: lexa
Grip/handle: lexa, beast (beast comes with three)
Bft and bonitos like the toro beast
Yt/yft/dorados like the lexa
Wsb of last year liked the tranx
I like all of them.
I am not a specialist nor a professional fisherman. I blame my equipment when fishing is bad.
Tranx is a notch above the rest.
Bye for now.
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dont forget penn just came out with a fathom low profile... I brought the 400 hs... it feels solid, but I have not tested it yet... I also have a tranx 500 and 400 hs... 500 is a beast and in a league of their own.... only problem is small drag (25lbs) for big reel.. 400 hs is awesome, but again only 18 lbs drag for reel.
i brought a daiwa and a komodo, sold them after using them for a couple of weeks.
Disclaimer: I use reels from shimano, penn, accurate, seigler... so i am not a fan for any brand.
i brought a daiwa and a komodo, sold them after using them for a couple of weeks.
Disclaimer: I use reels from shimano, penn, accurate, seigler... so i am not a fan for any brand.
I threw the 500 at the tackle day in san diego today and all I can say is it was to big. I find the tranx and lexa almost identical, I would stick with a lexa though for the price.
A real question as this comes up quite a bit...
We all talk about how much drag a certain reel has, but we rarely need in some cases.
Ie, a tranx 500 "only" has 25 lbs of drag. When do you fish line above 60-80lbs on this reel?
Ie, a smaller 300 size baitcaster has 25lbs of drag. When are you using the reel for 60-80lbs of line in this reel?
Thoughts?
