I gotta say I bought a Ballistic MQ after researching and watching Salt Strong videos and really love it. I paired it on a new NRX+ 872 S for bass and first fish caught on the combo was a 10+ lb steelhead. That MQ and big gear make it really really smooth. I find myself picking up my MQ more than my vanford.
Bought a 3000d last week and was really impressed with the smoothness of it and its fluidity. Effortless to reel after a cast, superb carbon fiber for the MQ. The smoothest reel i ever experienced. Top quality in this range price
You have mentioned all the sealing technology on the ballistic MQ But you forget about the butcap, the silver glassy butcap is not perfectly tight to the MQ body I have the 40000D-C Ballistic MQ and I can put my finger nails in between the MQ body and the butcap Just try it yourself and feel the gap with your finger nails It's not perfectly tight like the 2020 saltiga The shape is of that butcap is kinda weird and it will be a fault point where the saltwater can get stuck and slowly formed a bunch of salt crystal I'm not sure if there is some rubber sealing between the body and the but cap
I gotta say I love my Ballistic MQ LT 3000D, super smooth operation! Paired it with a Phenix Trifecta Lite 1003, and so far so good! Only con I have would be the knob on the handle, just a bit small for my liking, so I might upgrade it. Cali-Hali's have no chance! lol
Just got back from Marco Island where my wife loves wading chest deep into the gulf and fishing. Catching small snappers was fun for both of us. We did submerge our reels on several occasions. If we continue to dunk our reels, would this be a reel that can take that abuse?
I have the OG Ballistic, the ballistic MQ and the Vanford. While the Ballistic MQ is a fantastic reel so far, but I prefer the Vanford. I wish I could use my saltstrong discount on Shimanos. :( Otherwise, great video Justin!
I got this exact reel and I’ve just noticed today if u wiggle the spool or push up a little like loose but idk if it supposed to be like that for extra support or something?
Thanks for the nice video and helpful video. This is like the Daiwa TD Black MQ reel that we have here in Australia 🇦🇺. But the ballistic MQ have more bearing
Like we preach on other videos, it's all about your intended Application with the reel. We have a "Which MQ Reel is Right for You" video where we compare the Ballistic MQ, BG MQ and Saltist MQ all to each other, and weigh out the Pros & Cons of each: th-cam.com/video/mi2c1xJarGo/w-d-xo.html
2:53 "its got a rubber ring, 360 degrees" hahah funny stuff. well, Bought one of theese today actually. :) i kinda had to, my friend dont like my cheap chinese stuff. hehe "but, rubber ring 360 degrees" haha funny.
I'd consider it on par with the Stradic FL. It's lighter in weight than the Stradic FL, and includes Daiwa's Magseal Technology to better protect the Anti-Reverse Bearing. I'd compare a BG MQ to a Stradic FL, whereas the Ballistic MQ is better compared against the Vanford.
Keep in mind the ballistic mq is pretty much impossible to service yourself unless you have the sideplate tool to open the sideplate and mag seal oil for when the oil dries up. I service my own reels so the lack of servicablility has me buying vanfords and FL's rather than the daiwa stuff. Also the ballistic has a fiber infused plastic body while the stratic FL has an aluminum body with a carbon infused sideplate and rotar, much less flex on the stratic.
The Stradic beats the MQ at everything other then it being slightly heavier and due the gigantic main gear in the MQ has less torque. In reality you dont need that bigger main. I suspect the only reason Daiwa uses those giant mains and larger teeth is to prolong the life of the cast zinc. The FLs are pretty good as far as water intrusion goes. So far the BGs have had some water intrusion issues with the body causing corrosion. I would suspect to see similar results with the Ballistic, but the lower price MQ are largely somewhat new, not loads of teardown results published. Since you need a tool to get into the body only the Daiwa service tech will know and you have to take his word on the extent of damage or lack thereof. If you want a good Daiwa for lighter tackle get a Saltist Back Bay. You get magseal, which I think is overrated but it does help and more importantly you get an excellent AL main gear. Out of the box its smoother then an FL and if it's taken care of it will stay that way. Just take some reel butter and fill the gap around the AR switch. I suspect they will either take the BB off t gu e market because the price point doesnt make sense. It's a far better reel then the BG mq at the same price point. The only potential drawback with the BBs are the shallow spools and they're only available in a 3 and 4k. If they had a whole line of them from 2500-10k it would be a bestseller for sure.
I have the previous generation ballistic the magseal oil is a gimic it should come with the reel, plus daiwas customer service sucks. Don't get me wrong it's an awesome reel but I'd be buying the Vanford over the mq.
I like the Ballistic MQ I just wish they went with an AL main and charged 260 for it. I dont think there will be issues with the gears, they make a good zinc main that's proven to hold up to a reasonable amount of abuse. I have some reservations on the Zaion V material as well. It's not as rigid or light as Zaion, so bigger fish might be able to get the stem to flex. That may be why they only make up to a 4k.
Nice reel, but i will never buy a Daiwa MQ reel because i cant service it myself. I wish daiwa sold the magseal oil and spare parts. For now Shimano is still king!!
Why does everyone say that? You can service them yourself, you would avoid any warranty but dealing with Daiwa is a PITA anyway. You can get inexpensive ferrofluid on Amazon and it works. You just have to be careful with the AR clutch seal. Check out tackle advisors on YT he goes into it in detail.
@@rexbanner7719 Shimano has a much more organized website for ordering spare parts. For Daiwa you need to fill out a form that contains the part number. Or you can just call them and order parts. I just prefer Shimano's website where you can order parts from them directly and they have fast shipping. I wish Daiwa had a website like shimano it would make everything so much easier. Plus i think Shimano makes better products for the money. Thats why nothing can beat the Stradic FL for its price point.
@@ryanhelou7881 For sure Daiwa can be a nightmare to deal with. Shimano used to be headache too not so long ago. I had issues with the first gen stradic ci4s that seemed to last forever. Everything was analog then. It took just under 6 months from the time ordered a replacement aux cap until I actually got it. When it comes to parts Penn is the easiest to deal with. It depends on the price as to which one has a better reel for the money. 100$ and under Daiwa had Shimano beat easily and still do imo, although the new nasci really makes it a toss up. From 120-200 shimano is better overall. Bg is good but the Spheros sw is a stradic FK essentially for 120$, cant be beat. Procyon lt and ultegra are close and Tatula doesnt have a competitor at the same price point. FL @200 is excellent, although dont sleep on the saltist inshore @200 that's a really nice reel. The sub 300 MQs dont compare well, the zinc main at that price kinda sucks, its serviceable and the gear size gives you lots of torque relative to reel size. Luvias lt was great, really a shame daiwa took it off USDM, I guess it didnt make sense price wise. Certate and Twin Power is awful close as is Stella Saltiga or Exist, comes down to preference.
@@rexbanner7719 At the end of the day it just comes down to preference. The Luvias looked nice but it had a huge gap between the rear rash gard cap and the main body it was so awful. Procyon LT feels like trash and it has an anti reverse switch. Daiwa uses an anti reverse switch on most of the lower end models which is useless. Im an inshore angler i would never buy a freshwater reel. Tatula looks nice but has nothing to protect it from the salt. The BG is good for the money. Fuego is not bad either i actually prefer it over the Nasci just because of the weight. Saltist is nice for heavy duty stuff penn would also work for much cheaper. You can also buy the twin power and certate for 100$ less on other websites. I personally use a 2500 twin power Fd and its amazing light, strong, agressive design, and just so beautiful. Stella and exist are nice but i wont buy either until the U.S.market imports more jdm rods. Whats the point of buying a stella or exist and pairing it up with a heavy st.croix legend extreme or a Gloomis. St.croix and gloomis are the only two companies i would pair with a stella and exist. The options for premium rods in the U.S. market are very limited we need more jdm stuff.
Nice video, but I, like most fisherman, are not going to pay $230 for a lightweight reel. Daiwa has really lost touch with reality in their pricing compared to what they were decades ago. Shimano is just as bad. If I had to pay this for a reel, I would have to quit fishing.
We agree there are higher price point reels but they also offer amazing reels at a lower price (Fuego, Legalis, etc). We do offer both at fishstrong.com . Let us know if you have any other questions.
@@artificialslinger9730 No they dont. It's just something googans like to repeat to sound educated. I've got a 6k Ballistic that's taken bass in inlets over 40lbs on a new moon tide with 0 flex. I've taken bass up to 20 lbs on a Fuego 2500 in the same inlet without any problems. The lower grade composite will flex if your trying to get a hard fighting fish off the bottom in deep water, but clearly the reel isn't designed for that.
What happens in a few years after the mag seal drys out? You can't get into the reel yourself and clean and add more mag seal. Diawa don't sale the mag seal lubricant. You have to send the reel out to get service. The body design is cheap, not aluminum. So for me, I'm not interested, there are better options for the price. Not impressed
The Procyon coming out soon and its cheaper by 50$. You can get the proprietary mag seal if you really want to, or you could go with a lower grade ferrofluid widkey available but serviceable. Since you referred to mag seal as a lubricant I would strongly advise against you attempting to remove the AR clutch to service the reel, you need to know what your doing so that the ferrofluid spans the gap.
Get the Daiwa Ballistic MQ Spinning Reel: bit.ly/3PyvQRA
I gotta say I bought a Ballistic MQ after researching and watching Salt Strong videos and really love it. I paired it on a new NRX+ 872 S for bass and first fish caught on the combo was a 10+ lb steelhead. That MQ and big gear make it really really smooth. I find myself picking up my MQ more than my vanford.
Thanks for the feedback and support, we are happy you like it!
I picked up a 2500 MQ also, paired it with an edge stealhead spinning rod. My first fish was a 9lbs chinook. Reel feels solid smooth. Really like it.
Bought a 3000d last week and was really impressed with the smoothness of it and its fluidity. Effortless to reel after a cast, superb carbon fiber for the MQ. The smoothest reel i ever experienced. Top quality in this range price
Great to hear!
You still like this reel?
Your vids are lookin’ clean homie!!! 😍
Appreciate it!!
You have mentioned all the sealing technology on the ballistic MQ
But you forget about the butcap, the silver glassy butcap is not perfectly tight to the MQ body
I have the 40000D-C Ballistic MQ and I can put my finger nails in between the MQ body and the butcap
Just try it yourself and feel the gap with your finger nails
It's not perfectly tight like the 2020 saltiga
The shape is of that butcap is kinda weird and it will be a fault point where the saltwater can get stuck and slowly formed a bunch of salt crystal
I'm not sure if there is some rubber sealing between the body and the but cap
Thanks for the feedback!
I gotta say I love my Ballistic MQ LT 3000D, super smooth operation! Paired it with a Phenix Trifecta Lite 1003, and so far so good! Only con I have would be the knob on the handle, just a bit small for my liking, so I might upgrade it. Cali-Hali's have no chance! lol
Thanks for the feedback!
Check out the gomexus handles
Just got back from Marco Island where my wife loves wading chest deep into the gulf and fishing. Catching small snappers was fun for both of us. We did submerge our reels on several occasions. If we continue to dunk our reels, would this be a reel that can take that abuse?
Great question! Make sure to ask this over in the Community (www.saltstrong.com/) where the coaches spend their time.
I have the OG Ballistic, the ballistic MQ and the Vanford. While the Ballistic MQ is a fantastic reel so far, but I prefer the Vanford. I wish I could use my saltstrong discount on Shimanos. :( Otherwise, great video Justin!
Thanks for watching!
I agree.
I got this exact reel and I’ve just noticed today if u wiggle the spool or push up a little like loose but idk if it supposed to be like that for extra support or something?
There might be some give to it but it should not be loose. The reel should be in place all around, if a piece is not you can tighten it down.
NIce overview of the MQ Justin!!!
Thanks!
Thanks for the nice video and helpful video. This is like the Daiwa TD Black MQ reel that we have here in Australia 🇦🇺. But the ballistic MQ have more bearing
Thanks for checking it out!
just ordered one, gonna use it for inshore halibut in cali
Let us know how you do!
I a question so when u wiggle the spool is it supposed to be loose?
There might be some give to it but it should not be loose. The reel should be in place all around, if a piece is not you can tighten it down.
@@Saltstrong it’s not like extremely loose but if I pushed up on the spool it’ll move up
Thanks mate, that's good info.
Any time!
Justin is the g.o.a.t.
Also...what size knob did you put on your bgmq 6k.. debating on the 38mm or whatever the next size was.
Great question! Make sure to ask this over in the Community (www.saltstrong.com/) where the coaches spend their time.
Thanks Aric! I think I have the 38mm because the 42mm had too large of an opening for that Size handle
@@Jritchey1211 appreciate it. The 38mm is a solid fit.
Awesome reel but damn it Daiwa had to change the side plate socket shape, so you cant open this using the tool for the Daiwa Certate Lt
Thanks for checking it out!
Do you think it’s better than the vanford
The Daiwa Ballistic MQ is a terrific reel!
How does this compare to the Saltist MQ? It’s the same price point so why is the Balistic better?
Saltist is Aluminum and I think it has slightly better sealing. It's also a little more $ @300$.
Great question! Make sure to ask this over in the Community (www.saltstrong.com/) where the coaches spend their time.
Like we preach on other videos, it's all about your intended Application with the reel.
We have a "Which MQ Reel is Right for You" video where we compare the Ballistic MQ, BG MQ and Saltist MQ all to each other, and weigh out the Pros & Cons of each: th-cam.com/video/mi2c1xJarGo/w-d-xo.html
2:53 "its got a rubber ring, 360 degrees" hahah funny stuff. well, Bought one of theese today actually. :) i kinda had to, my friend dont like my cheap chinese stuff. hehe "but, rubber ring 360 degrees" haha funny.
Thanks for the feedback
how would this compare to the stradic??
Personally like both of my vanfords over the ballistic mq, usually a diawa guy but I suggest you go to a store and hold both of them.
Great question! Make sure to ask this over in the Community (www.saltstrong.com/) where the coaches spend their time.
Thoughts on this vs stradic fl?
Great question! Make sure to ask this over in the Community (www.saltstrong.com/) where the coaches spend their time.
I'd consider it on par with the Stradic FL. It's lighter in weight than the Stradic FL, and includes Daiwa's Magseal Technology to better protect the Anti-Reverse Bearing. I'd compare a BG MQ to a Stradic FL, whereas the Ballistic MQ is better compared against the Vanford.
Keep in mind the ballistic mq is pretty much impossible to service yourself unless you have the sideplate tool to open the sideplate and mag seal oil for when the oil dries up. I service my own reels so the lack of servicablility has me buying vanfords and FL's rather than the daiwa stuff. Also the ballistic has a fiber infused plastic body while the stratic FL has an aluminum body with a carbon infused sideplate and rotar, much less flex on the stratic.
The Stradic beats the MQ at everything other then it being slightly heavier and due the gigantic main gear in the MQ has less torque. In reality you dont need that bigger main. I suspect the only reason Daiwa uses those giant mains and larger teeth is to prolong the life of the cast zinc. The FLs are pretty good as far as water intrusion goes. So far the BGs have had some water intrusion issues with the body causing corrosion. I would suspect to see similar results with the Ballistic, but the lower price MQ are largely somewhat new, not loads of teardown results published. Since you need a tool to get into the body only the Daiwa service tech will know and you have to take his word on the extent of damage or lack thereof.
If you want a good Daiwa for lighter tackle get a Saltist Back Bay. You get magseal, which I think is overrated but it does help and more importantly you get an excellent AL main gear. Out of the box its smoother then an FL and if it's taken care of it will stay that way. Just take some reel butter and fill the gap around the AR switch. I suspect they will either take the BB off t gu e market because the price point doesnt make sense. It's a far better reel then the BG mq at the same price point. The only potential drawback with the BBs are the shallow spools and they're only available in a 3 and 4k. If they had a whole line of them from 2500-10k it would be a bestseller for sure.
To me I just go straight to the EXIST, if the Exist is garbage than don’t waste my time with anything below the Exist at all
That is a great reel! Thanks for watching!
Should be looked at as an investment
So true!
I have the previous generation ballistic the magseal oil is a gimic it should come with the reel, plus daiwas customer service sucks. Don't get me wrong it's an awesome reel but I'd be buying the Vanford over the mq.
I like the Ballistic MQ I just wish they went with an AL main and charged 260 for it. I dont think there will be issues with the gears, they make a good zinc main that's proven to hold up to a reasonable amount of abuse. I have some reservations on the Zaion V material as well. It's not as rigid or light as Zaion, so bigger fish might be able to get the stem to flex. That may be why they only make up to a 4k.
Thanks for watching!
Nice reel, but i will never buy a Daiwa MQ reel because i cant service it myself. I wish daiwa sold the magseal oil and spare parts. For now Shimano is still king!!
Why does everyone say that? You can service them yourself, you would avoid any warranty but dealing with Daiwa is a PITA anyway. You can get inexpensive ferrofluid on Amazon and it works. You just have to be careful with the AR clutch seal. Check out tackle advisors on YT he goes into it in detail.
@@rexbanner7719 Shimano has a much more organized website for ordering spare parts. For Daiwa you need to fill out a form that contains the part number. Or you can just call them and order parts. I just prefer Shimano's website where you can order parts from them directly and they have fast shipping. I wish Daiwa had a website like shimano it would make everything so much easier. Plus i think Shimano makes better products for the money. Thats why nothing can beat the Stradic FL for its price point.
Thanks for the feedback.
@@ryanhelou7881 For sure Daiwa can be a nightmare to deal with. Shimano used to be headache too not so long ago. I had issues with the first gen stradic ci4s that seemed to last forever. Everything was analog then. It took just under 6 months from the time ordered a replacement aux cap until I actually got it. When it comes to parts Penn is the easiest to deal with.
It depends on the price as to which one has a better reel for the money. 100$ and under Daiwa had Shimano beat easily and still do imo, although the new nasci really makes it a toss up. From 120-200 shimano is better overall. Bg is good but the Spheros sw is a stradic FK essentially for 120$, cant be beat. Procyon lt and ultegra are close and Tatula doesnt have a competitor at the same price point. FL @200 is excellent, although dont sleep on the saltist inshore @200 that's a really nice reel. The sub 300 MQs dont compare well, the zinc main at that price kinda sucks, its serviceable and the gear size gives you lots of torque relative to reel size. Luvias lt was great, really a shame daiwa took it off USDM, I guess it didnt make sense price wise. Certate and Twin Power is awful close as is Stella Saltiga or Exist, comes down to preference.
@@rexbanner7719 At the end of the day it just comes down to preference. The Luvias looked nice but it had a huge gap between the rear rash gard cap and the main body it was so awful. Procyon LT feels like trash and it has an anti reverse switch. Daiwa uses an anti reverse switch on most of the lower end models which is useless. Im an inshore angler i would never buy a freshwater reel. Tatula looks nice but has nothing to protect it from the salt. The BG is good for the money. Fuego is not bad either i actually prefer it over the Nasci just because of the weight. Saltist is nice for heavy duty stuff penn would also work for much cheaper. You can also buy the twin power and certate for 100$ less on other websites. I personally use a 2500 twin power Fd and its amazing light, strong, agressive design, and just so beautiful. Stella and exist are nice but i wont buy either until the U.S.market imports more jdm rods. Whats the point of buying a stella or exist and pairing it up with a heavy st.croix legend extreme or a Gloomis. St.croix and gloomis are the only two companies i would pair with a stella and exist. The options for premium rods in the U.S. market are very limited we need more jdm stuff.
Nice video, but I, like most fisherman, are not going to pay $230 for a lightweight reel. Daiwa has really lost touch with reality in their pricing compared to what they were decades ago. Shimano is just as bad. If I had to pay this for a reel, I would have to quit fishing.
We agree there are higher price point reels but they also offer amazing reels at a lower price (Fuego, Legalis, etc). We do offer both at fishstrong.com . Let us know if you have any other questions.
You can get a Fuego which is essentially the same weight for 100$. Reels have gotten considerably lighter, smoother and cheaper in the past 20 years.
Decades ago gas was less than a dollar along with everything else being way cheaper. They have cheaper reels nobody is making you buy it.
@@rexbanner7719 I'd skip the LT series reels. The frames flex on them so bad
@@artificialslinger9730 No they dont. It's just something googans like to repeat to sound educated. I've got a 6k Ballistic that's taken bass in inlets over 40lbs on a new moon tide with 0 flex. I've taken bass up to 20 lbs on a Fuego 2500 in the same inlet without any problems. The lower grade composite will flex if your trying to get a hard fighting fish off the bottom in deep water, but clearly the reel isn't designed for that.
Bfs is strictly casting gear. Spinning has always been finesse but not bfs.
Thanks for sharing!
What happens in a few years after the mag seal drys out? You can't get into the reel yourself and clean and add more mag seal. Diawa don't sale the mag seal lubricant. You have to send the reel out to get service. The body design is cheap, not aluminum.
So for me, I'm not interested, there are better options for the price. Not impressed
Great question! Make sure to ask this over in the Community (www.saltstrong.com/) where the coaches spend their time.
You can buy ferro fluid online
The Procyon coming out soon and its cheaper by 50$. You can get the proprietary mag seal if you really want to, or you could go with a lower grade ferrofluid widkey available but serviceable. Since you referred to mag seal as a lubricant I would strongly advise against you attempting to remove the AR clutch to service the reel, you need to know what your doing so that the ferrofluid spans the gap.