20 Legalis Spin Rod Review by River Talk Guiding

I have been on an assignment to test out the Daiwa Legalis 704ULFS spin rod, I have fished with it for solid 6 months in various places, conditions and with different styles of fishing, and here are the findings.

Rod:
Legalis is an affordable price point model rod for anglers at all levels. It comes in either 2 or 4 piece configurations. The model I had a hand on was 704 ULFS which is a light weight 4 piece spinning model. Despite in its price bracket, it still utilises Daiwa’s signature Braiding X technology, which gives you the higher blank wall strength and lifting power on rod blank as well as minimising blank twists during the cast, so it creates a lot more directional control and improvement on a casting distance. 

Feel:
First impression of the rod is its quite light compared to similar rods in its category, it probably is because of the improved quality of the newer carbon material, and applied Braiding X technology, which will strengthen the outer tube surface. During the actual casting, Legalis casts in Medium-Fast taper action (means the rod flexes between ¼ – 1/3 down from the tip most), and when you actually hook a fish up, it  flexes deeper down the blank, in more of the Medium taper (Curves from the middle of the rod) in progressive action (It means more load fish apply to the rod, the deeper it beds down the blank accordingly) and it has plenty of reserve power down in the butt section to fight the big fish off.

Casting Line and Lure Weights:
Recommended casting line weights for this rod are 1-3kg (2-6lb mono or 6-16 lb braided line in the same diameter), I have fished with 6, 8, 12lb PE and high quality 6lb mono lines so far and I did not have any issue fishing with any of the lines. And the recommended lure weights are between 2g – 14g, I found the Legalis really accommodating in casting lower weight ranges, I have fished anything from 1.8g – 20g on it, and it handled them all, however if you require rod actions to move lures during the fishing (i.e. soft-baiting), sweet casting weight ranges are between 2.5g – 8g (Roughly 1/12oz – 1/4oz ranges). If you just require cast and wind style of fishing it can handle much heavier weights no problem.

Price:
RRP (Recommended Retail Price) from Daiwa New Zealand is $119 NZ, which is in a very affordable ranges for most anglers.

Matching Reels:
Any spinning reel of 1500 – 2500 size balances well with the rod. Obviously higher the quality reel is the better to go with, however with the Daiwa LAGUNA 2000 or Daiwa Exceler 2500 would be the affordable yet great reels to match with, and with few spinners and softbaits through into the deal, the combo will get you start fishing with under $300nz, try asking your trusted retailers for a bit of sweetened deal for the combos.

Overall Summary:
Legalis is an all-round model suitable for anglers of any ages and skill levels. It is an easy rod to fish with. It is one of those rod high performances enough yet very forgiving in its nature. Because of the rod taper and added strength from Braiding X technology, it accommodates many fishing styles and variable field conditions. Once you hook the fish up, as long as the angler keeps the rod well bent, the rod is so forgiving, angler won’t loose fish during the fight (of cause there are some exceptions to the rules). I have tested them on anything from most acrobatic brown trout to the biggest head shaking landlocked salmon and perch, even up to 6lb mark browns, the rod handled them all without any problem.

It really is a great option as a step-up rod from a complete starter level rod, a handy back-up rod, or even as a pack-away rod for your big backcountry mission. If I were to point out the slight negatives of the rod, because of the forgiving nature of the rod taper, the 704ULFS model does not have huge lifting power in mid-section of the rod, nor having the ultimate tip sensitivity, what it translates to is not suitable for fishing the big – powerful waterways likes of the lower reaches of the big river system with mass water volume, big tidal shifting water or fishing the depth of the canals, where you require a bit more power and sensitivity in the blank.

However, at the retail price of $119, it is asking a bit too much performance of the rod. In conclusion, I am very happy with the test results and certainly enjoyed fishing with it for past 6 months. I genuinely recommend this rod for anglers at any skill levels, and needless to say, it will have a spot in our guiding rods stocks for coming season.

Go get one and have fun fishing with it this summer!

Tight lines all round.