I opened to box to find residue all over the rotor and body. There was also oil leaking from the seals.

I spoke to John from Tackle Direct and he said they all come with the residue and couldn't ship me one that didn't have it. He offered a refund.

According to the Daiwa rep:
"This is normal, yes. The BG uses a different grease than some of our other reels as we try to make sure it can stand up to the harsh saltwater environment. There were very few instances (yours being one of them) that the grease was subject to prolonged high heat (usually in the shipping process) and leaked out a small amount. The marks are actually imprints from the plastic bag the reel comes in sticking to the grease, similar to a carbon copy. This has zero negative effect n the reel and is very easy to wipe off, but we still understood that it “looks†bad. After the first production batch we started shipping the BG in a white cloth bag and then inside the plastic bag you see yours in to absorb in the rare case any grease leaked out during shipment. I can see that yours is from the first batch by the absence of the white bag. Again, there is no issue whatsoever with the function of the reel, it just needs to be wiped off."

So... these NEW "Tackle Direct Exclusive Color" reels come out of the box looking like shit. Also consider that if oil leaks OUT... what's going to stop salt water from getting in? Or that they won't continue to leak on your hot ass car or boat?

Reel is a tank and heavy duty for big game, especially for sturgeon and big sharks!!

Used this reel many times now and very happy. I also have a Penn spin fisher V and i would say it is just as good if not better.

The reel appears sturdy and well made. This is my 4th purchase. I have notice an issue with the drag with all. The purchases were made from various sellers. It seems the drag must be cranked all the way down for this reel to be affective. Otherwise, the spool does not retrieve on any fish over a certain weight. That has to be a design flaw. Beware and purchase at your own risk. At this point, i can no longer recommend this particular product. However, experiences may differ.

I have had 2 BG8000 reels for over a year and was so impressed with the overall performance I just bought 2 more. As a full time guide with over 340 days on the water per year all the gear on my boat gets a full time workout. We have landed 450 Goliath grouper and 9’ tiger sharks with this reel. The tiger shark dumped over 600 yards of line before we could pull the anchor and start the chase.

I really like this equipment

Nothing negative to say -great reel best bang for the buck-cant go wrong-there are better reels for surf fishing -but keep it outta the sand-very smooth!

I already had two of these and with the member price it's a great reel. Color is not very different and probably the best reel for the money. Will be ordering a few more.

I got one of the BGs last summer for fishing off the NC coast. Reel worked flawlessly and brought in several nice slot reds.

aAfter 36 years of fishing I can say it is a good reel but the maximum draw is only 33 lbs is not enough if you look at it, s strong and good design have to think that they have to go for 40 or 45 lbs.

Outstanding reel especially for the price