Daiwa Tanacom 1200 Electric Reels

The Tanacom 1200 is the big brother of the Tanacom family, the size you buy when the job is deep drops, kite duty, or a swordfish that might show up on either. The spool swallows 1,100 yards of 80 lb J-Braid (220 yards more than the Tanacom 1000 manages), and the whole package is saltwater-sealed so a hose-down at the end of the day is part of the routine, not a risk.

The motor moved inside the spool

Earlier Tanacoms carried their motor out front. On the 1200, Daiwa tucked the motor and gearing inside the spool itself, and that placement is where the performance comes from: the same dependable motor delivers more power, speed, and efficiency, the frame and side plates stay rigid, and the repositioned bearings see less water. No-load retrieve runs 140 m/min (about 460 ft/min): roughly 30% faster than the Tanacom 1000, by Daiwa's own math, with 70 lb (35.1 kgf) of momentary winding power for the heavy lifts.

Drag and control

Max drag is a genuine 50 lb (25 kgf), sealed against saltwater, enough to turn a trophy instead of following it. The Power Lever gives you variable-speed control under your thumb, or crank by hand through the 2.1:1 gears and aluminum round knob at 23" per turn. The oversized line-guide aperture is a kite fisherman's detail: swivels and bulky knots pass straight through the levelwind, so you can wind a rig right up to the rod tip instead of hand-lining the last thirty feet.

Electronics that earn their keep

The LED dot-matrix counter reads depth in feet or meters with selectable display languages and a built-in counter lamp for gray light. An adjustable auto-stop halts the retrieve short of the surface, the inverse counter and line-feeding function manage the drop, and a chumming timer re-feeds line on a schedule while you work. The electronics are fully sealed, wash the reel down without a second thought, and a circuit breaker pauses the motor before an overload can hurt it. A rod clamp keeps it locked to the rod for kite work.

Like every electric reel it wants a dedicated battery: it runs on 12 V DC (16.8 V max). A Daiwa electric-reel battery is the recommended source, and it will not run on household AC or 24 V boat power.

Key features

• Motor-in-spool design: more power and speed from a rigid, compact frame
• 1,100 yd of 80 lb J-Braid: deep-drop and swordfish capacity
• 50 lb (25 kgf) sealed max drag
• 140 m/min (~460 ft/min) no-load retrieve, about 30% faster than the Tanacom 1000
• Oversized line-guide aperture: swivels and knots pass through, kite rigs wind to the tip
• Auto-stop, chumming timer, line feeding, alarms: dot-LED counter in feet or meters
• Sealed, washable electronics with overload circuit breaker

Specifications