I've never had a problem w/ my SL20's, and my SL30 died from 3 years of heavy use w/ only 2 oilings. Never once did I crack open the side plates. My current SL20 is due for some cleaning, but it can wait. Never could do that w/ the Calcutta. And at the price of one of those I can buy 2 Diawas, or almost 3 Abu's. Just not worth it for me. Probably never mentioned it here, but if I could only own 2 combos this is what they'd be. An Sl20sh on my 8' Allstar, and my Shimano 15/30 on my 8' Black Steel.

One of my uncle's only does trips more than 4 days long. This year he got a whole set of SL's and relegated his Penns to back ups. He had never used one until last summer, but once was enough. Like I said before, everyone says Shimano has great customer service. And, it's true, I had my Calcutta was in there 5 times (though I never thought they fixed it right). Does Diawa? I don't know, never needed to know.

Anyways, it all comes down to what feels right in your hand. Many people hate the way the SL's feel. Me, I love them, but I never had a TSM II to compare to. So, that's my 2 dollars worth.

Fish Hard,
Amish Ed