cannon digi troll 10 first look

[dragonfly]

after talking with the reps at cannon and getting all my questions answered (they were very knowalagable and friendly) I ordered and just received my 2 digi troll 10's and these are my observations and my opinions. first out of the box and spreading out that parts I noticed the parts for the positive ion they tout and advertise and on the side of the box are missing but on reading the instructions they are an option (for $1400.00 suggested sale price you would think they could afford a 6'' coil of wire )101facepalm101 any way I made my own (I will show how latter ) next fit and finish. the main body seams well made and looks good but the mast is another story they are very sloppy even when pushed in 6'' on each section and just as bad in the head even when tightened down nothing like my 2106's next I mounted it. the main slide in mount setup is nice but again, sloppy you can take the mast extended and rock the whole thing up and down at the mast tip 4'' just to take the slop out and while tightening the SS mast the 1st stage adjuster pin broke (good thing I didn't sell my black mast's looks like I will be needing them for parts) the mast are not acceptable to me and the workman ship seams like it is the bare mim. to get it out the door( I will be making scotty copies latter)

this is how it comes boxed. I would like to see it with a with a SS drum and mast like the ts which is the only difference according to the reps I talked to. that and being white and a rod holder short 101facepalm101. (my boat is red and black and the white clashes)

I live in the pacific north west we have rain and pine needles I use covers but not when camping and it would be nice to have tool less entry to the side covers. it didn't take much and it is a lot more convenient than going and getting a screw driver taking the cover off cleaning out then having to put the screwdriver away heres how I did it and parts

and you can see by the pictures it looks like cannon did it. and you can see my antenna I made out of SS tig rod. just something that could be added to make life a little easier. the plugs are ok but hard to plug in and out and they don't hard mount, but they will be replaced with marinco's ( the new scotty design ) now on a positive note I do like the clutch adjustment over the scotty. and hoping the electronics are not disappointing but that will be later. right now I am not seeing my 1400.00 yet. I know this sounds like a rant but if nothing is said nothing changes. thanx dfly

 

[calamari]

It just shows that you can "hot rod" anything and make it better. Great job of fixing the weak points. Is the antenna that coil you can see? If that doesn't work as well as you hope I wonder if you could use a cell phone booster antenna that uses fractal design to increase its sensitivity? You're only a 6-71 blower and a cup of nitromethane away from having built the first Binford 5000 down rigger.

 

[dragonfly]

Calamari I am imbarest t4luil to say to say the antenna is for the intellitroll system and my apologies to Cannon for that, the drum has a contact molded in and it is not needed. for some reason I thought it was like my pro troll and needed it for cable contact again my apologies to Cannon.but the mast and mount need to be rethought it's like having a Ferrari and putting dollar store tires on it and calling it good. dfly

 

[dragonfly]

Calamari I am imbarest t4luil to say to say the antenna is for the intellitroll system and my apologies to Cannon for that, the drum has a contact molded in and it is not needed. for some reason I thought it was like my pro troll and needed it for cable contact again my apologies to Cannon.but the mast and mounts need to be rethought it's like having a flag ship Ferrari and putting dollar store tires on it and calling it good. dfly

 

[calamari]

Personally, I don't think you owe anyone an apology. I've never understood why companies sell something for so much money that is basically a good design and put cheap hardware on their rigs unless it's planned obsolescence that will frustrate owners enough they buy the new and improved model.
I've got both Penn manual and electric down riggers on my big boat and they are virtually bullet proof... with a couple of exceptions. The manual is all metal or very tough plastic except for the pawl spring which is stainless steel that becomes brittle over a few 100,000 cycles. It just breaks usually when you've got the handle in your hand which is all that saves you from freespooling a 10 lb. weight into 600' of water with 300' of wire. It would have cost them maybe a dollar per unit to fix the problem but no.
I just don't understand companies cheap approach to their products.

 

[dragonfly]

calamari to fix the mast problem I am sending back the cannon SS masts and ordering 2 scotty 2106 mast that come complete with the pully cheaper than the cannon masts alone and will be making a SS sleeve to fit the cannon neck and the scotty mast that way I will have a bullet proof mast with out the sloppy wobble then I will have to fugue out a way to mount the foot of the cannon to a scotty base and that will make it as solid as a scotty but with the electronics of a cannon . dfly

 

[dragonfly]

ok recieved my scotty 2106 booms today and disassembled for the sleeves there 27parts to the scotty and includes the swivel. 7 parts to the cannon and no swivel heres the 2 booms

as you can see the scotty has support at both ends and 2 in the middle and is very smooth and sturdy no matter what position it is in. the cannon has one at the end and is only crimpped in 2 places on the inside thus why it is so sloppy and in my opinion cheeply made plus the fit in the cannon head is just as sloppy and tapered and relies on the bolt to pinch it to make it some what tight. the scotty comes with a rod mount a ball hanger,line guide and a pully that swivels on 2 axis ( the cannon is just one) for the same price as the cannon bare booms. dfly