Daiwa 26 BG SW vs 23 BG SW in Australia: What Changed, Which Size, and Is a Leftover 23 Worth Buying?

Daiwa’s new BG SW reached Japanese tackle shops in October 2026, and Daiwa Australia lists the local version from A$249. The name carries over and the parts inside are tougher, but on the spec sheet it’s a different reel: size for size it’s 70 to 80 g heavier than the 23, and the sub-300 g 4000 and 5000 models from the 2023 range are gone.

The Short Answer: A 23 for Light Jigs, a Local 26 for Kingfish

If you want a 4000 or 5000 for light shore jigging, buy a 23 BG SW 4000D-CXH or 5000D-CXH while you can still find one. They weigh 285 g and 290 g. Nothing in the 26 range comes close. Its smallest model, the 5000-H, is 420 g, and it’s built on the 6000s’ platform: 65 mm handle, 5.7:1 gear. The 23 5000D-CXH runs a 60 mm handle and 6.2:1. Calling the new reel its replacement doesn’t hold up.

If you’re after a 6000 or bigger for yellowtail kingfish (Seriola lalandi) or tuna, buy the 26 here. Daiwa Australia lists it at A$249 for the 5000-H and 6000-H, A$259 from 8000 to 14000, and A$279 for the 18000 and 20000. The Japanese price for a 6000-H is ¥25,900 before tax, about A$235, so there’s little to save by importing once freight is added. Daiwa Australia’s warranty also doesn’t cover reels bought overseas. The only sizes worth bringing in from Japan are the 6000-P and 8000-P, power-gear models Australia doesn’t get.

The 23’s bigger sizes, 8000 to 18000, are lighter than their 2026 versions and were cheaper. What’s left of them is Japanese stock with no local warranty, so I’d only chase one if the weight saving matters more to you than having Daiwa Australia behind the reel.

Linked prices in this article go to Amazon Japan, and all of those are international-shipping items. Ships internationally from Amazon Japan: check availability and shipping cost at checkout. Orders over A$59 may qualify for free international delivery. The 23’s 4000D-CXH and 5000D-CXH weren’t eligible when I checked on 26 October 2026, so for those two it’s the eBay buttons.

The 26 BG SW: What Daiwa Changed for 2026

Daiwa now builds its big spinning reels around what it calls Powerdrive Design, a set of four parts covering the gear, the oscillation, the bail and the line roller. The 26 BG SW gets two of them: a larger, thicker main gear (Oversized Power Digigear) and a cranked wire bail (Crank Power Bail). The Saltiga gets all four. Every size now has ATD Tough, the carbon-washer version of Daiwa’s standard ATD drag.

Check price on eBay

Opens eBay Australia search results for the Daiwa 26 BG SW; listings come from independent sellers.

Where the extra 70 to 80 g went

Set each 26 beside the 23 with the same code and the drag, gear ratio, handle length and bearing count don’t change. Two things do. Weight rose by 70 g at 6000 and 10000, 75 g at 8000 and 80 g at 14000, and the price went up ¥5,200 to ¥7,800. Daiwa doesn’t say where the weight came from. The bigger gear and the new bail are the obvious suspects, but a spec sheet can’t tell you how much each one adds.

Two smaller shifts are easy to miss. From 8000 to 14000, the 26 is rated for braid one size heavier: PE 4-300 on the 8000 where the 23 said PE 3-400. The spool is set up for thicker line rather than more of it. And the 8000s wind 3 cm more per turn, 97 and 113 cm against 94 and 110.

Which 26 size for which fish

Daiwa Japan’s own size notes are the cleanest guide. The 5000-H is for PE 1.5 to 2, shore jigging or offshore casting. The 6000s take PE 2 to 3 for jigging from shore or boat. Above that it goes by braid: 8000 for PE 3 to 4, 10000 for PE 4 to 5, 14000 for PE 5 to 6, and the 20000 for PE 6 to 8 aimed at tuna and GT. I haven’t fished anything bigger than a 6000 myself, so for the big sizes I’m going on those numbers rather than time on the water.

Read that way, the 6000-H fits kingfish from the rocks on PE 3, and the 8000-H or 10000-H steps up to 15 kg of drag for boat casting at tuna on PE 4 to 5. If you want 4.9:1 in a 6000 or 8000 body, the 6000-P and 8000-P only exist in Japan. For how the BG SW stacks up against other reels for this job, my guide to JDM reels for kingfish covers the wider field.

Australian vs Japanese Line-Up: Nine Sizes Here, Eight There

Daiwa Australia’s BG SW range has nine sizes and isn’t a copy of Japan’s. Five match the Japanese reels exactly. Three are Australia-only: power-gear 10000-P and 14000-P models and an 18000. Japan, in turn, keeps the 6000-P and 8000-P to itself. Daiwa Australia lists the 14000-H at 695 g; Japan says 700 g.

So the decision is simple for most sizes. Where the Australian and Japanese reels are the same, the local one costs about the same and comes with warranty. The case for importing is the 6000-P or 8000-P, or a leftover 23. My JDM vs global reels guide for Australia goes through what you give up when you buy a Daiwa overseas.

The 23 BG SW: Two Sizes the New Range Doesn’t Replace

The 2023 BG SW had nine sizes, from a 285 g 4000 to an 18000, all with aluminium bodies, standard ATD drag and Tough Digigear. Daiwa Japan has taken its page down now that the 26 is out, but Japanese shops still carry stock.

Check 23 BG SW 4000D-CXH on eBay

Opens eBay Australia search results for the Daiwa 23 BG SW 4000D-CXH; listings come from independent sellers.

Check 23 BG SW 5000D-CXH on eBay

Opens eBay Australia search results for the Daiwa 23 BG SW 5000D-CXH; listings come from independent sellers.

The 4000D-CXH and 5000D-CXH

Nothing else in either generation does what these two do. Both carry 12 kg of drag at 285 g and 290 g, with 6.2:1 gears that wind back 99 and 105 cm a turn, and both list at ¥19,400 (~A$175). That’s a lot of reel for the money: an aluminium-bodied saltwater spinning reel under 300 g. Pick between them on line. The 4000D-CXH holds 430 m of PE 1.5, the 5000D-CXH 350 m of PE 2. There’s 5 g between them.

Amazon Japan won’t ship either of them to Australia, so eBay is the realistic route. Check that a listing is the 23 model with the D-CXH code, since the 2026 range reuses the BG SW name.

The rest of the 23 range

The 6000D-P and 6000D-H have exactly the 26 6000s’ numbers for gear, retrieve, line and handle, at 70 g less and ¥5,200 cheaper. From 8000 to 14000 the 23s are 70 to 80 g lighter than the new ones with the same drag. The 18000, at 820 g with 20 kg of drag, has no 2026 twin in Japan; in Australia the nearest is the local 26 18000 at 935 g. Every one of these is an import with no Daiwa Australia warranty, and that’s what you’re trading the weight against.

What to Look For When You Pick a BG SW Size

Line class before anything else. Daiwa sizes these reels by the braid they’re meant to hold, so start there: PE 1.5 to 2 is 4000 and 5000 territory, PE 3 is a 6000, PE 4 and up is 8000 or bigger. If you’re new to the method, my shore jigging guide for beginners covers line, rod and leader together.

Jig weight, and the rod you’ll put it on. My own first-choice shore jigging outfit is a seabass rod with a Daiwa 22 Caldia SW. I set it up in early 2023 to cover both seabass and light shore jigging, and it’s still the one I grab first. Where it starts to feel like a stretch is jigs over 40 g, or under 20 g. Every outfit has what it’s suited to. The same goes for picking a BG SW. A 290 g 5000D-CXH sits well on a rod for 20 to 40 g jigs. Once you’re throwing heavier metal at kingfish, you’re shopping for a 6000 or bigger and a heavier rod to match, and a light reel stops being the point.

Gear ratio. H models wind back 101 to 122 cm a turn on the 26; P models trade that for a 4.9:1 gear. In Australia the P option starts at 10000. Below that, it’s a Japanese 6000-P or 8000-P.

Drag steps. There are only three: 12 kg up to 6000, 15 kg from 8000 to 14000, 20 kg above. Within a step, the bigger reel buys line capacity, not more drag.

Where you buy it. A local reel gets Daiwa Australia’s warranty; an imported one doesn’t. On the sizes sold here, that settles it. On the sizes that aren’t, it’s the price of getting the reel you want.

Comparison Table: 23 vs 26 Size for Size

FAQ: Daiwa BG SW 2026

Is the 26 BG SW too heavy for light shore jigging?

For the 4000 to 5000 job, I think it is. When I started light shore jigging I bought an outfit that cost under ¥10,000, and it didn’t last: the constant casting and ripping loaded the gear more than it could take, and I got rid of it. That happened to me once, and it’s why an aluminium-bodied reel with 12 kg of drag at the 23’s price appeals to me. Heavier isn’t automatically better either, though. A heavy outfit wears you out over a day and takes the fun out of it. At 420 g, the 26 5000-H is more reel than I’d want on a light rod.

Does the 26 BG SW have MagSealed?

No. Neither generation does. The 26 uses a new gasket between the body and body cover with a stopperless body to keep water out.

How does it compare with the Certate SW and Saltiga?

At 8000-H, the BG SW weighs 680 g, the 26 Certate SW 665 g and the 25 Saltiga 680 g. The real gap is drag: 15 kg on the BG SW against 25 kg on the other two, with 5, 9 and 14 bearings respectively and MagSealed only on the dearer pair. Japanese RRP is ¥31,100 (~A$285), ¥93,100 (~A$845) and ¥155,000 (~A$1,410). My Saltiga vs Certate comparison goes deeper on those two.

What other JDM reels compete with the BG SW?

Under A$300, my roundup of JDM shore jigging reels under A$300 puts the 23 BG SW against Shimano’s Ultegra, Nasci and Miravel, plus Daiwa’s own Regza.

What braid should I spool it with?

Match the go rating to the size you bought. Daiwa rates the 5000-H for 300 m of PE 2.5, the 6000s for PE 3 and the 8000s for PE 4, so a full spool means 300 m of the braid class the reel is built around.

For the 4000 and 5000 sizes, the 2023 reel is the one I’d buy while it’s still around. From 6000 up, the 26 in an Australian shop does the job and keeps the warranty.

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マイボートで海に出るボートアングラー（釣り歴20年・ボート歴10年）。タイラバ・ひとつテンヤ・ライトジギングが主戦場で、エリアトラウトや堤防のライトゲームものんびり楽しむ雑食派。

実際に使った道具の「正直どうだったか」を、公式スペックと実釣の両面から書いています。

Boat angler based in Japan, sharing first-hand reviews of JDM tackle.