Introducing the sleek new Quantum Burner

 
Impressions: Kevin VanDam states "Again, Quantum has designed the ultimate baitcaster in the new Tour Edition PT. The new 'Burner' gears are perfect for my style of fishing," which is a pretty solid endorsement from the power fisherman himself. Power and speed are two things often associated with KVD, and these two attributes can also be associated with the new Tour Edition PT. The Tour Edition PT features a similar Titanium Deposition Coating as the Energy PT, but it isn’t nearly as flashy. Gone are the multi-faceted colors, instead the coating is toned to be a deep lustrous blue.

That's right... blistering 7.0:1 gear ratio, and proud of it

The Tour Edition PT is available in the same speeds as the Energy PT, and comes loaded with a very similar spool and four additional bearings. But the series offers more than just a slight bearing upgrade. At the very top of the lineup is the TE1170PT (and TE1171PT for left hand retrieve) which features a blistering 7.0:1 retrieve. These “Burner” models feature all the latest Quantum technology including all metal components, infinite ACS cast control, polymer stainless bearings, and of course….Hot Sauce.

The reel features an advanced infinite ACS adjustable centrifugal braking system

 
Real World Test: For the purposes of this review we will call our test reel the “Burner.” To test the Burner we decided to go fishing for both largemouth and Stripes in the California Delta and the O’Neil Forebay. When asked about how they came up with the new design Quantum responded “Our top pros, including Kevin VanDam, Gary Klein, Gerald Swindle, Shaw Grigsby, Dean Rojas, and Tommy Biffle, came to a product review meeting a while back begging for a super fast baitcast reel,” Strickland said. “Building a faster reel wasn’t the problem, but building one that didn’t lose its torque, its cranking power, was. The challenge was how to put a bigger high-speed gear into a compact, low profile reel like we make here at Quantum. But our engineers said they could do it, if we’d let them start with a blank piece of paper … we gave them the green light.” The main goal of our tests was to see if this newly designed reel delivered the goods when it comes to both ‘speed” and “power.”

A carbon fiber look ring highlights the system....nice touch Quantum

Casting: First let’s turn our attention to how well the Burner casts. To examine this fully we have to look closely at the reel’s innovative ACS externally controlled centrifugal system. The original concept of centrifugal braking is simple. As the spool begins to rotate, centrifugal force pushes the brake weights along tiny shafts to engage a brake ring, allowing the friction created to slow the spool's revolution. The centrifugal force is the greatest at the beginning of the cast while the spool is rotating the fastest, and lessens as the spool's revolutions begin to slow. We have seen this system, or versions of it on many reels throughout time. The biggest competitor to Centrifugal braking systems is without a doubt magnetic systems, and more recently combo systems which make use of both technologies.

Check out the oversized grips, much more ergonomic than the previous generation

One of the biggest advantages of magnetic systems is the ability to adjust the system externally on the fly, the biggest disadvantage is the inability to 100% eliminate the magnetic force placed on the spool. Conversely the biggest advantage of centrifugal systems has always been the consistent performance and reliability, but the greatest weakness has been the hassle of having to adjust the weights by opening the sideplate of the reel. In 1999 Quantum first introduced ACS, an externally adjustable cast control system that allowed anglers to choose 0, 3, 6, or 9 brake weights by adjusting an external dial. The new system used on both the Energy PT and the Burner is called “Infinite ACS” simply because it gives anglers an infinite number of settings from fully free to fully on (with 9 weights).