5600 D5 SW

[Swami805]

I picked up this reel awhile ago, put it in the closet and found it tonight. Most of the literature is in Japanese (?) I think so a couple questions. Am I correct the SW is for saltwater?  With the cast control off it has free spool for days, is this some kind of factory BFS reel?  It's very light and really smooth, much more refined feeling than the 5500C's I'm used too. Any info would be appreciated. Thanks

[ExcessiveAngler]

Never even heard of that Abu lol!
But, I surely like that color!
Pretty neat little Abu you have there!
That older or a newer one?

[Robert Janssen]

Introduced in 2004. Did not stay long; only a few years.

Pics from 2004 Swedish Tight Lines catalog.

[Jim Fujitani]

I bought a used 5600 D5 (the gold one, shown in Robert Janssen's prior post) in good condition in 2008.  It was unlike any other Ambassadeur that I had previously used or owned so I set it aside.  With the Smart Mag braking, the D5 series seems to be more designed for freshwater bass fishers.  I use Ambassadeurs for California halibut and stripers in SF Bay. 

Fast forward ten years,  I tried to find info on the D5 series with thoughts of selling the reel.  I found little online, the D5 series was apparently on the market for only a few years.  I know that the reel was produced in at least one different color.  I recently came across the April 2004 intro from Pure Fishing, list MSRP of $94.95 (5600 D5) and $104.95 (6600 D5).