One of the main problems I can see is the line icing and freezing up in the guide to the counter. It is also attached in an area that always gets abuse when putting the rod away. I for one, like the Tekota by Shimano and the St. Croix trolling rod and have no failures to date. The numbers are easy to read when letting line out and the rod shortens up by pushing it in the handle. I also use a downrigger and the built in rod counter would be hard to read when letting line out. I will stick with my current set-up.