I have seen plenty of down lockers out there. Most every one has them. I prefer uplocking becaue in the process of fishing I tend to not knowingly loosen the top locks and the reel gets loose. Am I holding rod right? Dunno, don't care. Point is when I fish with a down lock I tend to rub the rings and loosen them. This does not happen to me with uplocking rings. They stay tight all day when I fish. I think partially due to the gravity weight of the reel itself applying downward force on the rings....perhaps.....and I say only perhaps\.....helps keep them secured instead of working lose.