Penn Reels

[DJS]

Ok Guys,

I have a Penn 330GTI. Excellent reel, no problems, solid build, nice action, sensitive drag setting and very confortable reeling motion. Having read the comments on other reels, I am talking myself into buying another Penn reel, slightly heavier duty for a 30/50 lb rod. Any recommendations?

David

[sergio]

hey dude . i dont know much aboout multiplier reels , as i only fish from the shore, using spinning reels. when i DO venture out on a friend's boat , i still use spinning reels. however , i read on this forum that big-game fisherman are moving away from pens and are instead using shimanos. do some research before you buy and check it out

[dcassar]

I do see a number of Shimano's - especially on the charters...I have a Penn Commander 20LW Multiplier - a bit small for what you need, but in my opinon a great reel so far....no problems ,good drag (although I am not to keen on star drag systems) and a good level wind.....

djc

[skip]

If you want a good, reliable Penn reel look at the Senator's. 114L or 115L both 50lbs only difference is the amount of line they take, 480meters or 615 meters. True they are Star Drag but very very reliable, excellent alarms and very heavy duty with minimal maintenance. My dad's 9/0 from 1965 is still working very well and was left in a box for over 15 yrs.

On the lever drag side, Shimano's did take the lead, but now Penn have come back with their VSW range which are hard to beat and apparently out performing the Shimano's. But you're talking quite a price increase.

Mr. Fish has both, so I would go and have a chat.

Skip

[fin]

Well based on recent experience and sturdiness i am going to stick my neck out a bit here and say if its not a penn or maybe these days everol are starting to tickle my fancy then maybe its not worth it (from a long service point of view)

FIN

[skip]

I think the Shimano TLD's are excellent reels, certainly their drag mechanism is very smooth. What I've read about them however, is that because they are Carbon Fiber reel seats they've been known to crack alot when under pressure, especially if the angler uses harness straps and doesn't hold the rod.

The TLD-25 a single speed reel can do a max of 22lbs of drag max freespool, so if you stick with the max drag rule being 1/3 of your line rating you could put up to 66lbs rated line. The trouble is mono is quite thick at that rating hence people tend to switch to Spectra to get smaller diameter on. The TLD-25 is an excellent reel otherwise and can be picked up for $130 excl shipping and VAT without issues which is a brilliant price for such a reel. It can hold 450yards of 40lbs mono so you could pack a lot of 65lbs spectra on it and still have a mono top shot! I reckon for the type of fishing we do in Malta this is a hard reel to beat.

The TLD-30IIA is basically takes the same line capacity but is two speed, can exert 33lbs of drag pressure at full and costs around $270 excl VAT and shipping.

Shimano go carbon fiber on the sideframes and other parts to keep the weight down but its a shame they dont do a standard metal reel seat given the problems they've had. The Tiagra's are then crazy money, but the new Tyrnos range seems like a fantastic go between.

Penn are expensive except their Senator range which are excellent workhorses and very reliable and reasonably priced, but I'm really not a fan of star drags!

Everol dont have a big marketing machine as they are a small company, but they've been making excellent reels for eons which last a lifetime. Thank god they have lever arm drags They're very similar to Alutecnos but not at the Alutecnos price.

Skip

[shanook]

I have Okuma reels and they have done their fair share of work. I like a lever drag as opposed to a star drag as u set it out at home according to ur line and thats it, u know u have the right setting, for the strike as well as full drag which is 75% of the breaking strain of line. Before its not the first time i lost a fish because of a star drag tightening it without knowing the exact ammount of drag. My only complain about the okuma is the clicker its not as loud as the penn so i get a soft zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz when the reel goes as compared to a ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ of a penn.

[skip]

I know it was max drag being 1/3 of your line breaking strength not 3/4?! They say you can go up to 1/2 of breaking strain but definately not more. Do a search Shanook on the net and I'm pretty sure recommended is 1/3 breaking strain.

Twoutes I believe you had confirmed this to be as well when we were fishing together?

And you're right the Okuma clickers are sooooo quiet, Fin has that issue, though on his Titus 50W we reckon the clicker needs replacing but it could be its just very quiet.