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reels for the surf ,, what do you use?

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reels surf
19K views 62 replies 24 participants last post by  Striperjim 
#1 ·
Shimano Spheros
Daiwa B/G
Abu 6500
 
#2 ·
reels

whats up guys? i think everyopne knows what i use now. gonna have to go with crash on this one. i'm all Penn. only i go big. Penn 9500ss, 8500ss, and now the slammer 560 which hasn't been tested yet. Why Penn? Not only do i have Penn reels dating back to the 60's at least, and are still working, still being used today, but all my other Penns are just sturdy, and have been proven to withstand abuse, ie....coming off the beach at 3am with no love for rinsing until the next day, getting dropped in the sand, getting banged around in the car, and just standing up to me, i'm a brute when it comes to my reels. usually i'm religious about taking care of them but there are those times and we've all had them. It was my 8500ss that caught that cow the other night, once again, tested under the best conditions. last year my friend used it to catch a 46 incher and it came through perfectly, no slipping, great ratio, great retrieve. I like the look, i like the feel and i like that they haven't failed me yet. what more can i say?

:twisted: craig aka briggs :twisted:

show me 6' waves and i'll show you a 15' rod that will make it seem like your fishing a pond.
 
#4 ·
Yes edog absolutely. I think Penn was the first reel anyway. like i said before, they have passed all my tests and have come through with flying colors. My 9500ss i keep on my 15 footer, the things a monster but i've actually plugged with it (the rod and the reel). I've been using penn products for the past 35 years and until they fail me, i'll be using them for another 35 years. I've been fishing on many occasions where my friends reel starts to slip or skip teeth or the handle breaks right off. i tell him all the time, you dont have to have the best rod, but you should always spend the extra money for a great reel, it will reward you in the end.

:twisted: craig aka briggs :twisted:
 
#6 ·
yea yang, thats another great reel. i just recently purchased the Okuma Solaris 9' Surf Rod for plugging. i was looking for a reel to hang on it and ended up going with the Penn Slammer 560. a little pricey but man oh man is it a nice reel.

:twisted: craig aka briggs :twisted:

aka Surfcastermaster

MASTER OF HIS DOMAIN
 
#8 ·
Reels

The Van Stall is pricey. though. I have been promising myself one, one of these days. In the mean time Im with Charlie Edogg and Briggs. I just love my Penn 704 Z and the 9500 . Just bought another 704 z. It handles all the sand and abuse I can give it. every once in a while I have to replace the bail and give it a little oil. Every 2 or 3 seasons. :D
I burned the gears out on a 7500 two falls ago. Nothin but metal filaments left. Still needs fixed, (only cause Im lazy). I want to get ready for the fall run this year. with a lamiglass pole and my trusty ole penn atached. Maybe I will try out a conventional reel again this year. Ive been using spinning reels since I was catching sunnies and bringing them home to put in the gold fish bowl.
 
#9 ·
rheitmuller said:
VS IS THE ONY REEL FOR ME :D
Welcome to the board!!!

Van Staal's are nice, machined pieces. And yes, VERY expensive. Worth it? Mmwwwwwaaaaaaaaaaaaa, to me no. But If I had 25 million in the bank, I'd get one just to say I had it.

BTW, Van Staal was bought by Zebco. So now they are lovingly referred to as "Van Zebco's".

The latest I hear is that the customer service is just as good, or better, than it was before they sold to Zebco. Thats good news.

I think Penn's are just fine. Reliable as hell. But to be honest, I like the bearings and drag on my Epixor EB80 better.
 
#11 ·
I have a Penn Spinfisher Series 704 and 706 and I prefer the 706. I also use a Shimano Spheros 6000 for a light 10' rod and its been great.

I'm thinking of getting the Van Staal 250 but the Daiwa Saltiga 4500 is also very interesting. The cost, however is crazzzzzzzzzzzy! :)
 
#13 ·
sent my 4500 and my 8500 in for service. holding off respooling my 525 mag till feb when the new suffix line comes out. suppose to be better than the tritanium i backed it with this year. will be SAILING that beast out there when i put it on my new tsunami 12' casting rod. briggs will surely switch to conventionals if he saw how far this sucker goes. should've got the shimano i wanted but putting magnets in it might be tricky. abu red rocket will be my next reel, they're easy to mag.



 
#14 ·
Ah Zimno my fine feathered friend.....I never ruled out conventionals. thats how i learned to cast actually. Back in the day...i mean, WAY back in the day....First we'd fish for crabs and then we'd fish for Tautogs off the rocks. Had nothing but conventional reels, and if you casted out a nest, you sat there and fixed your own nest, sucked but its etched in my head hahaha. only one thing though, we had no conventionals that let the line out slowly for us, it was all in the thumb pressure, and that ya had to learn to do yourself, cant teach that. I have three really old Penn surfcaster reels, the ones with the picture of the guy surfcasting etched in the side. Since they were my late fathers reels, they are all redone, cleaned up and work better than most of my spinning reels. I did the same thing with his old St, Croix, looks brand new. I still do alot of Tautog fishing, almost took the tourney here last season actually, some bastad beat me by .18 of a lb....anyway, when i go tautog fishing, i fish with my old mans rod and reel, i clean up. a little useless info for ya hahaha, sorry.

I've been checking some conventionals out, most likely gonna checkout a new one. watch, i wont be able to cast a new one, i wont know what to do with my thumb.

:twisted: craig aka briggs :twisted:

aka surfcastermaster

8) MASTER OF HIS OWN DOMAIN 8)
 
#17 ·
Nah Zimno....i'm no better than anyone. i was kind of kidding my friend, i just like saying that i'm the master. there are no masters when it comes to conventionals, we all get messed up at some point. Practice makes perfect and i dont practice nearly enough lol. I'm thinking of trying the Mag now.

:twisted: craig aka briggs :twisted:

aka surfcastermaster

8) MASTER OF HIS OWN DOMAIN 8)
 
#24 ·
Hey Briggs, I got a slammer 560 and its a great reel. I only had one problem with it when I went to the Vinyard and got rolled by a few waves I got sand all in it. Wanted to know if theres any way to keep the sand out.
good fishing
 
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