Penn Advice

[Bruce the Postie]

G'day All,

I am in the market for a new reel after being let down again by reels that are just not up to the riguers of bottom bashing.

Being a bit of a Penn fan(read ruggedness and simplicity)and being more than happy with the performance of my old SS,i was wondering if any Raiders have had any experience with the Penn Slammers or Live liners.Theese reels still look to be well made,and seem to have a fair reputation even though they are no longer made in the US of A.

Looking forward to any feedback you guy's can offer.

Cheer,

Bruce

[hooklineandsinker]

ive got two live liners 540 and the 760 more than happy with them caught a king on the 760 it had no problems at all i got mine for 150 each so at that price its a steal

i dont have a boat so i can't comment on their usage in bottom bashing but they are strong as or you could grab the fin nor offshore series being only $50 more with a hellova lot more drag

cheers mick

[corupt]

hi

i got a couple of the slammers in the 260 and 360 sizes use them in the boat for pretty much anything and have landed plenty of salmon and kings on them up to about 70cm cannot fault them at all.

[Bruce the Postie]

Thanks for the feedback guys,

I might just have a bit of a look around for some other reels that have metal bodies,and not bodies and feet that are made out of cheese like some of the other(top quality)reels i have killed.

Any suggestions would be great.

Cheers,

Bruce

[jack29ham]

Gday mate,

I have had the Slammer Live liner for about 2 years and its an amazing reel, I use it for rock fishing. This reel has been through hell and back and with a little bit of care im sure ill have it for 2 more years.

Penn have also realeased some new reels they retails for about $100 more than the slammer so im sure they will be preety solid.

http://www.tackletour.com/reviewpennpre09.html

[flanks]

G'day All,

I am in the market for a new reel after being let down again by reels that are just not up to the riguers of bottom bashing.

Being a bit of a Penn fan(read ruggedness and simplicity)and being more than happy with the performance of my old SS,i was wondering if any Raiders have had any experience with the Penn Slammers or Live liners.Theese reels still look to be well made,and seem to have a fair reputation even though they are no longer made in the US of A.

Looking forward to any feedback you guy's can offer.

Cheer,

Bruce

[flanks]

G'day All,

I am in the market for a new reel after being let down again by reels that are just not up to the riguers of bottom bashing.

Being a bit of a Penn fan(read ruggedness and simplicity)and being more than happy with the performance of my old SS,i was wondering if any Raiders have had any experience with the Penn Slammers or Live liners.Theese reels still look to be well made,and seem to have a fair reputation even though they are no longer made in the US of A.

Looking forward to any feedback you guy's can offer.

Cheer,

Bruce

Hi Bruce

i have had a heap of trouble with my live liner and you have to send it to S. A.to get it fixed

[slinkymalinky]

G'day Bruce,

One big difference between the SS models and the new, Chinese made SSm models as well as the Live Liners and Slammers is that all the near 'bullet proof' brass under the rotor has gone.

The SS reels have anti-reverse dogs while the newer reels have 'infintie anti reverse' clutch bearings. Clutch bearings can be a weak point in any reel and I don't have any feedback on how good the Chinese Penn ones are, but for simplicity and durability it's a step backwards from the SS models... at least in a reel intended to be tough, rugged and simple.

This doesn't mean the newer reels aren't any good, just an observation.

Cheers, Slink

[Bruce the Postie]

Thanks for your interest guy's,

After reading your feedback it only adds to what i have heard about these new gen Penn spinning reels.It seems that for every good reel there is a dark twin lurking out there

somewhere.

After thinking about the odds of getting a good one as opposed to getting a reel that provides problems,i have decided to steer clear of them for the time being.So,does anyone have ideas for an alternative reel that is not in the zillion dollar price range?.

Cheers,

Bruce

[hooklineandsinker]

fin nor offshore series seems to be a heavy duty reel all steel body too 27 kg drag on 6500 to 9500 models

when and if my penn 760 dies im gonna try them at $200 its worth at look

cheers

mick

[slinkymalinky]

The Daiwa Black Gold series reels are basically Diawa's version of the original Spinfishers. I don't have one but I've known a couple of people who swear by them.

If you're open to considering an overhead, after my recent experiences, I'd add an ABU 7000 to the list as a serious option too.

Cheers, Slinky

[Bruce the Postie]

The Daiwa Black Gold series reels are basically Diawa's version of the original Spinfishers. I don't have one but I've known a couple of people who swear by them.

If you're open to considering an overhead, after my recent experiences, I'd add an ABU 7000 to the list as a serious option too.

Cheers, Slinky

Thanks Slinky,

I will check out the Daiwa's ,sound good.

As far as the ABU 7000 goes,i already have a couple and they are almost as tough as my Penn spinfisher,and just as old ,i guess sometimes newer is'nt allways better.

I will check out the Finor's as well,but as with the new Penn's,i am getting mixed reports.

Cheers,

Bruce

[johnv]

G-day

I have 2 penn 950ssm & they r only 7 months old i used them both at swaines QLD & also bottom bashing out of sydney. one of them has already had 2 gears replaced & the other the shaft replaced even though they were fixed under warranty. I will never buy penn again .........

thats my thoughts & rant

cheers john

Edited March 23, 2010 by johnv