Anyone have any comments pro or con on the Penn 525 Mag casting reel ? Thought it would be good backup to my ABU 7000

i had one...got rid of it.
cast nice and is very speedy. but the little magnet controll slide on the sideplate was right in the way.
every other cast i would hit the lever bye mistake and backlash city.:exp:
good way to lose a bunch of eels in the dark.

maybe just the way i hold the reel?,palm the left sideplate, but wasn't for me

I love it..
once you learn the nuances of it its killer
BUT... it is FAST!!!
takes a while to learn the controls....

I love it. I alternate between that and a Newell P-220F for jigging.

It is fast and the slider mag control can get pushed without you realizing it. But, if you install the stronger mag conversion that Tres Irby sells on Hatteras Outfitters, you may be able to cast and control it at the lowest mag setting anyway. It's cheap and easy to isntall in less than 5 minutes.

If any of the sponsors here have a similar product, buy it from them.

Personally, I like the 525GS a LOT more. It's a much easier reel to control in my opninion. I had a mag for a season, took some fish on it, but didn't like the mag system. Once I picked up a couple gs's, I fished it a lot more. It's an effortless caster like the Abu 7000, but the line capacity leaves something to be desired. I prefer mono on my conventionals, but you just can't get enough 30# mono on it to make it safe. I went with 35# spectron on mine.

I bought a 525mag for my first conventional reel. Casts great, short learning curve. I would highly recommend it. I only use bait fishing as I prefer spinning for lures/eels although that may change....

Probably one of the finest casting reels ever made.
I only own 2 of them, but plan on getting a few more. I have brutally abused threm both ,and they never failed me.
The reel is way too hot for braids IMO, but can be very tame with mono ,start with the mags full on. The tourna mag (the one with the knob) is especially fast, but when casting mono is very easy to master. When I first got this reel, it immediately backlashed and was a bear, now I have the mag completely turned out(off) and effortlessly cast 150 yds with 17 or even 20 lb mono.Im sure with the right rod it can do close to 200 yds .I know these #s sound high & it took me a while to go from 120 yds to 150 but once the mags are off, its like being in overdrive.The only limit is your confidence level.
This reel can also take a brief dunking . Some dont believe me on this but I have done it repeatedly without ever a problem. However I do disassemble and clean at the end of the day.
The HT100 drag handles Tuna up to 50 lbs (done this several times)
Although not really recommended it can even be used as a cod reel dropping a 14+ oz jig down to 290 ft,no problem. How many other reels can do this?

Thanks for all the advice.

i fished quite a few times without a screw in either side, i forgot both :poke: and it just kept on chugging.