If Penn's Z series is to be ended....and I think it is to be unless that is just a rumor, and Nautil is to be discontinued, and VS has seen it's last gasp...then which reel will fill the vacum?

I like my Penns but I want to upgrade...I was all set to get either a VS or a Nautil and now...I don't know.

HAving been talked out of buying a Van Staal several times by the guy who owns the tackle shop I work Sundays at, I settled on a Stella 8000 (I only work there for the toys). Same weight as a 6000 but with greater line capacity. I have not fallen in love with Power Pro yet and wanted the simplicity of mono.

With luck this reel will turn out OK. Time will tell.

Mike

There isn't anything else. Nothing that I'd want to trust after walking out to Squib or the Naps. Load up on the Penns while ya can, that's my advice.

I have 4 704s and 2 706s and I may get one more of each.

I got my first 712z in 1985. caught some big fish on that reel. Have another one for a backup, and a brand new 711z just in case.
There are still some around buy a couple they will last you a lifetime.

I just bought a PENN 9500SS and I love it!

stellas are like $600. no thanks.

i think ill stick with the old penn 704 SF green machine for the little spinning i do. you can buy em on ebay for like $12, a little grease and maybe some new parts and they're ready to go. i saw spare spools going for $1 a piece a few weeks ago on ebay.:)

i was going to get a VS but then they went, :yak: then i was going to get a nautil then they went:behead:

Have given up on Penns and moved onto Shimanos. Most recent is a Stradic 8000. Smooth as a baby's bottom. Holding up pretty well so far. Holds 300 yards 50 # Power Pro. Very happy with it to this point.

I really like my SLAMMERS. But, I don't know what the he11 I'm doin' so I just might not know any better.

I have dropped one in the sand and rinsed it off in the salt, submerged them a few times and they have gone days without being rinsed off.

Pick em' up and they hum! :btu:

It's a good time to take up fly fishing exclusively. :laughs:

When and if Penn ever makes a Slammer with the capacity of a 704/706, at about the same weight, that may be a contender.

i used to fish a penn 6500SS, but then i started to get more serious about surf fishing and the reel was not up to the test for me. so, i got a green 704 from ebay and fell in love with it. so, i bought 7 greenies and an older black one. then, i came across a 706. that fit me even better, so i got 3 blackies to go with the greenie. that stock pile lasted me about two seasons before i wanted more! well, my next reel was a VS 250. i liked what that reel could do even more! then, i came across two VS 200's. the VS is definately the right reel for me and the ways i fish. as we all know, VS is in a state of turmoil right now, but i have enough reels for "backup" if my VS's fail me. so, i guess if a reel came out with the abilities of the VS, but more in the price range of the penn 706/704, it would be the perfect surf reel. currently, that reel does not exist, except for in our hearts.

i really thought that things were going to come back around and the trend would go towards the 704/706. from the sounds of the thinking going on at penn, that can not happen. perhaps penn could combine the technology of the new slammer reels, no anti reverse and water proof drag, with the abilitity, design, and size of the 704/706. that would really make for a great surf reel. parts would be readily available, it would be easy to repair yourself, the reel would be somewhat water proof, and it could be sold at a price we could all afford. due to the small market that we fit into in the over all plan of a reel company, i think it may be little more than a pipe dream.

All this talk has me concerned. I own a Penn 9500SS and I swear by it, it's never let me down, ever. So, all this talk about Penn going out of business, is it speculation or is it fact?

I'm not ready to go out and buy a new Penn just to have one put away, but if they are, I want to be ready.

So, fact or speculation?

Easy Jugstah, Penn is not going out of business . They have been phasing out the spinfisher Z series.

Isn't a 9500 overkill for any kind of surfcasting.?I dont fish off the beach much but a 6500 spooled with 20 momoi seems plenty enough. I have 9500s spooled up with dacron to 30 braid for small tuna.

Originally posted by Good N You
Isn't a 9500 overkill for any kind of surfcasting?

there are places for ALL sizes of reels in the surf! size of the surf reel can affest so much more than you would think. larger spool face can mean longer casts or more drag washer surface area. line capacity is not all that a large reel has "more" of. a VS300 is as at home in the surf without being overkill, as a penn slammer 460 is at home without being underkill. some people say that an abu 7000c3 is too big for any kind of local surfcasting, yet i have been in situations where i was nervous that i didn't have enough line on mine! to each his own.

Mike P had a suggestion that should make the new owners of Penn at least blink. The 560's weight and lower line capacity make it less desirable for the surf. the reel is solid and smooth but falls short in size for surf. Penn for all it's worth and the following it has, has'nt put anything in R&D to catch up with the times? Most all their too late entrys into the popular market has ended in distaste recently. Z series out of production in the near future? Why continue to produce a reel that lasts forever? There ain't no money in that? The SS series has been taking a licking but still decent. Maybe the new blood will do something? Sorry to say, I won't buy a Jap car but will a reel. Prospector

Hi Joe :hidin: :wave: :wave: :wave:

Originally posted by Prospector
Why continue to produce a reel that lasts forever? There ain't no money in that?

Kinda like the slant 6. One of the most reliable engines ever built, ya couldn't kill them, but Chrysler stopped making them for that exact reason.

By the way, new to the board :wave:

Originally posted by Good N You
Isn't a 9500 overkill for any kind of surfcasting.?I dont fish off the beach much but a 6500 spooled with 20 momoi seems plenty enough. I have 9500s spooled up with dacron to 30 braid for small tuna.

I'm happy with its performance while surf fishing. As some people would say, to each their own.

I use a 9500SS with my 11ft surf rod...

CAL -

Welcome to the board, good information, better people...


Ice

I have my 9500ss on my 9ft surf rod and love it. As soon as I can come up with the cash I will be getting another to replace the 704z on my 10ft :happy:

IMO the 750SS will be the modern-day 704Z "replacement"

I would love them to make an international series of spinning reel.

Man, Penn 9500ss on 9 and 10 ft surf rods. Ya'll must be He-men or something. I can't imagine holding that reel cast after cast for 10 hours a night. For chunking I HAD a 7500ss, but even with that I could hear the sand spikes screaming for mercy. But I suppose it is along the same theory that my dad goes by as he uses the 850ss........Big fish= Big reel.

I am 6,2 180 llb and have been a farrier for the last 10 yrs ( until I moved back in Jan from KS to work at Toyota of Newport ) so the weight is no prob and like everything else when you get used to it everything else feels strange.:laughs:

Originally posted by redlite
Man, Penn 9500ss on 9 and 10 ft surf rods. Ya'll must be He-men or something. I can't imagine holding that reel cast after cast for 10 hours a night. For chunking I HAD a 7500ss, but even with that I could hear the sand spikes screaming for mercy. But I suppose it is along the same theory that my dad goes by as he uses the 850ss........Big fish= Big reel.

I chunk bait, and use sandspikes to hold my pole. And I use lunker lights on the tip of my pole so i can see action happening on my pole and run for it!!!!

And 9500SS on a 11ft'er isnt really that heavy after a long day at work being a PC tech...