Are you guys talking about Power Pro cutting you? I use Fireline and never have had this problem. I am think about trying PP this year.

Power pro is much thinner than fireline pound for pound.. for example, I hve 20 lb fire line on my schoolie rod and its a tad thicker in diameter than the 50lb powerpro on my cow stick. All my cuts on my index finder are always on the inside of my knuckle and they come from either tightening knots or pulling agianst my drag to get some line out of the reel... All on the power pro, none form the fireline :mad:

Yeah that is why I want to try PP, I guess I will have to be careful.

Due to wetsuiting my fingers shrivel and made casting #50 PP a nightmare by day break. I normaly wouldn't use any finger protection if fishin 3 or 4 hrs. If you plan on being in the water useing #30 wear something or learn to cast with each finger.:rolleyes::D

I end up putting a wrap of tape on the crease of my pinky where the line always cuts in for knots.. You do need to protect your skin from braid a lot more then mono.

IMO PP is worth it. I found fireline to work ok but seems too thick for the # test, also I think it is not a round line (or at least the line I used wasn't round). I like the thin-ness feature of PP.

PP is great for casting distance... and even better for bottom fishing from a boat. I can fish 100' of water with a 2-3 oz sinker in a good drift and my line is almost straight down. The mono fishermen next to me has an 8 oz weight and his line is a mile away from the boat. Then there is the stretch and feel factor and is lasts much longer and is much better in cold weather then mono...no question about it braid is better for many types of fishing. Also I love the squeeeling sound it makes as it screems thru SIC guides.

The only problems I see with braid is that
1) tangles are harder to fix
2) cuts in hands
3) It is not as abraisve resistant as mono
4) you need the right reel to fish it else it is a nightmare.

Last summer I loaded the same reel with PP, fireline, stren braid, and cortland braid. Fished a couple days with each. For me I liked PP.

Also did a rock test....under tension ran it accross a rock, not super scientific but as uniform as I could...mono lasts the longest before breaking. Braid cuts the soonest. Good mono is pretty abraision resistant. I have heard there is a new braid that is very abrisive resistant but I have not tried it.

I think PP made some improvements last year...no more mystery breakoffs but I did snap a couple lures off due to my own screw-ups. Set up on the right reel I have had less problems with PP then mono. Your mileage may vary :)

If you fish less then 30# PP you are taking really thin line. It casts like you snaped off the plug but it cuts. 50# + is not that bad and casts like 14# mono I found. Some of my lighter spinners have 15-30# PP and it is like casting a line with almost hair-like thickness.


Getting back on topic...What I would like to know is what is your favorite conv reel (stock from the factory with no mods) (cost no object) just for surfcasting?

day in and day out, no dunking general surfcasting, any of the 7xxx Abu's. for specialized surf situatons, avet sx or penn 525gs.

Hello Steve,
That's a great reply and I agree with most of your assessments. However, I still have to stand on my recommendation (Newells and “Non-level” wind Abu) because it has served me well (and other sharpies) and on many occasions, yours truly has culled several bragging fish with it. Again, I have to reinstate that I don’t believe there is one single reel in today’s marketplace that is able to sustain the saltwater dunking abuse but given the circumstances, I recommend the reel with great functionality and that allows easy modifications.

What I like to know is... what are your reel recommendations? I am duly impressed with your knowledge of the integral / internal components - in your best assessments, which reel do you recommend? :)

“Crazy” Alberto
NonStopFisher@Optonline.net

you guys brought back some very painful memories of braid slicing my fingers. :crying: boy does that hurt. i'm thinking if i wrap, tape or cot my finger that should do the trick. with the spinner it will be lobbing eels and smaller plugs not as far or with as much force as trying to put a 5 oz. jig halfway across the canal. i will leave that up to my conventional.

I want one of these baaad :D

hey eben, maybe we can get a discount on buying 2.

Hello Crazy Alberto,
Hope your winter is going well. I agree with you on the Newells. Have the 235 and 229 they are excellent casting reels, although noisy. As the commercial goes "they are the most corrosion resistant reels". It seems that you have to grease (white lithium) the spool axle otherwise those no-lub bearings (1997 on)will seize right on the shaft. I was using 3 in 1 red can on the spool axle (pinion). The grease doesn't seem to effect the cast much at all.
This past fall watched a fellow skish/ wade with a Penn 965 International, I wonder if the reel survived the punishment?
Why abuse a somewhat pricey reel like that?
My idea involves a Penn 155L or 209M with the levelwind removed, basically the same reel. The drags are the same as the Penn 500 Jigmaster, which are also the same set up as the Newells. Plain, inexpensive reels with %$%$%$%$ings instead of bearing s that are going to seize. If you rip one Penn down they are all basically the same design. I'll keep you posted on the results of my experiment. Hopefully I'll have something good to pass along.
Probably see you at a sweetwater spot.
Good Luck,
Steve:)

Anyone have any idea why a decent sealed reel has not been put on the market?


For the price of reels and the marketplace to sell them in, seems like one of these companies would have found a solution by now.

At this point, I am starting to lean towards the, buy cheap and replace as needed.

-IWK

holy cow iwk, you just wrote what i was thinking!! you'd think there would be an absolute "go to" reel when dunking is a must.

Iwanakeepa,
That's my line of reasoning. Go cheap and have fun!
No one has made a sealed conventional because there is such a small percentage of guys who enter the water with a reel and a still smaller group that uses a conventional to plug with. To give you an example there are four guys I know of on the South shore of long island that actually plug with a conventional reel. I am sure there are many more that chunk with them, but that is a different ball game all together. If the boat users found a need for a waterproof conventional it would have been done years ago.
The fact of the mater is the surf fisherman is a mere fart in a hurricane when it comes to the fishing populace. Even if they did make a sealed conventional it would be expensive and I probably wouldn't buy it if I had a reasonable alternative.
Good Luck,
Steve:)

Well, if you ever run into me, you'll know of 5 ;)

6! :D

uh, hello! make that 7. Democrat Point to to Shinny, it's mostly conventional for me. Can we say XRA 132-2? :hihi:

my one issue with this idea is the drag will still absorb saltwater and need to be changed after each time they are totally submerged. this is a big reason why i moved away from Penn Z's. unless you want to service your reel every time out, you need either a sealed drag or a drag un-affected by water. this is where the Avet comes in. as i stated earlier, their drag can be totally soaked and it still functions 100%. give the reel a quick fresh water soaking after each trip, and you are good to go. why use a bus-hing reel to prevent the reel from seizing, when your drag will still crap out? :huh:

tlapinski,
A Penn Z reel was used for this purpose before any sealed drag system reels came along. The original wetsuiters used these reels with the Ht-100 drag washers and never had a problem. If you open up a Penn conventional drag stack or Newell,you will see they are larger than the majority of spinner drag stacks and that's why the boat fisherman use them, because of their superior drag systems. I am sure the Avet is a well designed reel. I wish you the best with your Avet.
Good Luck,
Steve:)

i know the wetsuiters used to use the Z's until better, sealed drags came along. there may be more drag washers in the penn conventionals, but they will still absorb the water, then they dry, leave a crust of salt, which renders the drag crap. i lost a couple good fish to 706 drags sticking because i didn't remember to change the washers after the reel was totally submerged. sure, this was my fault for not tending my gear, but i would rather not have to deal with an uncertain drag. hell, i killed a pile of VS drags, so i have my issues with them any way.

let me know how your reel works out, as i am always interested in other options. like yourself, i throw conventional the vast majority of the time when plugging. when i am not dunking the reel, i throw 7xxx class abus.