I have one of those L/L by Penn. I don't use it much, just because I don't. When I first got it a few years back I used it for chunking and did the job. I didn't have any issues with the guts. Only the fold down handle. If your dad doesn't fish that much then the reel will do. The Okuma's are decent for the price of 'em. Not all of 'em. The Epixors are very good as well as Alumina's and Eclipse's. I didn't like the Avengers. I had an Axeon that was good for the surf. It was a huge reel, almost too big.
. There are plenty of decent reels out there, where you don't have to spend a ton of money.
BTW, I agree about the 12'er. A ten footer is more than enough rod.
