After much research and polling of guys on this board what conventional reel they use and reading some of the Pros and Cons of the various reels I realized that there were some aspects I knew I wanted in my next reel. The must have for me was Magnetic Cast control, +300 yards of line capacity and around $200. As some of you might know I currently have the Penn Squall 15. This little reel has served me well, I love the cast-ability of this reel and the price point (<$115). The big drawback was the line capacity, I have 50Lb braid backing and 25lb mono top shot on this reel. I would say I have approximately 250 yards of total line on this reel. When I cast this reel out and get it back to my rod holder some nights I might only have 100 yards of line on the reel. (Depending on how far back I have my sand spike planted) I've never been spooled on this reel, but it makes me kinda nervous.
So I was looking at the bigger reels that had magnetic cast control such as the: Abu Blue Yonder 7000, Akios 757 CTM, Abu TSR 6500 and the Penn 535.
I ended up find a good deal on Ebay for a new Penn 535 Mag2 ($125).
Here are the specs on this reel:
Here is the reel side by side with the Penn Squall 15.
Right out of the box the Penn 535 had a great free spool spin. The Mag 2 control seems to have more fine tuned settings compared to the Squall. The clicker is also much loader then the Squall 15. Which was a big problem I've had trying to hear the clicker over the sound of the surf. When I spooled it with 50lb braid I was able to load approximately 300 yards of line by the time it reached the second ring of the spool indicator. I filled the rest of the spool with 30lb mono up to the top. I would say I got about 150 yards.
This reel is basically a Penn Squall 25N with a Mag control. It's not sold in the US for some reason. It has the British flag on the box. (You can see that in the photo above)
I hope to get out soon to see how this reel will cast. I'll post review updates periodically.
