Surfmaster 850

Posted: Sat Oct 24, 2009 7:47 pm

Reading these posts about the latest Penn tackle has confirmed a suspicion that I have had recently about fishing tackle companies falling standards. Another example has been poor reviews for Abu 7500 LD's and some of the 6500 range. I recently bought an Abu 'waterproof' fishing smock that leaks like a sieve. Both these companies are now owned by Pure Fishing and I think since the takeover, the quality of the tackle has deteriorated.
I have Penn spinfisher reels that are over 20 yrs old and still work fine as does my 535 and 525 and 310 gti all over 10 yrs old. Likewise my old Abu 6500 is still going strong. I doubt that it is coincidence that the quality of new Abu and Penn tackle is getting the reputation of being 'Shakespeare' standard as Pure Fishing also owns Shakespeare.
Shakespeare produced cheap and cheerful tackle and you got what you paid for. I know that Shakespeare have produced some great tackle, the original 8' ugly stick was a brilliant rod. The fulmar lever drag reel was another gem. My point is that with Shakespeare tackle you got what you paid for and were not influenced by a solid reputation for reliability that both Penn and Abu had as independant companies. I would be reluctant buy from either of these firms now as there is a lot of evidence that their names no longer merit the high prices they charge.
On a more positive note if you are in the market for a fixed spool reel to last the pace the Grauvell reels have got good reviews on planetseafishing from ordinary anglers and as I cannot afford £300-500 for either good quality Daiwa or Shimano coffee grinders they seem to be a good option.
Mac

Posted: Fri Mar 12, 2010 12:22 am

yea man i dus bought this reel 2day and i wish i hada read this aswell f**k sake lol

Posted: Fri Mar 12, 2010 10:07 am

I have Fulmar lever drags 2 of and also I have got Ugly Stick rods 4 of them in various classes, all have proved their worth. Going back to the original post, retailers know the reputation of the penn 850 and yet they continue to stock it and sell it to the uninitiated knowing full well that its crap that they are selling instead of returning it to the manufacturers.
Cheers
keith big grin

Posted: Fri Mar 12, 2010 5:49 pm

About two years ago I was looking for a pair of FS reels for big pit work and which would also serve on my beachcasters-I settled for the Daiwa "Opus 5500"-so far they have given good service with no signs of corosion or mechanical problems,hope this helps,Mick happy