queensland Fishing Reel Advice And Knowledge Wanted!

[ggg]

Hello everyone,

I have been really interested in big game reels for a while now. I have a 25,000 spinning reel with a Precision rod, but I would like an overhead outfit as well. I have been told that Everol reels are the 'Ferrari' of fishing reels. Apparently the highest quality of big game reels and made in Italy. I have found an older model one for $200. The reel is a 7.5/0 in the 'Graveglia Special Series'. There are 2 of them in an isolated town near me so they won't go rapidly. I was just wondering if this reel would be able to still be used today and how old you think it is? Would it be worth the money and what is the max drag as well (I cannot find any specs on the drag)? All of your thoughts are appreciated. Thanks

[Ed.]

The Everol brand have been around forever, I have never used one so can't say if they are any good or not, as to whether or not that one it is worth $200 for an old reel it would depend on you. I personally wouldn't buy it with a view to catching large fish with, as technology has moved on in the big game reel section and the new ones would have much better performance and designed better than the old stuff, admittedly at a much higher price. Can it still be used today? probably so long as the drags work and no major problems with bearings etc.., will it catch fish once hooked? again probably.  Will that one be better than the new reels in terms of performance and ease of landing a big fish? then most probably not!

If I am going to spend big bucks chasing a big fish then I would want all the advantages that I can get to land that fish eg: 2 speed gears etc. big drag capacity and a drag made from materials that won't fade from heat build up. But that's just me, others may like the Retro look. The company is still producing reels but I don't like the look of most of them design wise, but again that is a personal thing. It may be of benefit to you to  keep searching  on the internet  and search that particular model to see what people who have personal experience and used them say about it.

 

Cheers

Ed.

[Junky]

Yeah I wouldn't buy that to chase big fish. 

It would go straight to the pool room I reckon, but i'd only offer him $50 cause that's all its worth to me. 

 

 

 

If you wanna chase big fish, you can't beat shimano's TLD's in my opinion. 

A TLD50W will land most big game species, well all of them tbh. 

Spool one up with 24kg line, get yourself a black magic gimbal belt and harness (these are essential regardless of line class), then get out there and take a close up look at some of the biggest fish in the ocean. 

It's good fun, but extremely hard work. 

 

[ggg]

Thanks. I will have to consider a few more options now! I do like the TLD’s and Tyrnos series. 

[AUS-BNE-FISHO]

Hi Jaz44

I'll have to agree with Junky - something as cool looking as that reel would be on the wall as a feature. 

I would recommend a more modern reel to troll or game fish with - probably a better experience all round. (TLD, Tyrnos, Tiagra, etc). 

Cheers Hamish 

P.S. There is a Tackle, Rods, and Reels part of this forum so you know (because you posted this in Saltwater)  

[Ed.]

It really depends on your target fish, whether bottom bashing, ballooning or  trolling, and also your budget. Between the TLD and the Tyrnos, I would go the Tyrnos every time, but if you are chasing big fish which I assume you are by looking at a Everol 7.5, then if you have room to move  on the budget there are also much better reels around than the Shimano ones. I have owned  TLDs and Tyrnos and hence my preference for the Tyrnos out of those two (and in 2 speed).

However if you are after "really big fish up to 300-400kg" and want a big reel then my preference would be to go to the Okuma Makairas rather than the Shimano's mentioned, the Shimano version is the Tiagra, but after comparing specs on about 4 different brands and feeling them all in my hand I chose the Makairas which were hands down better  in my opinion. A MK-20II or a MK-30II will pretty much handle all the fish you will come across (the 20II is a narrow version of the 30II).  So if you are targeting 800-1000kg Marlin and so forth then you will need to go up to 50W, 80W or 130 class reels but that is whole different ball game.

[Brodie_S]

Yeah idk much about overheads but yeah everyone’s opinion on this sounded pretty good to me

[bigkingie]

The drag is not well protected from water. They did come out with a waterproof series with a blue side plate. People used to resort to putting shower caps over them when trolling. 

As others have said it's not up to the standards of todays reels.

 

[ggg]

Okay. It would be for ballooning. I might just wait for a good deal to come up as I already have a good game fishing outfit (spin model) with 700m of braid and a small top shot. 

[Ed.]

What sort of fish would you like to catch with it and are you talking about ballooning land based (jetty, rocks, beach,  break wall) or from a boat? and is there a budget for it excluding the rod?

[Ed.]

Hey Jazz44, if you do prefer Shimano reels over the Okuma ones I mentioned,  BCF is having a 40 hour Flash Sale ending tomorrow night on the Tyrnos 30 2 speed for $429 for club members, if you are not a member I think it is about $5 to join and become one. Just letting you know in case you don't get the BCF emails.

https://www.bcf.com.au/p/shimano-tyrnos-30-2-speed-overhead-reel/127037.html

Or alternatively there is the Penn Squall 50 2 speed VSW for  $329 including free delivery if your are a member of Dinga (free to join). Similar drag specs to the Tyrnos 30II except that the Penn has a full graphite body vs metal frame and graphite side plates and the Penn also seems to have double the line capacity which might suit your ballooning requirements more.

https://www.dinga.com.au/catalog/product/view/id/14442/s/penn-squall-50vsw-2-speed-lever-drag-reel-1292938/category/174/

Cheers

Ed.

 

 

[GregOug]

Hi Ed,

My son and I are getting into trolling now and you certainly know your gear so I have a couple of questions for you. The trolling reels I currently have are a Shimano TLD25, a Shimano TLD10, along with a Penn Senator 6/0. 
 

I think the TLD25 is just about the right size for trolling large hardbodies in the bay. However I think the TLD10 is too small and the Penn too big. What are your thoughts on these current reels and what would you recommend if I was to buy a new one?

cheers

Greg

[Ed.]

Hi Greg, Unfortunately  I don't know as much as you think I know and buying reels is a preference thing, what I like in a reel others may dislike, so a bit of my history so you know where I am coming from, unfortunately it is going to be a bit of an essay so bear with me.

I have owned several (3) TLD's in the past when I first started buying lever drags, also Okuma Titus Gold, Tica's and also Daiwa Saltists and a Daiwa Tournament reel  plus a few others. I have never ever  liked the TLD's from day one, didn't like the drags on them but that is just me, other people like them, people catch a lot of fish on them and they have been around for ages.  The TLD's are a more "affordable version" lever drag model that Shimano sells, nothing wrong in that, as I said people still catch a lot of fish with them and like them, but I think that they are a "budget reel" and that there are better reels out there.

Shimanos' next range above those are the Tyrnos range which I have owned 2 of them, a 20 and a 30, the 20 is just a narrow version of the 30. Those I liked much better than the TLD's but sold them off as well as most of my gear when I had medical issues and was about to give fishing away. Anyway most medical issues fixed so back to fishing gear, looking around I found the Penn Fathoms, read what people said about them and read the specs, they are small and compact and they have decent drags along  with thrust bearings and double dawgs plus anti reverse bearings, the Daiwa Saltists were prone to corrosion and the drags weren't as powerful as I liked, so got rid of those, bought the Fathoms in 2 x 15's, 1 x 30 and recently a 25N. Only wish I have with the 30 and 25N is that they should have harness lugs on them and 15 should have a magnetic control for casting,  again a wish list and  preference thing. 

The SLT-50W Daiwa tournament reel I got, I sold almost as soon as I bought it as I bought it sight unseen,  I didn't like the way it had the gear change in them, it is effective but didn't feel right to me, to change gears you pull the handle away from the body and push in to go back, whilst it works quickly I prefer the push button/lever approach as it is too easy to for the gears to get changed in the heat of the moment when you are cranking furiously.

Always wanted a Tiagra as I heard that they were really good but they too expensive for my budget at the time, anyway when I got some cash I started looking for a replacement large lever drag and was heading towards the Tiagra but did the research on alternative brands in that class. So before I was going to hand out  a large wad of cash I went and had a look and feel of the Okuma Makairas, Penn Inters', Tiagras, Fin-nor and one other which I can't think of at the moment. The Makairas felt a lot better to me, it had thrust bearings, silent when releasing  or getting line, (a big thing for me), helical cut gears makes for much less strain when winding and smooth as including huge drags. Getting back to the silent part, what I mean by that is that when you wind up the spool or it unwinds under load it is silent, unlike the others where you can hear the anti reverse dawgs clicking away which grates on my nerves, I don't mind noise but only when the clicker is on and at no other time.

Okuma had teamed up with Tiburon who designed the new generation of Makairas and they were a success. So I bought a 30II and then some time later a 50WII, the 30II covers most of the larger fish I am likely to fish for and the 50WII is only for ballooning for the larger line capacity capacity and they have a  ridiculous massive drag. They are really nice reels but they are big and heavy and will probably outlast you.  Not the sort of reels you want to bottom bash with for any length of time and certainly not to cast with. I recently contemplated getting a 15II size in them but decided against it as that one is similar to the Fathoms I have, very nice reel but it is heavier and twice the price of an equivalent Penn Fathom so of no real benefit. 

Can't comment on the Penn Senator, never used one as I don't like the old retro design style, again preference thing, similar thing to the TLDs, they have caught heaps of fish and some people like them but I have never used or owned one.

So after this very long rant back to your original question, which reel?

Whenever buying a reel in my opinion you have to work out what fish you want to catch, how are you going to catch it, ie, bottom bashing , jigging, casting, trolling etc, and is that fish likely to be in the area you want to fish, will  your chosen reel be able to cope with that fish if you are lucky enough to hook one, does it have enough drag and line capacity and  are you comfortable using that "short listed" reel, and what is your budget? Lastly what percentage of good reviews verses bad have been put up. All manufacturers have a couple of lemons whether by design are they just random production issues. So you have to decide whether a reel has a systemic problem or just a few bad apples in a large good bunch.  Bear in mind the majority of people don't write good reviews and most just complain about the bad ones so that does skew the results a bit.

All of my  lever drags are in two speeds, because when fishing heavier line classes you may sometimes just need to winch a stubborn fish up and a lower gear may save you wearing out prematurely, pump and wind is the go but sometime brute winching power is required.  So as you should be able to tell by now I do not have blind brand loyalty, If a reel is good, I buy it if not there are a ton of others to choose from.

Have a look at the Penn Fathoms for the smaller sized  trolling/general reels but once you get up to the 30 size and above at this stage my pick would be the Makairas, if you are jigging then back to the Fathoms, if budget is a concern then maybe the Squalls. Shimano also make some light weight lever drag reels which some people really like, as I have never used them, I can't comment  on their  worth. These are just are my preferences, so aren't you sorry now that you asked me.

 

Cheers

Ed.

 

 

 

 

[AUS-BNE-FISHO]

Legendary reel post Ed.!!!

Greg, have you ever heard of paravanes? Apparently they are pretty successful (I think Drop Bear has good success) on the mackerel.

Cheers Hamish  

[GregOug]

Thanks ED. Much appreciated. I finished three coffees while reading your reply so it’s probably just as well the tackle stores are closed now or I may have come back with all the reels you mentioned. I am only interested in reels for trolling. I have heaps of baitcasters, and whatever the overhead style of reel larger than baitcasters but smaller than the large trolling reels, is called.

I just want something to troll large bibbed minnows etc in the bay, for tuna, mackerel, wahoo or whatever other species of pelagic is stupid enough to take one of my lures.

[GregOug]

8 minutes ago, AUS-BNE-FISHO said:

Legendary reel post Ed.!!!

Greg, have you ever heard of paravanes? Apparently they are pretty successful (I think Drop Bear has good success) on the mackerel.

Cheers Hamish  

Yeah Hamish. I have those. I have everything known to mankind. Just need the fish now.

[GregOug]

47 minutes ago, Ed. said:

Have a look at the Penn Fathoms for the smaller sized  trolling/general reels but once you get up to the 30 size and above at this stage my pick would be the Makairas.

 

 

 

 

Hi Ed,

Am I right in assuming that the 30 size would relate in the same way that the 25 in TLD25 and 10 in TLD10 do? That is, is a 30 size reel slightly larger than a TLD25?

cheers

Greg

[Ed.]

Nope, not even close, the Mak-30II is about double the size, weight and with 2.5 times the drag of the TLD-25 with 2 speeds.

MK-30II

3.8:1 & 1.3:1

1417g

16.8kg

25.0kg

30/850, 40/700, 50/550

0.55/770, 0.60/640, 0.70/500

Shimano TLD25           

Model: TRITON LEVER DRAG 25

Ball Bearings: 4  Max Drag: 10kg Gear Ratio: 3.6:1 Retrieve Per Crank: 81cm Monofilament Line Capacity: 14kg – 548m Braided Line Capacity (Power Pro): 50lb – 1015yds

Weight: 695g

Release Date: 1998

[Ed.]

The Mak-20II is virtually the same reel as the 30II so just the spool is narrower and the Mak-15II is about half the size again. So the Mak-20II  is closer to the TLD25  but holds more line than the TLD25, with 2.5 times the  drag  and just slightly less than twice the weight and 2 speed.

Confused yet?

Cheers

Ed.

[GregOug]

What about this one Ed?

https://davostackle.com.au/products/penn-fathom-lever-drag-2-speed-overhead-reel?variant=29836001116235&utm_medium=cpc&utm_source=google&utm_campaign=Google Shopping&gclid=EAIaIQobChMItezX6IjS7AIVy38rCh27hQlREAQYAiABEgKGevD_BwE

[Ed.]

I have one of those, it is my largest sized Penn Fathom,  it is still a compact but  a powerful reel, it holds less line than the the TLD-25 but has 50% more drag, an extra bearing and has an all metal frame vs graphite of the TLD, plus it has a thrust bearing and 2 speed which your TLD doesn't. The next size up the FTH40NLD2 is physically larger again probably getting closer to the size of the TLD-25 but a bit smaller and the drag is 3kg bigger than the 30 version but almost twice as much as the TLD-25 (18.1 vs 10Kg). Having said that, in my opinion  the FTH30LD2 will probably cope with anything that swims in Morton Bay barring a 3-4mt shark.

If you wanted to go for larger fish such as a large Marlin off shore then I would suggest going to the MAK-30II but that would set you back more than 2.5 times the price of this one. But that reel is physically more than twice the size, weight, line capacity and price and not suited for just generally fishing in the bay. It is just too big whereas the FTH30LD2 I have fished all day with it trolling, bottom bashing etc., so a good all round large reel capable of tackling pretty much everything that you hook up on it without being overly big, heavy or expensive.

Pity you aren't in my part of town as you could have a look at my rods and reels to compare them against each other. If you do want to come up my way and have a look at them, PM me and I will give you my details. It is important to have a feel of these reels to see if you like the feel of them, as I said before, what I like in a reel may not be the same as your likes.

Ed.

[GregOug]

Thanks Ed. I may take you up on that.

[ellicat]

4 hours ago, GregOug said:

What about this one Ed?

https://davostackle.com.au/products/penn-fathom-lever-drag-2-speed-overhead-reel?variant=29836001116235&utm_medium=cpc&utm_source=google&utm_campaign=Google Shopping&gclid=EAIaIQobChMItezX6IjS7AIVy38rCh27hQlREAQYAiABEgKGevD_BwE

I recently purchased the Fathom 25NLD2. It's a good reel. Pretty similar in size to what you already have but heaps of drag and two speed.

[Drop Bear]

I want a big old game reel to hand on the wall. One day

 

[Bushy6728]

HI Jaz44

If that guy in the back blocks still has the  Everols for sale I am interested. Not for fishing reels  but as eye candy in a fishing shack wall display . In general I think the Everols are neat , but have the worlds ugliest handles 

Would love the massive 20/0 (in any colour ) but US $3400 is beyond my pay grade. They make 130's Internationals and Penn Senators 16/0 look like dinky toys. 9 Ball Bearings keep them spinning swee, max  Drag 260Lb, the only current reel in the "unlimited" competition reels . Definatively nor your stand up type as they weight 12Lb plus upto 4400M 130lb braid . But strapped in a chair you've got the baddest MOFO reel available . Period 

Also seeking older Penn 16/0 c/w roller rod as a display piece, in reasonaable condition. 

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder 

robbo

 

[ggg]

Way gone sorry Bushy. They sold before I even got up there. I was due up there that weekend and they went on the Friday. Sorry. 

[Bushy6728]

Hey 

 

Also looking at everols . been some sold lately

 

Missed a red scale plate on Ebay couldnt get my bid in on time shoulda nailed $225 and it went for $202.50 AU 

 

Heres a current model 2  speed 18/0 on eBay but wont post to AU 

 

There was a collection posted on Gum Tree 10 rod and reels just went for > $5.000

 

My pick is 3rd from left 14/0 Cairns . Anyone know moreinfo or models  pls tell 

 

 

[Drop Bear]

On 15/05/2021 at 6:29 PM, Bushy6728 said:

Also looking at everols

I would like one...