Offshore Game

[CubasFinest12]

Hey Guys,

i just got into the offshore trolling game and am looking to get 6 setups. Does anyone have recommendations? Avet vs Penn? Connelly rods vs Penn vs Bogan?

Any feedback would be greatly appreciated

[hammer4reel]

Originally Posted by CubasFinest12

Hey Guys,

i just got into the offshore trolling game and am looking to get 6 setups. Does anyone have recommendations? Avet vs Penn? Connelly rods vs Penn vs Bogan?

Any feedback would be greatly appreciated

I have 4 Penn squalls 30 wides listed here in classified .
Also have a squall 50 wide .
They are pretty good reels for the money .
This set for sale hasn’t seen much use , I upgraded to international’s.

The penn Ally rods are a very good rod for the money

[Gerry Zagorski]

Hard to go wrong with Avets because of their price/value compared to other solid solid aluminum framed reels in their class and made in the USA.

I’d get a mix of four 30s and two 50s for trolling heavier or targeting heavier fish... That should be all you need for trolling and the 30s you could use for bait fishing if you decide to do that.

Get 30 and 50 pound class rods to match the reel specs. Nothing too fancy needed for trolling and does not matter how heavy in terms of weight the rods are. Make sure the rods have slick butts so they’re easier to get out of your rod holder when needed.

[Jigman13]

What kinda budget you got?

30 and 50w 2 sp reels are the way to go. If you have Tiagra money it's worth it. Penn International 2 sp will suffice too.

I'm a fan of the Talica series by shimano too. Sooooo much lighter. I'm curious of their long term durability though.

If you have budget for custom rods they're good but theres a lot of trolling rods readily accessible without customizing. Most will do the trick; just dont cheap out bc itll cost you a fish in the long run

Back to reels, I've got a thing against Avet. I've had nothing but problems with them. I now avoid them like the plague offshore. If investing in the offshore game, invest in gear thatll last and you can rely on every season. No cheap line. No cheap crimps. No cheap swivels. No cutting corners anywhere. Maximize your time and investment out there and hope it yields success.

It ain't cheap being out there. And it ain't cheap getting there. When that 200+ eyeball dumps a 50w on your port flat line or the 750+ blue marlin destroys your wwwwwww back schute and bally, have the gear and tackle in place to up your odds.

[Capt. Lou]

There is plenty of good used sets around , an save you big $$ ! Set of 30 & 50 are a good start for troll . In fact 50w’s & 30 w’s in today’s reels have braid capacity and drags to best anything out there on private boats .
Pens are a great value for the money , also I see no need for 2 speed reels , single speeds work fine especially on private boats where you can run to fish .
Save money , until you feel committed to offshore I would look at good used equipment !
Chunking & jigging setups vary from the troll set ups , have evolved into much lighter gear that’s another story .!

[CubasFinest12]

Thank you all for the advice. I know not to go the 30w route, as I have had bigeyes/bigger over BFT smoke the small stuff close to the boat and dump a reel before you can even blink.

My big question was for the penn internationals. Every boat I work on, every where i look i see internationals. Now if it aint broke, dont fix it, but last trip I had gone out I fished with Avets. They were so smooth, and so much lighter that I was honestly blown away.

[Jigman13]

We run all Internationals and Tiagras from 30w to 80w offshore; all 2 sp.

We absolutely SMOKED an Penn 80w last Aug on a #750+ blue marlin. We landed the fish though after almost 2 hours (boatside release). It was a testament of quality. We had to send the reel in to be rebuilt as it was unusable after that fish. The guy at Penn just said "Jesus Christ, what did you do?!" LOL

There's a reason the upper echelon of for-hire offshore captains use Penns and Shimanos. I've also heard some positive things about the Makairas, but I have zero experience using them, and I have a really hard time wandering from things that are tried, trusted and true.

In terms of used or new--all depends on budget. If you can find used its obviously cheaper, but you're buying an unknown that may need to be majorly serviced. During a pandemic, that service could take months at either a private reel place or the manufacturer. Are you buying for this season or next season?

If you buy new, it's ready to fish outta the box--just get it spooled professionally.

We just wont use an Avet trolling offshore. If you want lighter, look into the Talicas. The 25 holds like 750 yards of 80 lb braid and has 45 lbs of drag. That's stopping power. You can turn a #200 eyeball or BFT over with that no problem--at half the weight of a Tiagra 30.

[hammer4reel]

Thinking you can’t catch most bluefin in our waters on a 30 wide is silly .
They hold three times more line than you need to fight blue fins to giant size .
Most guys with any time in have landed 70” fish on jigging equipment that holds half the line a 30 wide does .
.
Most new reels are lighter than those in years past .
The new internationals using bridge construction on their 2 speed reels have made them much stronger .

Lots of guys who aren’t fishing enough to invest in gold do great with carbon reels by Penn and Shimano.

Sure they won’t hold up over time to Big Eyes .
But they are fine for 98% of the bluefin and yellowfins in our water .

If you think your going to go out and just hammer big eyes it just doesn’t happen most of the season .

[Jigman13]

Originally Posted by hammer4reel

Thinking you can’t catch most bluefin in our waters on a 30 wide is silly .
They hold three times more line than you need to fight blue fins to giant size .
Most guys with any time in have landed 70” fish on jigging equipment that holds half the line a 30 wide does.

well said. hard to argue with this!

[Capt. Lou]

Originally Posted by CubasFinest12

Thank you all for the advice. I know not to go the 30w route, as I have had bigeyes/bigger over BFT smoke the small stuff close to the boat and dump a reel before you can even blink.

My big question was for the penn internationals. Every boat I work on, every where i look i see internationals. Now if it aint broke, dont fix it, but last trip I had gone out I fished with Avets. They were so smooth, and so much lighter that I was honestly blown away.

I have personally taken many tuna in the 70-80’ era on straight 50 ‘s ! A lot over 200# ! In fact I’ve taken hundred with straight 6/0 reels !
So if a 30 W was stripped by a big eye at boat side after a fight , only thing I can drag was too loose ! May I ask why u didn’t chase the fish ! Like Dan said those 2
W reels will get it done easily !!