UnderGunned with a Squidder??

[Swami805]

This was a week ago Saturday at the local pier. Caught it by casting under the pier in the center of a group of pillings. 146 squidder on a 11 foot steel head rod with an 8# floro leader. Great reel for finesse fishing when a smooth drag and low speed are needed. Newell kit, jiggy handle, all time great reel. This one was my dads hope to pass it on to my grandson. Sheridan

[Porthos]

...a few friends of mine are giving me crap saying that my Squidders aren't up for the task. Now I know this isn't true, I've witnessed them work by others and myself. Granted ther[/img]e are newer/nicer options I'm old school and cut my teeth with old penn reels. I figure a squidder is good for a max drag roughly at 8#'s and running 25lb mono is a perfect match.

Huh...well, since I can and have fished my upgraded Monofil 27 (http://alantani.com/index.php?topic=15627.0) at 11-12lbs drag and 50lb braid main with 40lb mono top shot consistently offshore, you can ignore the smack talk from your "friends" in the peanut gallery. An upgraded Squidder with a Tiburon frame, 5-stack, and stainless parts can do at least the same and more. But size-wise, a 40lb setup is the upper limit, IMHO, for these reels; pushing them to 50 lb test or more just doesn't seem prudent...YMMV.

[Jim Fujitani]

I have upgraded many of my Internationals though with Tib frames and Cal'd or Cofed tweaks. One of my favorites is my now rare Wilfish framed TLD 50.

Did Wilfish stop the production of their 50TLDII frame?  I have a TLD30II with the Wilfish frame.  I live only about 15 miles from their shop but rarely get up there.

[conchydong]

I believe they did stop production of them (50 frames)ey may have some laying around, but I am not 100% sure.  They are great people to deal with. I like my 50TLD frame a lot although it does add significant weight to the reel. I use it for high speed wahoo trolling where it stays in the rod holder.

[Bryan Young]

I have upgraded many of my Internationals though with Tib frames and Cal'd or Cofed tweaks. One of my favorites is my now rare Wilfish framed TLD 50.

Did Wilfish stop the production of their 50TLDII frame?  I have a TLD30II with the Wilfish frame.  I live only about 15 miles from their shop but rarely get up there.

Hi Jim,

Were they made in Auburn?  I think someone told me while I visit my custom up there. Could. It locate anyone that knew anything or would talk.

[Swami805]

I saw a post from them on BD yesterday. I think it's new owners and they're doing 20's and 30's but didn't mention anything about 50's. I'd post a link but never figured out how to do that.

[conchydong]

Here is the link and no mention of bringing back the 50 frame. Looks like they are just selling the remainder of the 20s and 30s from existing stock.
https://www.bdoutdoors.com/forums/posts/4331237/

[Decker]

Let's get this thread back on track...

...a few friends of mine are giving me crap saying that my Squidders aren't up for the task. Now I know this isn't true, I've witnessed them work by others and myself. Granted ther[/img]e are newer/nicer options I'm old school and cut my teeth with old penn reels. I figure a squidder is good for a max drag roughly at 8#'s and running 25lb mono is a perfect match.

Huh...well, since I can and have fished my upgraded Monofil 27 (http://alantani.com/index.php?topic=15627.0) at 11-12lbs drag and 50lb braid main with 40lb mono top shot consistently offshore, you can ignore the smack talk from your "friends" in the peanut gallery. An upgraded Squidder with a Tiburon frame, 5-stack, and stainless parts can do at least the same and more. But size-wise, a 40lb setup is the upper limit, IMHO, for these reels; pushing them to 50 lb test or more just doesn't seem prudent...YMMV.

Porthos inspires me with his stories of pushing Penns to fight in higher weight classes...  I can't wait to try a Penn Mag 970 on school tuna someday .  My Squidders are ready to chunk from the surf, and have wrassled potent gator blues out of the wash.  My current favorite is the 145 - good manageable size in hand and enough line capacity.  With service & upgrades I expect to use these reels for my mortal remainder and pass them on. Thanks to classic Penn sellers and Alan Tani!     

[Keta]

Porthos inspires me with his stories of pushing Penns to fight in higher weight classes...  I can't wait to try a Penn Mag 970 on school tuna someday .  

I have caught albacore on Penn Surfmaster 100 and ABU 5600 reels.

[Decker]

Porthos inspires me with his stories of pushing Penns to fight in higher weight classes...  I can't wait to try a Penn Mag 970 on school tuna someday . 

I have caught albacore on Surfmaster 10 and ABU 5600 reels.

How many pounds are those albacore out there, Lee? Is that from a boat? That is one of the tastiest fish!   I need to try the Surfmaster 100 myself.

[fishhawk]

Glad to hear these stories of conquest for the smaller penn's. I myself since joining this site have built 3 squidders. 146 w/ plates sleeves n drag kits, 145 w/ plates, sleeve n drag kits and a newelled 146 but I haven't got to fish them yet! I love the way they handle n cast! Can't wait to get 'em in the surf!

[Keta]

How many pounds are those albacore out there, Lee? Is that from a boat? That is one of the tastiest fish!   I need to try the Surfmaster 100 myself.

18 pounds is small, 40 is large and 25 is average.

[Decker]

18 pounds is small, 40 is large and 25 is average.

I need to get in on that action!

[Keta]

18 pounds is small, 40 is large and 25 is average.

I need to get in on that action!

20 fish on the boat days are common, the bag limit is 25 per day per person.

[Decker]

18 pounds is small, 40 is large and 25 is average.

I need to get in on that action!

20 fish on the boat days are common, the bag limit is 25 per day per person.

That'll put your Cal's grease to work, and fill up the freezer for months!