Penn 12/0, 14/0, 16/0

[Strick]

Has anyone ever had aluminum or stainless side plates machined for the larger senators? I have heard of the side plates melting under long fights and heavy drags. I'm looking to build one for shark fishing and was curious if anyone had tried this or knew of a company that makes them. I know accurate makes them for smaller senators. Is this even possible?

[Bryan Young]

I have never seen one, if there was one.  Most people will dump buckets of water on the reel during a long run/fight to keep the reel and angler cool.

[Strick]

I have heard that as well, it just seems really inconvenient to carry a spare bucket of water just to cool the reel down. Thanks for the reply.

[Shark Hunter]

Strick,
I've seen the drag get so hot, it started smoking only because the reel was not properly serviced. I fish all those reels for Sharks and nothing else. Last Sept, My Buddy John reeled in a 12' Great Hammerhead with a 12/0. That reel was bone stock and had been properly serviced and didn't miss a beat.
I think someone is pulling your leg buddy.
I even saw an episode of mythbusters where they tried to catch a Senator on fire by pulling the drag with a hot rodded motorcycle.
It took it time and time again. The only way they caught it on fire was with Ether and a match.

[Bryan Young]

The other thing, if the reel got that hot with aluminum plates, I'd be worried about getting burned.

[coastal_dan]

I did hear a story last week about a 14/0 side plate melting while fighting a marlin in HI.  I'm curious what kind of sustained temperatures that would take...

[Bryan Young]

Realistically, if your sideplate got that hot, if you had aluminum sideplates, the heat would eventually travel to the spool and your fishing line would get damaged, especially if you are fishing with mono.

Grab a bucket, washdown pump sprayer, bottled water,...and cool down your reels.

[redsetta]

I even saw an episode of mythbusters where they tried to catch a Senator on fire by pulling the drag with a hot rodded motorcycle.
It took it time and time again. The only way they caught it on fire was with Ether and a match.

I saw that one too - myth busted

[Shark Hunter]

Here it is. I think the proof is in the pudding. the reel got to over 700 degrees farenheit and the line melted, but not the reel.
The first minute is about a flat tire, then the good part. It looks like a 14/0.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=W2ZjR6bul58

[Alto Mare]

Instead of showing respect to the senator, they set it on fire . What a shame, that was a nice reel .

[Strick]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=W2ZjR6bul58, nice video, so shark hunter you don't think a 14/0 that's well maintained would ever have damage to the side plates or drag star from excess heat even with upgraded drag?

[Superhook]

I saw the show a couple of months ago.  A 14/0 was used. They tried everything to see if they could make the drag catch fire. Tightened up the drag and ran that bike for a about a kilometer.  NO FIRE ...until as Daron said , they had to add a combustible fluid and light it. The reel looked mostly uncared for before starting the ordeal .

[Shark Hunter]

nice video, so shark hunter you don't think a 14/0 that's well maintained would ever have damage to the side plates or drag star from excess heat even with upgraded drag?

let me rephrase that a little. Any reel I build, I feel fully confident other than getting spooled. They would not melt.
Not after I saw this with my own eyes. A 12' Great Hammerhead. One of the top 10 Sharks caught last year.



The Proof is in the Pudding.

[redsetta]

What a beast!

[Aiala]

Instead of showing respect to the senator, they set it on fire . What a shame, that was a nice reel .

Amen to that, Sal. I've never been a fan of this show. I wonder how they'd go about testing "when pigs fly"??  

~A~