Fin Nor OF9500

boghy · June 26, 2011, 03:03:55 AM

Few days ago i walked into a sporting goods store and while i was breafly browsing the reels section from that store i notice the Fin Nor OF9500. What really caught my eye at first was the size of the spool - holds around 375yds of 30lb. OK, well that's nice i said, then i turned the spool and i'm like waw - very loud clicker for a spinner reel. So now, i really got interested in digging for more info about this reel.
Here is how this reel looks like:

I went home, and while i was on fin-nor's website, i notice this:

with that, seems that this is the only reel priced under $200 that can handle 60lb drag.
What i don't know is, what people experienced with this reel, so if there is anyone who can give some feedback, i would really like to read them here.
Meanwhile i found this website that has a small review about the reel:
http://www.uyedabrothers.com/review/gearreview.html and click on "Fin-Nor OF9500"

Bryan Young · June 30, 2011, 06:42:56 PM

I don't know the reel, but know of the Ueda Brothers. They are kayak fisherman in Hawaii. Seem to be on the up and up. Roy's is based in Aiea, Hawaii if you are interested in contacting them.

Dominick · June 30, 2011, 09:52:48 PM

Hey Boghy, Bryan: Interesting. 60lbs of drag. Do they have spinning rods that will handle heavy drags like this. Dominick

Bryan Young · June 30, 2011, 11:24:43 PM

There are rods that can probably handle that kind of drag, but the question is can you without getting yanked off the boat?

Dominick · July 01, 2011, 03:44:59 AM

Bryan: Here is what I figure. 130 lb Spectra. Set the drags at 40lbs and go from there. Can I hold 60 lbs? Yes, but not for long, so it would be unrealistic for me to fish with 60 lbs, although it would be there if you need it to pull a big fish that is circling and won't budge. This whole fishing thing is strange. No 2 fish are alike. Some fish give up the ghost quickly, some fight to the rail and then some. Dominick

boghy · July 01, 2011, 09:31:40 AM

There is a with this reels used for shark fishing from the beach. Seems that this reel can handle some big shark runs. Not bad at all for a spinning reel.

cfarmd · July 04, 2011, 09:58:52 PM

I just bought a 7500 for $115 shipped and it is awesome. I have a 330yd spool of 80# saltiga boat braid on the way.

1 problem I would like to fix is the anti-reverse. Does anyone know of a way to make the reverse infinite? What I mean is that there is a small "gap" between when you stop reeling and when the reverse grabs. It's annoying listening to click...click...click when trying to jig. If anyone knows a way to fix this I would appreciate it.

boghy · July 05, 2011, 01:06:49 PM

Quote from: cfarmd on July 04, 2011, 09:58:52 PM
I just bought a 7500 for $115 shipped and it is awesome. I have a 330yd spool of 80# saltiga boat braid on the way.

1 problem I would like to fix is the anti-reverse. Does anyone know of a way to make the reverse infinite? What I mean is that there is a small "gap" between when you stop reeling and when the reverse grabs. It's annoying listening to click...click...click when trying to jig. If anyone knows a way to fix this I would appreciate it.

This sounds more like a tweak then a fix. This reel is not design to have a one-way ball bearing where would give you that infinite anti-reverse. The reel was intentionally design to last for years with less parts to fail - ex: no spring to engage the bail when reeling to close it. Consider this reel as a penn senator series were parts are made for years to come.

Irish Jigger · July 05, 2011, 02:29:39 PM

Quote from: boghy. Consider this reel as a penn senator series were parts are made for years to come.
/quote]

I hope you are right but I find it almost impossible to obtain spares for Chinese made reels. I can however still get spares for my 50 year old Senators although some are now becoming difficult to source since the manufacturing base moved to China.