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[milne]

I decided some time ago, to kit myself out with all Penn classic reels.
I have enough shelf reels that I don't use, so the order of the day, was to do away with everything modern reel on the boat and just fish with Penn classic/vintage upgraded reels. The upgraded parts available now, are mind boggling..
Standard 4/0's and 6/0's have always been on my boats since the 80's, and my first ever Penn reel My late brother and I bought together, always gets put in the boat on every trip ( 113h ), seldom used, but always in the rod holder.                                                                                                            
Since finding this great site, I decided it was time to delve further into that dark hole we all enter, with regard to "tricked up" Penn classics...  
I think I've nailed what I need to have, to cover all my fishing bases, I do have a few Penn internationals for the big Critter.
So, my Arsenal includes, The recently acquired T4XN Narrow, a T4W and 2 Standard T4's and a P16XN Squidder,  All from Randy at Vintage offshore Tackle, Brilliant service, to say the least..  And lastly, but by no means least, the accurate frame and spool for a Jigmaster, with thanks from the man himself Ted.

So far, I've only modded one, the T4 Senator on the right. My first effort into upgrading these classics, I did a full S/S upgrade inside, including upgrading to the double dog, I'm super impressed with how it feels in hand, it feels tough and can't weight to wet the line. I do need to strip it down again and re check my work, I'm not getting the free spool that I would expect and for some reason, the star has a lot of travel to activate the drag, BUT, that's something I may re post here if I have an issue once I disassemble the reel again...

As mentioned, all bar the one T4, have no internals, there only assembled cause I just had to put the side plates on and ponder over them  
I intend to upgrade them all internally, these reels will end up being extensively used, and more than likely get tested on Pelagics, that in there standard form, weren't designed for.
The amount of threads on this site, of how too's and pictorial threads of others upgrading there reels, is absolutely amazing, and of a great benefit to the likes of me and others that probably never realised that these reels could be upgraded as such.
   Will be hounding Alan Chui for some of his impressive upgraded parts very soon,  as soon as the freight time starts to improve with this damn Virus..
Anyways, just thought I'd share......

Col

[Swami805]

That should keep you busy! Very rewarding catching fish on tackle you built

[mo65]

Don't hesitate to give me a holler if you run into any tight spots while assembling those gems Col...enjoy!

[milne]

Thanks Guys,   
                   It's nice collecting those vintage ones, but it sure is a great feeling when you trick one of these puppies out and put them to use.
   I will do Mo,   appreciated......


Col

[thorhammer]

Nice stand you got going, Col. Remember Dominick kills marlin with his Tank 113YTS....These can do big things with goodies and braid.

[Maxed Out]

I click on here expecting to see some reels, but instead all I see is a battalion of tanks.

With these big guns those pelagics dont stand a chance Col

-Ted

[Rocket Dog]

That is some nice bling you got there Col.

[milne]

I click on here expecting to see some reels, but instead all I see is a battalion of tanks.

With these big guns those pelagics dont stand a chance Col

-Ted

Thanks guys.
HaHaHa
  Ted, It's a bit funny that a lot of my fishing, Doesn't really require all the upgrades I want to do,  BUT, I guess like yourself and many others, do it because, We just got to 
My wife is well used to all my obsessions, She commented the other day when she saw all the reels sitting on my desk,,, Firstly came that low grumble, then a head shake, followed by " It could be worse, you could waste your money on alcohol or gambling, So I'll settle for this ", God bless her 
  I Get so much Joy out of seeing the likes of yourself Ted and others, pimping these classics out to give them another lease on life...
  With still a lot for me to learn, I'll gradually get these done, But they will all definitely be my go too's in the boat......

Cheers Guys

Col

[nelz]

Nice collection Col. 

I rarely take out my "fancy" reels any more. Since joining here, my user arsenal has gradually become more and more Penn old-school. Just some minor upgrades; CF drags, aluminum spools and an Accuframe.

They still get plenty of TLC maintenance, but I don't worry so much about scratching them up, they're the work-horses.

It's still nice to take take out the blingy guns on occasion, like my TRQ100 which always gets lots of attention and compliments, but for the limited game I encounter, vintage is all I need.

[Donnyboat]

I agree with Nelz, if you have two blokes fishing from one boat, you possibly would not have anymore than, 3 reels in action, at once, & you dont really want reels on the boat, just collecting boat rash, if you have heavier reels for the big stuff, then you only need 2 narrow reels for casting.

     Col have you finished your boat yet, cheers Don.

[milne]

Hi Don,
         Um, the boat !!!.
 Mate, I only have a few wires left behind the helm to solder up, to then fit my under gunwale LED's, THEN, run the big cables from the back, somehow mount my fuel filter, connect breathers, Fit hydraulic steering, then my part is done.  I had her booked in for a bow rail and new canopy, but I'm not allowed to travel more than 5 km's apart from doing emergency work ( with a permit), So this Covid has slowed the process. The guy that's doing both my Bow rail and new u-bute canopy, shut his doors until the restrictions finish, he had no work because it's non essential work to a boat, Hell, we cant even go for a fish off the Jetty at the minute..  1-2 weeks left for me on the boat, a couple of weeks on the out work, then the big purchase, a new 4 stroke.
My wife was made redundant due to a new CEO and a restructuring last week, So I'm kinda walking the tight rope, with respect to spending big dollars on the boat, it's a bit hard to justify 17k for a new 4 stroke while she's not working.....

Reels,,, When I fish local by my self, I would normally have 4-5 reels on board, our bay offers up a wide selection. I normally always target squid for an hour or so, use the Squid for bait going after Snapper, if they fail, I troll for Aussie salmon and near always head up to the heads to have a crack on the kingfish. So a day out in the bay, I can very what I chase or target, Squid, Aussie Salmon and kingfish, you need different set ups, so multiple choices of Rod's and reels are called for. Our other bay, gives us even more target options, from Elephant fish, Shark and decent size gummy sharks, so going with only a couple of rods, really restricts you, some aren't always on the bite, so you change things up and target something else.
When I go out wide, I'll take my internationals and soon, my Tricked up 4/0's, which will cover most spreads from Tuna through to the big boys. I always take something I can flick out with, when you get the boil ups of surface bait, which can be anything from bonito, Aussie Salman or the smaller tuna. Again, when nothings happening, I'll always pull up and try and get a table fish to take home. So, 4-5 options of tackle I always take with me regardless, nothing worse than seeing boil up's or hearing the kingies are on the bite and not having the right gear to have a crack.
I have a rocket launcher set up, which can take 6-8 rods that aren't being used, there well out of the way, can't get damaged but are always there should the need arise.  When out wide, I always go at least 2 up, I always run a spread of at least 3-4 rods on the big fellas trolling, that's easy, But our bays, we can target 5-6 different species in a day on the water, Squid, whiting and Aussie salmon, you need different set ups, Kingfish, well we all know how tough they are on gear. Just a short hop thru the heads, and we are into Mako waters.
Agree, if I was only going for a snapper session, only need one type of set up for them, but when I go out, I'll keep going until somethings on the boat, so like a good boy scout, I go prepared for all situations....
The above reels that I'm now tricking out, certainly wont be show ponies, ( But I do agree, they do look the goods) they will be fished, bling and all. The objective is to only have these on board and fish entirely with them. I recon I wont have to worry about wasting money on modern reels once these are up and going,,, and probably like others, I have to say, I've spent a fortune on modern reels over the journey, most don't stand the test of time in all honesty..  The last year before the boat came off the water, I did nearing 200 hours on the motor out in our two bays, not counting my out wide stuff, So they will get well and truly hammered.....   

Col