I need a faster retrieve for my 9/0

[John E Powell]

I use a Penn 9/0 loaded with a couple hundred yards of Power Pro backing and 500' of Blood Run 60lb super copper line for Trout and Salmon fishing on Lake Ontario.

The reel is obviously overkill for the 15-35lb salmon I fish for, but I need its large capacity because the copper line is very large in diameter. This rod is fished by letting out the 500' of copper to the backing, then I attach it to a surface side planer and trolling it about 100 off to the side of the boat. Needless to say, with all the copper out and a good portion of the backing, the spool diameter is quite small and the retrieve rate in this near empty state is abysmal.

We troll with as many as 12 rods at the same time, and sometimes we have to clear rods to chase a fish on the light tackle we are using elsewhere on the boat. Is there a way to increase this reel's retrieval rate? Is there a gear set from a different reel or possibly some aftermarket or semi-custom parts that would serve my purpose?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated, everybody aboard hates this rig the way it is and avoids it like it carries a plague.

If I need to supply any specific details, I'll try my best to do so, but I have very little experience with reel repair or maintenance; I'll probably need to have the work done by a pro if there is a solution available.

[Dominick]

Any advice would be greatly appreciated, everybody aboard hates this rig the way it is and avoids it like it carries a plague.

John:  this is probably not what you want to hear.  How often does that copper wire set up get hit.  If you compare it to the rest of the lines maybe you ought to consider one less line in the water.  Dominick

[John E Powell]

Well, believe it or not, I just changed from 700' of 45lb copper to 500' of the new heavier 60lb copper. They will achieve a similar trolled depth of about 100 feet, but now I only need to bring in 500 ft vs 700 ft. I've already made a 28% improvement in the fewer number of times we have to turn the handle, but I need to keep the crew happy. This is one of my best rigs, so retirement is not an option.

I've read in some of the other 9/0 posts about the 114H being a bit quicker, but I don't know enough to understand if this would equate to a faster retrieve in application. The reel seems to be in pretty decent shape,  so I would not mind investing some money into it if it meant keeping the "better half" happy with less cranking.

[Ron Jones]

If you could get some capacity back by switching to lighter Power Pro your best bet would be getting a 114HLW and then getting a set of gears from Alan. That would significantly increase your retrieve rate again assuming the capacity is their.

Ron

[Ron Jones]

So, the way I read PennParts the 6/0 and 9/0 share gear sets, can anyone confirm this? If so, this could be an easy fix.

Ron

[Black Pearl]

So, the way I read PennParts the 6/0 and 9/0 share gear sets, can anyone confirm this? If so, this could be an easy fix.

Ron

The 6/0 and 9/0 use the same main gear, but the pinion is difference.

[TomT]

I believe the simplest way would be a longer handle.  Should give you a little faster retrieve.
Tom T

[Ron Jones]

Huh,
Pennparts is selling the 13-114 as a replacement for the 13-115.

Ron

[John E Powell]

Ron, unfortunately a 114 does not have the capacity I need.

Tom, A longer handle seems counterintuitive, wouldn't a shorter radius handle turn quicker and a longer radius handle turn slower. The longer handle would have a larger circumference.

[Alto Mare]

The penn 114WEX is very close in capacity and much faster.

[John E Powell]

I'm really more interested in improving mine if possible rather than getting a different reel. There's some sentimental value here.

[Alto Mare]

There are upgrades for the 9/0, unfortunately faster gear is not one of them. If we get lucky, Black Pearl might offer us faster gears. He's already working on the main gear all we need is the pinion, but that might take a year from now .

[Ron Jones]

So, do we need to tell Scott at pennparts that he is wrong, the sight says the gears are the same.

Ron

[akfish]

Slightly off topic: Why don't you use a downrigger?

[Dominick]

Slightly off topic: Why don't you use a downrigger?

Akfish:  he said earlier that they sometimes have 12 lines out.  I fished up in his part of the country and the guy I fished with had 5 downriggers with 2 lines stacked on them and 2 outriggers with copper and 2 standby outriggers.  Too much work in my opinion.  I have a tendency to pitch in and help.  I found out I was too busy tending to lines instead of enjoying the fishing experience.  At first I thought it was interesting to get that many lines out and cover so much territory, but after a couple of hours, I was ready for only 4 lines out. Dominick