I am new to offshore fishing and plan on doing some trolling at the Hudson canyon. I have the opportunity to purchase 4 of the 50 tw's. From what I read the drags are some what lighter than the new models. I believe the tw is 17 # at strike. Will this work or should I purchase newer reels?
I feel the drags on those reels are adequate if they have been properly serviced/are in good working order. You can move the lever past strike once the fight becomes a tug of war, and if you are new to offshore fishing even 17 lbs will feel like plenty after you've been hanging on to it for half an hour (not to mention recovering line on the 3:1 gear ratio). Not having a low gear does make landing tough fish more difficult. But if you have to operate on a tight budget you'll often have to make to with elbow grease and enthusiasm - and how much time will you be hooked up per trip versus the hours of running and searching/waiting? You could even argue that a single speed reel will give you a better appreciation of the speed and power of the average tuna you're likely to hook. I don't fully agree with that statement myself, but then I'm a bit of a wimp.
I used them for years. Even if it's 17lbs that is plenty for trolling. Using 50lb test line 15lbs at strike is just right. Load them with 60lb and 17lbs at strike will do.
We never go over the strike position when fighting the fish.