UnderGunned with a Squidder??

Started by Whino83, April 22, 2017, 11:27:38 AM

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Whino83

I have been pier fishing the Chesapeake bay for cobia here in VA my whole life. I live in the mountains and only make it down 14-20 (ish) days a summer but reguardless ive been doing it since I was a little kid. As a youngster I started off with a penn 4/0 and a squidder and I later ended up with a pair of them that I fished with for many years catching loads of fish. Later i switched over to a pair of penn 545's and they never failed me just like the squidders didn't. This year I sold my 545's and picked me up a couple of very clean squidders off eBay and put Newell bars and spools on them, jigmaster handles, and 25lb mono.....just like the good ole days and they are gorgeous....I just love the old penn reels, especially a squidder. Okay with all that here comes my question....a few friends of mine are giving me crap saying that my Squidders aren't up for the task. Now I know this isn't true, I've witnessed them work by others and myself. Granted ther[/img]e are newer/nicer options I'm old school and cut my teeth with old penn reels. I figure a squidder is good for a max drag roughly at 8#'s and running 25lb mono is a perfect match. So instead of me keep telling these "kids" they don't know what they're talking about is there any "good" technical data I can throw at these kids or any one liners that I'm not thinking of? Haha. I'm no reel expert but I know what's in a squidders ability and what's not. Kids these days just don't understand the beauty of a vintage reel. I think this post was more of a rant than anything but it felt good, thanks for reading. Lol. I'd attach pics if I New how too!

Tiddlerbasher

In the immortal words of Led-Zepplin 'Ramble On'  --  If it works for you ignore the 'kids' :)

foakes

The Squidder is one of the best reels ever made -- by a company that every other reel manufacturer has tried to imitate in one way or another.

But the Squidders, Jigmasters, and "99's" just keep going.

You did very well by installing the Newell bars and Spools and upgraded cranks.  You have likely already addressed the drags by installing new CFs with SS discs and greased with Cal's? -- if not, consider that along with a new Delrin under gear washer.  Your pair of Squidders will be smooth as a hot knife through butter -- at all drag ranges -- from lightest through full lock down.  Keep your bearings clean and greased -- and you are Gold.

Maybe pick up a couple more Newell spools -- then spool them with fresh mono for quick changeouts while the rest of the guys are untangling line messes.  Mono is cheap compared to braid -- and switching it out every year is a good thing if fishing 14-20 days a year.

Just tell the youngsters that Squidders don't need to brag -- they just catch fish.

Good job on resurrecting those great and proven Squidders that are so capable.

Looking forward to some pics.

Best,

Fred
The Official, Un-Authorized Service and Restoration Center for quality vintage spinning reels.

D-A-M Quick, Penn, Mitchell, and ABU/Zebco Cardinals

--------

The first rule of fishing is to fish where the fish are. The second rule of fishing is to never forget the first rule.

"Enjoy the little things in Life — For someday, you may look back — and realize that they were the big things"
                                                     Fred O.

mo65

   Well...you said the magic words already... I've witnessed them work by others and myself.
  8)
~YOU CAN TUNA GEETAR...BUT YOU CAN'T TUNA FEESH~


Bryan Young

And if you feel that you are out gunned, and need a little bling, Cortez Conversions has a sweet aluminum frame and side plate kit coupled with one of my 5-stack drag kits with a steel gear, you'd be amazed what more that reel can do.
:D I talk with every part I send out and each reel I repair so that they perform at the top of their game. :D

MarkT

I don't like the low speed but that does make them winches.  Your's is the 140?
When I was your age Pluto was a planet!

mikeysm

The squidder will last forever and parts are everywhere. Mild to wild. The new reels have very little parts and will disappear in a year or two. That way they can sell you another expensive reel. They have so many different models and need to stock a lot of different parts. Penn parts interchange with other models . The other manufactures don't do this very much except for Abu. Penn and Abu have been profitable for a long time because of this. The parts are everywhere except for a few models. They will still be around when all the rest have disappeared. They still catch the same fish as all the rest for half the cost or less. The people who preach that always want the latitude and greatest. I myself do a little of both but always go back to what works and easy to buy parts.

Mike

Whino83

Yes both of mine are 140's. I do need to install new drag washers. They basically have no drag and then a ton of drag all of a sudden. The drags are very "jerky" as well. But I'd planned on buying a few new sets of the HT-100's and just swap out the fiber washers (it's what I used to do back in the day) but unless anyone has any other suggestions I'd love to hear them. Lmao what is a Delrin?

foakes

#8
Quote from: Whino83 on April 22, 2017, 06:35:56 PM
Lmao what is a Delrin?

If you install SS drag discs, CF discs greased with Cal's, and an under gear Delrin washer -- your jerkiness will be gone -- plus your reel will be improved greatly.

Delrin is a PTFE or Acetate based hard compound.  When used as an under gear washer -- it actually acts as a bearing for smoothness -- and adjustable resistance -- and will likely not ever wear out or degrade.

Dawn at Smooth Drag, on our site, has these readily available -- and they are a cheap and useful upgrade.

Sal (AltoMare) on our site probably has the most experience with these -- and if Sal recommends them -- that is the end of the story.

You could also just order a slightly smaller OD CF -- lightly grease it  -- and it will do a terrific job also.

If using Delrin -- do not grease it -- it is already very slippery -- and works perfect just as is.

What you are doing, is increasing the drag numbers with the CFs -- then tripling the smoothness and longevity.

Best,

Fred
The Official, Un-Authorized Service and Restoration Center for quality vintage spinning reels.

D-A-M Quick, Penn, Mitchell, and ABU/Zebco Cardinals

--------

The first rule of fishing is to fish where the fish are. The second rule of fishing is to never forget the first rule.

"Enjoy the little things in Life — For someday, you may look back — and realize that they were the big things"
                                                     Fred O.

fishhawk

Good stuff!  Does anyone have dimensions or mcmaster part# for the under gear delrin washer for the squidder? I have plenty for the jigmasters can these be modified to fit the squidders?
Mark

Cortez_Conversions

Quote from: fishhawk on April 22, 2017, 09:23:58 PM
Good stuff!  Does anyone have dimensions or mcmaster part# for the under gear delrin washer for the squidder? I have plenty for the jigmasters can these be modified to fit the squidders?
Mark

If there isn't an off the shelf washer, let me know and I'll work some up.
Tom
Visit: cortezconversions.com
Forget about all the reasons why something may not work. You only need to find one good reason why it will.-Sal

Alto Mare

Quote from: Whino83 on April 22, 2017, 11:27:38 AM
I have been pier fishing the Chesapeake bay for cobia here in VA my whole life. I live in the mountains and only make it down 14-20 (ish) days a summer but reguardless ive been doing it since I was a little kid. As a youngster I started off with a penn 4/0 and a squidder and I later ended up with a pair of them that I fished with for many years catching loads of fish. Later i switched over to a pair of penn 545's and they never failed me just like the squidders didn't. This year I sold my 545's and picked me up a couple of very clean squidders off eBay and put Newell bars and spools on them, jigmaster handles, and 25lb mono.....just like the good ole days and they are gorgeous....I just love the old penn reels, especially a squidder. Okay with all that here comes my question....a few friends of mine are giving me crap saying that my Squidders aren't up for the task. Now I know this isn't true, I've witnessed them work by others and myself. Granted ther[/img]e are newer/nicer options I'm old school and cut my teeth with old penn reels. I figure a squidder is good for a max drag roughly at 8#'s and running 25lb mono is a perfect match. So instead of me keep telling these "kids" they don't know what they're talking about is there any "good" technical data I can throw at these kids or any one liners that I'm not thinking of? Haha. I'm no reel expert but I know what's in a squidders ability and what's not. Kids these days just don't understand the beauty of a vintage reel. I think this post was more of a rant than anything but it felt good, thanks for reading. Lol. I'd attach pics if I New how too!
Let the kids get some experience the flashy new gear so they can compare. No need to force them to like our vintage reels, it will come to them naturally, when they get older and wiser.

Sal
Forget about all the reasons why something may not work. You only need to find one good reason why it will.

Cor

The proof is in the pudding........If the reel does what you want it to and catches the fish and better still is cheap and durable, use it, don't let others psyche you out!

Personally I never liked these reels, we only had Jigmasters 500 (if I remember the number correctly)
This may not be a fair statement as I dont really remember why.   One thing was the line got between the spool and the frame, but that may just have been that particular reel.

Quote from: MarkT on April 22, 2017, 03:28:20 PM
I don't like the low speed but that does make them winches.  Your's is the 140?
Ditto, I always found the retrieve to slow as well, but I was trying to do with it what it was not suitable for.
Cornelis

Whino83

I am definitely installing new drag washers and I appreciate the advice on that. Anything to improve the squidders small drag stack is a major A+! There are much more suitable/modern reels but I just like them. They are easy to clean for a "clean freak" like myself. The ability to swap the spools out on the fly is a huge plus as well. The retrieve is slow but feels better with a longer (jigmaster) handle. The best reels I ever fished were a pair of Penn 980's. They casted like a dream and we're very stout reels. I gave those to my dad about 7-8 years ago as he was in love with them and he still uses them today. Last summer on the pier my dad hooked up on a big cobia on my mom's rod (5' custom stand up with a squidder, 25lb mono, and a accu frame) and those kids were laughing......20 ish minutes later a 55lb cobia was flopping on the deck of the pier and those younger guys weren't laughing anymore, haha. Everyone has what works for them. I guess growing up fishing old squidders just kinda gives me a good feeling inside and I've caught lots of fish over the years so I guess Id rather catch fish moving forward with the reels I started with.

thorhammer

I have the magpowers, all the GS series and just got some squidder AR springs from Mo yesterday to finish off two bone pile 140's to add to the other half dozen.  Each of these is great in it's intended application. I used squidders in surf for years and low geared in some massive rays off the bottom while drum fishing.  They are up to snuff and were in production for about 80 years with little design change.