Things to look for when looking at Penn Senator 12/0's on Ebay, Craigs List etc.

Started by Saaben, January 05, 2018, 12:15:45 PM

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Saaben

Good morning everyone. All this freezing weather has me planning my next trip to the beach. Over the holiday's I had the chance to run some bait out for LBSF from Cape San Blas. One minor run but she dropped the bait and that was all for the trip. I currently have a 9/0 that Bryan Young upgraded the drag on that has been great as well as a 4/0 that Sid hooked me up with. As I have learned the beach and sandbars are always changing. What used to be a good drop at 200 yards is not the same the next rip and I may need to be out farther. This last trip I was trying to get to the edge of the second bar via the kayak and every time I came back I had to reel in line as I just did not have enough line on my reel. I find myself limited by the amount of line on the reel as I understand you really want to have 1/3rd of your line out with 2/3rd's on the reel. I presently have 600 yards on there that Bryan packed on during the upgrades. Long story short is that I am looking at the 12/0's now for line capacity. I plan on loading it with straight mono, 80lb's. I have had numerous breaks with braid so only use mono. I keep an eye on this site for any 12/0's for sale but obviously it is hit or miss. I am not ready to buy today but plan on getting something in the next few months and definitely before April.
As I look at all the reels on other sites I realize there is a great deal of factors that make a reel a good value. Daron (Sharkhunter) has been invaluable with advice and am really looking to make sure I am paying attention to  what I should be looking for. Example would be the spools, am I looking for aluminum, chrome or the new ones. Do they upgrade drags on the 12's just as they do on the 9/0's. Are there any particular models or characteristics to stay away from? Anyone have opinions on the new ones as there may be less risk? I am not looking for a collectors reel. I could care less about scratches etc but need to make sure the guts and internals are in good shape. I am the person that tried to do the upgrades with the drag washers previously and ran into a mess so have no desires to tackle any repairs on my own.
I fish from the beach, drop bait from kayak and fish about 6 or so trips a year. Thanks  in advance and have a great day.

Donnyboat

Hi Saabin, I have a senator 10/0, that I serviced myself including the drag, I have 1200M of 100Lbs braid on it & 250M of mono 150Lbs on it, & the spool is only half full, so a 10/0 could be a cheaper option, they are the same width of the 9/0 but larger spool, by the way once you have service one Senator reel, you should be able to do any Senator, they are all the same, cheers Don.
Don, or donnyboat

thorhammer

Hey Saaben, main thing is look for one piece spool. You can deal with the rest. If you pack 1000 yds of 80 mono on there, it will have a large compressive force that has been known to separate the older three-piece spools designed for dacron or linen prior to the advent of mono. Aluminum or chromed brass is fine although wax either prior to lining up, and aluminum is obviously lighter but gives away some yardage due to arbor diameter. If you are only going with 80, you are ok with stock sleeve if it's in good shape when you buy it. If you aren't comfortable with dissecting the drags, plenty of us can look at that for you. Grease carbon fiber for smoothness and go fish. This is a 100 lb reel stock, so fish it confidently at 80, but that's where having that butta-smooth drag will help. You might look at an after-market handle with a longer throw on the blade; I had some spare 50VS handles around so I used those.


John

Shark Hunter

As John Said, Stay away from the older 3 piece spools. They will separate under the tension of the mono.
I spool my 12/0's with straight 100 lb mono. It will hold close to 1000 yards.
I use Sufix Superior or Tritanium. Good Stuff. ;)
Life is Good!

Saaben

Thanks everyone, really appreciate the support as always. I am making a list of things to watch out for. Gracias

Donnyboat

Thanks men, for your tip about the onepeice solid chrome brass spool, I was aware of it, but never thaught to mention it, good point, cheers Don.
Don, or donnyboat

Lowprofile

Quote from: Donnyboat on January 05, 2018, 12:43:30 PM
Hi Saabin, I have a senator 10/0, that I serviced myself including the drag, I have 1200M of 100Lbs braid on it & 250M of mono 150Lbs on it, & the spool is only half full, so a 10/0 could be a cheaper option, they are the same width of the 9/0 but larger spool, by the way once you have service one Senator reel, you should be able to do any Senator, they are all the same, cheers Don.

I'm having a hard time believing those numbers. I've been fishing my 12/0 for 5 years now with different line configurations and at present it has 1000yrds of 130lb braid and 500yrds of 130lb mono and is full.