Penn International Fly Reel Series

[tgoff]

Though I would start a topic on this short lived series of Penn International Reels. I just picked up a 2.5 and it is built like a tank! These reels are pretty simple to work on and after cleaning it up it's ready to fish. I'm interested to see if there are any other owners and what they think about these reels. Also any tips or questions about working on these reels could be posted here.

[pjstevko]

Beautiful looking feel!

What weight rod and line would go on that beauty?

[tgoff]

Beautiful looking feel!

What weight rod and line would go on that beauty?

The International Fly 1.5 would be for a 5-6-7 WT Fly line
The International Fly 2.5 would be for a 8-9-10 WT Fly line
The International Fly 4 would be for a 11-12-13 WT Fly line

[David Hall]

They are beautiful and they are internationals.  Should last for several lifetimes.

[ReelClean]

Mid '90's weren't they?
I have a 9wt 3pc International flyrod in the cupboard from the same era,  nice dark matt black blank (were they IMX?).  The only drawback I can recall is that they were heavy as **** for a 9wt reel!

[happyhooker]

Beautiful fly reels--will have to look at their history more.

Frank

[Rothmar2]

I have a 4G that has seen a lot of use with tuna, sharks and mahi mahi. Still as smooth as the day I bought it.
Holds 500m of 50lb braid backing and whatever 35yd Fly-line I put on it. I have done a couple of services to it and there is no appreciable wear on internal parts. Just got a little corrosion around where the counterweight is located on the spool.
Only drawback with the reel, is the retrieve is ridiculously slow when compared to "modern" large arbour fly-reels. Yes, a little on the heavy side too, but a 12+weight rod is a canon anyway.

The only big fly reel I will ever own, and it's all I need anyway. Beautiful reel!

[Hardy Boy]

You see the odd one here used as a mooching reel for salmon. A buddy had one for sale but it was a little rich plus I have three Islanders which do the job. Those penns are really nice though.

Cheers:

Todd

[Whit]

They are heavy, but absolutely outstanding. I have my 2.5 set up for a 9wt. My heaviest application for them as been smallish tarpon in FL and full size silver salmon in AK, but no question they would handle the kings as well, let alone a bunch of pelagic saltwater species.

[Sharkb8]

Here is some info out of a catalog

Kim

[wfjord]

Beautiful indeed.

[Jim Fujitani]

I had a chance to buy a couple on close out at a sporting goods outlet a little over ten years ago.  The 2.5 was marked down to less than $100 apiece I believe.  I'm sorry that I didn't pick one up, even though I'd stopped fly fishing about 15 years before that.  At that time, it would have made a great photo, alongside the 50SW, 30SW, and two 20Ts that I owned at that time. 

[oc1]

What weight rod and line would go on that beauty?

The International Fly 4 would be for a 11-12-13 WT Fly line

I didn't know there was such a thing as 11, 12 and 13WT.  Wish I could be a fly fisherman.
-s

[jurelometer]

I have a 4G that has seen a lot of use with tuna, sharks and mahi mahi. Still as smooth as the day I bought it.
Holds 500m of 50lb braid backing and whatever 35yd Fly-line I put on it. I have done a couple of services to it and there is no appreciable wear on internal parts. Just got a little corrosion around where the counterweight is located on the spool.
Only drawback with the reel, is the retrieve is ridiculously slow when compared to "modern" large arbour fly-reels. Yes, a little on the heavy side too, but a 12+weight rod is a canon anyway.

The only big fly reel I will ever own, and it's all I need anyway. Beautiful reel!

Yep. 

Same issue as a lot of older high capacity big game conventional reels.  The dimensions are not quite right when loaded with braid backing.   This is worse than conventional, in that fly rods (especially at the high $$$ end) are getting very light.

Small spool diameter can come in handy for tuna, as it is hard enough to wind those stupid little knobs under load.   Less inches per revolution makes a difference.  But the knob needs to be as close to the spool edge as possible.   Which the Penns do not do.

But the big game fly reel market now is targeted toward billfish or similar situations where you run down the fish aggressively with the boat.  So a high retrieve rate is desirable.

Looks like the Penn 4 is about 13 oz, with a spool diameter of 4 inches.  A modern 8-9 weight saltwater  reel would have the same diameter (large abor), with a weight from 7.5 to about 10 ounces.

A modern 12-14 weight  big game reel would have a diameter in the 5 inch range, and would still weigh less than the Penn.

But just like an old 80w international trolling reel will still do the job,  so will the 4g.   No reason to abandon it if you have one and like it.

What weight rod and line would go on that beauty?

The International Fly 4 would be for a 11-12-13 WT Fly line

I didn't know there was such a thing as 11, 12 and 13WT.  Wish I could be a fly fisherman.
-s

Just takes a fly rod.   Just like having a boat makes you a "captain"

Up to about  12 weight, it is possible to get a rod that casts like a normal fly rod.  From about 13-16 weight, rods are designed mostly for fighting fish, not much for casting.   The line weight is kind of meaningless at this point, and  is more an indication of the fish fighting backbone.  I have a 14 wt that throws an 8 wt floating line just about as well as a 13 wt floater.   Maybe a bit better.

-J

[wfjord]

I've wondered why fly reel makers didn't put more substantial handles on their larger reels. Maybe some do, but I'm not aware of them.  Tibor offers a "speed handle" design, appears to be hinged and slightly offset, but it otherwise still looks like a regular knob.

Those bigger reels, 10 weight & up, are way out of my league --I don't have the financial resources, proper boat, gear, etc., needed to pursue that kind of fishing.  I admired those big gold Penn fly reels decades ago in Florida tackle shops, but they were never practical for me any more than a Seamaster would be and I admired those, too!

I have a couple of 9 wt reels, and for my current state of fishing I have no need for anything larger than that.  With stripers being the largest thing I now target, I have gotten by for many years with an 8wt and landed fish up into the 30lb range with it.  Although, a 9wt does provide a greater sense of security with a bigger fish on, and you can stand in a river and really zing a heavier weighted front end out there.