Purchased my first Penn Z series reel (720) and I have a couple of questions.

Started by Jenx, February 26, 2018, 09:25:40 PM

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Jenx

I started surf fishing here in Southern California for the first time last summer, and I fell in love with it. The one thing, however, that I have not liked about it is all the added reel maintenance. I like to wade out to about my hips, and it's not uncommon for the occasional larger than average wave to soak my reel. Unfortunately I find myself having to break down my reel multiple times during the season to keep it working properly. I first started with a 2500 Shimano Sahara and eventually upgraded to a 2500 Penn Battle 2. I don't mind opening a reel up and working on it, I just prefer to do it after a good season of fishing, not multiple times during the season.

This led me to start searching the web for a reel that was either better protected against the harsh surf conditions, or at the very least find one that is easier and quicker to service. The old Penn Z series reels kept coming up in conversation on various different fishing forums, and not wanting to invest the money in a Van Staal I decided to give one of these old spinfishers a try. So I bought a blue 720 off of Ebay.

Why this outdated reel still appeals to certain fishermen became pretty obvious the first time I open it up. What a simple and easy reel to take apart! I haven't had the chance to fish her yet, although I am hoping to take her out sometime this week. But before I get out on the water I have a couple of questions:

Is there anyway to make the 720 a manual bail?

What is the stock max drag on one of these reels? The first thing I did was upgrade the drags to carbonfiber. I don't need much drag, as most of what I target are panfish, croaker, corbina, and the occasional rockfish and sheepshead depending on where I am fishing. I'm only asking out of curiosity.

After reading some posts on the stripers forums I went ahead and packed the reel housing with grease. Unsurprisingly the reel is now pretty stiff. Hopefully I get use to it. From what I have read packing the housing full of grease will help keep salt and sand out, and assuming I'm not frequently dunking the reel or taking it for a swim I shouldn't have to worry about repacking it again until after a full summer of fishing, correct? Anyways I'm excited to try this reel out, and assuming it isn't horrible at casting, and doesn't require an excessive amount of maintenance outside of rinsing it off after every trip then I might just have found a new favorite spinning reel.


Alto Mare

You could make any reel a bailess if you wanted to, all you do is cut or on some just remove the bail wire.
I believe you are using the wrong reel for the job, those are more for freshwater than saltwater.
You could very well use them for saltwater, but you need to keep after.
We do not fill the cavity of the housing anymore and there is no need to.
I did a little tutorial on the 722...same reel with minor differences:
http://alantani.com/index.php?topic=2180.msg11851#msg11851
My opinion to you is to get a little larger reel for the surf.

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

Jenx

Quote from: Alto Mare on February 26, 2018, 09:39:22 PM
You could make any reel a bailess if you wanted to, all you do is cut or on some just remove the bail wire.
I believe you are using the wrong reel for the job, those are more for freshwater than saltwater.
You could very well use them for saltwater, but you need to keep after.
We do not fill the cavity of the housing anymore and there is no need to.
I did a little tutorial on the 722...same reel with minor differences:
http://alantani.com/index.php?topic=2180.msg11851#msg11851
My opinion to you is to get a little larger reel for the surf.

Sal



Thanks for the response, Sal.

My apologies. I guess I wasn't clear. I was asking if there was a way to manually close the bail on these reels.

Out of curiosity what makes this reel not ideal for saltwater? Does this model have inferior parts? Scott's Bait and Tackle has it listed as both a light fresh water and saltwater reel.

Currently I've been running a 2500 reel, 6-8lb line, on a medium light St. Croix Triumph (7' and 4-10lb rating) for my surf fishing. I've been fishing the lighter gear so I can enjoy the fight of the perch and other panfish (sargo, halfmoon, etc). This reel, in terms of line capacity, seems to fall in between a 2000 and 2500 reel. I think it should have enough line capacity, as that has never been a problem with the 2500's, although those reels did have braid on them, and from what I hear this one is best used with straight mono. I hope it works out. I do prefer the blue paint job over the later black models.

Glad to hear I don't have to pack it with grease. It's definitely stiffer than I currently like with all that grease in it.

Thanks again.

FatTuna

Honestly, there is no need for a bigger reel if you are surf fishing in Socal. I used to surf fish in San Diego and caught the same species that you mentioned. It's more fun with light tackle.

Most of what you are reading is in respect to east coast surf fishing where most people are targeting striped bass, bluefish, and redfish down south. The older reels that people are surf fishing with are mainly 704Z and 706Z reels. Those reels are fine to pack with grease because they are larger. Nevertheless, it does make them feel a bit sluggish. Something as small as a 720 is going to feel really sluggish when packed. Smaller the reel, the more sensitive it is to viscous grease.

I don't know if you've ever fished a Van Staal but they also are very sluggish. The reels are made waterproof due to rubberized gasket seals. The tolerances are really tight to keep water out. They are the best in my opinion if you want a "waterproof" reel. The down side it they are expensive and difficult to maintain. Parts are really expensive. If you do end up going to VS route, check out the VR series. They are a lot cheaper and the pinon gear is removable unlike the older series.

Technically, you can make any reel bailess by cutting off part of the bail but it will throw off the balance of the reel. It will add a lot of rotor wobble. Some of the larger Penn Z series had a kit you could buy to convert it. I have one for my 704Z.

Alto Mare

Quote from: Jenx on February 26, 2018, 10:57:08 PM
Quote from: Alto Mare on February 26, 2018, 09:39:22 PM
You could make any reel a bailess if you wanted to, all you do is cut or on some just remove the bail wire.
I believe you are using the wrong reel for the job, those are more for freshwater than saltwater.
You could very well use them for saltwater, but you need to keep after.
We do not fill the cavity of the housing anymore and there is no need to.
I did a little tutorial on the 722...same reel with minor differences:
http://alantani.com/index.php?topic=2180.msg11851#msg11851
My opinion to you is to get a little larger reel for the surf.

Sal



Thanks for the response, Sal.

My apologies. I guess I wasn't clear. I was asking if there was a way to manually close the bail on these reels.

Out of curiosity what makes this reel not ideal for saltwater? Does this model have inferior parts? Scott's Bait and Tackle has it listed as both a light fresh water and saltwater reel.

Currently I've been running a 2500 reel, 6-8lb line, on a medium light St. Croix Triumph (7' and 4-10lb rating) for my surf fishing. I've been fishing the lighter gear so I can enjoy the fight of the perch and other panfish (sargo, halfmoon, etc). This reel, in terms of line capacity, seems to fall in between a 2000 and 2500 reel. I think it should have enough line capacity, as that has never been a problem with the 2500's, although those reels did have braid on them, and from what I hear this one is best used with straight mono. I hope it works out. I do prefer the blue paint job over the later black models.

Glad to hear I don't have to pack it with grease. It's definitely stiffer than I currently like with all that grease in it.

Thanks again.
As FatTuna as mentioned you should do just fine with that little reel, when I read Rockfish, at our end that could mean 50-60lb fish.
Unfortunately you will not be able to close the bail by hand on that reel. unless you turn the handle first to unlock the mechanism.
The reel will feel much better when you take all that grease out of it. Have fun using it, I also enjoy using the lightest gear for the job. Me and my son use the 420ss  when targeting Perch on a really sensitive rod,  on those you could close the bail by hand.

Best,

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

mo65

   I don't think the 720 is too small for what you want to do...but as far as strength you would be better with a 430ss or a 714z. They have brass main/steel pinion as opposed to the 720's aluminum main/brass pinion. I use a 720 for Crappie fishing...but that's very light fishing. Also, I have fished braid on my 720 very successfully, no complaints there. 8)
~YOU CAN TUNA GEETAR...BUT YOU CAN'T TUNA FEESH~


George6308

The 43-720 part is the weak link in the 720/722 design (the plastic slider on the main gear), however obtain an aluminum one from Pennparts to keep in as a spare to use when the original breaks. Make sure you wipe it down with warm water after use. I used my 722 with 10 pound test mono in the back bay behind Stone Harber NJ.

Jenx

Mo, what brand and size braid are you using with your 720? I keep reading that they aren't braid friendly, so I am happy to hear you are having no problems.

Is the 720 the only z series with the weaker aluminum and brass combo? I'm not too worried about the strength of the reel as I doubt I will be catching anything larger than 2-3lbs, with most being much smaller than that. I chose the 720 over the 714 and 716 because it was listed as weighing the same as those two reels, yet had a larger spool capacity. I was not aware they had different gears inside.

George, I saw the aluminum crosswind block, but it costs nearly as much as I paid for the entire reel. I want to find out if I like the reel first before I make that investment. I might look for another plastic one in the meantime as a backup.

Thanks again.

George6308

Good luck trying to find a 43-720 part. The other wear part is the nylon anti-reverse 48-720 the tips break off but they are still available. Just buy a half dozen in case you need one.

mo65

   I've had a few types of braid on my reel, they've all worked fine. Currently it's spooled with 12lb. white Nanofil. If you're catching 2-3lb. fish it will be more than strong enough. Unfortunately, that plastic crosswind block probably will crumble if you fish the reel much, mine didn't last long. Who knows, yours may last forever, but the aluminum replacement is worth the investment for reliability. 8)
~YOU CAN TUNA GEETAR...BUT YOU CAN'T TUNA FEESH~


Jenx

Haha, you have talked me into buying the aluminum crosswind block (not that it's hard to talk me into buying upgraded parts).

George, I already have a new 48-720 part. I bought this reel blind off of ebay, and not knowing what condition the reel was in I preemptively bought some parts from Scott's bait and tackle that I thought were likely in need of being replaced, which was mostly springs and washers, as well as part 48-720. Unfortunately they are out of part 6B-720 which is the eccentric liner. Mine has a crack in it. hopefully it holds up.

Thanks again.

Alto Mare

Just out of curiosity, have you compared this reel to the 430SS? The 430SS has better line capacity, better gears, lighter reel ,better spool and it looks better :)...just a thought. Oh, you could close the bail by hand.

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

oc1

Quote from: Jenx on February 26, 2018, 10:57:08 PM
I was asking if there was a way to manually close the bail on these reels.

Not without something to pry the bail release arm out of the slot.  You can do it with a thumbnail if you take the pressure off of it first.  Probably not something you would want to do on every cast.

The 716 has a slightly larger spool but is not much larger overall.  The 716 has better guts in my opinion.

-steve

mo65

Quote from: Jenx on February 27, 2018, 02:03:48 AM
Is the 720 the only z series with the weaker aluminum and brass combo?

   The 722 is built the same, I think the 747 and 757 share this build style also. It is interesting to note that when the SS series replaced the Z series only the tiny 420ss and 430ss continued the old build style while all the larger models took on the...I won't call it weaker...how about "more economical" build style. 8)
~YOU CAN TUNA GEETAR...BUT YOU CAN'T TUNA FEESH~


Alto Mare

Quote from: mo65 on February 27, 2018, 03:19:31 PM
Quote from: Jenx on February 27, 2018, 02:03:48 AM
Is the 720 the only z series with the weaker aluminum and brass combo?

   The 722 is built the same, I think the 747 and 757 share this build style also. It is interesting to note that when the SS series replaced the Z series only the tiny 420ss and 430ss continued the old build style while all the larger models took on the...I won't call it weaker...how about "more economical" build style. 8)
I like the way you phrased that Mo😄.
A new rotor and skirted spool on the larger Z's and you'll end up whith a heck of a reel.
Oh, and a new metal replacement for those cheap plastic covers.

As for aluminum gears, the Penn Silver series in also worth mentioning.

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