Penn Visx 16 vs Shimano Talica 25 II

Started by Rodslinger, August 25, 2018, 02:21:48 PM

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Rodslinger

New to the forum but probably touching on a topic that is very common. I am going to Venice La. to tuna fish this October. I have always fished with Shimano and love the Tacs, but buddy of mine is adamant that new Penn VISX is a better choice. We will be live bait fishing. Just looking for advise from people who have used or serviced both.

swill88

Welcome Rodslinger...  I'm looking for the answer to that question too.

Steve

alantani

what ever reel you choose should deliver a 30% drag setting at strike and 50% at full.  the penn 16 visx will hold 500 yards of 80# hollow core braid and a 25 yard topshot of 80 pound fluoro, and deliver 25 pounds of drag at strike an 40 pounds at full.  that is what i would look for in an 80 pound class reel.

not sure about the talica.  if you can find one, figure out how much line it holds and then check the drag range.  i've never done that so i don't know.  generally i do not recommend talicas because i think they are overpriced. 
send me an email at alantani@yahoo.com for questions!

Rodslinger

Thanks Steve for the welcome and thank you Alan for the post! Your post speak volumes and I am definitely going to purchase the VISX. I really wasn't trying to start the old "Ford vs Chevy" which is better argument, I just want to buy the best reel for the money. THX again.

alantani

#4
part of the deal is that i don't really know what the drag profile of the talica looks like.   the penn visx retails for $580, the okuma makaira 16 sea retails for $560, and the shimano talica 25 retails for $650.  i have fiddled with both the visx and makaira sea, and they both will deliver an easy 25 pounds at strike and 40 pounds at full without breaking a sweat.  the $630 talica 20 and wide spool $650 talica 25 should also if the published drag ranges are correct.  

looking at line capacities, though, it looks like the talica 16 should be more along the same size as the visx 16 and makaira 16.  the talica 16 is closer in price at $550, but falls short in drag range with a published 22 at strike and 40 at full, and only 430 yards of 80 pound braid.  the braid is probably solid, and hollow core is usually thicker.  and with a published max of 40 pounds at full, you might be pushing the reel to the breaking point.  again, just not sure here.  i'd need a talica to play with to know and i've had talicas through here before, but just looking at the reel had dampened my enthusiasm for them.  they work fine, i just had never been that impressed.  oh, and the talica spools are asymmetric.  what idiot made that decision?

https://www.meltontackle.com/shimano-talica-ii-reels.html

https://www.meltontackle.com/penn-international-visx-reels.html

https://www.meltontackle.com/okuma-makaira-special-edition-reel.html
send me an email at alantani@yahoo.com for questions!

boon

I paid about $450 for my Talica 25 so I wouldn't read too much into the retail price. Holds around 600m of 80lb hollowcore with a short topshot.
I went with it over the Makaira 16 for a couple of reasons... the two big ones being the weight (the Mak is 10-15% heavier) and the speed of the reel. We fish purely stand-up from small boats, and the reel gets used for deep-drops in up to 1200ft of water so these are important factors for me. From a purely subjective point the Talica is smoother as well. Downsides are it has an egg handle rather than a T-Bar (unless you change to a Tac50 handle + shifter) and it is probably not as tough as a Mak. I fish mine at around 14kg of drag, anything more than that, stand-up, is pretty hard going unless you're fishing a 5ft long parabolic jigging rod.