Penn Spinfisher SS Spinning Reels Review

You'll never bend a Penn. . ., 2005-02-27
Reviewer: MB

I have owned nearly all of the SS series at one time or another and they are about the best. My bag is surfcasting, so my view is slanted towards the heavy-use end of the performance spectrum. These reels have one notorious problem when used in this fashion ; most of the larger models will slam the bail shut on a hard cast and snap your line, making you the new, unintended, unofficial world record holder for distance, as your end rig goes sailing-off a good 350 yds. or so. Penn makes an inexpensive "manual bail kit" to get around this, but then you lose a lot of the reel's versitility.
But whatever, the reels still work fine once you get used to their quirks and foibles, and they are built like tanks. They all have the renown HT 100 drag washers, and these require virtually no maintenance.
I sold a beautiful SS 7500 last year, and I already miss it. This is the best all-around size in this series, and it comes as close to being a do-it-all spinner as there is.
They are pretty pricy now, but it's money well spent.