What should i get?A penn international 30vsw or 50s?

[Grouper_Lips]

I'm about to buy a penn international and i dont know which one is should get. I have narrowed it down to a penn international V 30vsw 2 speed or a penn international 50s 2 speed and i want to regularly hold about 50 pound test line on the reel and maybe a little more on occasions and the price difference doesn't matter.
Penn International 50S 550/50 3.1:1/3:1 67 $549.99
Penn International 30VSW 900/30 3.8:1/1.8:1 50 $519.99

[RiskTaker]

Grouper Lips:

Tack a "W" to the end of that 50S and you are sitting pretty: 50SW, for 800 yds. of 50 lb. monofilament (rating). The 50S is only 550 yds. of 50lb. of monofilament.

Part of the swordfishing mentality is to have more line than usual and not to over-do the drag, (not everyone's approach though). However, if you read long enough you will find that some anglers will let the fish run with the heat on (ie. more than 10-12 lb. of drag). This may result in some break-offs of fish because swordfish do have soft mouths but not every hook-up is in a softspot of the mouth. Epic swordfish battles are simply cut to the chase: it may still take a lot of drag pressure to tire a bg fish.

In this scenario the added line length only applies to the biggest fish that can take long runs with heavier drag settings. Over-testing your line would be another trick to gain advantage. Say you had full drag setting on your 50 wide, you would have about 25 lbs. of drag with almost a full spool of line. As the line gets stripped off the reel the diameter that the line is being pulled off is getting smaller and effectively the drag pull is actually increasing more. Add to that a long length of line in the water, and the water resistance will add a few more lbs. of effective drag. Without this awareness you could easily pop a 50 lb. IGFA monofilament line since it will break right about 50 lbs. Use Momoi diamond monofilament and you may actually get up to 80 lbs. of effective line test before the weekest spot breaks. Spectra is typically over-tested to some extent because it is super thin to start and it also breaks failrly close to the rated line test.

A 50 wide stand-up rod with an over-rated line is your ultimate weapon for a swordfight: you have enough drag at your disposal, you can over rate the line and you can pack sufficient line of the spool to handle most fish in the ocean.

Granted 80 wides and 130 reel classes were made for something but I sure do not enjoy the added weight of an 80 wide on a stand-up outfit.

30 lb. class reels can work but you just lose too many optional features that are simply non-issues in the 50 wide league: reserve drag capacity, line length, over-testing lines, wind-on leaders, etc. with minimal trade-off, retrieve speed, retrieve leverage.

All you have to do is get over the funny looks when you are winching in a 15 lb. kingfish with your formidable 50 wide stand-up. Well at least you did not send out your 80s for the reef fishing.

[Deep_Sea_Gull]

RiskTaker gives you a good run down on why the larger reel should be used for swording.

Is that your intended target?

I like to fish stand up gear. Here is where lighter is better. The narrower reel will not require as much effort to level the line on the spool. There will be less wobble caused by off-center torque as you reel in your prize catch.

The 50S and 30VSW have about the same line capacity. For 1000 yard capacity just add Spectra.
Here's where I got this info...
http://www.jerry-brown-industries.com/old_welcome.html

The newer design of the 30VSW includes a longer drag quadrant (more degrees). This allows one to make smaller increments of drag adjustment. It also comes with a 'freespooler' that allows easier casting. This is a sleeve on the spool shaft that eliminates thrust torque on the bearings. All that said... you need loooooots of pracrice to cast an International baitcaster. Penn makes some great advertisement about their new Dura-Drag being extra smooth and long lasting. I have not used it.

The older 50S could be available with the old style shifter. I like this because all my reels shift the same. I know where my controls are in the dark.

I hope that I have not added to your confusion. I would reccomend putting each in your hands for a while. That along with your intended usage should tell you which is your favorite.

Good luck choosing you reel. Let us know which one you choose and why.

[J.P Freeman]

go with the 50's.

[KEVIN9164]

i have the 50 s for sale for 479.99 plus 15.00 shipping, i have the 30 s for sale for 399.99 plus 15.00 shipping. my items are also one ebay

[snookmaster]

50"s