Thread: Reel comparison

Ok, I am considering a change from my Penn gear to a Van Staal.... what's the difference in VR & VS? I know about the Chinese but almost all the reels are part Chinese now.

Thx

Are you selling your Penn reels

Not at the moment but probably my old model 706z.

someone had a super-nice VR200 for sale here a few months back, the name escapes me, but he added an 8ft cal-star custom w/wire guides.

Probably under-priced now since he didn't sell it. Straight from Half-Hitch service too.

meanwhile, this guy:

It’s fun for a while but trust me-you’ll be back to Penn in a couple years The conflict 2s are what I’ve been slinging for a while Great with braid and light mono I put my 5000 through the pressure test on all those tarpon couple years ago The 1000s and 2000s are super light The bail springs go after about 2-3 years on those but then you can manualize them and it’s like having a new reel The 4000 is my favorite-3 years now with no problems!

Ive been using my US made 706Z and Spinfisher V 6500 which I really like but you know how it is why not try something else. Everyone else seems to love V.S. I may just keep Penn but am not looking to upgrade to the chinese version 706. If it breaks then maybe then....

Allen

a single VS costs more that three of those Penn reels...

The new vs is made in China, the older us version are no longer serviced , I believe John g had said this in the past..... stick with the Penn's..... the bg Diawa's are a nice smooth reel , but not fished much by me for longevity priced right , maybe a little heavy
I like shimano's but hear of problems with those (main bearings)??
just my 3cents worth

Unless your just wanting the bling in Pensacola or Navarre

Yeah man go ahead and indulge The von snarls are cadeelacks main! I had wanted one since the early nineties when Wetzel and the Judge were the only people who had them They’re fun to fish and the sensi manual is incredible I bought one from Peaches for 4 bills and caught a lot of fish on it One day I hooked a beautiful 5# + Spanish on a brand new x rap and a 6 foot spinner chomped down- I was so pissed because it was a new x rap and a diamond mackerel so I decided to lock down and lay jaws up in about 4 minutes Along the way my dream reel started going backards on me!

VS was the original model and VR is the newer line. I believe original VS was bail-less (bails are a failure point in reels) while VR has more options. If you were a northeast surf fisherman wading chest deep, reeling underwater, using your rod as a wading staff -- you'd invest in a VS knowing that yearly factory service might be a necessity.

But a Penn caught the world record surf-caught striper and plenty of others.