Giant Skate Tackle

[big_sean]

I have got my new rod for the skate which is a stand up stick 50 to 130lb class full aftco rollered rod now i need a reel does anyone know anything about this reel and if it would be suitable











Cheers

Sean

[Mike.Haley]

Penn 245LD. Been using one for quite a few years now and never had any problems with it.
Had skate upto 170lb when fishing out if Oban.

[davem2005]

You dont say what reel you are looking at.

I have three different reels for skate. First one I bought was a good old penn 6/0 and it has accounted for more skate than the other two put together. Its a sturdy workhorse only let down by the fact its a star drag reel. Works fine though once you have the drag set and has accounted for the biggest skate on my boat to date at 205lb from 460' of water. Cost me around £65 from the states.

Next I bought a DiawaSealine SLD 30 Two speed. An excellent reel if you want to go regularly. Has a good lever drag clutch and two speed retrieve for when the going gets tough. Good value for money and well up to the task.

Finally i have a Shimano Tiagra 50. This is a serious piece of engineering and more than a match for any skate. A bit of an overkill but will last for years. Don't expect to get change out of £400 for one and allow another £100 to fill the spool.

The Penn International 50's are also very good (and expensive).

If you can find one a Penn 15kg is a superb reel and ideal for skate fishing with good gear ratio's and an excellent clutch. Unfortunately they dont make them any more but you can pick them up on ebay for around 120 quid. The 10kg version works but you will be pushing the clutch to the limit in my opinion.

All my reels are loaded with Penn 80lb braid and you need a 300 Metre spool on because of the depths fished.

Are you taking your own boat or going on a charter?

Looking to get up to Crinnan with Ian Burrett of On Yer Marks in November as he is running his Skate hunt for a second time this year after his very succesful trip at Easter where every angler who went up to fish with him caught a skate, with one exception! But I did promise Oblikta I would not mention that

Cheers
Dave

[big_sean]

Hi Dave

I am tacking my own boat up next year fishing with the world sea fishing highland attack fish and meet

we are going to dunstaffnage marina for a week and should be fun

i nearly bought a 10kg pen glad i didnt now but will keep my eyes out for a 15 kg reel and have one of them if all else fails i will have to get a 114 penn


you are more than welcome to come along as well and that goes to all nesa members


Sean

[Oblickta]

"I did promise Oblikta I would not mention that"

All the other boats out that day caught and we were on the mark that had been named "old faithfull" cos it had produced fish
during the whole trip. I blane the whole octopus one of the lads was using as bait but scared the fish away instead lol.

AS for tackle I use a ugly stick custom 50/80 and a Penn formula 10kg which I bought off ebay for £100 in 2006. I'm not sure what use or abuse it had before I aquired it but it has worked well for me and landed my PB 188lb skate in Nov 07. I'd love an International 50 but a bit out of my price range for a reel that only gets used 2 or 3 times a year so I'll be looking at the GLD 50's when it's time to upgrade