Penn Surfblaster III long cast - GEAR REVIEW

PENN SURFBLASTER III 8000 Long Cast

So the last Surf blaster that I saw was years ago and one of the originals, which was ok and although it had a very plastic feeling it done the job well.So as I’m about to open this boxed up new reel which has been out a while now I’m intrigued to see what has improved.

So upon opening up the box I was happy to see that body is not plastic anymore and with holding it I also notice the weight instantly it has changed quite considerably and is a lot heavier, whilst for me, I personally don’t mind it, I know there are those that want or need lightness in a reel and with the surf blaster III tipping the scales at 755g/26oz you’re going to know you have this on your rod.Looking it all over with its matt black and gold edging and tough/ rugged looks it’s a nice looking reel and looks like it will stand up to most things if treated right.Looking at it you have sealed body which is meant to be salt water resistant and you have a deep set spool for line and a tapered shallow spool spare for distance casting and braid. Both are braid ready with the rubber band around the middle of the spool, which stops you having to put any backing line on.There is the neat HT-100 drag system which is great on a lot of other Penn reels and is smooth even when being tested under load and is a good tried and tested drag system.The cranking has a ratio of 4.7:1 which is good enough for most situations that the UK will throw at you, the handle knob isn’t what Id personally choose as I don’t think it is comfortable in the hand, but again that’s a personal choice and there is nothing wrong with it and its fully functional as it should be and it is solid to the feel but i much prefer the handle of the Battle 3 reel which is a lot more comfortable.I decided to load it up with 15lb braid as that was what I had lying around and I can tell you it holds a lot! I had 530 yards of line and it was all swallowed up and had more room to spare even with the tapered shock leader added.Whilst it is an impressive volume of line you can hold... Would you use that much line? Highly unlikely unless going abroad and even then chances are you wouldn’t be using a Surf blaster you would likely go with some of the stronger candidates that Penn produce in its stable, but if you’re doing a walk back method like I do sometimes on Bristol channel marks then you won’t have to worry about line capacity!Whilst loading it up with line the super slow oscillation was laying the line nice and neat on the spool which will provide problem free casting and give you consistent results with your casting distance over and over again.So out on the beaches and although the name of the reel is long cast I was using it alongside my Okuma 8k on identical rods and rigs etc.But I don’t see any noticeable difference in distances cast than what I get from my Okuma 8k which is half the price although not metal but has the advantage of being a lot lighter as well.But then maybe a professional caster would fare better than me... But with that being said I was still hitting 170+ meters on the field when practising and setting/bedding the line in with a weight on the endThe weight of the reel is really noticeable when it is on the rod and I had it set in a different position than I would do normally so it sat comfortably and balanced so when reeling it in it wasn’t unbalanced and awkward, although it doesn’t hinder myself at all it has to be noted some people wouldn’t be happy having rod and reel as heavy for a long time if fighting larger fish.

It has a 5+1 sealed bearing which keeps the cranking nice and smooth at all times with either a fish on or just bringing it in for another bait up.There were a couple of snags when I was fishing in some proper rough ground and the rotten bottom didn’t release properly and the reel tried to pull out the plug out of the ocean with no twisting or movement from the reel. When bringing in fish over the months fishing it done just that with no issues and got fish up over the snaggy stuff quick enough too with a little bullying from the reel and rod.So with the price being RRP £149.99 is it worth the price point? Whilst there is nothing wrong with the reel and it is a good reel make no mistake and I’m sure it would be a workhorse if you bought one, its sturdy and strong and will serve you well if look after it.But and it is a big but I personally think it is overpriced although you do get a spare spool with it, I would rather spend £10 - £20 more and buy a Penn Battle III which is superior in many ways.Over all this 3rd generation of Surf blaster is a good solid reel and I’m sure beginners and advanced anglers will all like it regardless of their experience level.

REEL SPEC:

MODEL: Penn Surf blaster III 8000LCBEARINGS: 5+1 ANTI REVERSEGEAR RATIO: 4.7:1CAPACITY: 580yd/0.28mm (shallow); 500yd/0.35mm (deep)WEIGHT: 26.6oz (755g)SPARE SPOOL: YesDRAG: HT-100/ 30lbs DragPRICE: £149.99

Pros:- Solid reel from Penn- Large line capacity - Spare spool- Tough- All metal body - Good line lay- Smooth when operated

Cons:- Its heavy- Over priced compared to other reels in this class and those in next class up.- Internal gears are not CNC machined or as tough as other models only a small price up.