Northwest Fishing Reports

I'm looking to purchase a Saltwater reel in the $200-$500 rangeto use for Ling/Halibut/Sturgeon.. I'm not familiar with the reels that do not have a level wind retrieve system, do they wind themselves evenly on the spool just by reeling or is there some trick to this? I would prefer a Left handed model.. I do not understand why they do this, I've been using spinning reels growing up and you reel in with your left hand and cast/fight fish with your right, but getting a bait caster it switches hands and feels awkward to me so my choices are limited.. I like the Avet HX LH reels and they have good reviews.. I would be using a heavy Braid, If someone can clear this spooling thing up for me I would appreciate it.

You use a finger or a thumb. The big reason is the fish are so fast they can jam the fairlead or so I've been told.

Thanks. I had a feeling they would be a slight overkill for what I would use it for, I will stick with a level wind.

I have a penn that i use on my multi purpose ling, sturgeon, etc rod. and it doesnt have a level wind. Sometimes it takes a little coaching to get the line to lay down right but most f the time it does a pretty good job by its self. and it can cast a mile and the it drops jigs fast.

For Ling ,Halibut or bottom fishing I use a Penn 209. For salmon I use the Penn 9 or 109. They arent a $200-$500 dollar reel though.

Are any of these reels mentioned left handed? I'm putting it on a lamiglas 7050 lb rod.. Can't wait to try it out. Sturgeon should be re-opening soon below the dalles

My Grandfather swore by Penn reels and caught everything large and un-ruly that swims with them, from Sturgeon to Lings to barn door halibut. I still have Penns from the 60's and 70's that work great.

In non-level wind:
Senator Special Lefty 113H2LH http://www.basspro.com/Penn-Special-Sen ... uct/21821/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Squall Lever-Drag lefty SQL40LDLH/SQL60LDLH http://www.basspro.com/Penn-Squall-Leve ... /10231454/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Level Wind
Penn GT Lefty 321GT2 http://www.basspro.com/Penn-GT-Levelwin ... uct/22425/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Penn Fathom Lefty FTH25LWLH http://www.basspro.com/Penn-Fathom-Leve ... /10209642/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I was looking at those today actually, I wish they were still made in USA. Regardless I think that would be a good choice.

Penn does still make many of their reels in the Pennsylvania MFG plant...Like the International Series, Torque, and Baja Specials. I could just about say with certainty that more saltwater fish have been caught with Penn's than any other reel. They are worth the price and tough as nails.

For deep water hauls you might want to consider the gear ratio. Probably a 4 to 1 or so is good.

Avet reels are nice but as you know they don't make a levelwind. The levelwind is good if you don't like to move your thumb on the line to keep it even on the reel as it comes in. There are some other downsides to the levelwind other than fish running fast off them (as previously mentioned) and that is the levelwind can get gummed up or sand inside the mechanics if surf fishing (in the sandy areas like beaches).

I think that the Avet MXL is a good reel for sturgeon and the local halibut which tend to be smaller most of the time. It would also work good on the lingcod. However if you are fishing the 20 fathom restricted areas even a reel such as the Abu Garcia Revo baitcaster with 30lb braid would be appropriate (and probably better).

I do like that they carry a lefty in almost each model. I would imagine that braid would not lay down as evenly as mono. Once I get used to thumbing line in I would like it very much. Thanks for all the input guys

CharkBait.com will put 300yds of braid on the left handed Avet reels for free and also provide free shipping. I have no association to CharkBait but I know a good deal when I see one.