Shimano or Penn???

Hey all, was thinking of spending a few quid on a new fixed spool reel mainly for beech fishing, and i'm torn between the Shimano Navi 8000 XSB, and the Penn Surfmaster 850.

Would appreciate any comments or reviews you might have on both these reels or any other fixed spool reels that i might be interested in, has to be under the £100 mark tho


Thanks for the input

Friend of mine had to take 2 Surfmasters back to the shop as they couldn't cope with doggie hauling.
So I'd say go for the Shimano...

ha mate .. it has to be shimano it is an all rounder reel... i use nothing else the shimano 8000gt can handle all sorts and are built like a tank... you can pick them up on ebay for about 70 pound or so.... although the penn cativa2 9 ball bearing is a good reel to, i have just bought one so i will let you know how it handles out fishing this weekend ... it can be bought on ebay for about 50 pound new....hope this helps.....

I have the Shimano Navi you describe and its a decent reel. Certainly has a better rep than the surfmasters although I have only used one of the 750s solely off the boat on odd occasions and have yet to have a problem. The Navi is decent, it lacks the hauling power of say the 10,000 size but its OK. Only issue I have had with mine is it seems prone to line twist after extensive use and I have NEVER had that problem with a beach FS in the past. I dont use mine for hauling, although it has to on occasion, its mainly used for flats although I did use it on the boat a few times as well with no issue. Its a no brainer for me, go with the Shimano, there are sod all reports of naff shimanos compared with the surfmasters.

HTH.

steer clear of the surfmasters and take the shimano man. i've seen a brand new surfmaster strip the gears due to only a wee doggie and one did the same trying to cope with a 5lb huss. when you see them in the magazines advertised as best sellers. that's only because poor sods have to keep replacing them when they bust . apparently the old models from around 10 years ago will work forever, but the new ones are not up to much. just a wee heads up man

Thumbs down to the Surfmaster,,my 850 disintegrated on me after a few months, no big stuff, I just used it on the small rod .The Shimano on the other hand is a different kettle of fish altogether Have the Biomaster XTA 8000 for the last 4 yrs, has had heavy usage and is still in perfect working order which is why I bought the Shimano Ultegra 5500 when the Surfmaster packed in. I should have given myself this advice before I bought the Surfmaster

Looks like a no brainer then, Shimano Navi,

Thanks all for the comments, very much appreciated.

Another wee question tho

Ive just noticed that there are different models in the Navi XTA, XSB, XSA etc.

Is there much difference between these models, or one in particular i should be looking for?

Cheers

Friend of mine had to take 2 Surfmasters back to the shop as they couldn't cope with doggie hauling.
So I'd say go for the Shimano...

dont rate the surfmasters at all,first one lasted 2 months,second one 3 months.