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I know that the spinfisher VI’s are outclassed by the Slammer III but with the new improvements in sealing and smoothness (as advertised at least) in the Spinfisher VI, was wondering if anybody has fished with both and has an opinion on how they match up. Just a week ago Slammer III’s could be had at the same price or less than the new spinfisher, still kicking myself for not picking one up. I suppose the SSVI has the advantage of bailless and long casting models being available, but just how much better are the Slammers?

Having troubles with Penn products. I'm wondering if this is common now and if I need to drop Penn all together. 4 months ago my son received a new Carnage 2. First time out it broke from pulling on a limb. He wasn't abusing the rod and it was an 8 foot 15-30lb rod. So it was stout. Called Penn and filled out the paperwork and they said it would be December before it could be replaced. In the same e-mail they scolded us with directions on how not to break a rod. I can say for certain that this rod would have never withstood the catfish my son catches on the KingKat tour. He was not abusing it and we are yet to see a replacement. 2 weeks ago after the KingKat Classic we sent a Spinfisher VI Live Liner back to Penn because the rotor started spinning backwards. The nut under the rotor is just grinding on the rotor and the reel won't actually reel anything in without breaking loose. We sent it to Penn and received it back today. We were very happy till we got it out of the box and it still does the same thing. There were a couple of gears in the box sent back with it but the problem was not fixed. Anyone who had spun this reel would easily have known it wasn't fixed and we had given Penn a description of the problem. Now I'm waiting on customer service to call me instead of going to work. I'm not sure when they will call. According to Penn they may call within a couple of hours since they aren't very busy right now but it could be between 1 and 3 days. I hope I'm not in a valley or on the back side of the mountain from the cell tower when they call. I don't usually have problems with equipment. The only other I've had was a Shimano Vanford. I posted that on here as well and it turned out to be that someone had dropped it in the Bass Pro and it wasn't Shimano's fault. Is anyone else having these problems with Penn.

So I just purchased a spinfisher VI4500LL about a month ago, and overall I really like the reel. Feels solid, fairly smooth, has great line lay, and I love the live runner feature and that's primarily why I selected it. However, I noticed that when I'm using it on my kayak, it seems to be lacking the cranking power that some of my other similar sized and even smaller reels possess. It seems to take much more effort to retrieve the same lure (1 oz jig and 6" paddletail) on the same general rod, when compared to my shimano baitrunner 4500b, or even my spheros sw 4000. I know the VI has greater sealing which might explain that, but to me it feels like I'm putting a lot more effort into reeling than I should be, and it feels like I'm pulling in a 3 oz lure as opposed to 1 oz. I got a decent sized striper (for this region in MD) at 21", and although the reel performed well, just felt like a lot of effort compared to catching similar sized fish on other reels with similarly spec'd rods. Maybe the gearing is still meshing and smoothing out, and this will improve over time? Any thoughts? Thank you for your help.

Hi all! I am brand new to this site so any tips as to doing things on here the right way please let me know. I am looking for a new surf setup for stripers for this coming season. I am still fairly new to surf fishing, only have 2 seasons of inconsistent fishing under my belt. I will be graduating college this May so budget does come into play but I am still looking for quality gear that will last me at least a couple of seasons. I will be fishing anywhere from the canal south into Rhode Island with most of my fishing taking place in the New Bedford area of mass. I do love to hit the canal with that making up most of my fishing 2 seasons ago. This past season I still made at least 15-20 trips there but mostly stayed closer to home. this past season it was made up mostly of fishing a rip that forms at the inlet of a salt pond on an open sand beach and at a small point between the mouths of two rivers with many bars around forming some nice channels. At both of these spots I mostly throw 1/2oz al gags, 3/4 - 1 1/2 oz bucktails, super strike little necks, darters, and needle fish, and some Gibbs pencils. This season I’m looking to explore some more and maybe hit some more exposed beaches and rocky areas as well as venture out in rough, storm conditions. Outside of the canal I have yet to catch anything over 36 inches but hope this season will be different. My current setup is a penn carnage 2 10” 1-5oz paired with a penn battle 2 5000. I love this setup. I also have a tsunami shield 5000 that I loved for a season and used a lot but last season gave me nothing but issues with wind knots constantly so did not see as much action as the battle 2 I was thinking about maybe going for a 9” rod in the 3/4-3 oz range to have a bit more of a lighter setup as the carnage is a bit overkill for these spots. I had the tsunami trophy series 2 9” 3/4-3 oz in mind for the rod. As for the reel I had the penn spinfisher vi in mind. At the salt pond rip I do wade out a ways and my reels do get splashed so I’m looking for something that will be able to handle get sprayed and on occasion partially submerged when caught of guard. I am not sure what size reel would be best though as I do like to have my reel be able to handle the canal as well for when friends visit and want to join me on a canal trip but would also like to have a bit lighter setup to have more fun with these school sized fish but also handle some bigger fish when I do find them. I was also thinking about maybe going for the bailless version which does make the sizes for this reel to the 4500 and the 6500 any input and help on this would be much appreciated. Thank you all in advance!

Hello, Im interested in purchasing a Penn SpinFisher VI and am located on Long Island. Thanks!

For sale are three reels I purchased new/in-store at TackleDirect this summer. All reels 100% flawless, but I’m looking to recoup some funds from my recent ZeeBaas BST purchase. SOLD - Shimano Spheros SW 10000 with 30 pound Sufix Performance braid, box and spool shims. Reel was used a few mornings plugging on the CCC on one trip. The reel was never set down and is 10/10 cosmetically and mechanically. Flawless. Asking $145 PayPay, which will include shipping USPS Priority. Penn Spinfisher VI 6500 with 30 pound Sufix Peformance braid, papers, shims, and box. Reel was used one morning plugging CCC. The reel was never set down and is 10/10 cosmetically and mechanically. Flawless. Asking $120 PayPay, which will include shipping USPS Priority. Penn Spinfisher VI 5500 with 30 pound Power Pro braid, papers, shims, and box. Reel was used one night/morning plugging NJ surf. The reel did not get exposed to any surf splash and was never set down and is 10/10 cosmetically and mechanically. Flawless. Asking $115 PayPay, which will include shipping USPS Priority. All 3 reels were lightly rinsed in warm freshwater after their use.

Hello all. I am hoping this reaches the Penn rep himself "Penn". I purchased a spinfisher vi 8500Live liner model from an Australian tackle seller. * They have over 10K great reviews and seem like an honest reliable seller. I received my spinfisher reel and when i opened it and began spinning and inspecting it i could feel a slight ticking sensation and hear a wobble/tick noise coming from the reel. Something did not feel right. I released the drag and took the spool off to find the rotor cap busted, 2/3 screws stripped, and a greasy fingerprint as well as grease shoved into a little hole on the bail assembly (pics attached). There is doubt in my mind that this thing was assembled properly. The seller has agreed that something is definitely wrong and would like to amend the issue. He says the item is eligible for the same 1 year warranty as all penn products and would reimburse my shipping to penn. My concern is that because this is an item through ebay that this may not be the case. If this is still covered can you advise me as to how best provide proof of purchase? (specifically what do i need screenshots of?). Also would i be responsible for paying for anything other than the shipping TO the headquarters in PA? Best, Daniel

I know there is a decent price difference between these two reels but after receiving a defective Penn Spinfisher VI 2500 I am returning it. I have wondered if I should shoot for another Spinfisher or get a Daiwa Fuego LT 2500 instead. Does anyone have experience with both of these reel? I will be using it for saltwater and freshwater applications.

I got a new Penn Spinfisher VI 2500 and the line retrieval feels rough but I am not sure if this is a problem or not. Has anyone else's spinfisher vi felt rough out of the box?