TACKLE TALK
Part 1: Restoring a corroded Penn 130ST By Jonathan Williams
T
HE weakest link theory — “a chain is only as strong as its weakest link” — is something all anglers pay homage to every time they cast a line, swim a bait, troll a line or drop a bottom trace to the ocean bed. All that stands between your trophy fish and the open ocean is one “I’ll take a chance” knot, trace or blunt hook. When you take that chance and your weak link fails, you’ll be left with the sound of your curses echoing in your ears instead of cheers of jubilation. Your fishing reel is one of the most important links in the tackle “chain” between you and the fish. The modern fishing reel is extemely complex, espe-
cially the ones used in the extreme aspects of the sport such as marlin and tuna fishing and deep jigging. With dozens of moving parts being put under extreme strain in these situations your reel can let you down if it is not in perfect working order. Gone are the days when a 12/0 Penn Senator was periodically doused with a bucket of cold sea water as its leather drag washers over-heated and began to smoke when the angler was fighting a beast of a marlin. Thanks to their space-age drag systems and the technologically advanced materials used in their manufacture, todays reels are both user friendly and reliable under all conditions. There is a proviso, however, and that is that, like any other perfectly made
machine, your reel needs a regular complete service and not just an after-fishing spray down with freshwater. Every angler has experienced the nauseating feeling when he’s onto a big fish and his reel seizes, the drag becomes very rough and temperamental, an anti-reverse pawl fails to work or some other small part in its inner workings does not do what it’s supposed to do. It’s a horrible feeling! Even if one stays attached to the fish under those circumstances, the enjoyment derived from using a well-tuned reel during a lengthy fight is lost. The difficult task of staying attached and somehow retrieving line becomes a stressful exercise and not the joy it was supposed to be. Most anglers have tried the DIY SKI-BOAT July/August 2020 • 25
