# Penn mag 970



## liljoe (Jul 20, 2010)

inherited a PENN MAG 970. This will be my 1st conventional reel for surf fishing OBX. Will this be a decent reel for distance casting ? gotta get a rod first then will practice before my trip in late september. any suggestions on how to set this up ?(rod length,line size,ect) thanx in advance,lil joe.


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## big brother (May 15, 2002)

That reel is from the early 80's and is one of penn's early attempts at mag control, the series 970,980,990 are super fishing reels (I own them all), but I would be hesitant to get on the distance casting field with one, thought if I remember correctly the first distance casting event I was in I threw a 990.
There are much better reels out there if it is only distance you are going after.
charlie


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## Al Kai (Jan 8, 2007)

I have a Penn 980 mag and love it for fishing.

For distance casting I use a Abu Garcia Blue Yonder with a center mag.


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## Catch This (Nov 19, 2005)

What big brother said...

and I will add, it is a good reel to learn on and get your technique down...and a good reel to fish with. It is not a distance reel.


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## liljoe (Jul 20, 2010)

well,fishing with it is #1. i found an Ocean Master 10ft 1-4oz casting on Craigslist. do y'all think this will be an ok combo ? can it throw 100yds ? that should be enough for fishing my style. i'd like to hit the outer bar at OBX north beaches.liljoe


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## Mark G (Nov 15, 2004)

liljoe said:


> well,fishing with it is #1. i found an Ocean Master 10ft 1-4oz casting on Craigslist. do y'all think this will be an ok combo ? can it throw 100yds ? that should be enough for fishing my style. i'd like to hit the outer bar at OBX north beaches.liljoe


For lure fishing ?

1-4 oz is on the light side for any bait fishing.

10' is also on the short side for distance casting-- I'm not saying it won't reach 100 yds, but the job is easier with something in the 12 ' range lengthwise, and rated more towards 6 oz and higher if throwing weight and bait.

For lure fishing it sounds like a reasonable rod, it's very tiring holding, casting, and retrieving artificials with a longer rod.

I don't own the penn reel so can't comment on how it would be at throwing lighter weights and artificials, something you need to consider.


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## liljoe (Jul 20, 2010)

yeah,bait fishing. i'll hold out for a longer,heavier duty rod. thanx for the replies. 2 more monthes before i hit the sand....chomp chomp


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## DANO (May 11, 2008)

liljoe said:


> inherited a PENN MAG 970. This will be my 1st conventional reel for surf fishing OBX. Will this be a decent reel for distance casting ? gotta get a rod first then will practice before my trip in late september. any suggestions on how to set this up ?(rod length,line size,ect) thanx in advance,lil joe.





liljoe said:


> well,fishing with it is #1. i found an Ocean Master 10ft 1-4oz casting on Craigslist. do y'all think this will be an ok combo ? can it throw 100yds ? that should be enough for fishing my style. i'd like to hit the outer bar at OBX north beaches.liljoe


With the Ocean Master rods you can add a few oz. to the casting, they are decent casting shelf bought rods. 4 oz & bait. I believe you can get 100 yrds. Save up some more money and spend it on a custom rod built for you, there are many connections here on this board.
The 970 - 990 penns are fearless casters, straight into the wind, when tuned right no thumb needed.


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## Mark G (Nov 15, 2004)

DANO said:


> With the Ocean Master rods you can add a few oz. to the casting, they are decent casting shelf bought rods. 4 oz & bait. I believe you can get 100 yrds. Save up some more money and spend it on a custom rod built for you, there are many connections here on this board.
> The 970 - 990 penns are fearless casters, straight into the wind, when tuned right no thumb needed.



OM does make a 10' rod rated 4-8 oz that would be more suitable than the 1-4 oz model for bait fishing. In the area targeted ( northern OBX) 4 oz is rarely suitable, and the longer casts mean a lot of line in the water that will make it easy for the waves to pull the weight loose and cross other lines.

Crossing other lines because you are not using enough weight to hold the bait in place isn't well tolerated by some folks, with good reason..


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## liljoe (Jul 20, 2010)

bought the OM for $60 and went to a football field. strapped on the 970,put 4oz in a tennis ball and started hurling. my 'good throws' went 60-70 yds. had to quit after i burned my thumb on a 'bad cast'. didnt adjust the mags or spool tension because they might be preset perfectly for all i know. whats next ? more practice i bet...


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## Al Kai (Jan 8, 2007)

DANO said:


> With the Ocean Master rods you can add a few oz. to the casting, they are decent casting shelf bought rods. 4 oz & bait. I believe you can get 100 yrds. Save up some more money and spend it on a custom rod built for you, there are many connections here on this board.
> The 970 - 990 penns are fearless casters, straight into the wind, when tuned right no thumb needed.


Yep, my 980 when tuned right is perfect.


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## Tracker16 (Feb 16, 2009)

liljoe said:


> bought the OM for $60 and went to a football field. strapped on the 970,put 4oz in a tennis ball and started hurling. my 'good throws' went 60-70 yds. had to quit after i burned my thumb on a 'bad cast'. didnt adjust the mags or spool tension because they might be preset perfectly for all i know. whats next ? more practice i bet...


Lose the tennis ball and you'll gain some distance  I have two OM 10' 1-4oz rods with BY's on them and I can throw 100 yrds with 3oz (no bait) don't see why you shouldn't get close with 4nbait. I wouldn't be afraid to play with the settings on the reel. How else will you ever know if it setup right for you??


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## Al Kai (Jan 8, 2007)

Tracker16 said:


> Lose the tennis ball and you'll gain some distance  I have two OM 10' 1-4oz rods with BY's on them and I can throw 100 yrds with 3oz (no bait) don't see why you shouldn't get close with 4nbait. I wouldn't be afraid to play with the settings on the reel. How else will you ever know if it setup right for you??


Yep, lose the tennis ball.


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