# 525 Mag question



## Mark G (Nov 15, 2004)

I've been able to cast the 525 with the Mag set to Zero, so here's my question. I suspect that a zero setting does not equate to an "off" position, but rather a minimum position. Am I correct in this assumption and has anybody played around with removing the magnets entirely. Hoping to get a response from Black Beard or any one else familiar with the 525 Mag.


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## Black Beard (Jan 25, 2001)

Surf Cat - if you can cast a 525 Mag with the magnets in the off position you are a better man than I!!!

Seriously, something is not right with your reel. Check for seized bearings, overtightened silver knob under the star-drag, spool rubbing etc etc.

There is no fully off with magnets all the time they have an effect on the eddy current created by the revolving spool. They just have less effect the further they are moved away.

Alternatively, you have found a cure for birdsnests and should quickly become very rich very quickly! BB


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## Mark G (Nov 15, 2004)

*Black Beard*

Thanks for the reply, I should have mentioned that I had purchased the 525 from hatteras outfitters with an upgraded(stronger) magnets installed. I assume I could go back to the original factory magnets to speed things up. 

Nothing wrong with the reel, it is flat out humming when I turn it loose, and the spool tension knob is adjusted per your recommendation so that I have just a hint of side play in the spool. Don't get me wrong, I am getting very close to that fine edge where a good cast can turn into a major blow up. I only do this for practice casting and would not try this under actual fishing conditions. 

Any way thanks for the answer on the magnets, it is as I assumed, there will always be "some" effect from the magnets as long as they are installed regardless of the minimum setting.

Thanks Much


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## Green Cart (May 14, 2002)

*525 Gs*

525 GS is an older reel without magnets so in theory, you can take the magnets out of your 525 Mag if you want to live dangerously.


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## creek (Dec 16, 2003)

About a 5 minute job, give it a try, but I think you will spend much longer picking out the back lash.


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## Mark G (Nov 15, 2004)

creek said:


> About a 5 minute job, give it a try, but I think you will spend much longer picking out the back lash.



That's all right creek. Life's not much fun if you don't venture on the wild side occassionally


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## surf rat (Jun 30, 2004)

*Wrong Direction*

You are going in the WRONG DIRECTION my boy. Come back to the light.


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## creek (Dec 16, 2003)

That's all right creek. Life's not much fun if you don't venture on the wild side occassionally 

Did I mention I spent 20 minutes sorting out a birdsnest on the beach saturday, only to blow it up again on the next cast, That's when I looked a saw I had accidentially moved the slide to the wide open position.

I would say I was living on the wild side. O yea after the second blow-up had to respool. Been there.........done that


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## Mark G (Nov 15, 2004)

Like I said earlier, I only get radical when I am practicing on my lake, don't care if I bird nest, tho I haven't yet. Guess I just want to see how far I can push the limits. 

Oh yeah, it's one thing to do it intentionally, but I can definetely see the trouble that can arise if you aren't aware of the mag setting having slid to zero, either unintentionally or by a wise butt friend while your going for a cold one


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## Mantra (May 31, 2005)

Somehow I manage to move the slide to zero everyonce in a while when fishing. This typically happens at night, I check before every cast now


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## Tres Irby (Dec 15, 2002)

Surf Cat said:


> I should have mentioned that I had purchased the 525 from hatteras outfitters with an upgraded(stronger) magnets installed. I assume I could go back to the original factory magnets to speed things up.
> 
> Nothing wrong with the reel, it is flat out humming when I turn it loose, and the spool tension knob is adjusted per your recommendation so that I have just a hint of side play in the spool. Don't get me wrong, I am getting very close to that fine edge where a good cast can turn into a major blow up.


Hey Surf Cat, all you had to do was email or call me with any questions and I'd be more than happy to help.  

Glad you like the reel and she's "flat out humming". Neil and Penn did a GREAT job on them and it's still my favorite all-around surf reel!

Since there has been so many questions regarding the Penn 525 Mag as well as my mag conversion for it (which was also the 1st BTW, just want to make that correction from another post on here somewhere) and what I do to the custom reels, I figured I'd come on here again and try to explain.

The following link shows and explains what I do with our mag conversion kit before it ever goes out to you. Some folks seem to think they have to remove the original magnets, drill the holes and add the new magnets themselves. Not so, I do all that for you.

HO 525 Mag Conversion 

With our custom 525s I also add a different oil to the spool bearings and give each reel a good once over before it goes out to the customer.

For conventional beginners, HOT weather use or if requested, I add a drop of Liquid Grease Rocket Fuel to each of the spool bearings. For more experienced conventional users or cooler weather use, I add a drop of XS Rocket Fuel to each spool bearing.

I suspect you have LG in your spool bearings if you can throw it on zero without having to thumb the spool to keep it under control. If you have a thinner oil in the bearings than one of the above, like Neil said, you are a better man than we if you can throw it on zero without having to thumb it, even with the mag conversion installed  

I try and remember to comment on the invoice as to which oil is installed in the custom reels at the time of shipping but sometimes I forget. You might want to check your invoice if you still have it for reference.

The bottom line is, with any conventional you want a reel that you can easily control without having to "thumb" it while fishing. You don't want to have to worry about the reel blowing up on you every time you cast, especially at night. One of my favorite sayings: if you're picking backlashes or respooling, you ain't catchin' fish! 

On the other hand, you don't want it so slow that it holds you back under the best conditions you'll encounter either. Once you have the additional magnets, it's usually just a matter of fine tuning it with the correct spool bearing oil for "your" use. 

Like all of my personal reels, no matter the brand, I play with different mag/brake setups and oils until I get them just the way I want them for what I'm using them for. Ideally, everyone should learn to do the same with your own reels. Just because you can control the reel or think you have it setup right doesn't mean it's setup optimally for best performance. I feel like it is possible to have too much magnet even if it makes it possible to use thinner oils. Same the other way around with too thick an oil and less magnet.

Back to the 525 Mag in particular, I spent quite a bit of time with them coming up with not only what suited me best but what I thought would work best for the public in general. I tried several different sizes and quantities of magnets as well as different oils before finally settling on what I use now personally and recommend to others when asked. I use my mag conversion with XS in the spring and fall and then switch over to the LG in the heat of Summer. For what I use them for, bait fishing with 6-10oz plus bait, that combination gives me the widest "useable" range of adjustment. For those of you that fish in either extremely cold or hot weather most of the time or throw lighter weights, a slightly different configuration may work better for you. Obviously, different levels of experience and technique also need to be taken into account. 

Surf Cat, from the info you've given us and assuming your reel is in otherwise good condition, I wouldn't remove any of the magnets just yet. (Though the way it's designed you can remove any of the 4 smaller magnets and depending on which one(s) and how many you remove, it will effect the reel differently). Instead, first try a slightly faster oil and that should accomplish exactly what you're looking for. To be honest though, sounds like it's set up perfectly for fishing from what you've described  

Keep in mind, the hotter it gets outside, the faster the reel will become, maybe this fall you might want to speed'er up a little. 

Hope this helps!


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## Mark G (Nov 15, 2004)

*Thanks for the replies*

Tres, I whole heartedly agree with your statements, the 525 continues to amaze me, the more I play with it, the more I find out just how much potential this reel has. I was thinking about Black Beards comments and decided to check the tension adjustment on it. I took it from just a hint of side play to where slide play was more obvious, but not what I would consider sloppy loose. ( all these terms A hint, obvious, sloppy are certainly subjective). 

After the adjustments I found that the reel was much faster and I could not take the mag setting below 2 without things getting a little furry. I would probably never fish with it at that setting, but for practice I wanted to get as close to max as possible.

BTW- you are right about the oil- this 525 has Rocket fuel LG in it. My spare 525 has a thinner oil in it, so I'll have to A B them to see how much difference that factor has on the reel.

For now I'll be leaving the magnets in place.

I'm aware that it would be bad for the bearings to have the tension knob to tight, any problems associated with too loose??

Thanks again to Black Beard for a great product and to Tres for providing the Mag upgrade kit.

I assume the 525's are still in short supply, a lot of dealers seem to be out of them. Any comments?


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## Black Beard (Jan 25, 2001)

Surf Cat 

Not aware of any supply problem currently.

We have plenty over here! BB


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## darrel (Feb 25, 2005)

another ? on the mag 525. as for distance does it make much difference throwing a 6 oz vs 4 oz lure such as a stingsiver using the outcast or cooperhead rod? More important matching the sweetspot on the rod with the lure ?


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## TwoDogs (Jul 1, 2005)

Greetings all. This is my first post!
This thread interested me, because I have just ordered a 525 "SUPER" MAG from Veals and would like to know whether the EXTRA magnets in this UPDATED model make it the "same" as the MAG with the Hatteras upgrade?
Thanks


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## Black Beard (Jan 25, 2001)

Hey Two Dogs - No.

The Supermag has additional magnets PLUS ABEC 5 spool bearings lubed with Red Rocket Fuel - BB


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## Black Beard (Jan 25, 2001)

Darrel - The copperhead and 525 will work fine with a 4oz Stingsilver, in my opinion 4oz is about as low as I would want to go with this setup. However, a high line level and less than max mags will be 'interesting'. Can't say I would want to work a lure with a 14ft rod!!!

You need at adjust your timing a little when moving from a 4oz to 6oz lead/lure and visa versa, just take things easy and get the rod loaded smoothly and all should be well.

The Stingsilver is a nice, aerodynaic lures, be wary with hopkins etc and other less aerodynamic lures as with a big rod and a lot of power things can get out of hand very quickly!Good luck - BB


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## TwoDogs (Jul 1, 2005)

@ Black Beard - Thanks for the response - so the BEARINGS make it better?? Right?? ....but are you saying that the new magnets set-up in the "SUPER" Mag are not as effective as the Hatteras kit, in your opinion??
Should a Super Mag be Hatteras magged as well??
Thanks for your help.


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## Black Beard (Jan 25, 2001)

I have not seen Tres's conversion so cannot answer that one. However, the SuperMag with 50 percent more braking than the original is a very user friendly reel and should need no further work - BB


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## TwoDogs (Jul 1, 2005)

Thanks BB.
I had read that the Supers were more user friendly and was hoping for a good result almost straight out of the box.
(I have some Red Rocket Fuel ready, too!)
Cheers!


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