So I got a question for all you land based shark fishermen out there.
This year I really started targeting sharks from the beach, so far I’ve caught several sharks in the five foot range on a Senator 4/0 or TLD 25.
I’m looking at upgrading my gear for next summer as I want to start getting into some bigger sharks. What do you suggest I get? I’m looking for something not too expensive, something like a bigger senator, Penn squall, or a TLD 30-50. Which do you suggest and are those sufficient? I’m not looking for huge fish, just sharks around the 7’ mark
dude had a bunch of 6/0 senators in the swap shop right now… good deal too
“mr keys”
the land based community shy’s away from the tld’s a few guys have shattered frames… but a tld 30/50 would work. i would avoid the new penn squall’s just from what i have seen with warranty work.
if your looking to stay cheaper side of things… a senator 10/12/14 are a go to reel for the price… or you could look at used tiagra,penn 30/50 you don necessary need a 2 speed but it can come in handy.
Avet and Okuma have the least expensive two-speed aluminum reels that can put out a ton of drag and not explode. A 7’ fish means you are looking beyond blacktips. Blacktips are thickest in the spring and are the most fun on big spinners (Penn 8500, Shimano 10000, Diawa 7000-8000, VS 300, Fin-Noor 9500). BTs peel line off quickly and will keep your surf rod loaded up. They are not as fun on big conventional gear and really just get skull draged in.
The most common 7’ sharks we see from the beach are Lemons and immature Tigers (we call them tadpoles). These fish are usually outside of where it is possible to cast and require a different bait deployment technique. They can be caught on soinners or light conventional gear.
-Richard
Should I go with a 30 sized conventional or step it up to a 50?
The 30 has only 13lb drag. The 50 like 27lb. Would that be enough for a decent 6-7footer?
Depends on the reel but I think most 30’s have around 30lbs of drag and 50’s have around 40lbs
DP- our buddy Russ caught a 9’ Lemon on a tiny Avet MXL with 30lb line and 14lb of drag. It was epic and can be done. Lemon sharks and Sand Tigers don’t usually take that much drag. It’s the big Bulls and Hammers that will smoke line off the reel. Graphite reels can explode on a big fish and I don’t recommend them for big game applications. Better to buy a gently used Avet 30W and get a life time of use out of it.
-Richard
i have a 9/0 senator and it had no problem with several 5 foot finetooth, spinners, and blacktips, a 6’8" lemon, or a 7 foot sandbar. pretty sure i paid about $150 for it and so far zero complaints. the 7 foot sandbar was a 20 minute fight and i have full confidence i could handle a bigger shark with it too.
