PennStaal 710z Winter Project

[Redfish12]

Someone gave me the plug bug this fall and now I'm in the process of refinishing an old Penn 710z to use on my rod. My plan is to finish it with a polished bare metal look and drill some Vanstaal type holes in the rotor cup and spool to cut some weight and help get the sand out should it take a dunking. It will also help it look more modern... I can't afford a vanstaal (they cost more than my kayak) but I do have tons of cabin fever time this winter!

Here's the project so far-







I haven't decided on the hole pattern yet, but I've done a few sketches so far that look pretty cool!

[mdmakaira410]

bail or no bail?

[mdmakaira410]

and yeah my buddy carries a couple of Stellas on his boat and it makes me nervous using them. Really, no one needs a $700 spinning reel. I was looking through meltons catalog the other day and Daiwa makes something called the dogfight thats like $1,100. Im assuming thats meant for dogtooth tuna in the pacific. Does anyone need it? no. Do i want one? hell yes.

[Redfish12]

I think I would like to go bail-less but I have never used a bail-less reel before. I'm going to keep my bail for now and play around with some parts to see how bail-less would go. I got two of these of the BST on SOL for about $30 a piece. Much cheaper than other surf reels but definitely not as smooth or feature rich. I'm ok with the trade off though and the price is definitely better! I'll probably make one bail-less and the other I'll spend more time finishing and keep the bail. I'm hoping for some warmer days this winter that I can get out and practice casting both.

I'm planning on making a Massachusetts trip this summer (maybe more than one) to visit my old college roommate and do some kayaking. We're thinking of venturing down to the canal as well so I'm hoping to try it out on some larger fish up there.

[kanvery]

Looking good so far man! Did you sand it all by hand? I'd be interested in seeing some before and after pics as you work your way through the project. Maybe even some hole patterns that I can steal

[jet]

any updates?

[Redfish12]

Finished the hand sanding and started the dremelling but got completely side tracked for cutting the holes. I am nervous to do it by hand, even with a drill press I would be nervous... Need to figure out my hole pattern any way. At this point, I'm estimating an April completion. Got a 710 greenie though that I have done some casting with, I kinda like the solid/clunky feel of these things. Looking forward to fishing them this spring!

[jffoley]

Got a 710 greenie though that I have done some casting with, I kinda like the solid/clunky feel of these things. Looking forward to fishing them this spring!

Got one of those, too. Usually use it bait fishing in the surf. Don't do that too much anymore! Solid, dependable reel. Except the original spools. If you haven't already, look to replace the spool with a newer aluminum spool. The original will likely crack. Especially if using mono...

[tufnik]

Your 710z

Of all the Z series, that's the one I don't mind having and refurbishing. There's also the 711z, which has the same weight (17 oz), capacity (15/200) and gear ratio (3.6 to 1). Just right for plugging and some bit of surfing fishing.

The 704 and 706 also look good, but a bit too heavy for what I'd like it to be.

[Redfish12]

I recently got some parts for this, drilling and paint start soon.

710z with a 704 handle is a great upgrade. I got my hands on a new 706z pancake handle and I'm going to try to see how it works. I also got the new style bail for it to try, still not sure about going to manual pickup yet.

I'm still going back and forth on the color for the reel. I think I'm going to go bare metal for now and finish it that way. I was also thinking of a VT theme, orange and maroon, but seemed too tacky. I do like orange though. I'll try to post some pictures as I go through the process.

[jet]

go gun metal/titanium grey! cant wait to see the end result!

[Redfish12]

Ohh that could be cool. I'm not sure how painting the spool will go, need to continue investigating. I got a mint 710z spool so I was thinking of incorporating the gold. We'll see.