Penn Fathom 15

dave craig

Well-known member
Anybody used one of these yet? Thinking about a new reel for the ruff stuff, it's a toss up between this and a Saltist 20/30.

Any feedback appreciated.

Cheers
 
What's the line capacity on the Saltist 30? Is it slightly smaller than the slosh30?
I'm currently using a slosh 20 and want something between the 20 and the 30 size, so probably similar to a penn 525 size spool.
 
I'd say the fathom 15 has the same size spool if not a little bigger then a 525 mag, I cant really tell as I dont own one. As for the capacity between a slosh 30 and saltist 30, Im pretty sure from what I've heard there isnt much difference, only real difference is that the spools on a saltist are metal
 
The Fathom 15 has exactly the same size spool as the new 525 mag - they're nice little reels but I wouldn't personally use them on rough ground, more clean to mixed. You'll get more line on a slosh/saltist 20 than a 525 anyway, and the saltist/slosh 30's are pretty equal in capacity. On my 30's (both the slosh & saltist) I find I can get 3 fills from a 660 yard spool of 0.5mm (30lb) as long as I have about 20 yds of the same as backing, so I'd say they hold about 240 yds of 0.5mm - then again I do like to fill my reels to the brim!

Gary :)
 
I am in the market for a new rough ground reel for the new season as well Dave after the 7000c3 ct failure(I would never buy another one!)! I am leaning towards a saltist 20 but not fully deceided yet!

Graham.
 
I am in the market for a new rough ground reel for the new season as well Dave after the 7000c3 ct failure(I would never buy another one!)! I am leaning towards a saltist 20 but not fully deceided yet!

Graham.
I had a saltist 20 lovely reels very strong they pull out in mate
 
A saltist 20, slosh 20 and fathom 15 are all too small for rough ground. They dont hold anywhere near enough line. By rough ground fishing im talking about 30-40 lb line of 0.50 mm and above. On a big chuck even the 30 size reels are almost empty of 30lb line.

If you can get away with 20-25lb line then its not the real rough stuff!

The daiwa reels hold slightly more line than the fathom 15. A slosh 20 casts well when overloaded but the graphite spools have a tendency to explode under pressure.

For heavy ground it would be a saltist 30 for me, much stronger shaft and spool than a slosh 30.
Fathom 15 magged or an old 525 mag extra are good for longer range with lighter line
 
A saltist 20, slosh 20 and fathom 15 are all too small for rough ground. They dont hold anywhere near enough line. By rough ground fishing im talking about 30-40 lb line of 0.50 mm and above. On a big chuck even the 30 size reels are almost empty of 30lb line.

If you can get away with 20-25lb line then its not the real rough stuff!

The daiwa reels hold slightly more line than the fathom 15. A slosh 20 casts well when overloaded but the graphite spools have a tendency to explode under pressure.

For heavy ground it would be a saltist 30 for me, much stronger shaft and spool than a slosh 30.
Fathom 15 magged or an old 525 mag extra are good for longer range with lighter line
I agree the 20 sizes don't hold enough line shv/sha 30 with speed shaft hold plenty line and good casting into the bargin.
 
Cheers lads, well I've been using a slosh 20 with sufix 37lb line and fishing the rough stuff. It will hold approx 160 yds which I have found is plenty (except of course if you're unfortunate enough to snap the ine at your rod tip when pulling out of a snag) - because to be fair unless you are a BIG chukker, I'd say you'd still have 40-60 yds or so on the reel after casting - bearing in mind most people who say they 'just lobbed 100yds' are, in reality, casting about 60 or 70yds.

If your emptying 160yds of 0.50mm line with a big cod bait on your doing bloody well and should probably be challenging Big Danny!!

I'm not averse to a 30 size reel, I just prefer to keep things as small and light as possible - that's just my personal preference I'm not saying that's right or wrong. It sounds like the saltist 20 is the answer to my requirements - thanks for the input lads, much appreciated.

Happy hunting!

Cheers

Dave
 
Cheers lads, well I've been using a slosh 20 with sufix 37lb line and fishing the rough stuff. It will hold approx 160 yds which I have found is plenty (except of course if you're unfortunate enough to snap the ine at your rod tip when pulling out of a snag) - because to be fair unless you are a BIG chukker, I'd say you'd still have 40-60 yds or so on the reel after casting - bearing in mind most people who say they 'just lobbed 100yds' are, in reality, casting about 60 or 70yds.

If your emptying 160yds of 0.50mm line with a big cod bait on your doing bloody well and should probably be challenging Big Danny!!

I'm not averse to a 30 size reel, I just prefer to keep things as small and light as possible - that's just my personal preference I'm not saying that's right or wrong. It sounds like the saltist 20 is the answer to my requirements - thanks for the input lads, much appreciated.

Happy hunting!

Cheers

Dave

Yeah, I use both Saltist 20's & 30's (and little else these days unless it's a toy reel on a clean beach!) and while you're right that you can get away with a 20 size in the rough (they're certainly tough enough), I'd say the big advantage of the 30 size is that even with a hundred yard chuck you'll still have a lot of line left on the reel, giving you better speed of retrieve from the get go. This is often vital when trying to get a fish up off the bottom, or even just get your gear back up over a ledge or kelp bed & other assorted snags. When lobbing really short, the reel is still nearly full and you can get your gear straight up and skip it over the surface no bother.

One of the reasons I like the Saltists so much is that for a "big" reel, they're physically quite small - sat next to a 6500 Abu there's not much in it, except for the big spool which almost fills the cage, and the ruddy great handle!

Gary :)
 
The extra capacity is also very handy fishing from cliffs or when your being pushed back quickly by a flooding tide.

Some marks your fishing off islands and skeers and can end up 50yds back from the point where you have cast from so line capacity is vital.
 
Valid points i agree with both. Is there any difference in casting capability bewteen the two? Will the 30 chuck as far as the 20 with the spool being so much bigger?
 
Valid points i agree with both. Is there any difference in casting capability bewteen the two? Will the 30 chuck as far as the 20 with the spool being so much bigger?

I'd say with the smaller spool & lighter line, the 20 will always have the edge in distance. Then again, I've never tried spooling one of my 30's with 20lb line, or one of my 20's with 30lb line. But,that said, there's not a lot in it - personally I can probably get around 30 yards further with the smaller reel & lighter line, given the same rig / bait / conditions. Spooled up with 30lb line, the 30 size reel will still cast very well, especially in the right hands!

Gary :)
 
Are there any difference in the Saltist models? I see one is 30 and one is 30H? Which one do you reccomend Gary? I might get a 20 and a 30?

Graham.
 
Are there any difference in the Saltist models? I see one is 30 and one is 30H? Which one do you reccomend Gary? I might get a 20 and a 30?

Graham.

20 & 30H's are the ones I've got - they also make a deep, narrow spooled 30 model which I think is the "TH". There are also the new black & gold models if you like a bit of bling!;)

Gary :)
 
Well lads, my mind is made up, it's definitely the 30, just had a look and play about with one in town and the size seems perfect. They feel like very well made and engineered reels also.

One final question, what's the differenct with the 30h model @6.1:1 retreive and the 30th model with the 6.4:1 retrieve?

Cheers
 
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