I am surf fishing for large sharks and need a good conventional reel. I am debating between these two....I really need a line guide...which only the Abu Garcia has...but the Squall can hold more line...which is big for large sharks.
Please tell me which I should go with. And more suggestions.

You'll find that line guide won't last long with large sharks. The sideways pull on it will either break the line or the guide. That's why big game reels don't have them.

Just a suggestion. Instead of starting a new thread for every idea on this topic, just keep posting to one of the existing threads that you've already started on this topic. Keep it all in one spot. Best of luck.

Thanks. I am probably going to be catching 3 to 6 foot sharks. Maybe 1 bigger than that. Will the line guide be ok for sharks that size? and for big rays that I catch?

Well you can't pick and choose which shark will bite your bait so I'd suggest that you be prepared for anything.

Like I said previously, a good quality 4/0 class reel and 10' rod, with 50 lb. line is a good place to start.

When going for shark you'll need to place the bait beyond the breakers. You will not be able to cast large bait and rigs that far, so you'll need some mode of transportation to get the bait out there.

If fishing inside the breakers then go with a large, good quality spinning set up on a 10' or so rod with line in the 25-30lb range. Any large spinning reel from Penn or Shimano will work. I'm sure Diawa and others make some decent reels but I've never tried them.

What do you think of this set up?

Rod: 12 foot Beef Stick

http://www.basspro.com/Daiwa-Beefstick-Surf-Casting-Rod/product/10204563/-1646783

Reel: Fin-Nor� Offshore Spinning Reel 0FS95
It can hold 600 yards of 100 pound braid.

http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/stores...;cmCat=WISHLIST

Don't know anything about the rod.

I've got one of the Fin-Nor reels. It's a decent reel. Not in the same class as some of the higher end Shimano spinner but it'll catch fish.

It's decent for the price. Also look at Penn Spinning reels.

All I use are Penn reels and they have never let me down, spinning, level wind or conventionals.

My 209s have caught their share of big fish of all kinds, many probably bigger than 40lb braid would have allowed. I bought one used from my neighbor who had it for over 20 years and it is still going strong after a little rejunivation.

Most of my spinning gear is either captivas or old SS reels from before the invention of one way bearings, all are very strong and have lasted a long time with a little care and maintenance.

They are definately worth the investment.

Land Pirate is right, beware the level winds if targetting large fish such as larger sized sharks. I've got a Penn 409 that used to have a level wind on it. It worked great for bull reds & decent sized snapper, but hooked a big ling on it one day & bent the [censored] out of it. Yes, I lost the fish A couple more experienced guys warned me before hand, but I guess I just had to learn for myself Good luck out there!

if you are going to try to catch shark on the beach the fin nor will not have enough line on there. like land pirate said you will have to kayak your big shark bait out with heavy weight, you will not be able to cast it out to reach the shark. when you kayak the bait out you are looking at at least min. 300 yds, the fin nor will not enough line if the shark you are aiming for decided to take you bait, you will be stripped in no time.

these are some reel suggestions, penn senator 4/0, 4/0 wide, 6/0 and up. if you want to use spinning reel go with shimano sphero 18000 or penn battle 8000, make sure you load the reels with 300 yd braid backing then load the rest with 30-40 lb mono, this way you will have enough line.

Thanks for the help. But I dont go enough to be worth buying a kayak. So I will be casting. I have 450 yards on my Daiwa Reel and 600 on my Fin-Nor of 100 pound braid that is equivalent to 20 pound mono diameter.