Blackfish Reel 200-300

In that price range, I’d look at the Daiwa Saltist 15P with the 5:1 gear ratio spooled with 40 - 50# braid.

Good choice! Or Daiwa Lexa 300 or Abu Revo Beast 50.

Or be different - go with the new Penn Fathom 8XNSD. That's what I'd look hard at, were I looking for the latest togging reel.

If you’re considering low profile baitcasters, don’t rule out the Okuma Komodo reels. Both main and pinion gear are made of stainless steel. The biggest reason I chose the KDS-364P is the non disengaging levelwind which I think is a huge asset when fishing for tog. With the non disengaging levelwind, the line will always stay in alignment with the levelwind, so the chances of damaging the levelwind mechanism due to line torque when hooking into togzilla is greatly reduced.

That said, the Black Demon series rods are stout rods on the heavier side at 12 or so ounces. So, I would personally go with a traditional conventional reel to better balance the combo.

Thank you so much for the recommendations? What about the Shimano Torium, what is the difference between that say and the Saltist. Sorry for my complete and utter ignorance.

Torium is a very nice reel with a faster 6.3:1 gear ratio. However, I prefer the lower 5:1 gear ratio as well as the narrower spool of the Saltist 15P for toggin. Just note, they also offer a faster Saltist 15H, but again, I’d prefer the 15P for the lower gear ratio.

My local tackle shop has the Saltist 20P, is there a real difference between that and the 15p? Would love to support a local shop instead of the Amazon's of the world.

I haven't fished for blackfish since the Pilot left Sheepshead bay.

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My local tackle shop has the Saltist 20P, is there a real difference between that and the 15p? Would love to support a local shop instead of the Amazon's of the world.

The spool is a bit wider for greater line capacity. The 20P is a mere 1/2 oz heavier than the 15P. You’re looking at the exact same gears/drivetrain between both reels at a weight of 15.2 oz for the 15P and 15.7 oz for the 20P.

Thanks for all your help and suggestions
I am going to buy the 20P from the local shop

It'll make a nice Christmas gift for my niece in middle school.

For somebody who does not understand reels very much, is there like a once sentence answer why a 5:1 is better for Tog than a 6.3:1. Also, can these reels be used for Stripers as well?

Not sure about the one sentence part, but I’ll try...

There are a few reasons why I prefer the lower gear ratio for tog. You get more torque and cranking power with the lower gear ratio. After a long day of cranking 10+ oz. sinkers, your wrist will thank you for the lower gear ratio. Another thing that I’m big on is the health of released fish. In addition to the lower gear ratio which usually equates to shorter retrieve per crank, I always try to make it a point to crank the fish up slow and steadily. I’ve seen way to many anglers release short fish with eyes bulging and their guts blown out of their ass due to rapid decompression aka the “bends” where survival for the released fish is sketchy at best. This is a result of cranking the fish up too quickly which is made that much worse with the higher gear ratios.

On deep drops, I’m still using my old Shimano Tekota 500 with a 4.2:1 gear ratio which gets 25” per crank. There is a reason Lep‘s custom Abu Tog reels have their stock gears replaced with 3.8:1 gears.

Thank you. I said one sentence because I didn’t want you to go to the trouble of taking too much of your time to explain. But it’s much appreciated!