Fathom mk2 sd mag

[chesilpete]

Any good for hauling in whales?

I use a harpoon for whales and a club for seals!.

 

[Tournamag]

I use a harpoon for whales and a club for seals!.

And a big box of condoms with those from Fluffy Sussex!

 

[Tournamag]

Well my fathom 12 .30 on abu blocks brimmed right to top got it down below the ring of Love(2nd ring/line with the good ole Century Slammer not bad for a 40 odd year old rod!

 

[Shirleycodlin]

Well my fathom 12 .30 on abu blocks brimmed right to top got it down below the ring of Love(2nd ring/line with the good ole Century Slammer not bad for a 40 odd year old rod!

Was that after walking back 150yds from the low tide line where you cast from???

 

[Beach]

I use a harpoon for whales and a club for seals!.

An Inuit in another life then.

 

[Chalton]

Was that after walking back 150yds from the low tide line where you cast from???

So true I was there lol

 

[j willson]

Any good for hauling in whales?

i use them on my boat for tope

 

[chesilpete]

Was that after walking back 150yds from the low tide line where you cast from???

He holds on to the reel and does the full bore javelin with the rod!

 

[chesilpete]

Right I said I would report back.
So after quite a few chucks on new fathom 12 2s.
Both were filled to the brim with .31 line and braid shock leaders.
I tuned one faster than the other to see how good the mag was and the mag does have enough power to slow a very fast tune.
So the process was simple take the reel to bits remove spool and bearings.
Clean out all the blue grease rinse out bearings, apply one drop of oil into each bearing and clean the shaft with a bit of fine wire wool and put back together.
The bit of blue grease that will inevitably end up on your finger its worth rubbing into the knurled surface of the free spool knob, its a known corrosion point if you still have a bit on your thumb then push it into the threads on the screws which hold the reel together.
Spin up time will be about 2 mins if you have it right and full mag spin up time only 6 seconds.
I started out with a tentative chuck just to see if I got any line lift, the mag has 16 clicks so started on 12 and it was docile.
I just kept clicking one mag click off at a time....... and hitting it harder long story short you need 5 clicks of mag to get distance without it going bang, maybe 6 clicks with a crosswind or bigger bait.
I tried the 12s for a reason, I use Daiwa 7ht sts a lot for my long range work and they are expensive and a bit "gay" when it comes to cranking power. They will do it but it they dont really like it. They do have similar retireve rates in real life with a fathom the handle is big so the circle your hand travels is larger so the ST with its paddle handle allows you faster rotation on the handle using your wrist rather than your arm.
(Can you get a nice paddle handle for a Fathom?????)
So despite my reservations with a little more work I reckon I can get about the same distance out of a fathom 12 as I can get out of an ST.
Part of the reason for that is that the mag controller on the Fathom is very good and despite me hearing that it could be a bit on or off I found no evidence of that.
The Daiwa 7ht ST is still my reel of choice for long range work over clear ground its expensive and they need maintenace but they do have the edge on build quality, styling, weight and distance.
BUT
For a hundred odd quid its very hard to argue that the 12 is not a good reel and I now have 3 (always carry a spare) which I will use for long range work when theres a surf running. The Fathom also has a ratchet which is useful.
I know most people will use .35 line with a Fathom 12 feel confident on filling it to the brim the mag will sort it out for you and you will need that extra line if you lose any to a crack off or a snag that would be the single big disadvantage to the 12.
I think I have had or probably still have all the penn multis and they are all pretty good......... with a couple of significant exceptions!
The Penn Mag4 (blue thing) is a disgrace....... the main bearing is in a plastic carrier which lasts about two minutes just dont buy one when that fathoms are only a few bob more.
I shopped around for the Fathoms and getting the standard 10% off at Veals (just join) and buying a pair (get a tenner off a pair deal) they came in at about 270 for the pair. I was suprised to see Micks Tackle at Hayling Island was a little cheaper (on the bay or give him a bell).
If you have a few quid burning a hole in your pocket then Uttings have 7ht Sts for under 370 each which is a long way from 450 list price.
I would have put some pics up but for some reason it says all the pic files are too big?????????????

 

[Reevsey]

Great review .Bit disappointed you like them i was hoping to see them in the classifieds ??

 

[Reevsey]

A pair of fathom 12 mk2s arrived today.My initial thoughts are they look good , feel very well built and sit nicely on the t800s . Tomorrow I'll clean the bearings out add a drop of yellow rocket fuel and load with 16lb asso super cast. Cant wait to get back out there and give em a go .

 

[chesilpete]

I reckon you will like em....... I have now got mine bedded in and removed one magnet, so now mag is 8 clicks off and safe even though its spin up time is over 2 mins. I really like them mine have a couple of new handles now which I like supplied by blakdog.
They will never fish as long as a 7ht ST but they are durable, arguably because of the same guts being deployed across the range and the smaller frame dimensions they should also be less prone to twist and more sturdy that all the others.

 

[j willson]

I reckon you will like em....... I have now got mine bedded in and removed one magnet, so now mag is 8 clicks off and safe even though its spin up time is over 2 mins. I really like them mine have a couple of new handles now which I like supplied by blakdog.
They will never fish as long as a 7ht ST but they are durable, arguably because of the same guts being deployed across the range and the smaller frame dimensions they should also be less prone to twist and more sturdy that all the others.

View attachment 7238

how much did the handles cost please

 

[chesilpete]

how much did the handles cost please

49.92 inc post.... expensive but they give the reel better balance and you can retrieve much faster. Thats for the pair.

 

[j willson]

49.92 inc post.... expensive but they give the reel better balance and you can retrieve much faster. Thats for the pair.

thanks

 

[wingnut55]

Took the plunge and purchased three of the Fathom II size 12 a few weeks ago, great little reels, and have just ordered three of the Paddle handles from Blakdog.

Ian.

 

[Mike hemming]

The paddle handles realy change the reel for the better

 

[Reevsey]

Thinking of getting these handles for my 12s . Liked the 12s so much i bought a pair of 15s to use with thicker line .

 

[wingnut55]

Paddle handles arrived yesterday, excellent service from Blakdog tackle. They are expensive, but well worth it in my opinion.

Ian.

 

[Beach]

Paddle handles arrived yesterday, excellent service from Blakdog tackle. They are expensive, but well worth it in my opinion.

Ian.

View attachment 9127

Nice but as you say expensive as is the shipping costs.