Sport Fishing for Northern Reefies
A trio of brothers – Luke, Wade & Dean who go by the name of ‘Bastard Smith Brothers’ have a true passion for the offshore fishing opportunities found in Central Queensland, where they often send it to the reef to do their meat shopping. Taking the new PENN Regiment Black Ops II for a ride, the boys were impressed!
At First glance, the new line of Regiment Black Ops II rods from Penn scream versatility and strength. Boasting 16 spin and 5 overhead model options you will be sure to find a Black Ops II that will suit your style of fishing. While the range might appear to be on the lighter side, with a line weight of 15kg being the heaviest of the bunch, they definitely fight well outside of their weight class.
Featuring high performance SLS construction graphite blanks and Dual Layer Graphite wrap for superior strength and twist resistance; the bare bones strength of this range will be more than enough to please even the harshest critics. The ever-reliable Fuji K guides with Alconite inserts reduce the chances of wind knots and line wrapping around the guide frame. The look and comfortable feel of the new range are highlighted with contoured EVA Grips for better sensitivity and ergonomics which just makes the rod feel good in your hands. To enhance the sense of strength and reliability, the Regiment Black Ops II range is fitted with a Fuji graphite reel seat that adds to the lightweight and reliable feel.
In testing we matched them up with the PENN Slammer IV reels and found the range of spin rods to be perfect for using soft plastics, vibes and light jigs offshore chasing red emperor, coral trout, red throat and many more reef species. The rods feel crisp and strong but still incredibly sensitive, which allowed us to feel the lightest bump, even on the drop.
When we first picked up the jigging range, we were slightly concerned that they may not have the power required to muscle the Central Queensland underwater brutes, however, true to the Black Ops name, their true presence wasn’t felt until the battle began, proving our first instincts severely incorrect. The power and manoeuvrability of the jigging rods is not to be underestimated and we were personally blown away by their performance. On paper, the 10 – 15 kg overhead sounds too light for bottom bashing for big reef fish, however, we found it fishes more like a 24kg weight class, it sits nicely under your arm and has the perfect fast taper to be able to turn heads with haste in the deep.
In general, the Regiment Black Ops II rods are very easy on the eye, in the rod holder or in your hands mid battle. We really enjoyed the combination of strength and handling of these rods; you feel like you can fish all day without the feeling of carrying a crowbar around to go to toe to toe with the biggest and best the ocean has to offer.
With the Black Ops II range, you get proven performance at a very affordable price, giving you the ultimate bang for your buck! We went to war with these rods offshore from Central Queensland and now it is time for you to choose your weapon and Let the Battle Begin.
