PENN Affinity II 7000 Carbon Reel: A Total Fishing Tackle Review

The new PENN Affinity II 7000 Carbon Reel is one of the latest offerings from Penn and we gave it to our resident blogger to take a look....... Now, PENN may not be the first name that comes to mind when thinking of carp fishing rods, but if you were a sea angler then PENN would be one of your first choices when it comes to reels. In recent years PENN have made a foray into the likes of Shimano and Daiwa when it comes to carp fishing reels and the results and feedback have been really quite superb. When PENN announced the Affinity II Carbon it immediately jumped to the top of my list for reviews - so here it is - a reel that I have nicknamed Ronseal, because it does exactly what it says on the tin.......   When you first pick up the Affinity II Carbon the first thing that hits you is the weight, it is neither heavy nor light and in the hand it feels just about right for how heavy a carp fishing reel should be! On the rod though, is where the Affinity II Carbon really shines, the balance is superb and when loaded with line, it looks the part too. The carbon element is predominantly hidden thanks to the full carbon HT 100 Drag System, yet there are also other smart touches such as the custom carbon handle knob and the skirt on the spool. Speaking of spools, the Affinity II Carbon comes with two, a rarity in reels these days but it allows the angler to spool up with both line and braid or maybe a casting line and a heavier flurocarbon for closer in work. [caption id="attachment_2812" align="aligncenter" width="300"] The PENN Affinity II Carbon 7000 in action![/caption] Casting is a breeze and I took the Affinity II Carbon to Linear fisheries and unleashed it on Brasenose 1 recently, comfortably hitting ranges of 150 yards and getting closer to 200 with just a lead and giving it a full whack. Incidentally the 7000 size is not the biggest reel size in the PENN range, which only makes the distances achieved even more impressive. In their own words PENN have this to say about the Affinity II Carbon; "A Fantastic custom longcast reel equipped with various light weight carbon features to make this incredible carp reel extremely durable yet lightweight. As well, the titanium mainshaft reduces the overall weight but also improved the rigidity of the reel. Next to that, the sealed Full carbon HT-100 drag is customised to offer the carp angler ultimate reliability and smoothness. To make the pack complete, the Affinity II LC Custom Carbon comes with an additional aluminium/carbon spool and velvet draw string bag."