Penn 750ss "The Reels of Champions" circa 1979

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bmcgin
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Penn 750ss "The Reels of Champions" circa 1979

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Does anyone have any Information or know the History of the Penn 750ss Reel that was manufactured in 1979 and was labeled
"The Reels of Champions"? The 650ss and 550ss were also included with this limited edition. This was one of the first 750ss's I believe that were produced with a Solid Bronze Main Gear, a Stainless Pinion and two Bronze Dogs. The question I need answered is that one 750ss Reel has a black badge with gold lettering and the spool decal is labeled Penn Reels and 750ss. There is also another 750ss Reel that has a black badge with silver lettering and the spool decal is just labeled Penn Reels. Does anybody know which Reel came out first with this limited edition and why the different color lettering(gold and silver)?
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kyreels
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Re: Penn 750ss "The Reels of Champions" circa 1979

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I don't know, but I am a huge fan of this series of reels. I own a 750ss and 850ss that are my favorite surf reels. I would love to find out more about them.
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Re: Penn 750ss "The Reels of Champions" circa 1979

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Hi Matt, I know a descent amount of Information for the 750ss(2nd Generation) and the 7500ss(3rd Generation) Reels. Not so much about the first release of the very early 1979-80(Reels of Champions) Edition. I was hoping somebody purchased these reels from this time frame would possibly know anything?
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Re: Penn 750ss "The Reels of Champions" circa 1979

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First generation 750SS in the "Reels of Champions" labeled box was probably an early release, before it was seen in the catalogs. The release was probably 1977, no later than 1978. The box is very limited. I do not believe the naming, "Reels of Champions", was anywhere else but on this box and as far as I know, the inclusive models were only the 650SS and 750SS.

Here is the reel that came in that first gen box. Label colors could vary. I cannot answer why there is different color labels, except to say that in the first gen releases, variations could be the norm.

This is an early piece of ephemera that might help with some questions.

The side of this early box has a label that looks like it is an afterthought but does describe the reel very well.

Don't know if the dogs were bronze or brass. Can't imagine why Penn would have made them out of bronze. Or used any other material other than what was originally put into the reel. No reason to use bronze on a dog. Sure, it would stand up better but the double dog system in these reels was very strong. I can't think of why a material change would happen for dogs. The double dog system in a 750SS was kind of susceptible to sand, which could render it weakened or operating improperly, but a well-maintained anti-reverse with both dogs engaged is very strong whether bronze or brass is used.

The first 750SS paper is dated Jan 1, 1978, in the lower right corner of the rear page of the owner's manual.




Hope this helps a bit.
mike cass,,, if you can't collect it, it must be food
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Re: Penn 750ss "The Reels of Champions" circa 1979

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Mike, thank you! With all the research I have been doing for this Reel your information ties everything together. Thanks again for putting this together!
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Re: Penn 750ss "The Reels of Champions" circa 1979

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Mike, thank you! With all the research I have been doing for this Reel your information ties everything together. Thanks again for putting this together!
Happy to help.
mike cass,,, if you can't collect it, it must be food
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Re: Penn 750ss "The Reels of Champions" circa 1979

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Thanks for the excellent information! I would love to see a Reel News article on this series.
Matt Wickham
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Re: Penn 750ss "The Reels of Champions" circa 1979

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Thanks for the excellent information! I would love to see a Reel News article on this series.
I will keep that in mind. I generally have avoided submitting articles with reels as modern as the SS series, but time is marching on, so they are not so new anymore.
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Re: Penn 750ss "The Reels of Champions" circa 1979

Post by bmcgin »

Mike, does the Penn Catalog 38A(1977) have any kind of Introduction to the First Generation Reel 750ss we have been talking about? Also, I know you said the color of the lettering on the black badge(in this case mine is silver, where as most are gold lettering) could be different in the first release, is it also unusual that my gold spool only says Penn Reels, no 750ss label?
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Re: Penn 750ss "The Reels of Champions" circa 1979

Post by Midway Tommy D »

Bmcgin, a few photos of your reel would sure be nice when trying to determine its circa.
Love those Open Face Spinning Reels! (Especially ABU & ABU/Zebco)

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Re: Penn 750ss "The Reels of Champions" circa 1979

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Mike, does the Penn Catalog 38A(1977) have any kind of Introduction to the First Generation Reel 750ss we have been talking about?
Yes, 1977 is the first year of the 750SS in the catalog. Its debut is on page 2 of the 38A catalog. The reel, as it is released in 1977, is the only full skirted reel released. That is probably why it was not necessary to put ID Model numbers on the spool, (that is a speculation on my part). In 1978, the style was expanded four times with the models 750, 650, 550 and 450SS being added. Probably causing more particular ID's.

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Re: Penn 750ss "The Reels of Champions" circa 1979

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Mike, here are the Pictures of my Reel, couple things to notice:
1-Black Badge has silver not gold lettering.
2-Gold Spool says Penn Reels, no sign of 750ss.
3-I don't have the Original Manual that came with the Box but I picked up one that you show(750ss-650ss dated 1-25-78). Take
a look at the last Picture, I found this Manual Online and it singles out 750ss(tell me what you think)?








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Re: Penn 750ss "The Reels of Champions" circa 1979

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I think that manual you found a photo of is the first manual. It displays the 750SS in an aluminum body (as does mine), without any paint. I do not know what the date is on the manual you pictured. It is before the one I pictured. Obviously, you have a first generation 750SS. The minor differences on the reel (unlike the dramatically different box), would not be singled out by most collectors. In time, these differences should be documented and will put certain 750SS models in a class by themselves. When you get deeply into a particular model these very subtle traits come to the surface and show different editions of one model that without this kind of searching, no one would even know about. I have seen it happen before (usually in the early stages) when a model has a long and popular history. Un-noticeable differences come to the surface. Thanks for sharing your observations about this reel.
mike cass,,, if you can't collect it, it must be food
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Re: Penn 750ss "The Reels of Champions" circa 1979

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Hi Mike, I found some more Pictures and information of the latest 750SS Manual that I happened to find Online. There is a man(Pete) who owns this same Manual and has a You Tube Channel-Pete From "DOWNUNDER", look under-1979 Penn 750 SS "Reels of Champions", you might want to check this out. This guy is a Seller on Ebay also and I reached out to him to ask some questions about the Manual. He Purchased the 750SS Reel(picture #5) and the Manual came with it on Ebay and said there are no Dates on the back Cover(picture #2 and #3) but there is a hand written Date on the front Cover(picture #1) and Name from the original owner, upper right hand corner Dated 5-7-79(date was verified). Notice the page(picture #4),where it says Parts List for the New 750SS, I assume this Box and Manual was released in 1977, what do you think?




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Re: Penn 750ss "The Reels of Champions" circa 1979

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Yes, the model was introduced in 1977. Not surprising that old 1977 models made it to Australia later than the introduction date.

I saw the You Tube video. He is certainly a fan of the 750 & 650SS. The ones he has are export models and that is why he feels the introduction is 1979. He is only two years off and if he does not have the American catalog from 1977, this info would get past him. Anyone that likes old Penn models as much as he does is OK with me. Thank you for sharing the you tube info.
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Re: Penn 750ss "The Reels of Champions" circa 1979

Post by bmcgin »

Hi Mike, I have an interesting question for you? I noticed the 1977 and 1978 Penn Catalogs refer to the Pinion Gear as Stainless but the 1980 Penn Catalog refers to the Pinion as Naval Bronze. Do you have a Copy of the Penn 1979 Catalog, if there is one and does it say the Pinion Gear is Stainless or Naval Bronze?
Thank you
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Re: Penn 750ss "The Reels of Champions" circa 1979

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Hi Mike, I have an interesting question for you? I noticed the 1977 and 1978 Penn Catalogs refer to the Pinion Gear as Stainless but the 1980 Penn Catalog refers to the Pinion as Naval Bronze. Do you have a Copy of the Penn 1979 Catalog, if there is one and does it say the Pinion Gear is Stainless or Naval Bronze?
Thank you
Penn did not issue a catalog in 1979. According to the catalog, the material of pinion gear changed between 1978 and 1980. To tell you the truth, I have never seen a 750SS with a Stainless-steel pinion gear. I will now be more conscious of that in the future.
mike cass,,, if you can't collect it, it must be food
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