The latest from Fin Nor - Lethal LT100

Giant killer

Fin Nor started life in Miami in the 1930s. Their first reel was a 1933 15/0 ‘Big Drum’ model, designed to take on the giant gamefish that were just then being discovered in game fishing hotspots around the world. With tackle like the twin-handled Big Drum, anglers were able to take on and beat ocean giants for the first time. The largest black marlin ever caught, a fish of 1560 pounds (707.6kg), was taken in Peru on a Fin Nor reel in 1953, cementing the brand’s reputation for quality.

These days Fin Nor offers well priced rods and reels that deliver reliability and rugged performance. The latest Fin Nor spinning reel to hit these shores is the Lethal LT 100, the biggest reel in the new Lethal range, but manufactured to a higher specification than it’s smaller siblings.

I had read about the Lethal LT 100, which has earned high praise in other markets, so I was keen to try one, taking a demonstration reel up to Aitutaki in the Cook Islands to test on the local giant trevally population. The big reel didn’t disappoint, accounting for three GTs to nearly 40kg.

Fit for purpose

The Lethal LT 100 is a big, solid beast. Finished in a matte-grey with a black and gold anodised machined aluminium spool, I like how it looks – workmanlike rather than pretty and unlike some top-end spinners, there’s very little fancy detailing or garish graphics.

The reel is all metal construction with a slim gear case and a main shaft that goes right through the body to terminate in a gold-anodised rear support at the base of the reel. This is what Fin Nor does with some of its other reels, including the heavy-duty Offshore series of maxi-spinners. A similar construction method was used by Penn on its Spinfisher range.

A reel of this size, designed to tackle large, strong fish, is never going to be light, but its advertised weight of 873g is lighter than a Shimano Stella SW 20K, a Shimano Saragosa SW 20K or a Penn Torque. However, it’s heavier than Daiwa Saltiga and Catalina/Isla reels, but on my kitchen electronic scales the demo reel weighed in at in at 902g spooled with around 300m of PE8 Gerry Brown hollow core braid, so I suspect it actually weighs less than the number stated on the box.

The spool has a rubber ring so braid can be tired directly to the spool without slipping. This is a feature found on some other braid-ready reels too, including ABU Sorons and Penn Conflicts, but on a large reel like this spooled with PE8 braid, I wanted to be absolutely certain my line load would not slip on the spool when I hooked a big GT. I played it safe and packed the spool with a few metres of 37kg mono before filling the rest with braid, joining the two lines using a Bimini twist double and an Albright knot.

I estimate I got about 300m of PE8 braid on the spool, which is advertised to hold 310 yards of 100-pound braid. The line lay was not perfect, however, and there were no spool spacers in the reel box to adjust it. Although the line was tapered towards the base of the spool, I had no issues casting with the reel, so it’s not a serious problem, and the line lay may well be better with thicker or thinner line.

The retrieve ratio is 4.9:1, which reels in over a metre (114cm) of line with each turn of the handle, making it suitable for most fishing styles, including topwater. I used it in this capacity on my trip, casting poppers and stick baits, as well as trolling during a night-fishing session outside the reef in Aitutaki. It is light enough and certainly strong enough for jig fishing as well.

Strongly built

The Lethal is a no-nonsense reel on the outside, and that’s true on the inside as well. The gearbox is quite narrow, which makes it light, and the main gear is machine-cut brass alloy (the box says forged brass, but I’ll bow to the wisdom of Alan Hawk [www.alanhawk.com], whose meticulous reviews involve completely disassembling the reel and examining its parts. He points out clearly visible machining marks in his review of the LT100). It’s rugged and strong, complemented by a stainless steel pinion. The main gear is pressed and bolted to the shaft – a very strong connection – and there’s a rugged mechanical anti-reverse back-up with a stainless steel dog should the anti-reverse bearing fail.

Other mechanical components are similar rugged and the reels is delivered well lubricated and ready to fish. It is reasonably well shielded from water ingress, including a closed rotor nut and effective seal over the anti-reverse bearing. The aluminium sideplate is easy to remove, allowing inspection and lubrication of the gearbox.

The reel’s rotor, brass spool hub and spool are built strong as well. The spool is machined forged aluminium, as is the drag knob, while the cast aluminium rotor arm is designed to handle high drag loadings. The bail is a magnetic manual trip, so it won’t flick over accidentally in the middle of a cast, and the handle with its egg-style grip is feels comfortable in the hand. The handle is bolted to the threaded shaft using a high-torque hex head, a strong, reliable connection.

Good drag

My experience with the reel focused on its drag performance, which is excellent. Seven large carbon-fibre washers – more than is usual, even in high end reels – and eight stainless steel keyed and un-keyed washers make up the drag stack of the LT100. The drag is lubed from the factory and it performs very well indeed.

Maximum drag pressure is said to be over 20kg. By all accounts the drag, but more importantly the reel itself, especially the rotor and rotor arm supporting the bail arm, can deliver the promised number, plus some.

In real fishing, such high drag pressures are unlikely, but I certainly screwed the drag up to an estimated 12-15kg to subdue those GTs and even at those drag settings it was completely smooth with no start-up inertia. The first fish I caught got a way on me a bit before I dialled in more drag and I noticed a bit of warmth through the drag knob when I tightened it down. Once I wound up the drag subsequent fish struggled to pull more than 10-15m of line off the drag, so it’s hard to judge whether heat would be problem with fish like marlin.

Amazing value

I like how the big Fin Nor looks and feels. Compared to the other big spinner in the Fin Nor range, the Offshore (I own a 7000), it’s a step up in smoothness, styling and sophistication. The Fin Nor LT100 Lethal is a more modern design and a better reel in most respects, but still feels ruggedly capable rather than silky smooth. It’s spins freely enough, but there are more rumbles than you’d get with a Saltiga, Stella, Saratoga or other super spinner. More importantly, the reel turns freely under load, thanks to powerful gearing, a stiff body and drive train and good design.

The question remains: is the extra smoothness, waterproofing and fine build quality evident in $1000-plus super-spinners worth paying such a premium for when the LT100 does much the same job for less than a quarter of the price?

The answer may well be yes if you like to own and use the very best, but if you are an occasional heavy tackle spin-fisher, or perhaps constrained by a limited budget, the Fin Nor LT100 will do the job admirably. It doesn’t look or feel as nice as some of the other max-spinners around, but it certainly does the business for a whole lot less than $1000. In fact I think it’s a bargain.

Ratio: 4.9:1 (114cm per turn)
Capacity 310m 100lb (0.47mm) braid
Max drag: 20kg-plus
Weight: 873g
Approximate retail: $200

Features:

All aluminium body, side cover and rotor
7 double shielded stainless steel bearings
Infinite anti-reverse, plus back-up pawl
‘Mega-drag’ with seven lubricated carbon-fibre washers
Magnetic manual bail arm
Triple-supported spool
Stainless steel main shaft and machined forged brass main gear
Machined forged aluminium spool and handle
Reversible handle
Multi-layer corrosion protection