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Random Quote: Dad, when are they gonna start biting?
The cheapest way to go is the old Penn 114 Wides.... They'll catch 90% of what is out there.
After that go with the Shimano TLD's (30's and 50's).
The next step up the price list is the Avet Pro 4/0, but they are a significantly better reel that the previous two. At this point you get into the Ford vs. Chevy debates... Avet vs Penn Int vs Shmano Tiagra vs ....
I have been using the Tsunami rods and Okuma 30 and 50 reels for over 4 years without any type of failure from either one. Just take care of the rods and reels after each trip and tear the reels down each winter to grease and replace worn parts and you have a great set-up at a very reasonable price. There are some that might make anti Okuma posts, but if they are properly maintained out of the box they will do great.
TLD 30 2 speeds @289.99 with Penn Mariner 6ft 30-80 at 84.99. Theres a bunch of different rods to go with this reel. Penn International Standup with all turbos 30-80 @139.99 or star handcraft 30-80 fuji guides for 159.99. Also check out the Shimano Tallus BlueWater TLC-60XHSBA 30-60 @149.99.
Check out the rods offered by Pinnacle Marine via Ebay.. After 20 years in the tackle biz, I gotta say, these are the best value i have ever seen.. I just ordered another one..6' 30-80# standup..all Pac. Bay rollers, Aluminum butts..nice custom look..95.00..hard to beat
For a good starter outfit go to Off Shore Angler (basspro.com) and look up their Ocean Master lever drag reels (30 & 50 lb.) and stand up rod combos for $199.98. Line will set you back a few more bucks but your dad may want to choose the line class later. The reels has gotten good reviews here. Bass Pro can have it to you in time for Christmas. Good luck. There are a lot of guys here who would appreciate a son like you. Merry Christmas.
Don't buy a senator that's about 50 year old technology. I hate to answer a question with a question but how big are the tuna you are looking to catch? You are in Mansfield Mass. I fish out of Point Judith RI not far from you so chances are if you are new to the game you are looking to catch school sized fish. For the Northeast I'll throw you a few ideas.
1) for fish 27 inches to about 40 lbs you can use a Avet MX and have allot of fun, TLD 15 or 20 and have fun, to step up a little go to the TLD 25 or the Avet LX you can spend allot more and go to a penn int or an Accurate.
2) For 40 lbs to just under 100lbs you can use a TLD 30 or TLD 35, Avet 40 etc.
I'm not trying to slam anyone it's just that our fish in New England have been getting so small that to fish with 50lb gear is overkill and not fun. Not knowing what you are fishing for kind of hurts in the advice dept. For the $$ for small fish the most versatile reel are the small shimano TLD reels and if you want to go to the canyon by far the best size to buy are 50 lb class penn's or shimanos.
If you plan on fishing for a while please don't buy a senator, okuma, gold cup etc. I have quality reels that are over 20 years old and function great. In the saltwater world quality matters quite bit. Not that senators are junk that are far from it but I have about 15 that are about 25 years old and work great if you want to buy them pm me but in about a year or 2 you will want to replace them with up to date technology or at least 80's technology.
captpepin, I respectfully disagree.........Senators have proven themselves out for years, and are still doing so for everything from fluke to bass to giants. Yeah new technology puts fish in the boat, but so does the old stuff...............
You do make several good points. I started with the Penn 114's and after a year switched to Penn International 50's..... and I am currently buying 30 class gear since the 50's are overkill on most fish. So I don't disagree to your basic premise. But Iwasn't sure if I'd catch "The Fever." So I wanted to keep my cost of entery down....
That having been said, the question was about "Good and Cheap..." So I stand by original suggestion... Penn 114's are the best, cheap tuna outfit available and have been for 50 years. Just becuase they aren't titanium, twin drag, two speed pieces of art doesn't mean they can't catch 90% or more of the fish out of a Mass port. They can, they have and they will.....
You don't need to spend "International" money to play in this game just like you don't need a Lexus (OK so a Camry) to drive to work. A Ford Taurus will get the job done as well (albeit with less comfort...).
Sorry I ment TLD 30. I'm in the same boat the primary reel we used before was a 50 wide penn now we are going down to the 30lb class and lighter.
Bass pro has some nice rigs with a tld 15, 20 and 30 and I think the TLD 30 vs the penn 114 was about $100 more. My advice spend the $100 more. Or just go on Ebay and get the better reels used. All I can say is that if you think you are serious about this type of fishing go straight to lever drag reels if you buy the star drag reels you will be replacing them with lever drag reels in a few years anyway.
As far as the comment on catching Giants on a penn senator: Been there done that in the 80's we had 10'o and 12'o penns we had to replace the drags about every week or 2 the drags were so sticky you could not believe it and when we had a fish on it was a must to poor water on the reel to cool it down. They could hardly pull any drag and the guy in the chair wore a heavy leather glove to hold the spool to add drag. When we bought 2 130h internationals with the fish money our catch ratio doubled, we stopped fighting fish for 3,4,5,6 and 8 hours and it went down to 45 minutes to 3 hours.
If I was starting today the first 2 reels I'd buy would be a pair of tld 30's.
I think most reel manufacturer's are using carbon fiber drag washers today. Combine that with (as alantani does) good quality drag washer grease and it makes any drag somewhat decent.............
I don't think that 50's are overkill. I have Tiagra 50's, and they are a good match for most fish out there. The benefit is that when you get a bigeye or a marlin with a 50 and 80lb test, you at least have some chance of catching it. I run and still run 114 occasionally, and a 60 -70 pound yellowfin is do-able, but the fight will be an hour instead of 20 minutes.
How does he plan to use the rods?....on a friends boat, on a head boat? Troll, chunk? A penn 114 is hard to beat for the value and has been prove for years and is fairly cheap. If he plans to fish off a party boat, this is the smallest reel I would buy. Many WC fishermen use lighter tackle, but captains in the NE will kill you if they see that tackle and may even force you to rent a boat rod. On party boats, I would recommend a 50 or 50w with 80lb on it. The smallest I would go is a 30w with 80lb on it. On a party boat you want 80lb because you do not want to get cut off in a tangle by other fishermen. Most boats will not allow braid or hollow core, but if it for personal use on his boat or a friends, hollowcore it the way to go, more line and less maintenance. Either way, a shimano TLD is hard to beat. If you go this route, invest in a 2 speed version, the one speeds do not feel like they are as well built for larger fish. If your dad is not going to troll, he does not need roller guides, but I would buy a rod with at least a roller tip. If you can afford roller guides, they are nice to have, but not necessary unless you fish giant bluefins or marlin, I doubt this is the purpose of this setup. Try to match the rod to the reel. For most applications, a 5'6" or a 6' rod is the correct length. I would recommend a rod with a 50-100lb line rating. You want some backbone, not a noodle rod. If he is only doing stand up fishing, a hard plastic butt is fine to reduce weight. If you want quality, go with an aluminum butt.
Tld 25s?? Why not just get the 30 and have confidence if you were to hook into a 100 plus lb tuna...I have been owned by 20lb red snapper on tld 25s
The senator 114 is a great reel...but old technology...you really need to have a lever drag to chum and live bait for tuna correctly...get the 114 for bottom fishing
Good.Cheap.Tuna setups? 
