Okuma Integrety
I have a smaller O.I. reel that I use on a 6 wt rod. Being an engineer, I examined the drag mechanism very thoroughly until I understood how it worked. While it is an effective mechanism, it is not sealed. So if there is a chance you may have to dunk it in the stream for some reason, it could get sand, grit, or some other foreign matter in there that would screw things up until you could flush it out. I would also recommend staying away from salt water with these reels. Other than that, they are certainly priced attractivly, almost to the point that they could be considered disposables.:hehe: A friend of mine has the largest one on a St. Croix 14 ft rod. Has not had a good pull on it yet so we don't know how it will hold up. Not a lot of room left for backing, even with a Wind cutter line. With any of the longer belly lines, forget it. Too small for my taste.
Try to find a Redington AL or AS reel in a 12/13. (or maybe they were 13/14s. anyway, the largest they made.) They have been discontinued, but Orvis was clearing them out. hey are machined from bar stock and have sealed drags.
For lines I would go for an SA XLT Spey 8/9 or 9/10. (I am not that familiar with the Scott SAS rods) They (XLT's) are not yet available in a multi tip configuratioin but since you are a beginner, stay with the floater for now. You can always add loops and sink tips later. The XLT line will force you to learn proper technique, but the pay back is worth it. These lines will add 20ft to your cast.,,, easily, and you can mend all the line you can cast!
my $0.02 worth
JD