I’ve mainly fished for large mouth and inshore for redfish and sheepshead in the 7 years I’ve been in the lowcountry. My rod selection mainly consists of 6’6" - 7’ M-MH spinning and bait casters. I’m going to finally venture out to the near shore sites like the 60 and 4KI this year. I would like to put together 2 dedicated rods and reels for these sites, trying to keep the cost of each in the $200 range but no higher than $300.
If you could only take two rods out to these sites to catch the widest variety of fish, one for bottom fishing and one to sight cast, what would they be?
Thanks in advance for any advice
I like a 20lb rod and a 50 lb spinning set up.
20 lb is good for lots of bottom critters and anything that’s not too big. I use the Sea Striker Contour 7’ 8-17lb rods with Penn 4500 SSVs or Fin Nor Lethal 40s and 20 lb braid for this purpose. The rod is a great deal for the money, perfect for 20 lb braid and would be a great starter set up that will last and kill lots of fish if you take care of it. I’ve caught tons of fish with this set up in FL and have 4 of these combos for my anglers and myself. It would also be a great match for bigger inshore stuff like big spottail, sheeps, sharks, etc. The Shimano Symetre 4000 that Haddrells was advertising on sale would be PERFECT for this application. This size is my go-to rod for most stuff.
I would also look at getting a 50 lb spinning rod as well for the larger stuff like cobia, AJs, groupers, big snappers, etc. I have the Shimano Trevala TVS66MH with Penn 6500 SSVs and 50 lb braided line for this purpose. It’s light enough that it’s fun to fish with but can still whip ass if need be. I really like the Trevalas for the $120 price point. A Battle 2 6000 would be a good reel for this one to stay within your budget.
You don’t need to have Stellas and Terezes to catch nice fish but getting decent equipment and taking care of it well is important.
I have the spinfisherV 6500 jigging combo with 50lb braid.
I really like it for lots of stuff. Roughly $150 before line.
I also have the Finnor lethal 100 on an ugly stick jiggin stick with 80lb braid.
It can handle more than expected. But I did break the reel seat on some aj’s last summer.
Finnor warranted the reel quick and painlessly.
I’ll keep trying to break it again this year.
I actually like the lethal 80 just as much as the 100, if not more. And it’s cheaper.
10% of the people catch 90% of the fish.
Rap gave you some good advice. The only thing Id say different is possibly consider one of the Shimano bait runners too. I’m a big fan of the bait runner series reels when im using live bait out there.
Capt. R. Killin
“Day Tripper”
Shamrock 20 cuddy
Ford 351W
Thank you guys for the advice. I’ve managed to amass a small fortune on bass rods so I know the value of fishing quality equipment and taking care of it. Now time to start shopping for the best deals.
Rap, for the 50lb rod, what length range would you be in? 6’-6’6" or 7’ like the 20lb?
Thanks again guys
quote:
Originally posted by Veritas1
Thank you guys for the advice. I’ve managed to amass a small fortune on bass rods so I know the value of fishing quality equipment and taking care of it. Now time to start shopping for the best deals.
Rap, for the 50lb rod, what length range would you be in? 6’-6’6" or 7’ like the 20lb?
Thanks again guys
As Ryan said, the baitrunner/liveliner feature is pretty handy. Shimano and Penn are the only bait runner reels I’d consider using myself.
I like the 6’6" trevala. I wouldn’t be opposed to a 6’ or 7’ rod though. The longer rod will allow you to cast a bit farther than a shorter rod with the same action. However, the longer rod will also put the downward pulling force father away from you when fighting a fish, this making it harder on yourself. There’s a reason why most heavy jigging rods are shorter.
Think about trying to pick up a 20 lb weight attatched to the end of a 2 ft stick. Now think about trying to pick up the same weight attatched to the end of a 10 ft stick. It may be a little exaggerated but you get the point.
[quote]Originally posted by killinR
Rap gave you some good advice. The only thing Id say different is possibly consider one of the Shimano bait runners too. I’m a big fan of the bait runner series reels when im using live bait out there.
Would you recommend the bait runner for the 20 or 50lb rod? Or both? Thanks again for the great advice!
Personally I’d go big on the baitrunner. They will hold alot of braid and are capable of landing just about anything. I’d put it on the 50 lb rod. I’ve had great luck with the four I fish with on ugly stick tiger rods. The fin nor lethal 100 is supposedly a beast though. I haven’t used one yet but you should check out both reels and see what suits the style of fishing you plan on doing most.
Capt. R. Killin
“Day Tripper”
Shamrock 20 cuddy
Ford 351W
I use the fin nor OFS6500 reels with 50lb braid. The drag on them is actually stronger than the braid but the rod would give first. They use dog leg anti reverse so that kind of sucks but they are heavy tanks. Caught plenty of fish on them (wahoo, dolphin, cobia, AJ, sharks, etc). A wahoo was the first fish I hooked up on them when they were new.
26 Seahunt
Angler’s Dream