I made a homemade Sabiki rod out of a broken rod and piece of PVC. I had a real cheap Zebco reel and it worked until you caught 3 - 4 fish at one time (no drag). I need an effective and inexpensive reel. The rod calls for a top mount reel. What kind of reel do folks normally use on a Sabiki rig or does it matter. Seeing as how the whole rig is homemade, I don’t want to spend a lot. Any suggestions?
“Apathy is the Glove in Which Evil Slips It’s Hand”.
Dfreedom, I really love an ultra light set up. There have been times that I’ve enjoyed catching the bait as much as the dinner. I love seeing my little ugly stick doubled over.
Abu Garcia Ambassadeur 5600. The lowest cost model for about $60 will do just fine and last almost forever in saltwater with regular maintenance. Anything less than that and you will be sacrificing quality for a price point.
Iain Pelto
Sea Hunt Triton 160 w/ 90 ETEC “JB3”
Native Manta Ray 14
Ambassadors in the 5000 series work great, they are about the perfect size and are literally bullet-proof. I use a old 5500C.
Show some pics of the “homemade Sabiki Rod”. That sounds interesting.
Trust me, it’s nothing special, a broken rod and some PVC pipe. We go to the Keys a couple times a year and it has worked fine pulling up small baitfish, grunts, etc… My youngest still brags that he holds the family record for most fish caught at one time (5). The only problem is if you get a couple of decent size fish on there, you can’t reel them up. I’ll take a couple of pics this weekend and post.
Thanks for the replies.
“Apathy is the Glove in Which Evil Slips It’s Hand”.