I have a 13 year old that is chomping at the bit to get into fly fishing. What would you fellas recommend as a good starter setup? Mostly inshore, but an occasional trip to the jetties. Thanks.
21’ Sea-Pro CC
Yamaha 150
“Aquaholic”
2008 Dodge Ram Mega-Cab 4x4 6.7 Cummins
“There is no hunting like the hunting of man, and those who have hunted armed men long enough and liked it, never care for anything else thereafter.”
Ernest Hemingway
a 9wt would fit the bill for th youngin. enuff beef to turn almost any jetty fish. a slower action rod wold be easier to cast as well.
What??? Don’t listen to that ScottyD… like he knows what he is talkin about… 
now what I would do is get them a 9wt, I think that would fit the bill for the youngster… a 9wt will be beefy enough and if it’s a stiffer rod it will be easier to cast… Just kidding but I agree… Just make sure the reel you get has a good sealed drag on it for the salt… If you are going to the jetties or even inshore if you stick a good sized red it’ll rip line out pretty quick and having a good reel/drag will make the difference in playing that fish. If the fish is small enough, like smaller trout, you can just strip them in but stick a hee-dawger and you’ll need that good reel and drag. I always say for fresh water the reel is just to hold the line, you don;t need anything reel fancy but for salt you need a good reel. Line is another factor… make sure you get a good fly line it REALLY makes a huge difference… you can get some really good lines for around $70 and all you’ll need at the Charleston Angler… best place I know of around here to get FF stuff…
“Paddle faster boys… I hear banjo music!”
Charleston Director- SCKayakfishing.com
Tarpon 160os
Thanks fellas. Oh, and that quote: “Paddle faster boys… I hear banjo music!”
is funny stuff. Lol.
21’ Sea-Pro CC
Yamaha 150
“Aquaholic”
2008 Dodge Ram Mega-Cab 4x4 6.7 Cummins
“There is no hunting like the hunting of man, and those who have hunted armed men long enough and liked it, never care for anything else thereafter.”
Ernest Hemingway
An 8 or 9wt would be perfect, IMO. I have to disagree just a bit with the reel suggestions, though. Save yourself some $$$ and pick up an Okuma Cascade 7/9. It will run you around $28 and will serve your purpose just fine, handling anything that the Charleston inshore waters can throw at it. There are plenty of people who will disagree with that because:
A - it’s an Okuma, and
B - it’s a composite reel with no sealed drag
Trust me when I tell you this, though. I can be tough on gear and I have two of these reels that have performed flawlessly for the past 3 years. There are a couple of other members on this board who have the Cascade and will tell you the same. When the boy decides he likes flyfishing, and graduates from Inshore/jetty fishing to something more demanding on equipment, get him a “better” reel (read: better drag).
Pillage and plunder with a 9wt and a fist full of clousers.