What gear do you all use?

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Wisfisher
Wisfisher's picture
What gear do you all use?
<p>I know this is a pretty basic question, but what reels, rods and line does everyone use. Be specific, brands, reel size, rod power and length, brand, type and test of line.</p>
FP4LifesDad
FP4LifesDad's picture
For me it's dependant on the

For me it's dependant on the species and conditions we are fishing.  I used to fish the pro walleye circuit so my go to rod is a GLoomis matched with a top grade Shimano reel (atleast as far as top grade Shimano goes lol).  Walleye fishing normally I use a 6-8lb mono depending on water clarity the darker the water the heavier the line.  I like Loomis's sensitivity (pretty tough to beat) as far as reels go as I've learned from experience for small to medium fish the reel doesn't make much difference as long as it's dependable.  I also use this setup for almost all fish until you hit the heavy weights. Once you get into bigger fish, musky, sturg, cats, etc. a reel can make a huge difference, I've seen cheap reels basically come apart (literally) under stress from heavy lures and heavier battles.  Big fish like these I like Ugly Stik and some ocean caliber stuff, usually with 60-80 super braid and the heaviest reels I can find.  I'm a bit new to ultra light fishing so not much help there, but the gang here at roughfish is full of experts in pretty much anything fish, so I'm sure someone will chime in with all kinds of ultra light info.  When FP and I fish heavy current or snaggy water, even for medium size fish like redhorse and such, I still use medium weight  gear with heavy line so I can rip it out of snags without losing my whole setup..........hopefully.  Anyway if you are looking for specifics you will need to match it to a specific fish species, then this site will load you up with opinions and ideas that what I've found to be mostly spot on from an amazing warehouse of fishing knowledge.  Good luck brother, and will be happy to lend any info I have on whatever fish species you are going to tie into!!

andy
andy's picture
Light rod, 6 lb mono

I currently enjoy using a Lew's 7' light action spinning rod paired with a Quantum reel and 6 lb mono.  I use a dozen different combos, but this is my favorite and most dangerous rig.  

HIGHFLOW1402
HIGHFLOW1402's picture
my set up

this summer I ran a 6'6" spin/ fly combo rod  for ultra light use in the creek and small bodies of water around me. for bigger fish i go with a 7' ugly stik some fairly light line and a nice penn 722z for a reel. on the creek rod i run an okuma fly reel and a real nice penn 420ss. I love ultra light fishing if you cant tell.

Corey
Corey's picture
gear

Lately I seem to be using a lot of Pfleuger reels, not sure why. they seem to work for me. I often use a six foot light spinning rod with some kind of Shimano on it, 4 pound mono. I use that a lot. I get a bit crazy with the bait rods, been using an 8-footer for years and now am using a cheap 11 foot float rod for a lot of bait-fishing where there's plenty of room. 6-8 pound mono, usually. Casting lures from a boat, usually a 7 foot two-piece medium, I think it's a Fenwick, 10# line. Also, telescopic spinning rods for hiking, flyrods from 3-8 wt, and a 13 foot centerpin, 7-foot levelwind and braid for big fish and a surf rod with 20# mono for cats and saltwater.   

RyanD19972
RyanD19972's picture
Favorite Gear

I too am a sucker for Pfleuger reels.  The two setups that I use are a Pfleuger President Limited Edition that was only manufactured in 2016 paired with a Fenwick HMG rod, medium power 7' (I treated myself a little bit on that setup) and a Pfleuger Trion TI 40 paired with an Ugly Stik GX2, medium, 7'.  The latter of these two combos is a great value as both the rod and the reel only cost about 80 bucks.  I tend to use the first setup in "clean" water and the second in "rough" water.  I tend to use 12 pound breaking strength line on both these setups, as I don't think it deters the fish much and if I do happen to hook into something big, I can handle it. 

Deftik
Deftik's picture
I use $15/$20 combos from

I use $15/$20 combos from walmart and use them until they break, literally my entire lifelist was caught off the cheapest tackle. The only thing I buy specialized gear for was sharks and big catfish. Nobody is ever excited by this answer but its the truth.

Outdoors4life
Outdoors4life's picture
Quality!

Love love using quality rods and reels. I enjoy the feel and quality. I like long rods over short rods so that is where it is tough to even get long rods inexpensive. 

Not brand name loyal on rods. 

I enjoy Shimano reels

I am still looking for a good bait feeder spinning reel.

It is all perspective!

Acer Home Inspections

Hengelaar
Hengelaar's picture
Yes

It's gotten to the point where I almost exclusively use rods I've built myself. The only factory rods I (sometimes) use anymore are my 12 ft Drennan Super Specialist (which is awesome), and one or two Shimano light 9-10 ft spinning rods.

 

Building rods is very addictive (Thanks, Tony!). Love it. Great to visualize how you would want a certain rod for a certain style of fishing to be, and then make it. Instead of being frustrated and annoyed that it doesn't exist. I'll never buy another rod again. Good thing, too, cos the ones you see in stores seem to get crappier every year.

 

I have a gear fetish. Probably at its worst with reels. So I have a silly number, but I do use all of them (not all at once). I particularly love high end Shimano models from the late 90s to early 2000s. Findable on that auction site for decent prices, if you're patient. I love how the quality stuff feels and looks. I have never worn out a reel. Quality stuff will last forever, if you treat it with respect.

Fishn sure is neat

philaroman
philaroman's picture
the last 2 posts hit pretty
the last 2 posts hit pretty close to home...  thanks, guys -- I'M NOT ALONE!!!
 
REELS: a great big pile of Shimano's (pref. Japan-made, or even JDM) from the 90's; all bought at a fraction of the MSRP (clearance, used, parts/repair, etc.) & Frankensteined to be more/better than intended by the manufacturer; PLUS an over-built, suped up, little high-end Okuma bulldog of a spinner & Daiwa TD-X specialty pitch/flip baitcaster
 
RODS: LLL! = longest, lightest, most limber rods I can get away with, in a given situation...  can't find/afford exactly what I want -- need to start learning how to build!!!  For the way I fish, I need blank forgiveness & durability, so F'ed-up angler does not equate to F'ed-up rod... snapped the tip on a Loomis IMX & damn-near cried crying no more fragile high-modulus, for me!  I don't care about a couple extra ounces of blank weight & zero-stretch lines give me all the sensitivity I want...  gimme' old-school premium US-made (or, Japanese) GLASS, or high-quality IM-6, or even 10' 4-20# Ugly.  Unfortunately, all of the above come w/ mediocre, or downright shitty components & I want titanium SiC Fuji's & AAA Portuguese cork on an affordable blank...  an old glass Fenwick flyrod rebuilt as a spinner would be IDEAL

P.E.T.A. sucks!!!  Plants are living things, too -- they're just easier to catch!

philaroman
philaroman's picture
O4L,
O4L,
 
1) look into the high-end Okuma baitfeeders -- you might be be pleasantly surprised, esp. if you can find one that's actually Taiwanese, rather than Chinese
 
2) for long light rods w/ light line, Shimano's Rear Fightin' Drag reels are an interesting poor-man's pseudo-Baitrunner option worth considering: they have a "sweet spot" where the lightest Fightin' Lever setting is weak enough to keep your rod from being pulled into the drink & you can slam the lever far-right in one motion, for high enough drag pressure to set the hook; then, adjust the main rear-drag knob if needed...
an older Japan-made Symetre could be pretty sweet & quite cheap:
 
if you can hadle parts/service for a JDM, a Biomaster would be even better:

P.E.T.A. sucks!!!  Plants are living things, too -- they're just easier to catch!

Wisfisher
Wisfisher's picture
I seem to be in the ballpark

I seem to be in the ballpark with at least half of the resonses. Being a multi-species person, I have a large selection to choose from. It looks like an average combo would be a medium length, medium power rod, 30 size spinning reel and 10# test line.  But oh, I soooo love light tackle and big fish...

Any fish species is worth catching.

TheIncompleteAngler
TheIncompleteAngler's picture
Fishing is a dangerous hobby

I always try to remind myself that the fish can't tell the difference between an ugly stick and a gloomis, but I can, so I'm chest deep in tackle.

 

For bait fishing I love a 8.5' steelhead rod.  Longer is fun, but starts to get clumsy.  I currently am using a Shimano Clarus medium power, fast action.  My bait rods get the shit kicked out of them, so I'm reluctant to spend any more on one. Currently have a Symetre 3000fl on it (it has been fine) with 20lb braid, but I've been thinking about trying out a baitrunner or live-liner.

 

My favorite spinning rod is a 7' St Croix Avid-X, Medium-Light, fast action. I've had loomis and shimano and others of similar description, but I really like a croix. Caught many many fish on this rod. Always 10lb braid to a 6lb leader on a 2500 sized reel, currently a Stradic FK.

 

My favorite "lure" casting rod is an old model Shimano Crucial 6'8" topwater rod, medium-heavy and "fast" (though i think it's moderate-fast at best). I love this rod.  Fast enough for jigs and jika rids, slow enough to work treble baits. I wish I could find something identical but over 7'. I've had 2 different curados on it. i hope it lasts for a few more. 30-40lb braid will do it all on a baitcasiter, and probably overkill since i never cast anything over 1oz on it.

 

I have lots of other rods and reels for other more speicalized pursuits, but if I had to take just one, it would probably be the 7' avid-x.  If I could take three, it would be those three.  I'm not brand loyal on line, but I've found PowerPro and Suffix to be very reliable.  I have grown fond of the suffix white line for visibility.  On my bait rod I'm currently using "trilene professional braid" in the "tracer" color, and I do really like the alternating hi-vis lo-vis for line watching.  For leader, I use mono on my bait rids and fluoro on lures, but I'm not really sure if that matters.

 

And to be fair, my best channel cat was caught on a 6.5" ugly stik combo with 30lb braid.  The fish didn't seem offended by my gear.