What to spend

[donpope]

Hey everybody. I am going to be purchasing a new bait casting rod/real setup and I am not sure what to spend. My whole life I have been using at most 200 dollar setups but I am wondering if those 500 dollar and up setups are really worth it. I fish mostly walleye/bass but also need a setup that can handle pitching big musky lures all day. So, in your opinions, what is a good amount to spend for a strong, quality bait casting rod/real and what are your suggestions.

 

[staffman]

Whatever you buy you are likely to have it a long time so do your research first to determine what features you need in a reel and the characteristics you want the rod to have. Talk to the clerks at tackle shops and the people you fish with & with people on-line.Visit manufactures web sites as well, and then spend as much as you can afford on the outfit. Quality is worth the extra cost.

 

[PainInTheBass]

Allow me to try to break this down a bit. Looking at a $200 combo, let's assume that $200 is split 50/50 between the rod and the reel. There are a number of quality rods and reels in the $100 range. Reels such as the Shimano Citica (used), Daiwa Exceller, BPS Pro Qualifier, Abu Garcia Revo S (used), can and will perform well as workhorse reels for you, but may lack some refinement. That is what you pay for as you go up in price. Higher prices usually are associated with better quality components such as bearings and drag systems, lighter materials of construction and overall feel. Going up to $150-170 is a big jump in quality over the $100 reels imo. For rods, you can get very good rods in the $100 range as well, including St. Croix Premiers and Mojos, various BPS brand rods as well as Shimano and nuerous others. Higher prices tend to yield lighter, more sensitive rods with better guides. The benefit here depends on the technique you will be using since sensitivity is not as important for reaction baits as with bottom contact techniques.

If you have $500 to spend, I would actually consider getting 2 mid priced combos ($250) rather than 1 expensive combo. I would not hesitate to get 2 BPS Pro Qualifiers since they are available in right and left hand retrieve in all ratios 4.9 to 7.1:1. With the reel trade in event, you should be able to get these at close to or lower than $100. Pair these up with St. Croix Mojos or Premiers (I really like the Premier crankbait series), or a Compre and you wil have a very decent combo imo.

Good luck!

 

[frozenfire]

^ Great break down.

 

[diggyj]

A great combo would be a Shimano Citica reel and Shimano Crucial Rod, around $250 or pair the same reel with either a Compre or Convergence, then under $200. Will last you a lifetime, including a lifetime warranty on the rods which others don't offer.

Dirk