G-Loomis so what?

I think it depends on the fish and the tactics you are using. In freshwater, if you are casting a lot like tossing crank baits, spinnerbaits or topwater lures for bass where light weight, distance and accuracy are important, a higher end rod and reel is a good investment. If you are trolling, soaking bait or dopshotting then cheap stuff works fine. In saltwater, if you are tossing jigs or swim baits or targeting pelagics, higher end tackle is a good investment. If you are vertical jigging for rockfish or drifting bait for halis cheaper tackle works fine.

I think if you are starting out go cheap. That way if you drop it overboard or don't know how to service your reels, no big deal. If you want to buy higher end saltwater reels, buy reels you can service yourself. Kayak fishing is a wet sport and even a Calcutta will need regular service.  I own a lot of nice tackle but it is more of an obsession, not a necessity. Just don't tell your wife. 

^What he said!  If you're doing a lot of plugging, you'll want a really nice casting rod.  After a few hours, the difference between a cheaper rod and a higher end rod is obvious.  Gloomis is known for their excellent warranty. 

I think if you are starting out go cheap. That way if you drop it overboard or don't know how to service your reels, no big deal. If you want to buy higher end saltwater reels, buy reels you can service yourself. Kayak fishing is a wet sport and even a Calcutta will need regular service. 

Exactly what I was thinking. It's kinda like giving a Ferrari 599 GTO to a 16-year-old kid. Sure, it looks cool but he would be better served learning how to drive stick in a 97 Toyota Corolla and learning how to properly maintain an automobile first.
I guess what I'm saying is you/anybody should first determine what characteristics & features they want in a rod...before dropping $350 on a rod. And IMO the best way to figure out your rod/reel preferences is to use a few in different situations. Either by purchasing them, or playing with them in the store, or borrowing from a friend (you're welcome to borrow any of my setups if we fish together--and I'm sure many others here would offer the same!).

The best part of the Loomis rods is the warranty. Yes, the quality components & craftsmanship are superior but you can find similarly-equiped rods for less money. However, those other rods don't usually come with such a rock-solid warranty like Loomis. Good luck in your search. I highly recommend you checkout a local tackle shop and play around with many different types of rods to see which ones "feel" right for you.

Getting quality tackle is like evolution as you continue to hone your fishing skills.
If you are obsessed with fishing like others here even more so.
Start out in the sweet spot, most bang for the buck. Decent quality tackle will last long enough to be your "buddy loaner".

I agree.  Grow your gear with your skill. You can always sell the lower end stuff you have. Newbs abound! I have slowly turned over most of my gear (with the exception of a few cheap trout rods, that I just don't use all that much). I now look at my gear and I'd say I have just a few set ups in the sub $100 range. But as others have mentioned the super high end stuff makes me nervous on a yak. Knock on wood I've never lost a set to the deep blue (and yes I just jinxed myself). If you are bass fishing you will be casting a ton so get something that does the trick (no back lash, able to load the rod and cast) cuz it sucks to pick out birdsnests all day). If you can do that with lower end gear AWESOME. If not, upgrade to the correct level.

I think if you are starting out go cheap. That way if you drop it overboard or don't know how to service your reels, no big deal. If you want to buy higher end saltwater reels, buy reels you can service yourself. Kayak fishing is a wet sport and even a Calcutta will need regular service. 

Exactly what I was thinking. It's kinda like giving a Ferrari 599 GTO to a 16-year-old kid. Sure, it looks cool but he would be better served learning how to drive stick in a 97 Toyota Corolla and learning how to properly maintain an automobile first.
I guess what I'm saying is you/anybody should first determine what characteristics & features they want in a rod...before dropping $350 on a rod. And IMO the best way to figure out your rod/reel preferences is to use a few in different situations. Either by purchasing them, or playing with them in the store, or borrowing from a friend (you're welcome to borrow any of my setups if we fish together--and I'm sure many others here would offer the same!).

The best part of the Loomis rods is the warranty. Yes, the quality components & craftsmanship are superior but you can find similarly-equiped rods for less money. However, those other rods don't usually come with such a rock-solid warranty like Loomis. Good luck in your search. I highly recommend you checkout a local tackle shop and play around with many different types of rods to see which ones "feel" right for you.

PK is on the $$..........except on the ferrari thing.  I learned to drive stick in a super hoopty that would grind like a muther going between first and second, I didn't learn how to fix it and just had to rev real high and take off in second. My tires were pretty bald and I would often peel out taking off, the ladies loved it.  I ran that poor little car into the ground. I would have taken much better care of a ferrari 

Like anybody else I started off using cheap tackle and upgraded as I went. But, I've found that the threshold for me is about $200 for freshwater rods or reels. In any freshwater situation I have never found a rod or reel that costs more than $200 that performs better than a sub-$200 piece of equipment. In fact, the sweet spot seems to be around $150. For that price I can pick up a nice Daiwa153HST or Revo SX Reel and pair it with a St. Croix or Lamiglas rod for an entire setup that costs around $300, which is a lot of money for a freshwater setup as far as I'm concerned.

Maybe I just haven't become skilled enough to feel like a Kistler or G. Loomis are worth more than $100/$150 more than St. Croix or Lamiglas, but I hope I never get that skilled!  And really, my most common bass fishing combo is a Daiwa 153HST paired to a $60 Shimano rod, while my Steelhead combo is a Revo Inshore paired to a custom rod that cost me ~$150 to build.

However, I will say that when it comes to saltwater gear, especially for pelagics, I haven't found that threshold yet. But I am finding that the mid-range Calstar/Avet combo seems to meet my needs as an inexperienced pelagic fisherman.

I can't have nice stuff.  I fish a couple rods that were $6 at Walmart.  My "nice" salt rod was about $50, the main plus being it's lightweight.

99% of the time I'm trolling or jigging.  And those time I am casting, well a cheap rod can still send a Kastmaster a 1/4 mile!

I fish loomis spey rods and I will say that after Shimano bought them their customer service did go down. I'm good for a broken tip every couple of years and after Shimano bought them service was alot slower. Recently though a couple of friends have said that it has gotten better, so who knows.

When I fish out of a kayak I usually go cheaper/used since I mostly fish in saltwater and my equipment will get beat. Go with recommendations from the board for high value to quality, you can't go wrong.

--ted

+1 to everything everyone said 

What ever rod/reel combo is available at Walmart! Seriously though, a good ugly stik can't be beat for performance, price, and durability. Besides, one trip to Shelter Cove, and it will be in Davey Jones' locker!

Hey thanks a ton guys - this is all great input and advice.  I am inexperienced, but do have a feel for it.  I grew up fishing and then lost it for a lot of years, but those first years of deep sea and shore surf fishing really stuck with me.  Freshwater is new to me, and a bit of a mystery to be honest, but for the yak, it seems a better way to learn.  I don't catch much, and would like to change that, it's the only thing really holding me back from going full throttle.  I hope at some point to get out with some of you to catch some good fresh water fish, maybe some bassing.  I am trying for trout at the moment, more on principal of wanting to catch them, since they have been elusive.  My ultimate goal is to get on some sea fishing action, but I expect to always enjoy freshwater, I could even get into fly fishing, as I tend to enjoy finesse fishing.  I dislike bait soaking the most, and like fishing that involves movement or mimicking the bait fish the most.  I like to feel my skill as an angler caught me the fish, not a strong scent and a random fish swimming by.  It's just my preference. 

I saw some Fenwick rods that seemed nice, and some Clarus and so forth.  I do like the G-Loomis though, just style, warranty, and feel.  I also like to cast a lot, and my current cheap setup seems to grind on the retrieve etc.  Nothing really wrong with it, it just feels rough. 

Typically, I fit my setups with flourocarbon line - is braid better?  I thought the idea was to make it as invisible as possible and that braid was really only for certain big fish uses.  Help a newb out on that one please    I am somewhat at the mercy of what the local shop tells me, and no matter how many "killer setups" they tell me about, it doesnt seem to produce more for me.   

Under most conditions, you'd probably care to know that ice cream comes in more than vanilla. If you were out fishing, in the freezing cold, wet and tired, ya might not care.
For me, rods are like that. I fish my loomis for steelhead, salmon, stripers and big trout. It's light; I can throw lures all day with it. It's sensitive; I can feel a spoon fluttering in the soft spot behind a boulder where the steelhead, salmon and big trout hide. It's nice to know that vanilla isn't the only flavor of ice cream.
I don't run out and buy a loomis to fish for sharks or rays. I don't care if there's Heath  Bar Crunch or Cherry Garcia; vanilla is just fine.
Like so many have already said: The conditions and purposes of your time outdoors pretty much let's you know if you 'should' buy a loomis or if you just got some extra cash and 'want' to buy a loomis. Under so many conditions and for so many purposes, a much cheaper rod is right for the job.
I've had four rods snap on me while fighting fish. I did everything that I could to make sure that I didn't care if I lost the fish, because the steelhead, salmon, striper or big trout comes once in a liftime.
  It's all the same with the reel,,,kinda. I'd sayit's a little more important than the rod. But, I've gone through three 100 dollar reels this fall and winter. They just didn't hold up to being connected to multipl fish. If I had the calsh, I'd spend it on a 500 dollar reel and can't imagine spending more than 250  on a rod.

A big key to freshwater success is to fish the lightest line suitable for the conditions, especially if you are fishing relatively still water like reservoirs or lakes.  It takes a while to get past the "hands of stone" phase so you detect bass bites.  I was taught to periodically remind myself that "swings are free" and that "fish have no hands" - meaning go for it anytime you feel something different, and especially if you notice you are not feeling anything at all.  You will start having happy suprises!

I'll never know how a G. Loomis feels, and maybe ignorance is bliss 
My salt gear is a Trevala with a Calcutta or Revo reel on 35# braid.

I gotta admit, this thread has got me thinking whether an even nicer rod will make a difference in feel when I have a hali on the other end... but for RF and lings, probably don't matter too much.

Sonny, I wanna test your G.Loomis when RF season starts !!