newbie's rod/reel dilemma

Howdy,
I'm new here, and while I was @ the Fred Hall show, I talked to a couple of you folks, who said that the spinning-rigs I am used to using weren't the best for kayak fishing.  I am in the market for a kayak (only have a touring boat right now) , and don't want to drop a  ton on a rod/reel right now, but I am hoping to get a couple suggestions about what to get for a first rockfish/ling rig.  I know nothing about convensional/baitcasters, being a freshwater guy.  I'd like to keep it around 150.00, if that's even possible, without buying junk.  If not, I'll wait 'til I get that boat, and save up for something better.

Thanks,

Rick Brown

I'd suggest a Penn 500 and a 7' Ugly sick, tiger or graphite.

Penn 500 is bulletproof, a bit slow, but can handle just about anything this area would provide without being TOO big.

Ugly sticks are hardy and responsive, and economical.

mke sure to get at least a 7' rod, so you can reach it around the nose of your uak.

Good luck let usknow what you get!!

Allen

Shimano Trevala 7' TVC70ML  use for sturgeon and salmon also

Dawia SL 20H braid or mono

Abu 6000 with braid

penn 500 with mono

I don't like Penn reels. That's just my opinion....and opinions are like a-holes and everyone has one and they all stink. I suggest the Shimano Cardiff reel for about $100 bucks. Then slide it on a rod that fits your budget. I don't know where you live, but if you're near an Outdoor Pro Shops, they can help you out and allow you to touch what you're looking at before you buy.

Good luck!

CHEERS!
 

The shimano Trevala rods are an excellent value and perfect for fishing braid.  I am really impressed with their stuff... and that's saying alot for a rod snob like me.   

Reels: some to consider would be...

Daiwa Sealine Linecounters... SG17LCA or SG27LCA... very nice light reels with line counters which can be very handy if you're going to troll with the rod as well.  I have one of each and love 'em.  Nice smooth drags from Daiwa as well. 

Shimano TR100G... this is my go-to reel... can't beat the durability for $50 and with a quick drag upgrade ala Alan Tani, they perform awesome.  Light weight and small enough to hold in the hand all day but with enough line capacity for anything we're doing.  Very low maintenance reel.

ABU 6500CL3... can't hardly go wrong with this one... upgrade the drag for best performance.

Shimano Reels for me.  Triton TLD Star (TLD 15/30 or 20/40) both around $100.  Speedmaster TSM IV is $110 and Triton 200 GT.  Also, TRN 100 G & 200 G for $100.  Sometimes can find these on E-Bay.  Load up with 30, 50 to 65 lb. braid. I would buy it new and not used.

The rod you can get a Ugly Stick (7 to 8 ft) to start out with.

Ken kickfish

Yes, despite being a Penn afficianado, all reel/rod combos mentioned above would do well for you.

Another advantage for the shimano or the sealine is that, being more modern, they are manuactured a bit tighter, and in the long run take less maintenance.  personally, I enjoy doing maintenance, so the older Penns are my "go-to's"

For kayak fishing, when you buy a new reel, it's really smart to take it apart and put a little grease on the tip of each side plate screw.

hey, as long as you have it apart, you may as well switch out the drag wahers for composite washers that take the shimano drag grease.  this is a super-pgrade for any reel and costs very litle.

See Alan Tani posts for instructions......

Good luck

Allen

IMO: shimano trevala rod rated to 30 to 80# - ($100.00) and a shimano cardiff reel  ($100.00 at the most) The Trevala rod is super light - a great thing to have when your jigging heavy irons all day You can use it for Sturgeon and Halibut as well.

The Shimano Trevala rod kicks 

scallen's choices are the bullet-proof tanks of fishing for sure! unlikely to fail you but it is nice to have something
lighter in weight and more sensitive.

this choice is not as durable but is lighter and more sensitive and a lot of fun for shallow water rockfish and other local saltwater fish short of a big sturgeon or 40lb salmon:

An abu garcia ambassadeur C3 ($70) and a 2piece 8.5 foot 10-30lb graphite rod like a shakespeare catera or intrepid ($50).

The new abu garcia ambassadeur series come with carbon fiber drag now stock.

the gears are a little stronger too, supposedly.

so all you have to do is grease them for water protection now.

some reel manus must have been listening to alan tani and his advice perhaps?

spooled with 30lb braid (but with drag in the 2lb to 7lb range) you are set for a lot of local fishing.

if you really enjoy yourself you can have erik k. make you a custom kayak rod next winter! 

I'll second the penn jigmaster but the 501 model (smaller version of the 500; discontinued but available on ebay around the $50 mark) paired to a 7' ML action conventional rod.  Its a basic and inexpensive set up that'll have you covered for most every fish, technique, water condition you'll encounter in our waters.  Chances are you will outgrow this rig and buy stuff more specialized to your preferred style but it will get you to that point and believe it or not you will always have a use for it.  Sometimes you need a loaner, sometimes you want to target bigger fish, fish deeper with heavier terminal tackle. 
BTW; Using you're spinning gear is not out of the question either.  One of the most fun days I've ever had was tossing 1 oz diamond jigs on a trout rod to schoolie blues.  It was just like bass fishing except the blues were pulling more drag.           

I like using line counter reels like the Okuma Catalina and Shimano Tekota with 20-30# powerpro with 20# fluorocarbon topshot to target rockfish and salmon using a FF. The line counter helps when the fish are in the middle column of water. I build my own rods usually from St Croix or Loomis for light duty, Calstar Grafighters (GF 700L) for heavy duty diamond jigs and big fish.

Scott

John,

Yes, the new C3 reels from ABU come with carbon drag washers. Well at least some of them are carbon. The small washer under the drive gear is still something else. It looks like fabric. And the other carbon washers are still smaller than those provided in upgrade kits. Now of course, things change, but this is what I saw in the two new reels I prepped last night.

Rick,

Personally, I'm now using a Muskie style 7' conventional rod combined with 6500 series ABU reels and 30 lb PowerPro top shots over cheapo mono. I use the Muskie rod as I want a combination of backbone and fast tip for jigging. I purchased the rod/reels as a combo, and have less than $120 in them, including shipping, line, and upgraded drags. While I enjoy fine equipment, my philosophy is that seagoing kayak fishermen need to be prepared to lose gear and not cry. Hence, while I'll kayak flyfish freshwater with a $700 rod/reel/line combo, ain't no way that gear is going on my 'yak in the salt.

Regards,
Scott

scott, that is what I see too, 3 carbon fiber washers, 1 regular fiber washer on the other side of the stack from the main gear. you will get one of erik's rods if you see mine,  . the guides don't rust and rod has built-in flotation. so it should last for awhile (knock on wood).

My son 'CHUB' just lost rod and reel combo #2 !!!  this last weekend and we were fishing fresh water both times. Fortunately they were both lesser expensive spinning combos. Time to leash this kid's stuff.
I haven't lost a combo overboard..yet.. thank goodness.
I look at all the top of the line stuff and cannot help thinking that 'back in the day' the best gear they had was probably comparable to the mid-range stuff we have available today. And don't forget the fish were bigger and more plentiful back then too.
I have a Penn 321 GTI and an Abu Ambassador 6501CL3. Both are left handed reels. Depending on what kind of fishing I am doing will determine which I use. They are not too expensive but not bottom of the barrel either.
I will also interchange them with various rods too.