Getting first boat rod.

Started by JAW1973, July 24, 2018, 04:34:20 PM

Previous topic - Next topic

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

JAW1973

I am looking for a Halibut and rock cod setup for the Northern California Bay Area.  I want something for use on charter boats and would also like something that I can use to cast off a pier or shore if I want.  I don't want to break the bank.  Looking for a $150 to $250 setup, but will spend more if it is worth it. Kind of looking at the Shakespeare Tidewater or Bigwater series or the Ugly stick Tiger elite series rods.  I just don't know what length and weight I should be looking at. Also, do I want roller eyes or at the least a roller tip? 

For reels I'm not sure what I want.  How much line do I need it to hold?  Do I just want to go with a big baitcaster with some sort of cast control?  Do I want levelwind in a conventional reel?  How well do levelwinds cast?  What gear ratio do I want?  How much drag do I need?
Been looking at the Penn Warfare or Squall series but there are a ton of other options as well.

thorhammer

Roller tip rods don't cast well, and don't offer much benefit bottom fishing anyway. A Penn 113H is hard to beat, and will leave you half the budget to find a 7 - 8 foot rod. You will find on this site you can modify it anyway you want downstream should you choose to. Appropriately rigged you could probably cast an 8' 75-80 yards.

No less than the Boss himself gave it his stamp this week of being the AR-15 of reels.

alantani

ok, this one i can answer!

5 pounds of drag is all you need.  most of the set ups are jigmaster sized reels with 65 pound braid and a medium weight 7-8 foot rod rated 20-50.   a daiwa sl 20shv or shimano tld star 15/30 would be great.  no cast control needed.  you will need to change out the drags first, though.  for a levelwind reel, an old penn 320 gt2 works well.  for rods, old school fiberglass seekers or calstars are great.  even an ugly stick would be fine. 

this is all pretty light tackle stuff.  nothing heavy duty needed here. 
send me an email at alantani@yahoo.com for questions!

JAW1973

Thanks for the input.  5 lb of drag is all that is needed?

I recently took a charter and didn't really like the rod they gave me.  It was way too light compared to everyone elses and seemed to sag and bounce around too much.  We were using 8 oz to 16 oz weights.  Should the 20 - 50 lb rod be good for that weight? The 25-50 lb rods I'm looking at say they are for 6 -12 oz lures.

I forgot to mention that I want left hand reel, so my options are limited on the reels I can go with.  What is the minimum amount of 65 lb braid I can get away with?  Also, what gear ratio is best?

thorhammer

Penn 321GTi ...lefthanded version of 320 the Boss indicates, pretty castable and you can get one for less than $75. Great drags. I have eight 320's I use for light mackeral trolling and bottom fishing. never a single issue. 300 yds or so of 20 mono so 500 yds 50 braid, though I'd back with mono and load 300 yds braid on it.

JAW1973

Quote from: thorhammer on July 24, 2018, 08:59:07 PM
Penn 321GTi ...lefthanded version of 320 the Boss indicates, pretty castable and you can get one for less than $75. Great drags. I have eight 320's I use for light mackeral trolling and bottom fishing. never a single issue. 300 yds or so of 20 mono so 500 yds 50 braid, though I'd back with mono and load 300 yds braid on it.

I don't see the Penn 321GTi  or the 320 on the Penn website.  Their search function doesn't find either.  Are they still selling new?

alantani

send me an email at alantani@yahoo.com for questions!

Gfish

#7
I've got an older Shaky Tidewater. Pretty well designed, but made of relatively cheap materials. The drag's not too smooth at 5 lbs. and the graphite frame dosen't look too strong at the base( reel seat area). I have it in my bottom fish bucket as a back- up for a Jigmaster. If you aren't used to line/spool management, the reels mentioned with a levelwind system would be best.
Hard to beat 2-300yds. of 50 or 65lb. spectra with about 2yds. of 40lb. mono as a topper for bottom fishing.

4:1 gears outta work pretty good.
Fishing tackle is an art form and all fish caught on the right tackle are"Gfish"!

oc1

#8
I think the set-up starts with the weight.  Get a rod to match the weight (the lure weight number).  Then get a line pound test to match the rod.  Get a line length (yards) to match the expected fish and conditions.  Then get a reel that will hold that much line; no more and no less.  The reel drag needs to match the line (25 or 30% rule of thumb).  Get a star drag reel if you plan to cast it.  Get non-levelwind if you plan to cast it far.
-steve

JAW1973

Thanks for the advice.  I've been looking at the Squall reels. They seem pretty nice.

How come conventional reels don't have disengaging levelwind like bass baitcasters do?  It would seem to me they would cast further without the friction and force needed to move the level wind back and forth. I know the reels are wider so the angle to the line guide might factor in, but I think it wouldn't cause enough to limit the distance that much.  At least not more than the levelwind.  And it seems people don't like the level wind because they bind up or break if you get a fish that likes to run.  Disengaging would fix this as well.

Gfish

I posted bout one witha disengaging levelwind system---a very large baitcaster---in the Ambassedeur sub-forum a couple a weeks ago:" A Blast From The Past"... Appearently there are several models with the disengaging levelwind system. 1980's "Ultra Mag" series.
Fishing tackle is an art form and all fish caught on the right tackle are"Gfish"!