Please help clueless...

hosie · #1 03-05-2008, 05:10 PM

I'm confused about which reels to match with which rods...I want to surf fish stripers in Aug. this year,and maybe blues.I'm a 5'10" female, pretty strong. Can anyone help me out? I'm a decent fresh water fisher chic,but never really had the oportunity to surf fish since my parents moved here to N.Y. state...ugh..from my birth place Boston,Ma. Thank you, and Hello Everyone! I'm new here.

khary23 · #2 03-05-2008, 05:36 PM

First welcome to the site

It really depends on where you are going to be fishing as well of what type of fishing you are planning on doing(plugs or bait). For plugs i would suggest a nine to ten foot medium action rod that's rated to say 3oz. You want a reel that balances with the rod.
I would go to your local B&T and ask to try a few rod reel combinations out, and go with what feels the best. As far as manufactures go it really depends on how much money you want to spend.

I'm not much of bait guy but there are plenty of members who could give you suggestions if thats going to be your primary method.

mully537 · #3 03-05-2008, 06:09 PM

welcome to the site people here will help you out. as khary said more info would be helpful as to where you plan to fish in general and the dreaded money thing (not that you have to spend a lot to get involved)that time of year (aug) there are plenty of fish around my area (cape cod) and it only gets better inthetwo months that follow

hosie · #4 03-05-2008, 06:22 PM

Thank you Khary and Mully. Sorry not enough info was given by me initially. I'm planning a trip to start in Cape Ann,Glouc.then I'm coming down to Cape Cod for a week.I'm thinking maybe a couple hundred bucks for the rod n reel.

mully537 · #5 03-05-2008, 06:37 PM

you will do just fine with that $ . theres lots of good mass .north shore guys here that i hope will chime in.as for the cape that time of year the water temp has driven a lot of the bass into deeper water , lots of good fish are still taken though, primarily at night with live eels being one of the preffered methods. you are smart to start preparing now ,you will learn the answers to many of your questions just by using the search feature at the top of the page and researching the tackle you wish to buy and asking on the site for opinions ..., lots of choices out there!

Sudsy · #6 03-05-2008, 08:34 PM

First question - bait, plugs or both ??

hosie · #7 03-06-2008, 10:54 AM

Hi Sudsy! I'm planning a trip to Cape Ann,Gloucester, and then on to Cape Cod in mid Aug.I'll fish with live baits at first I think...then maybe on to plugs.My problem is rod n reel matching..I know I want a spinning reel, but not sure by whom..Same with the rod...me like Duh....Any sugestions? And thank you. Holly.

khary23 · #8 03-06-2008, 03:48 PM

for rods the good companies are; Lamiglas, G-loomis, St. Croix, AFAW ( new company but I hear great)

For reels all I have ever used are Penn's. I'm sure that others have used a wider variety and can probably help you out more than I can. If your going to fish bait then you should go with a bait runner. From what I hear shimano makes a good one.

Sudsy · #9 03-06-2008, 06:32 PM

5' 10" and pretty strong, that's good.

Can you handle throwing a 10' rod for a decent period of time?
If so I always say that every surfcaster should have a Lami XS 101 MS in their arsenal.
If you're going to be throwing a lot of bait then a Shimano Baitrunner would be your best choice to start with (ask the other guys what size - I only have one and it's a Thunnus 12000, way, way, WAY too big for what you're looking for). The baitrunner will do in a pinch for plugging but at some point you'll want to add another reel to plug with. We'll cross that bridge when we come to it.

You said live bait - unless you're talking eels that's a totally different animal. Spinning gear, even baitrunners, and livelining don't really go together particularly well. You can do it but it can be a pain in the ***. For fishing live herring, shad, and bunker you want heavy conventional gear, which, of course, doesn't go well with plugging.

A bit of a dilemma.

Striperjim · #10 03-07-2008, 01:56 AM

Hosie like sudsy says you really cant go wrong with a shimano baitrunner. The 4500 is a
good size for a 10 foot rod. Not too big but not too small either.
Has some resale value too if it doesnt work for you.
lami xs101MH - the 101 is a 2 piece and the 10 is 1 peice
Its the surf and jetty rod. Very nice for a first rod.

Not for a boat or to stick between rocks however.