BrackishBassin

I definitely like my spinning gear (I use mostly Penn reels like the Fierce and Battle), but I have found that I can cast more times with a baitcaster than I can with my spinning gear. That is assuming that I have no backlashes of course. So, in situations where I'm tossing a lure at breaking fish, I think a baitcaster would be to my benefit. I do like the sound of the TWS Coastal, but I think that's a little out of my price range, if I can't manage to find a used one on eBay or something.

I haven't fished any of those, but I have thrown my crankbaits (especially the lighter ones) with a 7' med/light Ugly Stik Elite. I love the rod and it fishes the crankbaits as well as jerk baits really well. They're right around $50, and I'm a big fan of the single piece stainless steel guides.

I do appreciate the information! I fish saltwater as much as I fish for bass, so I figured why not try to have a set up that does double duty. I currently fish saltwater with exclusively spinning reels, but thought it might be fun (and to my benefit) to be practicing using a baitcaster while I was doing my saltwater stuff.

Thanks for the information! Customer service goes a long way in my book.

The fiberglass tip on Ugly Stiks is one of the reason I like their rods so much. It's all I use for saltwater stuff. Insane how sensitive the rod is while still being capable of throwing two ounce sinkers + bait.

Anyone have any experience with these reels? Good or bad, please share!

I made some homemade jigs this summer for saltwater. Caught a little baby gar with one. I was all excited because it was the first fish I'd ever caught on one of my lures. Except, I hadn't caught him with the lure. He swiped at it and wrapped his nose up in my line. I'm still counting it, even if the hooks weren't involved at all.

Thanks all!

Excellent! Thanks for the replies guys! I may be able to pick up two of them for a steal. I'll snag them if I can.

Been fishing saltwater quite a while, mostly pier and shore stuff for rockfish, perch, flounder, and reds. Recently got into freshwater stuff after my twin boys were born this past May. Don't have the time to spend all day on a pier anymore, but I can sneak in an hour or two at a pond without too much of an issue. So, I've got a decent amount of experience fishing, but I'm learning the bass game. Look forward to talking with you guys as I figure out what the heck I'm doing. Has been interesting seeing some of the similarities though. For example, kept hearing about a Carolina rig. Finally watched a video on them and was laughing. Us saltwater boys call that a fish finder rig and we use them all the time.

Anyone have any experience with this brand, good or bad?

Pulling a fish in and the snapping motion of a cast are two completely different types of strain, in my opinion. One is a heavier load, but it's applied over a much longer time frame. The other is a lighter load, but is applied almost instantaneously. It's not about the weight, it's about the force being applied. Force = mass times acceleration. You could easily apply much more force with a smaller mass due to the amount of acceleration involved (think bullets for an extreme example). So, to actually answer the question - yes, you can exceed the recommended lure weight, just be aware of how you're casting it. If it starts to feel mushy when you cast, you're playing with fire.

I got the Black Max combo as my first baitcaster. If you like to throw plastics that much, my suggestion would be to go with a Med power rod. I have trouble throwing weightless plastics with my MH and the Black Max reel.

About as far south as you can go before you fall in the water.

I really appreciate the offer, truly, but I had newborn twin sons. Unfortunately, a two hour trip for fishing related purchases just isn't in the schedule. If I happen to get even an hour to myself, I'm either wetting a line or taking a nap. I'll definitely keep that in mind though, for when they're a little bigger. An all day trip just isn't feasible with them at the moment. Sounds like the shop has what I need though. The local one here just carries saltwater gear and a few ridiculously priced baitcasting combos ($375 is the cheapest). So, it'd be nice to get to talk to some guys that have a clue what they're talking about. Thanks! I'll add the Curados to my list of reels to consider. I've been doing some digging on eBay and have found some decent deals.

So, does the single hook rule apply to something like a weightless senko or creature bait? I can't imagine throwing something like that on my MH rod without a backlash, but maybe I just haven't cast it enough. I don't really think the reel is worth sending off to get serviced. I got the combo on sale for $50 and then got a $20 rebate, so I'm looking at a combo that cost me $30 total. Between shipping and the cost for the service, it'd probably be cheaper to just buy a new one. Thanks for the suggestions on the reels. I'll definitely check them out. Any clue if they'd stand up to a little saltwater usage? As my name implies, I fish some areas that are technically considered freshwater, but I bet have some salt in them if you were to test them.

Thanks! I'll definitely take a look at the Tatula line. It'd be even better if Dick's carries it in store. I've got a friend that can get me a 25% discount on anything they carry, but it has to be in store. I'll look at the Dobyns, but I think I'd rather spend most of the budget on a reel. I've had quite a bit of success with weightless plastics (worms, lizards, and brush hogs), and some with smaller crankbaits. My PB actually came from the pond I referenced. I caught it on a 6" Zoom lizard while the bluegill were spawning. I've thrown both a frog and spook, but I think I'm missing the morning bite and haven't been able to stay around to see if they hit top water in the evening. It looks like that's the direction I'm going to have to go. I was trying to avoid it, if I could, because I'm still somewhat new to the freshwater side of fishing. So, I was trying to limit costly purchases I would decide I don't need down the line. I figured combos would be the most versatile, but that doesn't seem to be the case. They almost all come with MH rods.

Yeah, that's exactly what I'm looking for. A decent combo that offers a med power rod with a left hand retrieve reel option. Rare as hen's teeth.

I'm not having issues with the 1/2 ounce lures backlashing, but they're just getting buried in the grass. Grass covers pretty much the entire bottom. So, anything light enough to stay above the grass backlashes on the cast unless I'm crazy careful. I could fish exclusively with my spinning set up, but I'd really like to work on my technique with baitcasters. The med light has worked great so far, but I'm using it to fish weightless plastics almost exclusively. I was looking at the Mach 2 as well, but that's a MH rod. Already have one of those. Carbonlites appear to all be right hand retrieves. I need a left.

Depending on the length of the rod, I wouldn't see any issue with using it to fish for bass. Personally, I wouldn't want to be swinging anything longer that 7', but I spend a majority of my time bank fishing. So, I need to avoid trees and brush. If I am on a boat, it's never solo. So, again, I like to keep the rods at 7' or below to avoid annoying anyone else on the boat. The other day, I went fishing with a local guy for some perch. He was using a St. Croix Mojo Bass rod to bottom fish with a 2 ounce sinker. I cringed every time I saw him cast, but it worked.

I've been fishing with an Abu Garcia Black Max combo I picked up for cheap, and a Penn Fierce II 2000 paired with an Ugly Stik Elite 7' med/light. After spending some time fishing with the Black Max combo, I realize I might have messed up. I spend most of my time bank fishing (have a boat, but it doesn't have a trolling motor on it and gas motors aren't allowed on the only local bass fishing lake) and the MH rod with the Black Max combo just isn't cutting it for me. I'm finding that I can't fish a majority of my baits without dealing with serious bird's nest issues. The bodies of water that I fish most frequently have quite a bit of grass, so anything heavy (1/2 ounce and above) is just getting buried. So, I'm looking to pick up something a little more versatile (like something in a med power). 1. Does anyone know of a decent combo (around $170) that's available in both a medium power and left hand retrieve? 2. Does anyone have any suggestions for rod/reel pairings in that price range? Any and all assistance would be appreciated!