I/MBasser

First, I've done nothing but read this forum for the past few weeks. Thank you to everyone who has participated in the hundreds of threads. What an education! I've probably changed my mind on my approach a half dozen times. But, I've finally got it through my head that there isn't a perfect approach and what works for some will not work for others. With that said, I just want to make sure my line of thinking makes sense and I'm not making any obvious mistakes. I'm new to fishing this year and have come to love it. Looking forward to buying some new gear and attacking next year. How I fish: always from shore at local ponds and smaller lakes, mostly in Illinois. Because I'm walking I want to limit myself to 4 setups. I'm going to take an approach roadwarrior wrote about in the pinned 'Rod Selection: The Basics'. 1. Wacky worm, ned rig, shaky rig and other soft plastics and light lures Fox River Lures and Rod MF, 7'. This is a local company and I already own one of their rods. Love them. Shimano NASCI 8# Sunline Super FC Sniper 2. Jigs, spinnerbaits, Texas rigs, lipless crankbaits, buzzbaits, soft swim baits in the 3.5" - 5" range and other single hook lures Fox River L&R MHF, 7' Shimano Curado or Chronarch, 7.1 (in that range) 12# Sunline Super FC Sniper 3. Crankbaits, jerkbaits, poppers, whopper ploppers and other lures with treble hooks Fox River L&R MM, 7' Daiwa Laguna 100HLA, 6:3.1. This was my first baitcaster. Good entry level reel to use before deciding to invest in more baitcasters. 12# Sunline Super Natural Mono 4. Flipping, frogs and anything larger Fox River L&R H, 7'9" Shimano Curado or Chronarch, 8.1 (in that range) 40# Sufix 832 braid I've been agonizing over rod and reel combos. Well, probably more about the gear ratio. Do these make sense???? Any of these baits work better with one of my proposed combinations? Couple of other notes... I only use shallow squarebill crankbaits. Just don't have tons of deep water where I fish. And since I'm fishing from shore it's difficult to cast to it at times. Because of this I'm going to use my Daiwa 6:3.1 reel. Don't think I need a 5.1 ratio, do I? And if I ever get a deeper crankbait can I just slow down my retrieval? Lots of heavy cover in the summer time. I thought the longer heavy rod for flipping made sense. From shore I have more spots I can flip to, I think? Any thoughts, good and bad, are very much appreciated!

In scenario 2, what gear ratio would you use? Everything I’ve read says 5:1 for crankbaits but this category includes other treble hook lures like poppers and jerkbaits. Would you use a 6.3:1 or greater and just slow your retrieve for crankbaits? What gear ratio do you use for #1? Do you use crankbaits with #2 and just slow your retrieve?

That’s what I’m considering. Exactly what you wrote

MHF and MM rod. Any recommendations on brand is appreciated as well. Say under $200. Thank you!

Bought the Fox River rod on the recommendation of a local shop. I knew next to nothing prior to purchase. Very happy with it but haven’t tried any other to really know if it’s good. Fox River is local and I love supporting local, small businesses. I have not tried braid on it as it still has the original spool of fluoro that we put on it at the time of purchase. I’ll check out the ones you recommended. You think MHF would be sufficient for what I like to fish? Thanks for time and input. Happy Thanksgiving to everyone as well!

Thanks for info, but that's what I'm trying to avoid. I'm not experienced enough to know when to use a specific rod for certain baits. I just want a 'jack of all trades' with braid to complement my 'jack of all trades' with fluoro (MHF). We get some pretty heavy cover in summer and braid would be helpful. Maybe I just need another MHF rod? Appreciate the info though. My current rod is MH and says 1/4 to 1 oz. I never throw anything heavier, even with trailers. Combine that with MF to F, just like my current rod. Sounds like maybe I need to get the same setup... just add braid?

Don’t have one. Don’t mind spending good money on something I’ll use for the next 30 years.

I’m a newbie this year as well. I bought a little of everything and figured out what I enjoyed the most. Turns out I love soft plastics, jigs, spinnerbaits and a couple others. So I loaded up on those. If I ever want to try something different (poppers, blitz blade, spinners, etc) I now have a few in my arsenal.

So I’m new to fishing this year and love it. Originally bought a 6’6” Pflueger Trion with 8# mono and usually fish anything 1/4oz or less on it. Then bought a 7’ Fox River MHF with 12# fluoro with a Diawa baitcaster and use that for anything heavier. I’ve read countless threads on appropriate rods which have only caused more confusion I’ve decided I’m not at the point where I’m going to buy a rod for every application but more interested in buying another rod with braided line for heavier cover. This may be a backwards approach but I just don’t have the experience to know what rod to use for jigs versus crankbaits. Therefore, I’m looking for an all around rod that can work. Jack of all trades, master of none. I really like Fox River rods as it’s local and need some advice on length, power and action. I always fish from shore in local ponds or lakes. I’ve found I really like soft plastics, jigs, crankbaits, spinnerbaits, soft swimbaits and buzzbaits. Maybe braided line doesn’t have an impact on rod choice? Not sure. Regardless, what length, power and action would you recommend as an all purpose rod? Thanks!