Hey Guys,

 

Been a while since I've been on.

Well I found a really nice Bass Pro Shop Extreme Rod & Reel Combo ETX 1000 LPHB set up on 6'6 Woo Davis Med action rod.

 

Gave $35 for it at a Pawn shop.

 

I took it by my local Tackle shop and this "Grizzly Adams" looking fellow starts right in badmouthing the reel, my line selection and my estimated learning curve (switching from 30 yrs of spinning reels). He croaked constantly that I need a Calcutta or Ambassador..."else I"ll just give up on bait-casting all together!"...obviously he's a Prophet as well!

 

Is this a decent set-up to learn how to use a bait-caster or would the US Reels such as the Liberty be a better choice?

Kinda looking for the path of least resistance, but I am a fairly quick study! 

 

Any thoughts/feedback?

 

Thanks 

Reg

I don't have any experience with that combo. But I think the guy you talked to was just a jackass

Reggie, sent you a Personal Message on your new baitcaster outfit.

 

You did good!!!!

Sounds like this guy was ticked off you didn't buy a combo from him.

At the price, you saved yourself a LOT of money. You can certainly learn on that combo. I have used a lot of BPS tackle and have always found it to be dependable and good value for the money spent. Go practice. I rarely use spinning tackle any more because of the reliability, accuracy, and power of the bait casting combos I now own.

Don't listen to that guy at the sport shop. You have a perfectly capable combo, now go out and practice, practice, practice!

as long is it is in good working order, you are good to go... if you like casting equipment you will likely invest in some higher end gear at some point, but you don't need to in order to be successful... good find on the combo and good luck...

 

Mitch

That setup is good to learn on the only suggestion I would have is if you practice and don't get the hang of it right away keep practicing, Also If it is difficult to get used to that particular reel, Bass Pro makes a Bionic reel geared specifically to learn how to use baitcasters. It has a "smart cast" technology that really keeps the backlash down. My wife couldn't use a casting reel to save her life. I bought her the Bionic about a year ago and now she can dial in, tune, and throw any kind of baitcasters.

Well, that guy was kind of incorrect.  You probably won't give up on bait casting gear just because one rig does or don't work.  He was correct though, that you do need a Shimano, because just the act of owning one will boost your self esteem and make you a better person.

Watch the videos on this site. They will help a ton.

He was correct though, that you do need a Shimano, because just the act of owning one will boost your self esteem and make you a better person.

 

Okay, that's pretty funny!

 

I do think the "learning curve" is a little shorter on better equipment.

The Citica is VERY user friendly. A "gently used" reel will probably

run $65-$75 in our Flea Market.

The guy was probably just made ya did not buy your combo from him, hahahahaha, but I think it will work for sure to learn and get the technique down.

Once you do that post again and then will set you up with a new combo when your ready to upgrade

Well, that guy was kind of incorrect.  You probably won't give up on bait casting gear just because one rig does or don't work.  He was correct though, that you do need a Shimano, because just the act of owning one will boost your self esteem and make you a better person.

Jeeze,," Fishes" , don't bring down the whole BR, non Shimano lovers on us at the same time. We can take them on one at a time but this could turn into a whole new Shimano vs. lesser reels debate. That could take up 100's of pages on this thread. Can anyone calculate how much fossil fuel would  be used to refute our claim that Shimano is  the best.  I only have so much time in my retired life to defend my Shimano love. I need time to go fishing with my great Shimano reels. Think before you post.

I learned on the same setup.  Mine was a 6'6" MH though. I got a M a few years later and it is still one of my favorite rods. I have thrown darn near every type of bait on that rod. The reel pooped out after about a year, but it was a good reel to start with.  The Rod however is worth $35 easily!!!!  My 6'6" M Extreme is my designated spinnerbait rod, has been for about 4 or 5 years now. Caught many many fish on it.  Good Find!!!!

Actually, the 5 lb smallmouth in my picture was caught on that Extreme rod!

I can remember going through a bunch of line before I got the hang of picking out backlashes and how to set the reel. Buy a big spool of line. You will be awfully glad you learned to use a baitcasting reel.

Hey Guys,

 

Been a while since I've been on.

Well I found a really nice Bass Pro Shop Extreme Rod & Reel Combo ETX 1000 LPHB set up on 6'6 Woo Davis Med action rod.

 

Gave $35 for it at a Pawn shop.

 

I took it by my local Tackle shop and this "Grizzly Adams" looking fellow starts right in badmouthing the reel, my line selection and my estimated learning curve (switching from 30 yrs of spinning reels). He croaked constantly that I need a Calcutta or Ambassador..."else I"ll just give up on bait-casting all together!"...obviously he's a Prophet as well!

 

Is this a decent set-up to learn how to use a bait-caster or would the US Reels such as the Liberty be a better choice?

Kinda looking for the path of least resistance, but I am a fairly quick study! 

 

Any thoughts/feedback?

 

Thanks 

Reg

 

Sounds like you did well. Go out and enjoy it. You'll learn how to use it and when you're ready to move up you'll do so. Sounds like you made a wise choice to me if you're just getting into this type of reel. I did the same thing back in highschool. I bought a Silstar from a friend of mine for 5 bucks....learned on it really well. It wasn't a great reel but it did the job. You're starting out in a much better place than I did !! LOL. Good luck and enjoy.

Just got my first bait caster this year. It's an older model Shimano bantam. Im fairly certain you can learn on any decent bait caster and it sounds like you got a great deal. I also picked up a used BPS bait caster and live them both. Ive been spending a lot of time at the baseball fields by my house practicing with my casting plugs. I've watched all fluke masters videos and talked to a couple guys on. I loaded one with 30lb braid and the other with 65lb braid. It seems to me that it's much easier to pick out the braid if you end up bird nesting. Remember to set the gears for each specific lure(my biggest problem lol). Good luck and stay with it. Only a couple months in and my confidence is soaring, I love it!

Brian