Odd question but I’m having a bit of an issue getting my son dialed in. Right now he has a Lews Mach smash spinning combo that I thought was gonna be the perfect setup. After a few trips I’ve found it to be a total POS. With that said he’s still small, and I don’t want to spend much more money. What are some good bang for the buck kid friendly setups you guys r using? 

How old is he?

 

5-6 and under - kiddie spin cast rod of the hero of his choice 

7 spin cast like a zebco UNLESS he is already passionate. My daughter was 7 when she learned to use my old greenie curado. 

 

My oldest is 6 and is rolling with a 6' 6" M/F Daiwa Aird X/Revros 2500 combo. Little over $100 for the setup. It's light and fishes about anything and he can handle it easily. It's been a very hassle free combo with very few tangles, which helps keep from him getting discouraged and keeps him fishing, so it's worth it to me in that regard.

My oldest who is 7 either uses a Shimano Nexave 1000 or my Tatula 2500 on an older Abu Veritas or Shimano Compre rod.  My youngest is 4 and uses a small zebco spincast on a small 4’6” rod.  The Shimano Nexave use to be on clearance a few years ago and I picked up a couple of them for $20 each and they have actually held up with no issues.

Why is it a POS? Issues with the reel? rod? 

 

More detail on the issue your trying to solve would be helpful. 

 

If its a casting issue it might be best to begin on a spincast combo 

1 minute ago, garroyo130 said:

Why is it a POS? Issues with the reel? rod? 

 

More detail on the issue your trying to solve would be helpful. 

 

If its a casting issue it might be best to begin on a spincast combo 

Piece of ____

 

 

Im sure you can figure out the rest ?

So to answer the questions above he’s 6 but he’s past using the snoopy/super hero rod. He’s had his own spinning rod since Christmas, his old one was a cheaper lews that I ended up accidentally breaking. the mach smash is brand new and was the replacement. The issue we r having with it is, the line keeps getting under the spool and gets wrapped on the shaft. I originally thought it was user error but after watching him more I realized it wasn’t his fault. Also its getting terrible line twist and loops. To the point it won’t cast. I at first thought it was the line but we changed line and the issues continued. Also we didn’t have the same issues with his other combo. 

3 things that might help, if you havnt done them yet. Make sure the line is spooled correctly, have him close the bail by hand after he cast, and check to make sure the line roller is turning and working correctly. These things can all cause line twist issues.