All-Purpose Rod

[FlyGuy]

Hello again, (Hope I'm not too annoying yet!)

I just got into the whole bass fishing thing from being an avid fly fisherman for over three years. Mostly for trout in Montana, but then moved to Alabama for work. Not too many trout, so I slowly began my ascent into bass fishing. All I fish with now is a 6 weight fly rod, but I really liked my buddy's baitcaster and decided to get one of my own.

I've looked at some Ugly Stik's and Berkley's, but my buddy suggested I go a little higher quality, such as BPS, All-Star, or Falcon. I really liked the look of a Powell I saw in California, but I don't want to spend over $150.00. I was looking in the $80-110. Could I get a good rod for that price?

What would you suggest for an all-purpose rod, (And reel I geuss)?

Thanks again,

FlyGuy

[WTL]

Hey where is Alabama are you located? I'm in tuscaloosa.

The state stocks Rainbows below Smith lake dam. Its very decent flyfishing. There are also a few places that stock trout such as at tanneyhill state park near Birmingham, Madison county lake near huntsville (winter only) and I think a small park near sheffield as well has trout.

[Jim80]

In that area the shimano crucial is a great rod , and i personally use cherrywood rods and lighting rods from berkley because i haven't decided to step to a higher price range for my rods yet (to busy spending all my extra money on tackle) for baitcasters i have an abu ambassaduer and 2 pinnacle lp100s both priced under 80 dollars and work very well , Daiwa also makes some solid reels for under $100 dollars .

[FlyGuy]

Wow! Thanks for all the quick replies guys! This site is great!

Jim, where can I find a Diawa reel? What brand/model/style would you reccommend for say....ohhh... $90? Since it's my first set-up, I don't really wanna spend $200 or $300. I'll see ow I like it and upgrade as necessary.

Thank you though. Thank you too, WTL!



FlyGuy

[Buzz Wing]

Fly,

I'd reccommend something such as a Falcon LowRider or a St.Croix Triupmh, Wild River, or Premier. All are great rod for $130 and under.

Reel wise, I'd go with a Shimano Citica. Excellent reel for $120. Was my first and I liked it so much I bought another. Kudos to that reel...

[Jim80]

There should be a BPS down , as far as what model i don't use them but have heard great reviews for them. I use the reels i mentioned above, the last setup i bought cost me $70.00 and i do plan on a better reel but not within the next couple months .

[BassBoySouth]

You can get that citica for $90 at tackle warehouse right now.
http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/descp...MANO-SCIT.html

[dubyatee]

Any of the rods you mentioned in the ~100 dollar range are pretty nice and good quality. Pretty much a 6-6 mh rod will handle most of your bass fishing needs. Just find one that feels good and is comfortable. From there just pick out a reel in a similar price range and put it on the rod and find the setup that fits you. Diawa's make good reels. you should be able to find something like this in your budget. Hope this helps!

[carolina-rig-01]

falcon origionals are a little under $100. there are a lot of good rods in that price range but falcon is my favorite.

[BigBassin144]

For a rod: Falcon LowRider, Shimano Compre, Shimano Crucial, Fenwick HMX, Fenwick HMG. A 6'6" or 7' MH rod will be great for a beginning all prupose rod. As for the reel, I'd go to the top of my budget (which isn't very much so I save up). Daiwa Tierra, Daiwa Advantage A, Abu Garcia Revo S, AG Revo SX.

BB

[Rebbasser]

Flyguy-you can definitely get a good rod/reel for that price. If I had to pick one I'd get a medium heavy action. It is stiff enough for soft plastics but can still handle other applications.

The action is a bit of a misnomer. It is really the power of a rod that carries a rating. Which brings me to an explanation or the rating. Most bass rods range from ultra light to extra heavy. Essentially the light action rods are real limber and the stiffness increases as you move from light to heavy.

As to what rod/reel: There are a lot, and I mean a LOT of good rods/reels out there. Rather than suggest specific rods and reels my advice is to go someplace that sells them and handle a few and get the one that feels right to you.

For the record I use Falcon rods and Daiwa reels.

[Fishbear]

You said you really liked the Powell rods.. Well they just dropped their prices.

If you go to the website, they show the new pricing on their rods. However, you can not go wrong with any of the above mentioned rods as well. Another one to look at would be the Daiwa Light and Tough series.

[Lilmoosecountry]

As a fellow fly fishermen my self. You probably have a good nose for graphite. My suggestion is an All Star. I love mine.

[crankybait]

The St. Croix Premier buzz mentioned is nice. Falcons are good too. And I've heard All-star rods give great bang for the buck, and aren't too expensive

[bcklash]

BPS has there exreme rods normally 100.00 for 59.95 rt now. Excellant rod I have 6 of them. I'd go with a 6'6" med. or med heavy either would make a good all round rod. As for the reel I like Diawas. The Tierra is a good reel for 120.00. That would be a good combo for 180.00 plus tax. Hope this helps.

[BassMaster_17]

You cant go Wrong with a Diawa Megaforce for $59.99 and a Berkley Lighning Rod in a MH- 6'6" or 7' for $40 that combo will run you $100+ tax and very tough to beat for the $$. Imo it compares with the $300- $400 combos for 1/3-1/4 les the $$.

[Bmuskin]

Originally Posted by BassMaster_17

You cant go Wrong with a Diawa Megaforce for $59.99 and a Berkley Lighning Rod in a MH- 6'6" or 7' for $40 that combo will run you $100+ tax and very tough to beat for the $$. Imo it compares with the $300- $400 combos for 1/3-1/4 les the $$.

I bought the Megaforce at Christmas....my 1st baitcaster.....I love it although we had our ups and downs at 1st I really like this rod. I put it on a Clearance Shimano I also got at Dicks and I really like this combo. I purchased A pflueger combo on clearance there also and have not even touched it after using the Megaforce. Berkley is awesome, Ugly Stick...although I do not like the 2 piece cause it tends to fly apart, and the low end All Star rod is great. Also there are some great retipped rod deals on Ebay.

[3dkicker]

6' light to medium action spinning rod should be your first choice. It will allow you to fish for all types of species in many different bodies of water. It will give you more presentations and allow you to catch more fish. And if you don't believe me then ask Uncle Homer. I believe he's got more experience than two or three of the veterans here combined.

[BassMaster_17]

Originally Posted by 3dkicker

6' light to medium action spinning rod should be your first choice. It will allow you to fish for all types of species in many different bodies of water. It will give you more presentations and allow you to catch more fish. And if you don't believe me then ask Uncle Homer. I believe he's got more experience than two or three of the veterans here combined.

Whats a spinning rod????? LOL J/k I dont currently own one but do need to get a couple set ups, as its tough for me to do since I dont see them as bass fishing rods and reels. I do need a couple for my arsenal though!!

[BigBassin144]

Originally Posted by BassMaster_17

Whats a spinning rod????? LOL J/k I dont currently own one but do need to get a couple set ups, as its tough for me to do since I dont see them as bass fishing rods and reels. I do need a couple for my arsenal though!!

Shimano Symetre. Awesome spinning reel, and can't beat the price.

BB

[Bmuskin]

Anyone here tried the Okuma stuff? I bought one reel during Christmas it was very well priced and I ahve been super pleased with it.

[3dkicker]

BM17 - Don't really know myself but I've heard they can be used to catch largemouth and smallmouth.

[bamabassman]

hey where in bama are ya pal? wtl is on t-town, and i am near scottsboro.

[zooker]

Originally Posted by BigBassin144

For a rod: Falcon LowRider, Shimano Compre, Shimano Crucial, Fenwick HMX, Fenwick HMG. A 6'6" or 7' MH rod will be great for a beginning all prupose rod. As for the reel, I'd go to the top of my budget (which isn't very much so I save up). Daiwa Tierra, Daiwa Advantage A, Abu Garcia Revo S, AG Revo SX.

BB

how rude puts sh!tmano's afore fenwick rods. at least he got the diawas in the right order..

Originally Posted by 3dkicker

6' light to medium action spinning rod should be your first choice. It will allow you to fish for all types of species in many different bodies of water. It will give you more presentations and allow you to catch more fish. And if you don't believe me then ask Uncle Homer. I believe he's got more experience than two or three of the veterans here combined.

i agree with a decent spinning rod 1 pcs prefured..

now kicker the only reason uncle homie has that experiance is cause he is 5 times OLDER than we is combined...

Originally Posted by Bmuskin

Anyone here tried the Okuma stuff? I bought one reel during Christmas it was very well priced and I ahve been super pleased with it.

hell yeah love all of mine -got 4 reels now- i hit the salt water in the fall and they are worth every penny. open it up and clean one you'll be even more impressed. lots of metal parts in there unlike alot of the other new stuff-mostly plastic parts-..

zooker

[Fishnfool4evr]

Well i dont know about the rest of you guys. but i have 2 ugly sticks with mitchell 300's on the from my younger days. say 30 yrs ago, and i am still catching fish with them, although the rest are Berkley Lighting Rods with Phluger & Shimano reels that do what they need to, i have tried a lot of different rod's and reels and i find that the more expensive they are does not mean the better they are, it's all in what is comfortable to you and how well you take care of it. I for one don't knock what everybody else use's because it is what they prefer to use. just make sure you don't throw light lure's on medium heavy or heavy sticks or heavy lure's on medium light or light rod's and don't over fill yur reels, and you''ll do just fine. jmo fellows