Fishing Line

[lookin4fish]

Embarrassed to say, but I bought my rod from Walmart for like $25. It came with some basic lures and such. My question though is regarding the fishing line. Do you guys think that the line provided with these type of kits is worth a darn or should I buy something else? If so, any fan favorites out there?

Also, I just got skunked two days in a row.

[Rebbasser]

I'd change it. That line is usually the cheap stuff, and line is your only connection to the fish.

Brands-I use P-Line Floroclear, but there are a number of good brands-Trilene, Stren, Suffix-if you stay with one of the name brands you will be fine.

[WallStreetAmigo]

I agree with Reb. When starting out, you can't go wrong with a good mono like Trilene XL. It was the first line I bought and I have been happy with it. It is not overly expensive, but the quality is reasonably good. Flourocarbon lines and braided lines tend to be more expensive. One thing: Avoid the cheap stuff. 1000 yard spools for 5 bucks may sound like a bargain, but you will eventually start hooking into fish (don't worry, getting skunked is part of the game...) and with the cheap line you will soon learn why we are warning you. I learned that the hard way myself...lol.

Don't be embarassed about your rod purchase. If it gets you out there fishing, it is worth it. My first rod/reel was $40 bucks or so, and I am still using it. Eventually you will buy better rods and reels, but expensive gear does not mean you are automatically a better fisherman. Use what you've got and you will quickly figure out when you need to upgrade. Good luck and keep the faith that the fish are there and you will start catching them if you learn from every time you get skunked. This site is a tremendous resource. Use the search button and you'll be amazed at what you can find out on here.

[1/4 stick]

I'd change the line and upgrade it to a better brand. As far as the reel purchase, I believe I've pulled in more bass consistently with my old zebco 33 combo I bought a few years ago for 19 bucks than I do with the rods and reels that I've spent over a hundred dollars on. Not big ones, mind you, but I pull in some nice 3 to 4 pounders on it on a regular basis.
And let me find a bream bed if I have it with me, I'll forget all about the bass for awhile.

[BigBassin144]

Sorry My computer accidentally posted in wrong place. But I would change the line on your rod. For a beginner i would suggest Stren original mono.

[bassfisher02]

I used to buy sooo many of those walmart rod/reel combos, simply because I would consistently break them on hooksets. This was when I was just beggining. Theres nothing wrong with purchasing these set ups when you just start, but I would deffinitely upgrade as you get more into it. Deffinitely change the line, thats the first thing I did everytime I bought one.

[Kawabuggy]

I have to make a comment about Zebco rods & reels. When I was first learning, this was all I could afford. After buying nicer rods and reels, it took quite a while before I was able to start catching fish again. I finally realized that the Zebco reels have a much slower gear ratio, and I was working the bait longer in the strike zone. When I switched to a fancier rod, I was moving the bait too much, and too quickly. I had to re-learn my reeling procedures.

Those rods have their uses.

[Rebbasser]

Kawabuggy, first off, welcome to the forum! Always glad to see a fellow Texan join.

You bring up a good point-making the jump from a Zebco to a better reel does have a learning curve. Now standard is 6.3:1 with a 7.1:1 ratio gaining ground. My most recent reel purchase, though, is a 4.7:1. I've been throwing a crankbait more and more and the big deep runners like a DD-22 are extremely hard to fish on a high speed reel-they flat wear you out. Bought a BPS David Fritts crankbait reel and throwing a big deep running bait is no harder than throwing a Trap on a high speed reel.

[hackattack]

yeah reb I like low gear ratios...

as for line I would buy a huge spool of stren and respool weekly

[scrap]

them fish are stupid. they dont know if u have a $1.00 outfit or a thousand dollar outfit. they react to their own little world, food, and shelter being their top priorities. be in the right place at the right time kazaam. u may catch the fish of your lifetime. their aint no rhyme or reason to fishing. use what u got and let your friend the baitmonkey, help you spend hundreds and even thousands of dollars to catch them stupid littler buggers. right now, i am a fish addict. i enjoy the sport very much. so go get hooked..like alot of us and enjoy the sport.

[BigBassin144]

Like I sort of accidently said before, for a beginner I'd go with STREN Original Mono. I've been fishing that since I was like 5 with my dad, and he's been using it for 20 years. If you wanna go with Braided, I've had people suggest PowerPro to me, but for my first braid I went with BPS Premium Excel Braid. It's not bad either. But yes, I would definatley change the line.

[basschamp4]

dont be embarrassed about how much your rod costs i bought a rod and reel combo for 14.88 at dicks and it has worked just fine for me

as for line im with reb p-line floroclear is the way to go

[jooleyen]

Lol. I'm embarrassed to say mine is expensive.

[basschamp4]

as long as it works and has line on it you have a chance to catch some fish

but yes you should get some stronger line

[BigBassin144]

Yeah, He's right. I had gotta a new fishing rod a while back ('bout 2 years) for my birthday and I wanted to try it out. Well of course my so did my little cousin. We let him use one of our rods we have for little kids. It's a $9.99 Shakespeare spincasting rod from walmart. My dad helped him casting it and stuff but with a small aberdeen hook and a little piece of worm, he outfished me. and he didn't just catch bluegill, he caught some bass and a catfish ('bout 20" at the time). just goes to show doesn't matter what rod or reel your using, you can catch fish.

by the way, those catfish are 24-26" now and extremely fun to catch on an ultralite with 4-6# test

[CLENSKH]

My first rod ever was 10 bucks! It was a Zebco snoopy pole. I broke the handle on a bass I cought out of a river on a rattle trap. Good times..

[1FASTLASER]

Originally Posted by Rebbasser

Kawabuggy, first off, welcome to the forum! Always glad to see a fellow Texan join.

You bring up a good point-making the jump from a Zebco to a better reel does have a learning curve. Now standard is 6.3:1 with a 7.1:1 ratio gaining ground. My most recent reel purchase, though, is a 4.7:1. I've been throwing a crankbait more and more and the big deep runners like a DD-22 are extremely hard to fish on a high speed reel-they flat wear you out. Bought a BPS David Fritts crankbait reel and throwing a big deep running bait is no harder than throwing a Trap on a high speed reel.

Glad I was looking around in here. Hey Reb how does the New David Fritts compare to the good ole Lew's BB1N????? I gottta know man. I totally agree with you on your reel selection for cranks. Slow ratio reels are at the best with cranks but I still like the 5.3 and the 5.8 reels for everything else. I do own a few of the 6.3 reels and see no need for the 7.0 reels. Although I havent tried one I am sure there is a time and a place for them. I remeber the original burner The Daiwa 7.1-1. Fast reel with NO power to get a fish in.

[FisherMex]

Hello guys...What's the correct line strength for Bass fishing, I read all your comments regarding "good" line brands, but I still have the question about how the line should be for Bass...10 lb. 15 lb or 20 lb? How do you choose what's best for Bass ? Sorry for this rookie's question! Greetings from Mexico !

[ESipes_89]

It all depends on where and how your fishing but I would change your line. I particularly like 10-20lb shakespear supersmooth line in semi-open water for my Eagle Claw open face reel. It has almost no memory and is very stong for the price. You can buy a 300yd roll for around $6 or $7. But, I use a heavy PowerPro braided line for spinners, deep cranks, top-waters, or anything else in the rocks, weeds, and brush.

-Eric

P.S. the Eagle Claw combo costs $35 and I'm not ashamed to say it

[lizardsrule]

Originally Posted by FisherMex

Hello guys...What's the correct line strength for Bass fishing, I read all your comments regarding "good" line brands, but I still have the question about how the line should be for Bass...10 lb. 15 lb or 20 lb? How do you choose what's best for Bass ? Sorry for this rookie's question! Greetings from Mexico !

Raul would be the best one to answer this. However if you're fishing down there, I personally wouldn't use anything less than 20lb test. Why? Because I hate, hate, hate losing fish from broken line, and you have plenty of them down there that can break even the 20lb test. Welcome to the forum, have fun and enjoy your stay.

Lizards

[FisherMex]

Thank you both for your comments... My fishing tour is next sunday morning on Freshwater on an extension of Colorado River in Baja, Mexico... I bought a 20lb test, and some lures such as XR-10 Rapala (hope is enough) and some others... (thank God I live next to USA border and have access to this technologies) I'll let you know about it next sunday! Regards...

[BigBassin144]

Originally Posted by FisherMex

Hello guys...What's the correct line strength for Bass fishing, I read all your comments regarding "good" line brands, but I still have the question about how the line should be for Bass...10 lb. 15 lb or 20 lb? How do you choose what's best for Bass ? Sorry for this rookie's question! Greetings from Mexico !

My advice, follow the recomendations on your rod and reel. it should say on both, along with lure wight suggestios on your rod.