heavy M

I have been fishing out of a kayak for about a year now. I have a the perception caster from dicks and it seems to be a pretty good kayak. It isn't the most dry kayak, but it isn't too bad either. I am 6'2" and 275# and it is pretty stable. I mostly bass fish in lakes and saltwater fish in the marsh with it. If you are looking to get into kayak fishing and not wanting to spend too much money then it is a pretty good yak. If money isn't a problem then I would do like others recommend and demo some of the other brands like WS, Ocean kayak, or a Freedom Hawk (especially if you want to stand)

Shimano Clarus rods are pretty good rods in your price range. I have a 7 ft medium 2 piece rod. It is a pretty nice rod. I am not sure if the make it in a MH. Shimano Compre rods are also pretty nice.

St. Croix has a 6'6" MH/F rod in their Premier line. I don't have any first hand experience with St. Croix rods, but I am sure if you do a search you find a lot of people like them. Depending on what type of lures you plan to use the Med/F Shimano Compre rod would be pretty good. I agree that with quality of today's rods you won't be able to notice the differnce between a 1 and 2 piece rod, but you do get a whole lot more options whith 1 piece rods.

Micro Posted on: Today at 6:26pm I bought both too They are both great reels and you will not be disappointed with either.

I am pretty happy if I catch one on the first cast cause it means I won't get completely skunked

Shimano Clarus rods are hard to beat for the price. I have a the 7 ft MF rod and it is great. I have a symetre 2500 on it and it is a little tip heavy but probably not any more so than any other 7 ft rod in that price range.

Most of my rods are 1 piece, but I do own a couple of 2 piece rods as well. The 2 piece rods are great when there isn't much room. Also the come in handy when I have to travel somewhere for work and the is fishing nearby

Shimano Stradic 3000FI Shimano Compre 6' 6" MH Fast 15# PowerPro with 100% Trilene FC leader

At on one lake I fish texas rigged red shad ribbon tail worms are the bait of choice. I tried red shad senkos at the same lake, but have never had any luck. BTW the water in that lake is pretty stained. I can't remember ever having much luck with red shad in clearer water.

Like other posters have said any Shimano reel from the Sahara up will be a nice reel. I have a Stradic 3000 and a Symetre 2500 both are very nice reals if you want to save some $ money go for a Sahara or Symetre, but if you got the cash I would defiantly get the Stradic.

I recommend the shimano clarus or compre. I have versions of both of these rods and both are pretty nice. The have the full cork grips, fuji guides and come in several different lengths and powers. Also both have the shimano lifetime warranty.

For anyone who is curious, I got a Symetre today and tried my extra Stradic spool on it. The Stradic spool fit but when I put the drag knob on it stuck up a little higher and left a small gap that wasn't there with the Symetre spool. I think since the Sahara, Symetre, and Saros drag knobs are the same so the spools should be interchangable. I think the Stradic spool would work if you are okay with the gap. I hope this helps anyone looking for extra spools.

X2 on the Citica E They are great reels for the money and the centrifugal brakes work great. You will defiantly want to spend some money and buy a good reel. I tried using some cheaper reels when I started out to save money, but looking back I would have money ahead to buy better ones then.

I got a split grip Falcon Lowrider and I really like it so my vote goes to split grips, but most of my full grip rods are basspro rods with the "powerhump" so I don't really have a good full grip rod to compare to. Like others have said mostly personal preference.

Never. Although now that I say that I am surely doomed ;D. Doors and stuff sliding around in the back of the truck have claimed a few though.

The Shimano Saros 3000 would be a good reel. They are only about 30 dollars more than a Symetre and if you shop around you might be able to find one on sale for $100 The Saros has some features like the direct drive handle, waterproof drag, and palidin gears that the symetre doesn't. Also it comes with a spare spool and the symetre doesn't.

I really like my Falcon Lowrider LFC-5-168S "Angler of the Year" rod paired a Citica 200E and 10# 100% Berkley Flourocarbon. I have used this rod and reel for spinnerbaits, texas rigs, jigs, and square billed crankbaits and it seems to work great with all of them.

Bettle spins and Roadrunner's have always seemed to get me fish when nothing else will. Also a texas rigged ribbontail worm in watermelon has caught a lot of fish when nothing else will.

I will also recommend the Falcon Lowrider series. I don't have the LFC-5-1610 mentioned (although it is on the list ), but I do have the LFC-5-168 rod which is labeled as an all-purpose rod. I have used it to pitch and cast jigs and texas rigs and it worked great. Either of those rods should work. If you keep an eye-out for sales they can be had for around $100

I'll cast my vote for falcon rods. As others have said if you go with Bucoos or Lowriders I think you will be very pleased. Also shimano compre rods are a pretty good deal.

I have an older spirex reel that I used a lot when before I began using baitcasiting gear. It was a nice reel at the time, but I would not recommend it to anyone. I recommend saving and getting a Sahara. I seems to me like the Sahara is a major step up in the shimano spinning reel lineup. It is not quite as refined as a stradic, but is probably signifincantly better than a spirex or sedona.

I agree with ArticCat500 you should check out Dick's for a kayak in the price range you are talking about. I have the perception kayak mentioned and it is a great kayak for the money it is very stable and has plenty of room for gear. Also you might check with places that sell kayaks some of the ones around here have demo days where you can try out multiple models. You might be able to find the same type of thing where you live.

I have the 12 ft Perception Kayak from Dick's. It is a sit-on-top which from my experience and what I have read is the best way to go for fishing. I have taken it out a few times and am very happy with it. It is fairly easy to get in and out of (although I did fall out trying to get in the first time ) and has plenty of storage space. It was on sale for $499 when I got it. For that price it is pretty good expecially for getting started in kayak fishing.

Yeah I have been doing some research too and it looks like it should be a nice rod. Cabela's has the split grip version (LFC-5-168S) listed on their website for 104.99 and since I have squirrled away my rewards points it would be a real good deal Let me know what you think of it when you get it (if I don't order it before hand)

I am thinking about getting the Lowrider LFC-5-168 "Angler of the Year" casting rod. I plan on using it for shallow and medium diving crankbaits and spinnerbaits ranging from 1/4 to 5/8 oz. I was wondering if any one has experience with this rod and how it would handle what I plan to with it (specifically crankbaits). I'm also thinking about getting the split grip version of this rod so any info on the falcon split grip models would also be appreciated. Thanks in advance for any and all replies.