new2BC4bass

That's why reel covers were invented. I use them on all my reels. Takes a few seconds, but covers stay on until I want to use that particular rod. Put the cover back on before picking up another rod. Prefer to keep my gear looking like new. I'll set a rod on the ground, but never throw it there.

Wow. 50 yards 8# mono equivalent. Try PE 0.6 braid. Listed as 10# equivalent. Double line capacity.

Believe spool size is 31mm. Any Pixy spool will fit. From what I've read, the Airy Red spool performs slightly better than the other stock spools. There are aftermarket spools for Pixy reels. Want a lighter SV spool holder less line? https://www.ebay.com/itm/255296567467 One left.

Ordered Roro BFS spool and 400m WXP1 25# Lonfort Oddport braid 5/9 from Japan Tackle. Got an email that it would be shipped 5/10. Arrived early afternoon 5/13. Paid $26.78 S&H. No free Megabass lure. Kidding. Line apparently on closeout at about 60% off so I made out like a bandit there. Must have ordered one of the last spools. Checked next day after ordering and it was out of stock.

I'll have to take out a couple Zillions, Steez and Exsence and be sure to give my B-I-L a ballpark figure on their cost new so he can rag on me about how well his yard sale spinning rod catches fish.

Link says out of stock. OP, sorry about your health. I'm with you. Prefer better quality rods and reels these days even though I don't catch more fish with them. However, they do give me more pleasure. I can't afford what you are looking for so not going to make any suggestions. My panfish rod is a 6' ML Lightning that's around 50 or so years old. I have an Ace Hawk Double (C602UL/L) for when I get the urge to try panfish with a casting rod.

I ran braid on just a few reels while living in PA. And those were mostly used on my trips to Florida. Grew up on XL and continued to use mono or a co-polymer lines when I got back into fishing. Now that I've retired to Florida, more of my reels will be seeing braid.

No combo, but I have a Limited Edition Tatula Type R that I've only taken out of the box to look at. Pretty! However, if I had the same number of rods and reels, it probably would have gotten used. As it stands atm, I have about 24 more reels than rods. Haven't taken my Alphas ito 103Ai out in years. Keeping it looking like new.

Although I don't need anymore rods, I think these two will be the last ones I buy.

MediumMouthBass, I never thought I'd see anyone post longer replies than mine. 😂 Fiberglass rods are normally quite durable. Normally have a wide lure range. Flex deep so make good treble hook rods. Sensitivity not so good. So look at a graphite rod for your next purchase. Plenty of excellent suggestions have already been made. Can't add anything to what's already been said. Be sure to look for closeouts along with sales and used gear forums. purefishing sometimes has a great deal. Picked up a $199 Aetos for $75. Best if you know what you want, not what has the best price. A rod or reel you seldom use is not a deal at any price. You could also post a WTB on the Flea Market Forum, but you may need a certain number of posts before you can post there. I've gotten some very good deals from used forums. Many states have forums. I've purchased from the Texas and New York forums.

Would love to try Cashion and Phenix rods. Like my older Tatula and Falcon rods. Maybe look at an iRod Genesis III. Be aware that the MH rated 3/16-3/8 is for the lead only. I emailed them because this is ML rod territory for me. Reply was that they fish normal MH rod (total) weights. So at least 1/4-3/4 total. Originally almost all my rods were Fast as this is supposed to be the best action for an all around rod. I've come to appreciate Daiwa Regular action rods which has led to me being more open to using my Medium-Fast and Moderate-Fast rods for more than just trebles.

As gulfcaptain said, thinner line will increase casting distance. As rangerjockey said, if the rod isn't loading properly, distance is going to suffer. Also the rod not loading properly probably will cause you backlash problems as you try to compensate by casting harder. Which may cause your casting stroke to lose some of its smoothness. Which can cause backlashing. Personally I use a lot of 12# on MH rods. It takes a lot to break the line when snagged. More pressure than I could ever exert with the rod. I don't have to worry about toothy critters (other than alligators). Lake bottoms where I fish are weedy or muddy so line abrasion is not a problem. 14# would be okay on the right rod. I was 61 when I started using a baitcaster. I will never be able to cast with zero brakes like the guys that started using baitcast reels when there were no brakes on them.

Power, not Action. Two different things. Yes, we all understand what was meant. Guess I'm a little OCD about some things. However, I'm not adverse to rod/reel colors not matching.

Although I agree a longer rod should get more distance, I have to disagree that all 7' rods are bad for distance. I've emptied over half a spool of line on a reel that was rated for 135 yards of the diameter line I was using. And I fill my spools to the bevel, not the 1/16-1/8 inch below the rim as many manufacturer pamphlets suggest. Jupiter 7' MHF, 3/4 oz. spoon, Gen1 STXL, 40# Sufix Performance braid. First time out with my new Salamandua on an Elite Tech Smallmouth 6'10" MH-MF with 5/8 oz. lipless crankbait was almost emptying the spool of 12# mono. Guy fishing next to me said he couldn't cast that far with his spinning rod and a 1 oz. lure. Before it got stolen my old Hurricane Redbone 7' ML rated 3/8-3/4 oz. would cast a 3/8 oz. crankbait quite far. Reel: Primmus HS Xi with 12# AN40. OP, I'm sure you know that St Croix rods fish heavier than rated according to many people. Just like many Abu rods. I have a 7'6" MHF Villain rated 3/8 to 1-1/4 oz. that I won't fish less than 1/2 oz. I've said this before. I watched a guy cast a 1/8 oz. lure (actual weight unknown) on a 7' MHF St, Croix with an E-series Curado. No backlash. Don't recall distance he got. He has the most powerful cast I've ever personally witnessed. I think you need a Daiwa Tatula (not an SV) or an older Helios Air. You can't buy one of my Primmus reels.

I only have one Dobyns rod and it isn't a Fury. I like it. A lot. When I first joined this site, if you posted a negative remark about Dobyns rods, you better dig yourself a hole, jump in, and pull a rock over your head. It wasn't until 2-3 years later that a few people started admitting that you could buy more sensitive rods than the Fury for the same price. I really haven't looked into the new Fury rods. My personal preference would be a Falcon. I do have several of those. People that actually fish with Falcons seem to like them. Even after production moved to China. Dobyns aren't the lightest, but they are usually well balanced (from what I've read) which helps them feel lighter than they actually are. I have a file with rod weights from various manufacturers. Unfortunately it is on my old laptop which currently isn't working.

TW lists 8# 832 as having a .007 diameter. EDIT: Once I got into my middle teens, I went to 4# XL. Didn't change line size until I got into baitcasters. Use a lot of 8# mono/co-polymer lines on Medium and ML power rods. Going to try light braid on my finesse spools. Not fond of the 5# braid I have. Too thin. Will try between 8#-15# braid.

I have a few that will do over 10' but lucky if I've used more than one of them. Normally I'm fishing shallow water or over weed beds. I know I don't fish them properly, but 1) I hate losing lures ($), and 2) I hate removing grass or other junk from the hooks on almost every cast. Not the best for distance, but I picked up an Aetos 6'6" MLM for $75 when Pure Fishing was closing them out. A $199 rod. That rod and a Pixy are pure pleasure to use. And it doesn't take 20 yards to get 5' deep.

My B-I-L's most used spinning rod came from a yard sale. I'm sure he's told me the price he paid but I don't remember. He's caught a ton of bass on it including an 11.8 pound Largemouth about 2 years ago. Don't believe there is even a name on the rod. If there was, it wore off long ago. My least expensive combo is a $30 Procaster 100HN on closeout ($69.99 regular price) on a $17 6' MH Lightning ($18.02 with tax). Initially a gift for my oldest grandson to learn how to use a baitcast reel, but he refuses to use anything other than a spinning reel.

I'm far from rich but I'd pay $10-$15 more for a rod or reel at a local store in hopes they could stay in business. Umpteen years ago I purchased a G-Loomis GL3 9' 8wt fly rod, an STH reel and fly line for it on layaway. I'd go there to make a payment. Owner would let me take it out to practice. Would come out when he wasn't busy and give me casting instructions. Sure miss shops like that.

Currently out of stock. This is a tool we used 65 years or so ago. I purchased one 5-6 years ago as a gift for a next door neighbor that fished with bait. Hook the line under the arc piece on the side. Slide line down to the end and position in the 'U'. Push tool down throat until it stops. Pull trigger. Fish immediately drops off and you still have a good hook left. https://www.jannsnetcraft.com/032054033512

Welcome to the forum, Vince. I don't think a couple 12 hour days per month is too much to ask. Unfortunately it sounds like you don't have a like minded individual to do that with. How costly is it to fly from FL to AZ? Kidding. When I used to fly from PA to FL for my yearly vacations, my B-I-L and I often tried to be on the water around 6 a.m. and fished until 9 p.m. or so with a break to go buy lunch. He peed in a jg. I held it. Oops. Got slightly off track. Right now I wished I was in your situation. Before my last back episode, I would steady the Gheeny while he got in. Now that both of us have poor balance, he doesn't feel safe fishing in his boat with me. Fishing alone from shore over a short stretch that gets fished by bait fishermen doesn't make me want to stay out very long. Spent money from 2009 to 2022 stocking up on gear for my retirement. Now it sets unused. My daughter would move down here tomorrow if she could find a job. Then I could occasionally fish with her and my youngest grandson. I'd be pleased if it was only for a couple hours.

I agree about the Daiwa T3 and Ambassadeur/Morrum reels.

I'm only a third of the way through the posts and I already have to head for the toilet.

I've used yellow braid. No pink. Have braid in blue and white. Yellow is easy to see. I also am a fan of Siege Neon Tangerine. Have Big Game in Solar Collector. Haven't spooled any on a reel yet. Very bright on the filler spool. Hopefully it maintains that brightness as a single strand on the water

Same here. It is very rare for me to buy something without researching first.