What's More Important: Reel Or Rod?

[K_Mac]

In bottom contact I'll spend more on a rod than a reel.  For all other areas I spend more on the reel. 

 

I think this is a reasonable approach. With reaction baits the rod quality is less important than the proper power and action. With bottom contact baits, I want the best rod I can afford. I am always amazed at the folks who think there is little difference in rod sensitivity from low-end to high. In my hands the difference between a heavy, dead, cheap rod and even a decent quality mid-level rod is huge. Yes, the gains become less as you move up the the price scale, but they are very real nevertheless.

[ColdSVT]

Both are very very important

However...COMMA, you hands are the most important thing...you gotta be able to feel the combo and what it is doing. Then you need ti interpret it correctly

The hand the brain action is most important imo

[CJV]

Both rod and reel need to be equally good.

[hatrix]

I understand your feeling, you are using a huge rod to catch maybe an 8# bass with a 60 second battle, and I'm using a med/hvy fairy wand to catch a 70# tarpon (which I did 2 days ago) that takes about 30+ minutes to land..........yeh those fairy wands are pretty flimsy.

Please don't take it personally. I mean no offense by it. If I could throw 4oz baits all day on a normal rod then I would. I have seen guys catch tarpons on fly rods out of kayaks and get dragged all over by them for who knows how long. There is a right tool for every job and heavy rods are the right tool for launching heavy lures as far as possible.

Sometimes we go night fishing for catfish with ultralights and its great fun all because of the light rod and line. I could use a heavy rod and horse them right in but what's the point? I don't need to launch a heavy bait way out there.

[Mike L]

For bottom contact......the rod, for reaction baits the reel...just IMHO.

  

In bottom contact I'll spend more on a rod than a reel.  For all other areas I spend more on the reel.

I'd like to add more but I can't

Mike

[TorqueConverter]

Bait, line, rod and reel in that order of descending importance.  A really nice reel is not going to put fish in the boat.  Bait, line and a rod can. 

[Christian M]

If you're talking about an all purpose spinning setup, I think the rod and line takes precedence.

However, If you're looking for an answer from a group of experienced fisherman who own dozens of rods and reels, each which were purchased with a specific technique or application in mind, the two go hand in hand.

Its like asking if a good boat hull is more important than a good motor...the two work in harmony. You wouldnt take a $60k boat out with a beat up, underpowered engine, or vice versa.

It really comes down to how serious you are about fishing.

[FlipSide]

For bottom contact......the rod, for reaction baits the reel...just IMHO.

This

[sparky241]

for me its the reel. a crappy reel can completely ruin your day of fishing. where as a rod, unless you break it, wont near as much ruin your day of fishing. which is why my money goes towards the reel and i will slap any reel on an ugly stik. most you rod guys talking about feeling the bottom and bottom contact, who cares when most of you are probably fishing from a boat with electronics that you can use to see whats on the bottom and show you if there are fish there. and to be honest with you, i can feel the bottom just fine with a cheap old ugly stik, feeling is in your hands more so than anything, it is one of your senses like seeing and hearing. certain materials may conduct that feeling better, but its so slight that it isnt worth paying $200-$300 more for. and youve also probably been fishing that same spot for years as part of your milk run, you should know whats there. i would definately say the reel is more important

I agree with him my baitcaster ruined my first trip out this yr

[drodriguez]

My dad, an avid (...salmon...) fishermen always used to preach at me that if your going to put money into anything, put it in the reel. I have said it for as long as I can remember... Until I started bass fishing. I don't have a great selection of rods or reels. I have one Abu Garcia 7'6" Heavy Action pool cue I bought for flipping and pitching paired with a Abu Garcia 6501C Round reel. I have to say, it isn't super high quality, but it was 100 plus when it was bought. Unfortunately, its not a low profile reel, and its rather slow at about 5:4:1. I just caught my new pb on the set up while ripping with lipless crainkbaits. Such an abomination should not be successful. My Dad also said a great fishermen only needs one rod-and that he's a poor fishermen. Lol. Goes to show you it comes to preference. I have a quantum that I can't identify, it was a freebie. 6:3:1 and, regardless of where the drag is at, always seems to backlash. I think the reel is most important, not necessarily type, but I would pay more for it than a rod, any day.

[SirSnookalot]

Please don't take it personally. I mean no offense by it. If I could throw 4oz baits all day on a normal rod then I would. I have seen guys catch tarpons on fly rods out of kayaks and get dragged all over by them for who knows how long. There is a right tool for every job and heavy rods are the right tool for launching heavy lures as far as possible.

Sometimes we go night fishing for catfish with ultralights and its great fun all because of the light rod and line. I could use a heavy rod and horse them right in but what's the point? I don't need to launch a heavy bait way out there.

Believe me I don't take it personal at all, quite the opposite really.  There are certain techniques, rods and reels, line choices and lures that are not appealing to me for bass fishing.  When it comes to bass fishing that's really my relaxation time, I go out of my way to fish open water with pretty light gear, that gives me the most enjoyment. Don't think that I don't use heavier gear, I have thrown many 4 oz lures on surf equipment and do speed jigging in deep water.  

[Hyrule Bass]

 

a quality Rod is what gives you the feeling if there is a fish on the line, the power to get the fish in the boat and the comfort of being able to cast all day without paying for it in the long run. 

 

nope, i disagree. the line is what gives you the feeling of a fish on the line, simply put, what good is the rod without the line? it aint no good. ive detected bites by line watching before there was ever a bow in the rod.

 

and also its as if youre saying a cheap $35 ugly stik doesnt have the power to get a fish in to a boat. this has me completely baffled there. your reasoning just lost all merit with that.

 

also, an ounce difference in rod weight isnt going to bother me casting all day. its not that much difference in weight, especially to justify a huge price increase.

 

so yeah, great job of convincing me even more that the reel is more important.

 

also, i wish people would just answer the question as is, without throwing in caveats. just answer rod or reel regardless of technique and what not...

[aavery2]

nope, i disagree. the line is what gives you the feeling of a fish on the line, simply put, what good is the rod without the line? it aint no good. ive detected bites by line watching before there was ever a bow in the rod.

 

and also its as if youre saying a cheap $35 ugly stik doesnt have the power to get a fish in to a boat. this has me completely baffled there. your reasoning just lost all merit with that.

 

also, an ounce difference in rod weight isnt going to bother me casting all day. its not that much difference in weight, especially to justify a huge price increase.

 

so yeah, great job of convincing me even more that the reel is more important.

 

also, i wish people would just answer the question as is, without throwing in caveats. just answer rod or reel regardless of technique and what not...

Simply because there is no correct answer to the question, it is only a matter of opinion, and caveats are a means of justifying your choice.  Remember just disagreeing with someone does not prove your point or make your opinion any more correct than theirs.  This is not the first or even 10th time this same question has surfaced here and many other sites, the discussion is always the same.

[einscodek]

Can't chuck for any distance if your crappy reel backlashes unless the brakes are fully engaged.

Yer right no doubt cause in my setups I spent a looooooong time getting the best possible rod and reel together (for me).

I should have used "more" important.  More is subjective but IMO a rod is "more" important than a reel.

When I go .. I have 3-4 different rods.. only 2 different reels.. theres a reason for that.

[Hyrule Bass]

Simply because there is no correct answer to the question, it is only a matter of opinion, and caveats are a means of justifying your choice.  Remember just disagreeing with someone does not prove your point or make your opinion any more correct than theirs.  This is not the first or even 10th time this same question has surfaced here and many other sites, the discussion is always the same.

or one could just keep it cut and dry and give a straight answer. its nothing to do with being right or wrong...

[aavery2]

or one could just keep it cut and dry and give a straight answer. its nothing to do with being right or wrong...

That is where the problem is, it is not a cut and dry question, in some cases the rod may be more important or as important as the reel, in others it may be visa versa,  one shoe does not fit all.   If you feel that one is more important than the other always, then it is probably true for your particular fishing habits.  But you should not try to shoe horn everyone into the same situation, as fishing is vastly different depending on how you prefer to do it and where you are fishing.   This is an open ended question with no answer bearing more weight than another.   It is far from cut and dry.

[.ghoti.]

That is where the problem is, it is not a cut and dry question, in some cases the rod may be more important or as important as the reel, in others it may be visa versa,  one shoe does not fit all.   If you feel that one is more important than the other always, then it is probably true for your particular fishing habits.  But you should not try to shoe horn everyone into the same situation, as fishing is vastly different depending on how you prefer to do it and where you are fishing.   This is an open ended question with no answer bearing more weight than another.   It is far from cut and dry.

 Here's the best answer. This is a question for which an opinion is the answer. Your opinion is simply that: yours.

 

I tend to agree with the idea that, for bottom contact presentations, the rod is more important. And, the reel is more important for moving bait applications. Until I take a look at my own combos, that is.

 

My bottom contact baitcast combos: the reels cost more than the rods 8 / 3.

My moving bait baitcast combos: the rods cost more than the reels 3 / 2.

My spinning combos: the rods cost more than the reels 6 / 1.

 

It appears I can't seem to take my own advice.

[aavery2]

 Here's the best answer. This is a question for which an opinion is the answer. Your opinion is simply that: yours.

 

I tend to agree with the idea that, for bottom contact presentations, the rod is more important. And, the reel is more important for moving bait applications. Until I take a look at my own combos, that is.

 

My bottom contact baitcast combos: the reels cost more than the rods 8 / 3.

My moving bait baitcast combos: the rods cost more than the reels 3 / 2.

My spinning combos: the rods cost more than the reels 6 / 1.

 

It appears I can't seem to take my own advice.

I agree with your post.  Sometimes cost is not the best measure of quality.

[Hyrule Bass]

That is where the problem is, it is not a cut and dry question, in some cases the rod may be more important or as important as the reel, in others it may be visa versa,  one shoe does not fit all.   If you feel that one is more important than the other always, then it is probably true for your particular fishing habits.  But you should not try to shoe horn everyone into the same situation, as fishing is vastly different depending on how you prefer to do it and where you are fishing.   This is an open ended question with no answer bearing more weight than another.   It is far from cut and dry.

fishing can be as simple or as difficult as you want to make it. i like to keep it simple, why make something i enjoy feel like work or be stressful. im not trying to shoe horn anyone, just stating and debating my opinions like everyone else. i see a simple question i gave a simple answer. i didnt try to turn the question into a bunch of "what ifs" and "what nots". i viewed it as if i had a choice which is more important to me to invest in, i prefer to invest in the reel instead of the rod, regardless of what techniques i use to fish. i gave my reasoning for such above. if people want to disagree that is fine, i disagree with people all the time, no big deal. so yes, you can make it cut and dry, its a simple question if you stay within the confines of it, dont over-think it and make it into something its not...

[aavery2]

fishing can be as simple or as difficult as you want to make it. i like to keep it simple, why make something i enjoy feel like work or be stressful. im not trying to shoe horn anyone, just stating and debating my opinions like everyone else. i see a simple question i gave a simple answer. i didnt try to turn the question into a bunch of "what ifs" and "what nots". i viewed it as if i had a choice which is more important to me to invest in, i prefer to invest in the reel instead of the rod, regardless of what techniques i use to fish. i gave my reasoning for such above. if people want to disagree that is fine, i disagree with people all the time, no big deal. so yes, you can make it cut and dry, its a simple question if you stay within the confines of it, dont over-think it and make it into something its not...

So now you realize the difference between yourself and others, while you see it as work and stressful, others find it enjoyable and another way to make their fishing more pleasurable.  if it is simple for you that is fantastic, if others want to make it a more in depth question and analyze it more so be it.  

[F14A-B]

Reel.....

[roadwarrior]

Maybe the rod for "catching", but the reel makes the "fishing" more fun!

 

 

 

 

[bigbill]

First if you need a scoped rifle to hit the "X Ring" then your using the wrong brand of rifle. Try a 100 year old Swedish 6.5mm mauser. It just may surprise you.

Ok what's more important the rod or reel. Neither the fishing line is the most important thing. Invest your money into a quality brand of copolymer fishing line.

I've fished with outdated 40+ year older new rods with decent Wal-Mart reels. I never had the top shelf quality bass rods. I can fish with any combination of rods and reels but I have to have the best quality copolymer line I can purchase.

I started bass fishing with my trout UL setups. I found out it wasn't a good combination for shore fishing. I upgraded to a Wal-Mart quantum spinning reel and a Shakespeare BlackBueaty 6' rod. I did also upgrade to the Excalibur silver thread line.

Again very affordable rod and reel but with a more expensive quality fishing line. Think about it the fishing line is the weakest link in the rod and reel setup. Using a decent quality quiet reel along with an affordable rod with a good quality fishing line you can handle catching any bass from dinks on up.

Put your hard earned dollars in a good quality fishing line.

Remember to learn to tie a good tight knot too.

With a $3.00 to $15.00 rod, a $25.00 spinning reel and a spool of $15.00 high quality copolymer fishing line your good to go.

The fish have no idea how much your setup costs.

[mjseverson24]

i would say the rod is more important for effectively catching fish. i can use a abu black max or pflueger president for every technique i  fish, and use a nice rod, and not see a dramatic reduction in productivity... a reel you can tweak and learn how to get the best performance out of it, but if the rod lacks sensitivity i will miss opportunities over time... it really is situational though... 

 

Mitch 

[roadwarrior]

With a $3.00 to $15.00 rod, a $25.00 spinning reel and a spool of $15.00 high quality copolymer fishing line your good to go.

 

Well sir, you may be "good-to-go" , but I would rather throw rocks than fish with that stuff.