Large Mouth Bait Casting Setup?

[KirscheBuster]

I have been a fly fisherman for 10 years and I'm waiting to dabble in bait casting. I catch a lot of fish on the fly using large poppers which mimic frogs or large bugs. I'm a 'noob' when it comes to spin\bait casting fishing.

This is what I chose, let me know if I'm selecting the wrong products or if there is a better\different product to choose. I chose Fenwick (7'2' 2PC for transportation and because I trust the brand using it for fly fishing. Need help with reel and line. The bass I'm catching on fly are 1-5lb, hoping to catch larger with this setup. What kind of lures would you suggest for startup?

Setup budget 150-160. I can go higher if needed.

Line Spiderwire Ultracast Invisi-Braid Superline, 125-Yard/15-Pound, Translucent https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00LDYLTA2/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_QidExbPKR228D
Reel Abu Garcia SMAX3 Silver Max Low Profile Fishing Reel https://www.amazon.com/dp/B011LV0LQY/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_pjdExbYKZMN78
Rod - HMG70M-FC fenwick HMG Casting Rod https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00FRSXE58/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_0jdExbQ1Z44Z4

Soft lures I picked up and used this weekend with my spinner rods, recommendations from Reddit:

- Senko Worms
- Senko Swimbait

 

[J Francho]

I'd go with something like 12# Big Game mono to start out.  Otherwise, the rest looks fine for gen.purpose.

[Darren.]

Agree with John, setup is fine for starting out.

And welcome to the forums!

[new2BC4bass]

Check near the bottom of the page you linked where it says Customer Questions & Answers.  Says it is a one piece rod.  I checked Fenwick's site and it says one piece there as well.  I assume these are for the new models.  Pretty sure Fenwick had some 2-piece rods in the previous HMG line, but couldn't tell you which ones.

[KirscheBuster]

7 hours ago, new2BC4bass said:

Check near the bottom of the page you linked where it says Customer Questions & Answers.  Says it is a one piece rod.  I checked Fenwick's site and it says one piece there as well.  I assume these are for the new models.  Pretty sure Fenwick had some 2-piece rods in the previous HMG line, but couldn't tell you which ones.

Yeah I saw that too, Amazon listed it wrong. I purchased the rod after further research as well as the reel. Went with Trilene 12lb mono, big game.

Thank you all for the feedback. I'll have my gear before Friday and I'll post follow up picks of my catch this weekend.

[fishnkamp]

Well here is my take on what you are looking for.  First the reel.  I would like you to see if there is a shop near you to put some reels in your hand.  Sometimes baitcasters that retail for less than $100 are not that easy to get good casting results. I would recommend going over to a Diawa reel or the Lews reels.  I am most experienced with the quality and performance that Diawa offers.  There is a reel called the Exceller which retails for $100 but often can be purchased from some online retailers for less.  This reel along with a Diawa Aird would perform well for you.  The Exceller is smooth, has a great drag and will hold up a long time.  I am fishing one Exceller and 5 Tatula and Tatula type R reels. I have changed to these reels over the last 2 years.  Here is a place you could go look at them https://www.amazon.com/Daiwa-EXE100HSA-Exceller-Bait-Cast/dp/B00DFSONUW  This reel will only cost you about $30 more but is a much higher quality reel. remember it is a $99 reel normally.  

For line what I suggest to do is get some inexpensive mono like Bass Pro Excel or even Stren Clear Blue in like 14 to 17 pound test. Tie a good knot to the reel so it does not slip. Then spool 1/2 of the reel with it.  Next get yourself 50 pound Power Pro (65 if you fish heavy lilypads  or weeds) Spool the rest of the spool with the braid leaving an 1/8 of an inch of the spool exposed.  Too much line causes problems too.

For a rod there are not many 2 piece crankbait rods.  The HMG may be available that way.  I did not see a rod that would work that was two pieces on their website. I did a bunch of research online and did find one very good option. Gander Mountain has some "in store brands" and one I am quite sure resembles an HMG rod ( I believe that Fenwick may build it). I have had this rod in my hand and it is a really nice rod.  Check this out and do not worry about it being on back order, see if there is one in a store near you. I know my store in York PA has them so you could always contact them if worse came to worse. Look here  http://www.gandermountain.com/modperl/product/details.cgi?pdesc=Gander-Mountain-Tournament-Casting-Rod-70-Medium-Heavy&i=813710&r=view&from=grid

By the way i fly fish also. In fact my wife and I spent two of our days during our honeymoon fishing the Bow River in Calgary. Man those 8 pound rainbows were amazing.  I surprised her on our return by having a day scheduled with Bob Clouser fishing the Susquehanna river for smallies when we got home.  My wife is addicted to smallies  Thank God!!

[new2BC4bass]

7 hours ago, fishnkamp said:

 I surprised her on our return by having a day scheduled with Bob Clouser fishing the Susquehanna river for smallies when we got home.  My wife is addicted to smallies  Thank God!!

You are one lucky man.  My wife is addicted to shopping.  The fact that I make $600 or so less a month since the debacle in '09 hasn't slowed her down a bit. 

[fishnkamp]

I am a lucky man for sure.  We dated all though high school and during college so we dated for 10 years and we got married in 1988.  It was during that high school time she first came fishing with me and my regular fishing partner Phil. She has truly gained a love and addiction for smallies  but is happy catching all types of fish. This little girl (4'11) has landed a 341/2 pound catfish, 8 pound rainbows,16 pound rock and her best bass is a 6 pound smallie.  I forget which anniversary it was but I gave her a choice between a diamond necklace or another  G Loomis rod,  guess what she is still fishing that rod..True story  It is a 6 foot GL2 722!  Got a love a woman like that,  If we could afford it all seven of her rods would be G Loomis, right now only 1/2 are !!! LOL

[KirscheBuster]

Thank you all for the feedback! 

@fishncamp love catching bass on the fly. Good information from you side. i did go check out some reels and made my purchase. 

[J Francho]

50 minutes ago, KirscheBuster said:

@fishncamp love catching bass on the fly.

A fly rig is the only way I know of where you can drop a popper in small patch between pads and slop, and simply pick it up, and quietly put it back in the same spot.  With conventional gear, you have reel in, cast beyond your target, and pull the bait back to the spot.  Time consuming.  There's definitely a place for a fly rod in bass fishing.

[new2BC4bass]

On 07/06/2016 at 9:06 AM, fishnkamp said:

I am a lucky man for sure.  We dated all though high school and during college so we dated for 10 years and we got married in 1988.  It was during that high school time she first came fishing with me and my regular fishing partner Phil. She has truly gained a love and addiction for smallies  but is happy catching all types of fish. This little girl (4'11) has landed a 341/2 pound catfish, 8 pound rainbows,16 pound rock and her best bass is a 6 pound smallie.  I forget which anniversary it was but I gave her a choice between a diamond necklace or another  G Loomis rod,  guess what she is still fishing that rod..True story  It is a 6 foot GL2 722!  Got a love a woman like that,  If we could afford it all seven of her rods would be G Loomis, right now only 1/2 are !!! LOL

My wife was 4'11-1/2" in her youth.  Might be a bit shorter now.  Twelve years ago she lost 32% of her body weight due to stress.  She is now back up to 107 pounds.  A regular butterball.  Just kidding.    She use to go fishing with me and watch.  Now she doesn't even do that.  Much of her strength is gone.  Not sure she could land a 6 pound fish.

[fishnkamp]

I wish you could have seen her trying to hold up the 34 1/2 pound flathead cat she caught. It was priceless. She got it up to her knees and asked our guide Jamie "Can I have some help?"  Jamie and I held it up with the fish in front of her and her in the middle between us for the picture.. That fish went from her feet to almost her neck. It was great.The best part was her smile from ear to ear and if you have been married long you know life is good when the wife i smiling for sure.

[new2BC4bass]

1 hour ago, fishnkamp said:

I wish you could have seen her trying to hold up the 34 1/2 pound flathead cat she caught. It was priceless. She got it up to her knees and asked our guide Jamie "Can I have some help?"  Jamie and I held it up with the fish in front of her and her in the middle between us for the picture.. That fish went from her feet to almost her neck. It was great.The best part was her smile from ear to ear and if you have been married long you know life is good when the wife i smiling for sure.

Yup.  Wife happy, I'm happy.  Only been married 40 years.

OP. Sorry about getting off topic.

[KirscheBuster]

On 7/8/2016 at 4:20 PM, J Francho said:

A fly rig is the only way I know of where you can drop a popper in small patch between pads and slop, and simply pick it up, and quietly put it back in the same spot.  With conventional gear, you have reel in, cast beyond your target, and pull the bait back to the spot.  Time consuming.  There's definitely a place for a fly rod in bass fishing.

Funny that you mention that. I was on the boat at Cash lake with the father-in-law this weekend, hes on the fly and I'm spinning. He tells me to cast in a 'spot' I laugh and said I wish I had my fly rod. It was windy so it was nice having the spinner rod out instead of fighting that d**n wind.

[KirscheBuster]

Thanks again everyone. Here is a gallery of the gear I purchased. I will be taking it out tonight for the first time. I'll post results if I catch anything.

http://imgur.com/a/rAZp5

• Abu Garcia Silver Max Low Profile Reel (SAMX3-L)
• Fenwick HMG Casting Rod 6' 6" Medium (HMG66M-FC)
• Berkley Trilene Big Game Monofilament Custom Spool (12lb Green)

[fishnkamp]

Go enjoy the rig looks good.