basss Posted January 4, 2017 Posted January 4, 2017 I recently got into bass fishing heavily and have started accumulating my gear. I now understand that rod and reel combos have specific setups and have tried pairing up my gear to tailor them towards specific setups for swimbaits, crankbaits, frogs, flipping, worms, etc … However, since I’m new to more serious bass fishing I wanted to run my rod/reels pairings by you guys to make sure I have the optimized rod/reels setups. As noted below, I do have more Abu Garcia gear than others however, I do not have an allegiance to any manufacture so feel free to make recommendations. I do want an 8.1 gear ratio baitcaster in the near future; right now, I’m thinking it might be a Daiwa Tatula, Lews, or another Okuma. Below is my current fishing gear and how I have them paired. Are they paired correctly? Recommendations on gear/setups modifications? Baitcaster Reels: Bass Pro: Extreme ESM10SHA 7.1:1 (Spinnerbait Rod) Abu Garcia: Orra SX 7.1:1 (Frog Reel) Orra Winch 5.4:1 (Crankbait Reel) Revo SX 6.4:1 (Flip/Pitch Reel) Okuma: HTC-266V 6.6:1 (Swimbait Reel) Baitcaster Rods: Ugly Stick GX2: 701ML, GX2 7 ft. Med-Light (2) USCA761ML, 7’6”, Med-Light USCA701M, 7’, Medium (EXM10SHA) (Current Frog Rod) Abu Garcia: Volatile VOLC70-6, 7 ft. Fast Action Med-Heavy (Current Swimbait Rod) Veritas VRTC711-7, 7’11” Heavy (Current Flip/Pitch Rod) Veracity VERC66 Med-Heavy (Current Crankbait Rod) Spinning Reels: Abu Garcia: Orra SX Solstace 2500 FI Spinning Rods: Ugly Stick: (2) USESP701ML, 7’ Med-Light Quote
RichF Posted January 4, 2017 Posted January 4, 2017 Welcome to BR! Most look good. I'd switch your spinnerbait and flipping reels. I prefer a faster reel when I'm flipping and pitching. A medium powered rod is a bit on the light side for frogs too. I use a 7'3 heavy but a medium heavy with braid would do fine. I'd also consider throwing your cranks on a medium or med light. You'll have a lot more fish come unbuttoned on trebles with a stouter rod. 3 Quote
Super User A-Jay Posted January 4, 2017 Super User Posted January 4, 2017 Hello and Welcome to Bass Resource ~ As for matching your set ups, fish them like they are. If you like them & they work, Cool. If not, switch it and see what works. You'll learn quite a bit that way on your own. Good Luck & Have Fun. A-Jay 2 Quote
basss Posted January 5, 2017 Author Posted January 5, 2017 1 hour ago, RichF said: Welcome to BR! Most look good. I'd switch your spinnerbait and flipping reels. I prefer a faster reel when I'm flipping and pitching. A medium powered rod is a bit on the light side for frogs too. I use a 7'3 heavy but a medium heavy with braid would do fine. I'd also consider throwing your cranks on a medium or med light. You'll have a lot more fish come unbuttoned on trebles with a stouter rod. Thanks for the tips. I want the new 8.1 reel to be my new flipping reel. I hear you on the frog rod, writing it down helped me see that. I chose that rod mainly because it was one of my longer ones. I may have gotten some of my combos wrong, I double checked; these are my verified combos: Spinner: Bass Pro Extreme 7.1 on a Ugly Stick GX2 7' M Flip/Pitch: Revo SX 6.4 on a 7'11" Veritas H Frog: 7.1 Orra SX on a Ugly Stick GX2 7'6" ML Crank: 6.6 Helios TCS on a Volatile 7 MH Swimbait: 5.4 Orra Winch on a 7' Veracity M I also have two other spare rods, a 6'6" Veracity MH and a 7'6" Ugly Stick GX2. Quote
RichF Posted January 5, 2017 Posted January 5, 2017 The new Tatula CT's come in an 8:1 and are awesome for the price (can be found for under $100). I have one for pitching. I would definitely switch your frog rod out for a MH (maybe trade with your crank rod). Also, depending on the type of swimbaits you throw, you may wanna consider using a heavier rod for that as well. I use a 7'6 heavy for 4.5 to 6.5 inch hollow bellies, rigged with big belly weighted hooks. If I'm using smaller swimbaits with a jig head, I'll drop to a 7' MH. Quote
basss Posted January 5, 2017 Author Posted January 5, 2017 6 hours ago, RichF said: The new Tatula CT's come in an 8:1 ... Coincidentally enough, I just ordered a 8.1 tatula ct type-r for $126, including shipping. As for the rod re-pairing, I do have a spare 6'6" Veracity MH I can use on my frog reel. I just don't use it because it's the shortest rod I have. I use swimbaits that are on the smaller end and the current swimbait setup works good enough. Quote
SFL BassHunter Posted January 5, 2017 Posted January 5, 2017 10 minutes ago, basss said: Coincidentally enough, I just ordered a 8.1 tatula ct type-r for $126, including shipping. As for the rod re-pairing, I do have a spare 6'6" Veracity MH I can use on my frog reel. I just don't use it because it's the shortest rod I have. I use swimbaits that are on the smaller end and the current swimbait setup works good enough. Great reel! Love mine! They are excellent for flipping, or even the frog. I was bombing crank baits last week on mine. For frog I would go with MH if you aren't fishing heavy cover. Heavy if you are fishing cover. Quote
basss Posted January 7, 2017 Author Posted January 7, 2017 Couldn't wait and went ahead and ordered a rod for the Tat. I got the Veritas VRTC76-6, 7'9" MH-fast. Plan on this combo being my froggin' rod. Quote
bigbasshunter Posted January 7, 2017 Posted January 7, 2017 For casting reels my goto's Top water: 7:1+ or 30+ipt Jerkbaits : 6:1-7:1 or 23-28ipt Cranks <15ft: 6:1-7:1 or 23-28ipt Cranks/Lipless >15ft: 5:1-6:1 or 19-23ipt Spinnerbaits/Swimbaits: 6:1-7:1 or 23-28ipt T-rig/C-rig/FB jigs: 6:1-7:1 or 23-28ipt Flipping/Pitching: 7:1+ 30+ipt I use spinning outfits for 3 techniques Shakeyhead/Ned Rig/Dropshot with 6:1 or 35ipt reel Quote
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.