Rod & Reel Selection

[Aweiss]

Hey guys I'm looking to retire my old setup and build something new. I use a lot of jigs, plastics, spinners and chatterbaits as well. On the occasion I will throw out a hard lure, but not to often. I have been looking at the Daiwa Tatula Reel-R100Xs does anybody have any experience with these? Good or bad? Also I'm trying to pick out a new rod that would be a good match with it. Any input would be great guys thanks.

[RichF]

Good choice.  Tatulas are great reels and super popular.  For the rod, a 7ft medium heavy would be a good to handle all the techniques you listed.

[Damn Yankee]

What @RichF said 7'mh will do all that and more.Great all around rod.

[Aweiss]

That's what I kind of had in mind was a 7' mh rod just wasn't sure on what brand. 

[Damn Yankee]

That would depend on what amount you feel comfortable spending.

[fishnkamp]

First let's talk reels.  Daiwa makes great reels and I fish 7 of them.  I own one Exceler ( a discontinued model) 4 of the Tatula Type Rs you are looking at and two of the newer Tatula CTs.  If it were me I would choose the Tatula CT, especially if you prefer a smaller more compact reel. They are just as tough and smooth as the original Tatula reels and hold the same amount of line. The CTs can be purchased for $100 shipped to your door.  Performance is the same in my opinion. A Tatula Type R comes with a bit lighter spool, 2 corrosion resistant bearings instead of one and a few other details, none of which matter in actual fishing conditions in my experience. I will say I like the Type Rs looks the best.  Get which ever reel you like best.  All of the Tatulas cast smoothly, have the same braking system and have good drags as well.

 

Let's talk rods. Here you need to decide what your budget is.  Quality rods are available from $75 to $120, $125 to $200, and $200 to $300. Then above that, you can go as big as your wallet is fat. I know the modern rod manufacturers offer some terrific rods in those first 3 categories. Here are some brands to research as they all offer some good quality rods for reasonable prices.

 

If your budget runs under $120,  then look at a Dobyns Fury rod, an Irod Fiber rod or a Powell Inferno rod. There are plenty of others, but these rods give great value for their price.

 

If your budget falls above that, but below $200,  then look at a Dobyns Sierra rod, a Powell Max3D rod, an Irod Genesis II rod, a Falcon Bucoo micro rod, Abu Garcia Ike series rod, or Daiwa Tatula rods. Any of these offer good choices, but there are a bunch of others too.

 

If your budget can stretch up towards the $300 range then by all means look at the Dobyns Champion line, some of the St Croix lines, like the Avid and Avid X lines.  Falcon has some higher end lines, G Loomis falls in this category with some great rods like the GL3 and IMX series of rods. 

 

Deciding between the Tatula versions is easy and they are priced fairly close, mostly between $100 an $190.

Now you need to decide on your rod budget. Once you determine that we can get more specific on rods.

 

 

[kroberts9]

here's how I roll my comfort range is between 150-200. I do have 3 reels over 200 and 1 rod over 200.plus a few rods under 100 and 1 reel under 100. here is my arsenal

spinning gear

7' vendetta mf lews pro speed spin

7'2 phenix m1 MF old stradic 2500 mgf

7'2 phenix m1 LF new ci4+ stradic 2500

 

casting gear

7'6 jdm diawa zillion HF 13 conc C

7'4 diawa tatula frog rod 13 conc A

7'2 diawa tatula mhf lews tournament 

7'1 envy black crankbait ardent elite

7'0 skeete reese MF abu garcia orra

 

I'm pretty brand loyal I like Diawa casting rods,shimano stradic spin reels, 13 blank casting reels,and phenix spin rods. so you don't need to spend a fortune just find what you like and stick to them.

[Aweiss]

I have a few St. Croix rods, Carrot stix and a daiwa and I like them, but I have been looking at the Lews rods. Does anyone have any experience with those? My budget on this set up for a rod is in the $100's.

[kroberts9]

I don't sorry. I truly like the diawa for casting and phenix for spinning and they are both great brands can't go wrong.

[fishnkamp]

If I were you and my budget for a rod is around $100, then I would be fishing a Dobyns Fury or Powell Inferno series rods. I know you will get a very good rod from either of those two options.

I would look at a Dobyns Fury FR704C or a 734C.  These run $110. They fish like much more expensive rods.

In a Powell I would look at an Inferno 683 MH CEF and the 703MH CEF. Ignore the description of the 683 as being only good for shorter casts. What they really mean is it is great for accurate casts, but i use my 683 Max series for everything, including fishing long casts on big open grass flats. That is a super versatile rod.  The price on these rods is the same.

Match them up with a Tatula CT and for $220 you are fishing a perfectly matched setup.  Just add some line, a lure and go for it.

[Aweiss]

I'm thinking about getting the Diawa Tatula XT TXT701MHF 7'0 or the Dobyns Fury. This may be a stupid question but will my braided line still work with these rods or does the 10-20 lbs rating even matter?

Edited March 19, 2017 by Aweiss
More info

[RichF]

Braid is perfectly fine. 

[Aweiss]

I'm not finding a 7' mh Daiwa Tatula. I've been reviewing the difference between the xt and regular and I prefer the regular tatula but can find the right rod. Anyone suggestions. How about the 6'10 mh/f? Is that to short for my uses?

[JaxBasser]

4 hours ago, Aweiss said:

I'm not finding a 7' mh Daiwa Tatula. I've been reviewing the difference between the xt and regular and I prefer the regular tatula but can find the right rod. Anyone suggestions. How about the 6'10 mh/f? Is that to short for my uses?

No that would be an excellent choice. That Tatula mh/f is a great and extremely versatile rod. 

[kroberts9]

i have yhe 7'2 tatula in a MH i love the thing. i use it for lipless cranks right now but it handled t-rigs and large senkos with ease