Which is more important? The rod or reel?

[DN3]

Which is more important...The rod or reel? Just looking for thoughts and opinions! Able to purchase part of my new baitcastingreel combo next week.

[MickD]

Bait casting, the reel.  Fly fishing and spinning the rod.  In the latter case, exc for the drag, the reels just hold line.

[bigturtle]

at low price points (sub$70), the reel is more important because its more prone to breakage. At mid price points($100-200) the rod takes priority because the performance of reels are about the same in that price point. At higher price points ($300-500) its a toss up

[DN3]

Price range is $175-$250 for either the rod or the reel, can only get one for now

[bigturtle]

spend more on the rod

[rippin-lips]

For me they're even because I plan to keep them for quite some time. I want a quality reel that with proper maintenance will last me 5yrs or more. I want a quality rod that is well built and as sensitive as I can get for the money I can spend on it. Warranty plays a small part also. You have a great budget and you can get a solid combo for $400-500. I'd put $250 into a rod and $200 into a reel. 

[Fishin' Fool]

It's a legit question and I think if you asked 10 different people you'd get 5 different answers. I say the rod.

[RoLo]

You can fish with a cane pole without any reel, but it would be mighty cumbersome

to fish with a reel without any rod. In the crudest sense, the rod is the workhorse,

and the reel is a line rack.

 

Roger

 

 

[WI_Angler1989]

I'd say get a high end rod first. I've had tremendous success with pflueger president reels. A high end reel by no stretch of the imagination. 

When I got my first rod in your price range (st croix avid then legend tournament bass), my fishing experience sky rocketed. The sensitivity gained from a quality rod will make all the difference. 

[fishnkamp]

For me that is easy.   I have come to really like all of  the Daiwa Tatulas. You can get a Daiwa Tatula CT for $100 shipped to your door. That reel is a workhorse. It is smooth, has a terrific braking braking system and a smooth drag. This is a reel you will keep using not upgrade from.  

 

With your budget that leaves you $150 for a rod.

The $125 to $175 price range is a very competitive market.  There are terrific rods for all techniques, available for that price.   Look at rod manufacturers like Irod, Powell, Dobyns, Daiwa, Falcon, Lews, St Croix, Abu Garcia, Duckett and others.

 

Yes you could spend $250 on a reel and then sometime in the future spend $300 or more on a rod.  It will be a nice combo but for that much money I would own two very good combos and catch a lot of fish.  I fish rods from each of those rod builders and in deed catch a lot of fish with them. 

[ThatZX14Fella]

The rod. You can catch fish with the cheapest reel possible, but if you can't feel the bite, you won't know to set the hook. That being said, I spend more on the reel than the rod because I enjoy smooth, high quality reels.

[flechero]

It depends on how you fish, assuming you have a serviceable rod and reel now.   If you are a crankbait/spinnerbait, chunk and wind all day kind of guy, a better reel will benefit you more... if you are a soft plastics, feel kind of guy, the rod is infinitely more valuable. 

[Finnz922]

For me it goes rod, line, then reel. That being said, I do own some $300+ Daiwas

[crypt]

for this thread.rod.     but overall, rod, lure, line,reel, in that order.

[Raul]

Both are important to me, my reel costs about the same the cost of the rod.

[RMax]

Rod for bottom contact or baits that aren't always moving, reel for moving baits and top water because you get long casts

[dwardmba]

Depends on what you are fishing but at some point the benefits plateau. Buy a good rod to a point and a good reel to a point. A $200 rod (or reel) with a $50 reel (or rod) seems silly. I would spend $125 on each or $150 and $100. 

 

Dave

[Chance_Taker4]

I say Rod. Now a days $80-$100 reels can compete with high end reels you pay for weight reduction and shiny parts. But there is a large gap between $100 and $200 rods.

[Loomis13]

Depends on the technique the rod is going to be used for!

[soflabasser]

The reel is more important than the rod,especially if your targeting fish that can peel a decent amount of line off the reel.

[Bass fishing is best]

Great responses in here.  Only thing I can add is in my 30 years of fishing I've broken many more rods than reels, something to keep in mind.  I own Shimano casting and spinning, as well as Pfueger spinning.  The only reel I've had go is a Shimano that was literally my first nicer reel probably lasted 25 years of abuse.  I've broken poles from Ugly stiks to st. croix and even a BPS, my fault every time but they are much more delicate.

[5Keepers]

11 hours ago, DN3 said:

Which is more important...The rod or reel? Just looking for thoughts and opinions! Able to purchase part of my new baitcastingreel combo next week.

 

The trick is to get a reel that works with the rod you have... unless you have been fishing for a while and are able to take many different reels and use them on different rods (lengths and actions) you will never know what works the best...

... the best reels always work best on the best rods.... match the reel spec's (wide spools for vibrating baits long casts) to the rod's action for what you want to use the combo for!  Just make sure you like the feel in your hands.

[*Hootie]

Try fishing, first the rod with no reel, then the reel with no rod. I think you will find, they are equally important.

 

Hootie

[kickerfish1]

Both are important if quality is what you are after. For a bottom contact set up I prefer a lighter magnesium frame reel and a nicer rod that is light with good feel. For a reaction baits set up I am fine with an aluminium reel that is a bit heavy and a budget to mid tier rod. I might be looking at spending $600 for a jig and worm outfit and $300 on a reaction bait setup.

[NYWayfarer]

I have caught just as many fish with my Mitchell 300 Ugly Stick combo as I have on my Pflueger Supreme St. Croix Premier combo.

 

That being said with the Premier I have felt every nibble, every rock I have dragged my bait over and every weed I dragged my bait through. So my answer to the OP's question is the rod is more important. 

 

Mind you that is my answer for spinning. In the baitcasting world the reel seems to be more important. Cheap baitcasting reels with a few exceptions, won't hold up over the long haul.