How often do you upgrade your gear?

[TylerT123]

How do you decide when it’s time to upgrade? Clearly, money’s a factor, but other than that, why?

[Scott F]

When the gear I’m using will not do what I need it to do, I upgrade to new equipment.  I was using some Lowrance depthfinders and the mapping on the chip I was using did not accurately show me what was really there. Instead of spending more money on new map chips, I replaced the depthfinder with a Garmin that had high def, accurate maps built in for not much more than new chips alone would have cost.  When a reel gets noisy and the parts to fix it are no longer available I upgrade. 

[optimator]

I used to every few years. This year I went a little crazy, 4 new rods & 3 or 4 new reels. And I don't think I'm done yet 

[Jelvas]

Every year i upgrade something. One year it might be a couple of reels, other some rods, then something in the boat etc etc...  i like trying new stuff, even when the thing i´m replacing still does is job.

[Peter]

Constantly lol. I’ve been getting a new rod and/or reel every 2 weeks since February. I’m trying to build up a decent arsenal come summer. 

[Dtrombly]

Every winter I go over my rods and reels and decide which ones I'll be keeping and which ones I'll be replacing. Gives me something to do when it's cold. 

[Catt]

My reels are 30-35 yrs old, don't plan on replacing them but they are scheduled for Delaware Valley Tackle & Hi-Performance Reel Tuning Upgrade.

 

I have recently purchased a Lew's Speed Spool LFS Series Casting Reels & a Powell Inferno Medium Heavy Extra Fast rod.

 

Rods get replaced when broken 

 

I'll be replacing a depth finder 

[Tywithay]

Every time ebay posts a coupon code, unfortunately. 

[Mike L]

I'm past all that "new and improved" thing. It took me years to accumulate what I have now.

 

Some I had to wait to buy because what I wanted I couldn't afford at the time. 

But now If I need something new it's only to replace something that can't be repaired or improved upon. 

 

 

 

 

Mike

 

 

 

 

 

[Armtx77]

I was using 10 year old rods and reels, until last fall. I caught 1000's of fish on that gear in that time period. I have replaced a bearing or two, but the rods have remained the same.

Almost 100% of that fishing was salt water for Reds and Specks.

 

Last October, after the Redfish run into the marshes. I decided I wanted to get back into freshwater. While I could have easily used the saltwater gear for freshwater. I wanted to get into light action gear. I bought one set up in October and another one in the past two weeks.

 

I will be honest, I noticed the difference on the newer setups. Especially the rods and how sensitive they were for 100.00 rods.

[kickerfish1]

Hmmm...Upgrading to me would literally mean moving from something cheap or entry level to something nicer. If owned an older GLX but sold it to buy a newer GLX is that considered upgrading? There is quite a cult following of the older models and some prefer them to the new. Same thing could be set about any rod or reel when the newest one comes out. If I add 3 new rods or reels to my arsenal but sell nothing I am technically adding to and not necessarily upgrading.

 

So now for the question on how often do I upgrade? I am not sure as mainly I am buying something to fill a niche like this year I bought my first new BFS outfit. The last 5 years or so most of my gear is mid to higher end so there really isn't a need to upgrade any of it other than if I feel like a new model is better than something I have now.

 

If something is broke or no longer functions properly it either gets sold super cheap, given away to someone that may have a need for it or tossed out and I may or may not replace it. If your gear works to your liking I see no reason to upgrade unless you feel the need to have the latest models.

[new2BC4bass]

I am like Mike L and kickerfish1....I accumulate, not replace, and it has been over the course of several years.  Several of my reels purchased have been old models, not new.  TD-Z 105H and ML, Airy Red, Chronarch 101A and 100B, Scorpion 4x4.  Guess you could say I've been downgrading. 

[Angry John]

Way more often than my wife likes for sure.  I can't say I have just upgraded in a while, more of just growing.  I only have enough for a dozen fully equipped anglers and no end in sight 

[JawjaBoy]

2 hours ago, Catt said:

My reels are 30-35 yrs old, don't plan on replacing them but they are scheduled for Delaware Valley Tackle & Hi-Performance Reel Tuning Upgrade.

 

I have recently purchased a Lew's Speed Spool LFS Series Casting Reels & a Powell Inferno Medium Heavy Extra Fast rod.

 

Rods get replaced when broken 

 

I'll be replacing a depth finder 

Dang!  I could've written this!  Lol!  

 

I'm still using my old Quantum 1310's I bought in the late 80's.  Up until the last couple of weeks when I bought a Lew's Tournament MB and a Mach Crush rod, the newest outfit I had was a Quantum 1310CP on a BPS Crankin' Stick that's probably 10-12 years old.  I add to the collection every once in a while, and I'll replace broken stuff, but I've never done the swap out the whole arsenal thing.

[BankBasser]

Usually one rod and reel every year or two. This year? When I build a new house I have enough pvc tubing laying around from rod purchases to do the plumbing myself. :/

[roadwarrior]

Generally just one rod and one reel per year, but every year for about

the last 20 years. Over time I plan to replace all of my production rods

with customs. I may replace a few reels as new models are introduced.

 

[Graham]

Way to frequently. Unfortunately that is just the way I am. As soon as I buy some new gear I’m deciding what’s next!

[tholmes]

17 hours ago, Catt said:

My reels are 30-35 yrs old, don't plan on replacing them but they are scheduled for Delaware Valley Tackle & Hi-Performance Reel Tuning Upgrade.

 

I have recently purchased a Lew's Speed Spool LFS Series Casting Reels & a Powell Inferno Medium Heavy Extra Fast rod.

 

Rods get replaced when broken 

 

I'll be replacing a depth finder 

This sounds just like me. I don't really upgrade, just add to the collection. I'm fishing a fleet of Sweden-made Ambassadeurs and haven't found a compelling reason to change. They are serviced and repaired as needed and as long as parts are available, I'll keep them going.

Rods are replaced when I break one or new ones added when I need something that I don't have.

 

Tom

[NYWayfarer]

I buy a few new rods and reels every year.

[soflabasser]

I buy new rods every year or so but have many rods that are +20 years old. I don't plan on throwing away those old rods since they still work very well. Because of this I have more rods than I really need and probably have enough rods and tackle for a big group of people to fish comfortably.

[Mobasser]

Im kind of like Catt.  Some of my reels are older. I try to take care of them, and they've served me well. I replace rods when they break. 

[grub_man]

It's been about 10 years since I had the upgrade bug.  Mostly because I hadn't really known what to look for in a rod until I got the rod building bug.  Once did my research and learned what I needed and built it to to suit my taste, the rods have stayed.  The only rod I built that I haven't liked is a graphite 6'6" crank bait rod.  It got 'upgraded' to a 7' glass cranking rod.

 

This year I am replacing my RX7 MB783 6'6" MH fast action jig/T-rig rod and old Curado that went in the drink with me last spring (Was not happy when I could not recover that one).  The new blank is a metallic silver MHX MB843 and getting Ohio State inspired EVA grips making it by far the flashiest rod in my arsenal.  It's getting paired with Revo X.

 

I'm also adding a spinning rod for targeting spotted bass in deep water.  It's getting built on a Liberty MB692XF 1/8 - 1/2 oz drop shot/shaky head type blank.  It will be paired with an old Shimano Sahara 2500 I have laying around with the reel wrapped onto 4.5" sleeved woven graphite TN handle section with red EVA trim rings on the ends and a red EVA butt grip.  This rod is filling a niche.  Before I relocated, I rarely had to fish more than 10'-15' deep.  Now I need to be able to fish deeper water more effectively and the spinning reel is the way to go.

[Boomstick]

I try to buy decent rods and reels so I end up adding to my collection, not replacing them unless they break or I lose them.

[optimator]

11 hours ago, Mobasser said:

Im kind of like Catt.  Some of my reels are older. I try to take care of them, and they've served me well. I replace rods when they break. 

I'm still using a Abu Garcia 4600cb that I bought in the late 80's. It's had the drag washers replaced a few times and a bearing upgrade. It's solid.

[Falkus]

I tend to replace my stuff when I find some new purpose. I would sell my rods/reels and upgrade the cost difference.