Need Help Choosing baitcast combo

[new2BC4bass]

Delegating lures below 5/16 oz. to your spinning rod changes your casting rod and reel choice.  (Rods especially.)  Pretty much any casting reel should handle 5/16 and up.  Pick one that feels good to you when mounted on a rod.  My daughter is almost as tall as I am and her hands aren't too much smaller than mine.  She could probably use any reel I do.  If your hands are small, then you might prefer a small reel.

 

A thread on small reels for an 8 year old. 

Read smalljaw67's post on the Supreme XT.  He has always given me good advice.  This is one of the reels you can find at FFO at a very nice price.  That and the Patriarch.  Both very nice reels.

 

With a 5/16-3/4 oz. range you are going to want a MH rod in most lines.  A few Medium power rods can be found going to 3/4 oz.  Don't know how well they would handle that weight.  A few less than 7 foot rods to research.  I've read good reviews on all of them.  (Rod line...not necessarily each particular model listed.)

 

Ark Invoker 6'10" MHF

Daiwa Tatula 6'10" MHF (not the XT)

Dobyns Fury 6'6" HF

Okuma EVX 6'8" MH-Mod-Fast/Fast (unusual action nomenclature)

 

If you can handle a 7' rod, the Okuma Helios is a very light rod.  Great price on the Helios here.  https://www.walmart.com/ip/Okuma-Helios-Mini-Guide-Cast-Rod-7-MH-1pc/34742965

 

Liked my Helios 7' MF enough to buy a second one.  Don't need another rod, but thinking about getting one of the 7' MHF rods anyway.  Hard to pass up that kind of deal on such a good rod. 

 

 

 

[NYWayfarer]

On ‎11‎/‎2‎/‎2018 at 11:34 AM, luvs2fish said:

I’ve been looking at the Lews Mach 1 combo. Would this be a good choice with what I’m fishing with? 

I have the Lew's Mach 1 baitcasting combo and it has performed great for me. As good as the reel is (dual brakes, 10 bearings, clickable cast control knob)  I was surprised at how much I like the rod. Med/Hvy fast action is very sensitive with a great backbone.

 

The combo will work for everything you mentioned (Small to medium crankbaits, poppers, chatterbaits) with the exception of small spinnerbaits. I have mine spooled with 10# mono and have had little to no issues throwing all but the lightest of baits. It has been my workhorse combo this fall.

 

 

 

 

[new2BC4bass]

9 minutes ago, NYWayfarer said:

I have the Lew's Mach 1 baitcasting combo and it has performed great for me. As good as the reel is (dual brakes, 10 bearings, clickable cast control knob)  I was surprised at how much I like the rod. Med/Hvy fast action is very sensitive with a great backbone.

 

The combo will work for everything you mentioned (Small to medium crankbaits, poppers, chatterbaits) with the exception of small spinnerbaits. I have mine spooled with 10# mono and have had little to no issues throwing all but the lightest of baits. It has been my workhorse combo this fall.

 

 

 

 

Nice to hear from an actual user of the combo.   

[luvs2fish]

No I wasn't specifically gonna but at BPS or Cabela's I was just gonna handle some reels and rods to get a feel for them as some of you mentioned. I believe that would be the best especially for the reel. But I can usually find real good deals online. So i will probably buy online. I've got a pretty good list of rods to look at. But I'm really going to check out the Tatula CT. It seems to be the one mentioned the most.  I'm a ok  baitcaster (still working on that thumb control lol) So would the Tatula be the better choice as for learning to be a better baitcaster

 

Also to be sure I have it right I will be looking more at medium/heavy fast rods?

[Joshua van Wyk]

15 minutes ago, luvs2fish said:

No I wasn't specifically gonna but at BPS or Cabela's I was just gonna handle some reels and rods to get a feel for them as some of you mentioned. I believe that would be the best especially for the reel. But I can usually find real good deals online. So i will probably buy online. I've got a pretty good list of rods to look at. But I'm really going to check out the Tatula CT. It seems to be the one mentioned the most.  I'm a ok  baitcaster (still working on that thumb control lol) So would the Tatula be the better choice as for learning to be a better baitcaster

 

Also to be sure I have it right I will be looking more at medium/heavy fast rods?

The Tatula is one of the most user friendly reels. I have multiple Daiwa reels and they remain my favorites. 

[new2BC4bass]

2 hours ago, luvs2fish said:

Also to be sure I have it right I will be looking more at medium/heavy fast rods?

In my opinion.....yes.  Remember there is no industry standard.  Some MH (or any other power) rods fish in their rating.  Some can handle lighter (than rated).  Some can handle heavier.  Pick a rod you like.  Either look for reviews on it, or ask here for opinions from people that already own the rod.

 

The vast majority of my rods...and all of my reels...have been purchased sight unseen.  I depend on opinions of members here and other fishing sites.  I've only been disappointed once.  Sadly it was a rod I didn't research first.  Lesson learned.

 

EDIT:  I have to add that I've become a fan of Daiwa's Regular action rods.  Not my first choice for a dedicated jig rod, but very versatile, IMHO.  A Mod-Fast or Med-Fast is a good option if you plan on using a lot of treble hook lures yet it still should have enough power for single hook lures as long as you don't go too beefy with the hook.

[WRB]

3 hours ago, luvs2fish said:

No I wasn't specifically gonna but at BPS or Cabela's I was just gonna handle some reels and rods to get a feel for them as some of you mentioned. I believe that would be the best especially for the reel. But I can usually find real good deals online. So i will probably buy online. I've got a pretty good list of rods to look at. But I'm really going to check out the Tatula CT. It seems to be the one mentioned the most.  I'm a ok  baitcaster (still working on that thumb control lol) So would the Tatula be the better choice as for learning to be a better baitcaster

 

Also to be sure I have it right I will be looking more at medium/heavy fast rods?

You can search my years of rod recommendations and I have never suggested a rod was ideal for anyone with the exception of my recommendation to you in this thread.

MH/fast is too stiff to effectively cast the lures you use.

Checking our rod/reel combos at a tackle shop by touch and feel is a good idea.

Tom

[luvs2fish]

UPDATE: 

Went to Bps and they were sooo helpful. I decided on the tatula and a vendetta rod. It’s like they were made for my hands lol. Thank you all for your input. I liked going in with a little knowledge before hand. 

[Choporoz]

17 minutes ago, luvs2fish said:

Went to Bps and they were sooo helpful.

Congratulations!

 

Not sure I would have ever expected to see those words all together in one sentence.  Really is good to hear.

[Joshua van Wyk]

2 hours ago, luvs2fish said:

UPDATE: 

Went to Bps and they were sooo helpful. I decided on the tatula and a vendetta rod. It’s like they were made for my hands lol. Thank you all for your input. I liked going in with a little knowledge before hand. 

Good choice,  that was my first combo too.  

[luvs2fish]

The gentleman said it was a good pick. I was kind of worried about the help I may or may not have received but I went straight to fishing and the first person I saw. Seriously it was like he waiting for me. And he only works 1 day a week. This person was the most knowledgeable person ever 

[Joshua van Wyk]

9 minutes ago, luvs2fish said:

The gentleman said it was a good pick. I was kind of worried about the help I may or may not have received but I went straight to fishing and the first person I saw. Seriously it was like he waiting for me. And he only works 1 day a week. This person was the most knowledgeable person ever 

His name wasn't Brad by any chance?

[luvs2fish]

U know I got in a whirlwind of fishing talk. It wasn’t until after I left I realized I didn’t even catch his name. He works on thursdays only. Wears glasses ima say 50ish.  He gave me a ton of rule of thumb tips. I explained some of the troubles I was having and they were simple fixes. He is originally from Wynne 

[Joshua van Wyk]

50 minutes ago, luvs2fish said:

U know I got in a whirlwind of fishing talk. It wasn’t until after I left I realized I didn’t even catch his name. He works on thursdays only. Wears glasses ima say 50ish.  He gave me a ton of rule of thumb tips. I explained some of the troubles I was having and they were simple fixes. He is originally from Wynne 

Oh, that isn't him lol. There's a man at my local Cabelas named Brad and he's a goldmine of information.  It would've been ironic if it was the same guy ??