Fishing gear you think is worth the price, or not..?

[A-Jay]

16 minutes ago, OnthePotomac said:

I wish, but this old soldier will be 86 this fall and I am thinking of selling the boat and standing on the bank somewhere.  I am going to try one more summer on the mighty Potomac.

Got it ~ 

Sage decision.

A-Jay

[Mobasser]

Another thing that's a good value are Berkley casting and spinning rods. Some folks may look down on them as low end. They cost less than Fenwick, Loomis, and others, but if you need a main rod or an extra rod, they're hard to beat for the price

[J._Bricker]

My Mustang PFD is worth every penny. And IMHO, we should all feel the same way about our PFDs. Now, as for lures I gotta say my Vision Onetens are definitely worth the price...

[AdamT]

The Daiwa Tatula (cork grips) line of rods (spinning and casting) and Tatula casting reels.  Both can be had for around $100-$120 and well worth it in my opinion.  I have the Tatula 100 reel in 6.3:1, and 2 in 8.1:1.  3 of the casting rods, 7’0” M R crankbait rod, 2 6’10” MH F casting rods, and 2 of the spinning rods, both 6’8” M.  The rods are really nice, have a good feel and balance and nice guides. The reel is great too, much better than the Fuego CT I got to start off with.  The TWS has helped me tremendously.  Very impressed so far.   

[MN Fisher]

37 minutes ago, J._Bricker said:

My Mustang PFD is worth every penny. And IMHO, we should all feel the same way about our PFDs. Now, as for lures I gotta say my Vision Onetens are definitely worth the price...

No matter what you pay for it...a working PFD is priceless.

 

AS LONG AS YOU WEAR IT

 

Otherwise it's worthless.

[QUAKEnSHAKE]

Well I think everything is overpriced. Im trying to think what I have bought for full price and coming up empty. I always wait for a sale at TW or another site or other random places. So at general sale price of say 20% off these are my picks

 

Braid except for Smackdown thats overpriced even at 20% off.

Nanofil- just purchased 1500yds @ 33% off

Senkos

Fat Ikas

Strike King Rocket Shads

$60-$100 Daiwa spinning reels

The 1st gen Quantum Smoke rods specifically the 7' Medium Fast casting. 

 

[MIbassyaker]

My high Value/Cost hitlist agrees with many already mentioned:

Daiwa Taluta 100 baitcaster

Pflueger President, Supreme, & Supreme XT spinning reels

Berkely Big Game mono

Izorline XXX copoly

Berkeley Rods

Fenwick Rods

GYCB Senko, Hula Grub

Strike King KVD squarebills, KVD jerkbait, KVD perfect plastics

Booyah Pad Crasher, Spinnerbaits, Boss Pop

6th sense crankbaits

Most Yo-Zuri topwaters

Heddon Torpedo

Rapala floating minnow &Husky Jerk

Mister Twister Curly Tail grubs, Phenom Worm, and Super Lizard

Almost anything by Zoom

 

For poor value/cost: Almost every kayak accessory in existence, beyond a paddle and PFD.

[JediAmoeba]

Clearly, IMO, stay away from Luck E Strike Rick  Clunn jerkbaits.  

[HenryPF]

Going the opposite direction, not worth the money:

 

Jackhammers

Vision 110

Any rod over $200

Electronics mounting systems

[t_bone_713]

Great for the money:

KVD 1.5 Squarebills

Original Culprit Worms (7.5in?) Tequila Sunrise

Owner 1/8oz Ultraheads

Abu Garcia Black Max Baitcaster

Ugly Stik Elite Casting Rods

Yo Zuri Hybrid Line

Berkley Big Game

Pflueger President Spinning Reels

Daiwa Aird-X Spinning and Casting Rods

 

Expensive-ish but I just am in love:

Dobyn's Fury Spinning and Casting Rods

Lew's Speed Spool LFS Baitcaster

 

Things I can't stand:

REELS made by Daiwa (I love their rods though)

 

[PourMyOwn]

As Phish said, Lews Carbon Fire rods are an excellent value at 39.99 when on sale. I'd also add the Skeet Reese rods, I've found them for 40 on sale too. 

 

Also agree with Maximus, used reels are often a good value. I have a soft spot for 80s Shimano and Ryobi reels, I keep scooping them up on Ebay for 20 bucks and they still perform. 

[Cgolf]

On 3/16/2020 at 8:17 AM, kayaking_kev said:

Daiwa Fuego CT ($75)

 

Ugly Stick GX2 ($40, Got 3 of mine for $9 each)

Lew's Hank Parker Speed Stick ($40, paid $35 for mine)

13 Defy Black Crankbait Rod 7'3 Heavy/Moderate/Composite ($60, paid $50 for mine)

 

$1 Walmart Spinner baits have caught me fish

Creme Plastic Worms ($1.25)

Yum Dingers ($1.99)

Gulp Minnows 1" ($6)

Whopper Ploppers ($13, not that cheap but worth every penny for me)

 

Eagle Claw Nail Weights ($0.88 for like 8 of them)

O-Rings for Wacky Rig

Treble Hook Bonnets

Reel Covers

Rod Sleeves

U-40 Cork Sealant

Digital Scales

Hawg Trough Measuring Board

Fish Grips

Line Cutter

Long Nose Pliers

Life Vest

Go Pro Hero 5 Black

Plano 3700 Waterproof Stowaways

Cal Coast Rod Mule

 

Kayak

 

Glad someone else likes ugly sticks. If people could get past the slightly heavier stick, they work great for some presentations. My M GX2 spinning rod excels as a jerkbait rod and spybait rod. I also does really well as an all purpose rod fishing a very rocky stretch of river from shore and is forgiving enough to fish trout too. Underrated sticks imo and hope the trend towards fast action lets up soon and we see a majority of moderate actions again. 
 

Bandit 100, has caught me hundreds of bass and I know they catch the same fish multiple times. They must have a special something something to their action that says legit food that the fish don’t become conditioned to them. 
 

Yum crawbug, cheap and my number 1 bass bait of all time. Simply rig it on a slider head, a little craw scent and hold on. 
 

Rage Menace, initially I wasn’t a believer and thought people raved about it on here because it was the site sponsor. Well I still hate the price, but have bought a bunch of them during sales, they flat out produce. Use them for both bass and trout fishing now. 
 

Rapala shadow rap great jerkbait at a great price point. I have added some pricier models, to see how they stack up against the shadow rap. 
 

Berkley fireline, seems like I have been using this forever on spinning reels and I hope the never stop making it. Use it all the time on a rocky river without any issues. Embarrassed to say how long I go without respooling. 
 

Suffix 832 this stuff is just great line, and has mostly replaced the power pro I used in the past. 
 

Tube and 5” grub (preferably Kalins) If I had two types of baits to fish for the rest of my life these would be it. Super versatile, cheap, and they whack em. 

[suzuki2903]

strike king- prices have gotten a bit to high,especially recently with the price increase on all their baits and lures

 

shimano slx reels- great value for what you are getting i think. slx dc and xt versions

 

lews carbon fire rods- for $60.00 these rods are very good and even come with winn grips

 

acadet h20 lures are another good value as well as some of the bass pro shop branded lures.

 

[Shimano_1]

I guess I think all the things I buy are worth the money or I wouldn't keep buying them. I love my lews and shimano reels. Live my bps and cabelas rods. Everything strike king makes. Rapala cranks, megabass jerkbaits, triton boats. It's all going up quickly tho kinda makes me wanna just keep what I have and only buy new gear as something breaks or wears out.

[gim]

My hands are a valuable tool for fishing. I really can’t use much of my gear without full use of both my hands.

[garroyo130]

On 3/16/2020 at 9:04 AM, MN Fisher said:

Yo-Zuri Hybrid

add to this

• Berkley Lightning Rod (medium/moderate) for light cranks
• Pfluger President spinning reels
• Amazon bobber stoppers that are like 1000/$16
• KVD Line and Lure (although it would be a good deal at twice the price)
• Mend it ... if you havent tried this you really need to!

 

4 hours ago, suzuki2903 said:

lews carbon fire rods- for $60.00 these rods are very good and even come with winn grips

The heavy carbon fire has been nothing short of perfect for throwing frogs

[CrankFate]

Boca Bearings. They work. I like Hawgtech for price and performance, but Boca gets the edge because you can get every bearing for every reel. Smoothdrag Abec rated bearings are worth it, too. Cals drag grease and carbon Tex drags are also worth it.
 

Expensive hooks. These are the # 1 overpriced piece of gear that will absolutely make everyone a better fisherman. If there is one thing everyone should do, it is to waste the money and get the Gamakatsus or the Owners or the VMCs they will really make a better fisherman out of everyone. Though, I also recommend only buying at the high prices from real sellers, like BPS, Dicks, etc. the internet and even small BT stores are full of counterfeits.

[kayaking_kev]

3 hours ago, cgolf said:

Glad someone else likes ugly sticks. If people could get past the slightly heavier stick, they work great for some presentations. My M GX2 spinning rod excels as a jerkbait rod and spybait rod. I also does really well as an all purpose rod fishing a very rocky stretch of river from shore and is forgiving enough to fish trout too. Underrated sticks imo and hope the trend towards fast action lets up soon and we see a majority of moderate actions again. 
 

The GX2 is what I caught the majority of my fish with this past season, 515 on video alone. I probably caught half my fish using it to fish Wacky Rigs, Neko Rigs, and a lot of T-Rigs and it did surprisingly good, but the action is great for reaction baits. I also caught my first two rainbow trout ever with it this past season, so it's pretty versatile. I used the 6'0 Medium, so the weight wasn't really a problem for me. I have four of them and never had any break or any other problems with them and I put them through a lot of abuse kayak fishing on rivers with them. I got 16 new rods this winter, but it will still have a spot in my lineup for moving baits in tight quarters.

 

 

[Munkin]

7 hours ago, CrankFate said:

Boca Bearings. They work. I like Hawgtech for price and performance, but Boca gets the edge because you can get every bearing for every reel. Smoothdrag Abec rated bearings are worth it, too. Cals drag grease and carbon Tex drags are also worth it.
 

Expensive hooks. These are the # 1 overpriced piece of gear that will absolutely make everyone a better fisherman. If there is one thing everyone should do, it is to waste the money and get the Gamakatsus or the Owners or the VMCs they will really make a better fisherman out of everyone. Though, I also recommend only buying at the high prices from real sellers, like BPS, Dicks, etc. the internet and even small BT stores are full of counterfeits.

Where can I get some upgraded metal bearings? The ceramic ones make too much noise.

 

Allen