New fisherman looking for versatile spinning combo

[jdr99a]

I’m a new bass fisherman with very little experience aside from some cat fishing as a kid. I exclusively fish the ponds in my neighborhood now. There are a half dozen or so and are relatively large for a suburban neighborhood. The ponds are relatively shallow and most have areas of thick underwater vegetation around the shoreline. 
 

I've got a bait caster and I’m learning the ropes on that but I want a versatile and easy to use spinning combo to use when I get a birds nest I can’t easily fix. 
 

The bass I’ve caught are all smaller - maybe up to a pound and a half or so, but some folks have told me there are some 5-6 pounders lurking around. 
 

Can you folks point me in the direction of a versatile spinning setup to continue my learning journey? Line type and size, rod length and action type, etc. I’ve got academy’s and Walmart near me that are relatively decently stocked. 
 

Also, my only experience with artificial lures have been the tiny ratl traps and spinnerbaits.  I caught my first bass on a spinnerbait yesterday and was excited. I’ve caught several on the tiny traps, but they get caught up in the weeds quite a bit. Any tips for beginner friendly lures in weedy conditions would be great. 

[MN Fisher]

Rod - Medium power/fast action - length 6'6"-7'0"

Reel - 2500-3000 size

Line - 10# Mono or Hybrid

 

Lures:

3/8 oz twin-bladed spinnerbaits with 4"-5" craws/beavers/chunks as trailers - run this over top or alongside the weeds

3/8 oz swim jigs - same trailers - run these through the weeds at various depths...they're fairly weedless

Jerkbaits - 3-1/2" to 5" long (Rapala Original 09, 11, 13 fit this) - jerk/pause/jerk...again, over the tops of the weeds

Texas rigs - 1/4 oz to 3/8 oz weights; 1/0, 2/0, 3/0 hooks; worms or lizards on off-set, same plastics as spinner/jigs on EWG - run these along the bottom through the weeds.

 

These are just some of the techniques I've used with a M/F rod with a 2500 size reel.

 

Budget is a consideration too - how much you willing to spend on rod/reel/line/lures?

[islandbass]

10 minutes ago, MN Fisher said:

Rod - Medium power/fast action - length 6'6"-7'0"

Reel - 2500-3000 size

Line - 10# Mono or Hybrid

 

Lures:

3/8 oz twin-bladed spinnerbaits with 4"-5" craws/beavers/chunks as trailers - run this over top or alongside the weeds

3/8 oz swim jigs - same trailers - run these through the weeds at various depths...they're fairly weedless

Jerkbaits - 3-1/2" to 5" long (Rapala Original 09, 11, 13 fit this) - jerk/pause/jerk...again, over the tops of the weeds

Texas rigs - 1/4 oz to 3/8 oz weights; 1/0, 2/0, 3/0 hooks; worms or lizards on off-set, same plastics as spinner/jigs on EWG - run these along the bottom through the weeds.

 

These are just some of the techniques I've used with a M/F rod with a 2500 size reel.

 

Budget is a consideration too - how much you willing to spend on rod/reel/line/lures?

Bam! ‘Nuff said. ??

If you decide to go with fc line, you need to make sure it is a limp and non-worry version or else it might give you fits out of the gate. 

[jdr99a]

I don’t want to cheap out and get the bottom of the barrel gear, but since I’m new to the hobby I’d like to keep the gear middle of the road. Browsing my local academy I saw a few lew’s spinning combos for around the 80-120 range that seemed nice enough, but I know nothing other than the lew’s name. 
 

As far as line goes - I’ll buy whatever I need to if there is a consensus as to type/test/color. 
 

In regards to lures - Anything is game as long as it’s ready to go out of the box. I’ll probably grab a cross section of what is suggested and then get more as I learn (or just need an excuse to get out of the house for a bit).

[MN Fisher]

7 minutes ago, jdr99a said:

I saw a few lew’s spinning combos for around the 80-120 range that seemed nice enough, but I know nothing other than the lew’s name. 

I've not use Lews - my M/F rig is a Pflueger Trion-30 ($40 at Wally World) on a Diawa Aird-X 6'6" M/F ($50 at Academy), Line I use is 10# Yo-Zuri Hybrid...if you go with YZH - get some KVD Line and Lure Conditioner to treat the line...makes a difference.

[garroyo130]

4 minutes ago, MN Fisher said:

I've not use Lews - my M/F rig is a Pflueger Trion-30 ($40 at Wally World) on a Diawa Aird-X 6'6" M/F ($50 at Academy), Line I use is 10# Yo-Zuri Hybrid...if you go with YZH - get some KVD Line and Lure Conditioner to treat the line...makes a difference.

Id second this except with the suggestion of a Pflueger President instead of a Trion.

[MN Fisher]

1 minute ago, garroyo130 said:

Id second this except with the suggestion of a Pflueger President instead of a Trion.

Long at it's a 2019 or earlier model...word I hear is that a couple changes were done to the Presidents and they're not as good now.

[garroyo130]

3 minutes ago, MN Fisher said:

Long at it's a 2019 or earlier model...word I hear is that a couple changes were done to the Presidents and they're not as good now.

Yeah I should be good for a while. I picked up a bunch of the pink ones on Sierra Trading Post a while back for about $25 a piece. 

[MN Fisher]

1 minute ago, garroyo130 said:

Yeah I should be good for a while. I picked up a bunch of the pink ones on Sierra Trading Post a while back for about $25 a piece. 

Ya, my Pres-25 is last years model (ML-Finesse rig) and the Pres-20 I picked up (UL) was a last year's model on clearance...I'm good too.

[Grim_Reaver]

I haven't heard many good things about Lew's spinning reels. Aird-X or even Academy's All Star Classic series rods would be excellent choices. As far as reels can't go wrong Shimano, Daiwa, or Pflueger.

[NYWayfarer]

Good advice above. If you do go the academy route, one of those Lew’s Spinning combos will be a good choice. 
 

I would suggest the Lew’s Mach 2 spinning combo. The reel has an aluminum frame. I have had mine for 3 seasons with little maintenance and it performs like the day I got it.

[NYWayfarer]

16 hours ago, MN Fisher said:

Long at it's a 2019 or earlier model...word I hear is that a couple changes were done to the Presidents and they're not as good now.

I have an old President from when they made them with the wooden handle knob. They will have to pry it from my cold dead hands. One of my favorite ultralight reels.

[Darren.]

Welcome aboard!

 

I would suggest similar to above recommendations. I happen to be

a guy who prefers shorter rods, smaller reels (1000 size), and I use

10-15# test braid and always a leader from 6, 8, 10 pounds and 

occasionally 4 and 15# leader.

 

The leader is just how I roll. I fish a lot of soft plastics and sometimes

frequently have to change hooks, or such. With a leader I don't have

to cut into my braided mainline.

 

In terms of freshwater fishing, I think people overestimate the size

reel needed to pull in big bass. That said, newer spinning reels from

the likes of Daiwa, Shimano, etc., are smaller today than what they

were from years past. I've caught dozens of bass from 4-6+ pounds

on 1000 reels. FWIW. The bigger reels handle more line, tend to

stronger drag. So whatever feels comfortable to you, get that.

 

Never fished Lews (I'm pretty much a Shimano guy), but if the setup

feels good in your hand and doesn't break your budget, go for it!

 

Good luck!

[jdr99a]

I ended up with a lew’s mach 1 combo. They were pretty picked over - lots of folks looking for something to do in the nice weather now that covid19 has everything closed. None of the other combos mentioned were in stock. Plus I got it for $65ish, so it seemed like a decent deal. 
 

I got it out on the water yesterday afternoon and again this morning. 9 LMs later I’m pretty happy. 

[new2BC4bass]

Congratulations.  Both on the new combo and the good fishing.  I should be so lucky.    What models came on the combo?

[jdr99a]

13 minutes ago, new2BC4bass said:

Congratulations.  Both on the new combo and the good fishing.  I should be so lucky.    What models came on the combo?

I was looking for the lew’s Mach 2 or crush, or one of the Pfluegers but no dice. Since I’m pretty impatient when it comes to shopping I bought the Mach 1. It is the MH300a reel on a 6’9” medium power fast action rod. I put the academy brand 20lb braid on it to deal with the weeds (and maybe a tree or two since I’m still learning how to cast).

[new2BC4bass]

22 minutes ago, jdr99a said:

I was looking for the lew’s Mach 2 or crush, or one of the Pfluegers but no dice. Since I’m pretty impatient when it comes to shopping I bought the Mach 1. It is the MH300a reel on a 6’9” medium power fast action rod. I put the academy brand 20lb braid on it to deal with the weeds (and maybe a tree or two since I’m still learning how to cast).

I've been fishing for more than a few weeks.  Still haven't learned how to avoid those nasty trees 100% of the time. 

 

I have three Lew's casting reels.  Nice reels.  Only one Lew's rod.  A Custom Pro 7'6" MF Ledge/Crankbait.  Looks rather plain, but well put together.  Like the feel of the handle.  It feels light for its length and balance isn't bad at all with a Sol.  As yet it hasn't been fished.  Guarantee it will take a lot of outings to catch as many fish as you did in one day.  Sucks to live in this area.

[Steve S]

Dobyns is doing 40% off all there rods right now you could get 703sf (3 power spinning rod in any series) and it would handle most of everything you would want to throw. Go to sportsman’s outfitters and use code “DOBYNSFORTY” and they do free shipping. Good luck