best rod and reel for under $150?

[MN Fisher]

9 minutes ago, BassWhole! said:

Fuego/Aird-X.

 

5 minutes ago, BigFishy-13 said:

I will definetly be checking out those Daiwa Aird rods and looking into all the reels everyone mentioned. 

The Fuego/Aird-X combo is still, for the coming year, my H/F rig for pitch/flip/frog/topwaters. It'll be my third year with that combo and it's been very good for me.

[optimator]

Maybe wait a couple of weeks for the BPS/Presidents day sales? 

[Deleted account]

5 minutes ago, BigFishy-13 said:

Wow, thanks everyone for all the replies!  I will definetly be checking out those Daiwa Aird rods and looking into all the reels everyone mentioned.  Those shimano slx look really nice.  Thanks this was super helpful!

The SLX combos are a great deal as others have mentioned. I would recommend staying away from the longer more powerful rods, they just don't balance well with the SLX reel. Kinda like Ketchup and ice cream, I like both a lot, but not together.

[GaryH]

First thing welcome to the forum Bigfishie. The Shimano SLX is a good set up for the money and will last you a long time. There were several good suggestion giving take your time and good luck. Make sure you post the first fish you catch with your new setup.??

 

[GaryH]

1 hour ago, Michigander said:

I think the Vengeance is the worst bass rod I have used as an adult. It is in the corner of shame in the garage, gathering rust (yes rust) and dust.

You need to keep it in your boat so when you loose one you can take it out on it. Snap it over your knee and watch all the looks you get...  

[Michigander]

1 minute ago, GaryH said:

You need to keep it in your boat so when you loose one you can take it out on it. Snap it over your knee and watch all the looks you get...  

I salute your genius! The only use i found for it so far was to duct tape a duster to the tip to clean cobwebs off the ceiling in the stairwell. I like your idea better!

[Eric 26]

Not sure where your at but bass pro will be having there spring sale soon. I was lucky enough to grab a carbonlite 2.0 combo a couple years ago for $120.00. Bass pro has many options on multiple combos.

[Bluegillslayer]

Im 15 myself, and purchased the Abu Garcia MLF spinning combo and I love its about 75 to 80 dollars and the baitcaster version is about 100 dollars. Pretty sick combos by a reliable company.

[HaydenS]

3 hours ago, BigFishy-13 said:

I have looked at an Abu Garcia silver max paired with a Abu garcia vengeance rod and that set up looks ok.

I fished with this combo the almost the entire fishing season last year, and it worked great until it got cold, and the reel started acting up.  Since I used the reel so much, it also got really dirty and had to be cleaned.  I just bought a $80 Bass Pro Shops Extreme Baitcasting reel for that rod, and it is awesome!  I would suggest this reel. 

One of the guides on the vengeance rod got messed up.  The inside lining of the guide chipped out.  I was pretty rough with this rod, so probably my fault.   I plan on fixing it with super glue.  Other than that it is a great $50 rod.   

[ironbjorn]

Rod:

Daiwa Aird-X: Buy it on Tackle Warehouse for $55 so you know it will ship swiftly and smoothly, in a strong, sturdy tube. Buy it either in MH or H, depending on what you need. These rods fish a little lighter than advertised.

 

Reel:

Abu Garcia Pro Max: Buy it on Amazon for $70 (appears to be $10 cheaper than everywhere else). Buy it in righty or lefty, whichever you use. They're all 7.1:1 with 29 IPT. 28-32 IPT is what I consider an all around sweet spot.

 

$125, and it matches.

[new2BC4bass]

4 hours ago, MyKeyBe said:

Falcon lowrider for $100.00 and a Quantum icon for $40.00. 

 

OP, welcome to the forum.  Left hand or right hand?  Here is a beautiful looking LH reel for $45.  Recently received one, but it will be awhile before I can use it.  Only 2 left in stock.  Very nice looking reel.  Much nicer looking than my Icon.

 

https://www.amazon.com/Quantum-KVD101H-Team-Baitcast-Reel/dp/B01397TPQK

 

$40 Icon.  Well built reels per PhishLi (and a couple others).   https://www.amazon.com/Quantum-KVD101H-Team-Baitcast-Reel/dp/B01397TPQK

 

The Falcon Lowrider is a lot of rod at full price.  If I was only going to spend $100 on a rod this would be my first choice.   According to several on here (and elsewhere) the Daiwa Aird X is a great value at $55.   A few have said that the Lew's Carbon Fire sold exclusively at Dick's Sporting goods fishes above its price point.  Currently on sale for $60.

[BlakeMolone]

I would just like to add that for 30 bucks the original berkley lightning rod is just great and has the right action for both soft plastics and moving baits. I am hard on my gear so I have just started buying those until I’m in a situation where I can easily transport rods and where I don’t have to lay them on the ground when bank fishing etc because I break rods sometimes and when those are higher end rods it really is upsetting and I don’t always have the money to replace them even when I really need them.

17 hours ago, BassWhole! said:

The SLX combos are a great deal as others have mentioned. I would recommend staying away from the longer more powerful rods, they just don't balance well with the SLX reel. Kinda like Ketchup and ice cream, I like both a lot, but not together.

Yup I have the 7-4 medium heavy slx combo and it is tip heavy, it’s also a straight up heavy action rod if you ask me. It has been a great combo but not very balanced and not as versatile since in my opinion is actually is a heavy rod and the action is extremely fast and the tip is stiff.

[Drew03cmc]

Until a year or so ago I was in this same budget conundrum. I would recommend getting an SLX HG ($90 on ebay) and an Aird X ($50 at Academy). My son has my SLX reels now.

[Luke Barnes]

1 hour ago, Drew03cmc said:

Until a year or so ago I was in this same budget conundrum. I would recommend getting an SLX HG ($90 on ebay) and an Aird X ($50 at Academy). My son has my SLX reels now.

For the same price you can get an SLX rod in tons of lengths, power, action. A 7' MH would be versatile, I personally like the M/XF that I was sent by mistake. Not sure what it would be best used for because I sent it back, but I really liked the feel and such a fast tip with loads of back bone.

[Deephaven]

I'd watch for the upcoming spring sales.  Should be able to get 20% off retail here before the end of March...and at the same time I would hit Craigslist and Facebook Marketplace for used stuff.  Lots of deals to be had if you are patient.

[new2BC4bass]

15 minutes ago, Deephaven said:

I'd watch for the upcoming spring sales.  Should be able to get 20% off retail here before the end of March...and at the same time I would hit Craigslist and Facebook Marketplace for used stuff.  Lots of deals to be had if you are patient.

As much as I like to pick up good used deals I've only checked Craigslist a couple times.  Never knew of Facebook Marketplace.  I hate going on Facebook.  Will have to check it out.  Thanks.  However, I doubt it will have much more fishing gear than Craigslist.  Slim pickins in my area. 

[BigFishy-13]

So I've been looking into all the gear everyone mentioned and I think I'm gonna go with the daiwa Aird-X rod and I'm trying to decide between the daiwa CR80, the CC80, or spend an extra $20 and go with the fuego.  What is your experiences with these reels? 

[Michigander]

2 minutes ago, BigFishy-13 said:

So I've been looking into all the gear everyone mentioned and I think I'm gonna go with the daiwa Aird-X rod and I'm trying to decide between the daiwa CR80, the CC80, or spend an extra $20 and go with the fuego.  What is your experiences with these reels? 

Fuego is solid, especially when you find it on Amazon for around $80. CC80 is fine, I wouldn't punch with it, but general use is fine. 

[kayaking_kev]

On 2/13/2021 at 11:55 AM, new2BC4bass said:

  Never knew of Facebook Marketplace.  I hate going on Facebook.  Will have to check it out.  Thanks.  However, I doubt it will have much more fishing gear than Craigslist.  Slim pickins in my area. 

Marketplace is really the only reason I go on FB, that and the fishing groups like Shimano Buy&Sell, Daiwa Buy&Sell, Dobyns etc... some great deals can be found and easy to sell stuff on there. It doesn't have to be local, just make sure you take precautions like using PayPal, (Not friends & family), ask for a invoice, insurance, signature verification if you want. I would also check people's profile to make sure they aren't new and don't have 0 friends or something like that. If their profile is set to private, then send a friend request. I have never been burned and have bought/sold many things on there, but I have also seen a lot of people not be smart and get scammed.

[Deephaven]

Fuego is well worth the $20.

 

As for FB, I have zero friends, don't comment on anything but buy & sell a ton on the marketplace.

[lunkerboss923]

It will be a tad bit over $150, but I think the Shimano SLX ($100) paired with a Dobyns Colt 704c ($80) gets my vote. 

[MN Fisher]

27 minutes ago, lunkerboss923 said:

It will be a tad bit over $150, but I think the Shimano SLX ($100) paired with a Dobyns Colt 704c ($80) gets my vote. 

I went and handled a few models of the Colt locally - and after a while of 'shop testing' them,  I 'd still prefer the Aird-X over the Colt. Just something about them didn't sit right with me

[BigFishy-13]

Alright everyone, the new combo has finally arrived!  Daiwa fuego paired with the Daiwa Aird-X, Heavy/fast.  Feels awesome in my hands and cant wait until the ice is gone to fish it.  Thanks so much to everyone that replied and input their ideas.  I would not have gotten this combo without your guy's help, so thank you! I will post a picture of the first fish i catch on it

[jbsoonerfan]

Looks like a fish catching machine to me! Congrats and good luck!!!!

[ElijahH]

I use a 13 Fishing Defy Black, paired with a Daiwa CG80 as my chatterbait setup. Both are around $60. One thing that really stands out is how light it is, which is something you'll appreciate more, once you start fishing more and more.