Am I alone?

[Smalls]

I have 14-16 rods or so. I usually take 6-8 out with me on the kayak, but I rotate between them all, depending on what I think I'll need for the day. It's the middle of the summer and most of our fish are deep, so I load up my big football jig rod, dropshot rod, etc and leave my squarebill rod at home. 

 

[Fishes in trees]

 

I think that I have plenty of rods & reels, but that isn't a good enough reason to get another one from time to time.   I can't walk past a close out rack without looking and every so often I end up buying.   From time to time it occurs to me that there is some particular niche in my collection that a certain rod will fill.  Sometimes that niche is an extra rod to lend out if I want to.   Same thing with pawn shops - I can't not stop at pawn shops from time to time - just to check out what might be available in their used fishing tackle.  Often though, the tackle that I come across in pawn shops feels "stolen" to me, and I don't want any part of that karma, so I leave it on the shelf.   

[MacJig]

I own about 39 combos now. But I'm a "hanger onner" meaning that I seldom discard, retire or just bury any of my old, cheap or broken gear. I just hang on to them. I also like fishing different species so my collection isn't just for bass. I enjoy crappie and blue gill fishing so I have dedicated combos for them. Do I need 39. No! But do I need a Buick when I could drive a Chevy. Need? No. But I enjoy my Buick so I own one. I also enjoy trying different rod brands. It makes life adventurous.  Does anyone really have that perfect answer as to how many is just right?

[MacJig]

On 8/21/2021 at 11:42 AM, Deleted account said:

Zero organization involved, they are leaning up against the wall in 3 garages, and 2 spare bed rooms.

I crown you king of Anglersville. ?

[new2BC4bass]

 

On 8/20/2021 at 12:51 PM, Chris Catignani said:

A good rule of thumb is to...

...have 1 rod for every year you been fishing.

74 in less than 2 months.  Started fishing at 5.  I have more than one for every year.  Good thing I quit fishing for 23 years. 

On 8/18/2021 at 6:37 PM, desmobob said:

I figured I must have over a dozen fly rods.  Well, I inventoried them this spring.  I do have over a dozen.  I have 28.  

 

I guess I'll have to break down and catalog my bass rods at some point...

I'll never have 28 fly rods.  It would be nice, tho. 

On 8/21/2021 at 9:42 AM, Deleted account said:

I own probably 300 setups (all types, salt and fresh, not just bass) and fish with the same 2-6 of each type most years, so yeah, I own too many....

I knew there were guys out there with more rods and reels than I have.  You make me look like a piker. 

[KP Duty]

I was a buyer and seller of rods....now I just buy :).  It's ok to collect.  If you are feeling guilty about your unused stuff, just watch an episide of 'american pickers'.  Dudes build metal buildings just to hold all their crap.  

[Gera]

As other guys have mention, kayak fishing really helps you keep it under control as space limitations stops you from just buying stuff and really spend the time on getting what will be the best and most flexible solution. same for tackle, there is only space for a fix number of 3600 plano boxes in my crate.

 

Now that doesn't mean that I don't spend the same money, I still purchase tons of things that at the time I'm sure I must have bunt never use, so overspending its just diversified. 

 

I feel that the internet and the manufacturers are really pushing (taking advantage of the bait monkey in my head) to purchase more setup for techniques that one rod should be able to handle with out any issues. what I mean is, do I really need a jerkbait technic specific rod?? the monkey and megabass said yes while my head said no your medium rod will do just fine (they won anyway, two against one)

[N.Y. Yankee]

On 8/19/2021 at 1:35 PM, ABrugs said:

You are not alone! Although I just started bass fishing in 2020, I'm in a very similar spot right now. I started w/ 2 baitcasting setups last year that were each dedicated to one technique and then added 2 more baitcasting setups this year also each dedicated to specific techniques, giving me a total of 4. Through this year, I've been realizing I don't need 4 setups at all and I certainly don't need technique specific setups. I'm currently a bank angler, but will most likely be getting a boat within the next couple of years. I'm sure that will change my thought process a little bit. However and for the time being, I've decided that I will be consolidating all 4 of my setups and selling them at the end of this fishing season. I'm going to instead invest in 1 versatile setup that will throw the most common lures I use. I don't have the opportunity to fish more than once/week right now and love the idea of simplifying to 1 setup.

 

^ So, my current dilemma is figuring out if I want to stick w/ baitcasting or go back to my roots of spinning, which is what I grew up using in Michigan. FWIW, if I go the casting route, I'm eyeing a Loomis 842 MBR w/ an Aldebaran. If I go spinning, I'm looking at the 6'8 MXF St. Croix Legend X paired w/ a 2500 Stradic FL. One of the best things I've learned through my first 2 seasons is what type of bass fishing I like to do, which is what I would define as 'power finesse'. I love throwing lighter/smaller lures and primarily target smallies. I'm not sure which direction I'm going to go, but I can say w/o a doubt that I'm really excited to go from 4 setups to 1, simplify my fishing, and be more versatile.

 

This was a great post/topic by the way!

Everyone should have at least one spinning rod and one baitcaster, minimum!

[DogBone_384]

No, you’re not alone.

[N Florida Mike]

Ive got 10 bass combos- 7 spinning and 3 casting, 4-5 saltwater combos, 2 panfish combos, and 6 catfish combos. I also have several cheap kids outfits , and I have 8 or so of my son’s saltwater rods…

When I fish my home lake, I generally fish 2-4 of them depending on the way conditions look. When I travel to fish, I take 5-6 of them… I just got 3 rods added to existing reels. One I fixed, One I bought, and One I found . Lately Ive thought about selling a few of them but most are so old and used I wouldn’t get much for them. 

[FishTank]

I'm up to 22 setups, not counting the three I bought for my wife and kids. I started about the same time as the op. I had two spinning setups and a spincast. Since then I have added what I like and have been fortunate enough to have some friends that are into gear so I get to see a variety rods and reels.  

 

I have come to find out that I like the good stuff at a bargain price but also just like a bargain on whatever,  if it's going to fit a need or purpose and it's going to hold up. 

[MN Fisher]

I just started assembling my 'arsenal' a few years ago. For the boat, I'm up to 11 combos (6 casting, 5 spinning); for shore I have 3 dedicated (1 casting, 2 spinning) and two of the boat combos can also be used (1 each).

 

All my shore fishing is done from DNR reserved spots on the lake, I'm never more than 50 yds from the truck, so swapping rigs isn't a big deal...I'll take two to the spot I'm fishing from...swap out if I want to try something those rigs won't be good at.

[FrankN209]

On 8/16/2021 at 7:12 AM, Randy Price said:

I grew up with 1 fishing rod until my mid 30's.  A friend introduced me to St. Croix AVID rods and Shimano Stradic reels back in 2000 and I've never been the same.  I've since purchased almost 20 high end AVID or higher SC rods.  Now when I go fishing (multi species I generally only take 2-3 rods) and the rest just sit.  I'm making a short story long but does anyone else have too many rods and they're not even really enjoying or using them?  I've thought of selling some but I then think I might have sellers remorse.  Thoughts/help????

Same here. I'm down to 3 bc setups and 1 spinning that I rarely use.