What is the point?

[Jeff H]

About a month or so ago I went digging through all my old rods and found a Shimano Convergence 6' MH trigger(also found a 7' M trigger) piled in amongst all my old Berkely sticks.  I have no idea when I aquired these rods but it hadn't been used much if at all.  So, I put a old Team Daiwa TD1-pi on it and took with me on my next trip just for the heck of it.  To my surprise it turned out be a decent worm and jerk bait rod (the 6') and I have left it in the boat.  I just recently looked at the prices of these rods and they are an extremely affordable stick in the $40 range which puts them in a price class with Lightning Rods....but much better in my opinion.  It's not quite as heavy as a Lightning Rod for one thing.  I actually did not mind fishing with it at all and it was a "mind opening" experience.  Still, I wouldn't choose it over my Loomis wormin' stick unless I was blind drunk.  But it definitely has me less inclined to spend $200 on a rod right now.  Hopefully that feeling will pass ;D

[cbfishalot]

If quality gear will increase my catch ratio due to whatever factor it may be and I cash a check then I guess it payed for itself. But till you use the rod, reel, ect. then don't judge people who do.

Just my two cents!!!!!!!!

[Bass Hammer]

I honestly dont get the point on spending $200 on a rod or $200 on a reel? I just dont get it.

I'll let the cat out of the bag........with high end equiptment you will catch a fish on every cast. That's right every cast. It's part of a secret concession made by the high end gear cartel to get us to buy their gear.

It's been going on for years......we've just haven't told you.

[Bud]

              Nice young inexperianced pup whom walks in the yard with older more experianced dogs should be careful not to step in the poopy,lol.   Can I get a Amen !!!

                           

Amen

[Tucson]

As with most anything you buy there is a point of diminishing return.  An $80 rod is a big step up in quality over a $20 rod but if you opt to spend $160 don't expect the quality difference to double.  I look for the price point that gives me the best quality for the money and that point is up to the individual.  

A minimum requirement for most (but not all) applications is some type of graphite.  After that level is reached it becomes a question of smaller returns for the dollar.

And of course, everyones budget is different and that's a huge factor.  The real price of anything is the amount of lifetime that you must exhchange to acquire it.  If you earn $200 an hour then a $200 rod is not a big deal.  But if you are making minimum wage it becomes a BIG purchase.

[=Matt 5.0=]

The real price of anything is the amount of lifetime that you must exhchange to acquire it. If you earn $200 an hour then a $200 rod is not a big deal. But if you are making minimum wage it becomes a BIG purchase.

Very well said.  

[5bass]

I have a theory about the very high end stuff. I believe the reel makers take an already good reel, add a bearing or three, a different finish, a few holes drilled here and there and jack the price thru the roof. They are able to sell $500 reels simply because they can. Some people just have alot of money and like to have things that other people cant have. There is a market for gear that ordinary people cant afford/justify.

Use what you feel comfortable with and can afford.....if you can afford a Kistler Helium LTX go for it. If you can afford an Ugly Stik, go with it. As long as you are happy with it and are catching fish, thats all that should matter.

[David P]

I honestly dont get the point on spending $200 on a rod or $200 on a reel? I just dont get it. I can understand paying extra for braded line because that makes a huge difference but haveing your rod and reel combo be $350+ is just silly I think.

I have landed many carp and catfish over 10 LBS easily with rod and reel combos that cost less than $100 total. I just use ugly stick rods with around $50 spinning reels yet I am still able to land the monster fish when I hook into them. The biggest fish I ever caught in freshwater was a 34 inch long carp. I caught him with a cheap $30 ugly stick rod and about a $50 reel. So I honestly dont get the point of those $200 rods and reels when you can get much cheaper equipment that works just as well?

Rod and Reels make more of a difference then braided line, in my opinion.

Carp and Catfish are totally different styles of fishing, and that fishing, you can get away with a cheaper rod and reel as long as it wont' break on you. The reason people spend more money on bass rods, is light weight and sensitivity. The more you pay, the more sensitive the rod is. The more you pay on a reel, the better it performs.

To me, I'd rather have a really expensive rod and a moderately expensive reel. The rod is more important to me. But that's just me, some disagree.

[roadwarrior]

Quality and value have as many definitions as the # of people asked to define them. Just be careful not to stereotype a group of people based on something you appear to have little knowledge of.

For anyone to make a blanket statement that condemns high or low priced gear, based on cost, is both irresponsible and ignorant.

This agrument is tired... most of the time these threads are started by someone who is trying to justify their own gear. I could care less what anyone uses but lets keep it factual and honest.

Amen!

[Catt]

To me high end equipment does not mean big bucks but rather big quality and a quality setup can be had for under $200.  

[Raul]

Purchased an Abu Ambassadeur XLT 521 Plus reel back in 1984 or 1985, it cost me the whopping ammount of $89.99 plus tax, not only one of the best reels around those days but also one of the most expensive, back in those days 95 bones for a reel was an obscene ammount of money, all my buddies thought I was absolutely insane and the fact that I paired it to one of the most expensive rods practically confirmed their opinion, I paired it to a Berkley Lightning Rod, in those days they were top of the line rods, I almost spend 200 dollars in those puppies.

Well, it 's been over a little bit of two decades since I purchased them, 60% of all my 10+ pounders I 've caught over the years were caught on that rig.

Let 's do some math:

200 dollars / 22 years = 9 dollars per year of use and abuse

Since I take good care of my gear I bet I can take another 10 years of use out of that rig which btw is still in use, can there be better justification than that ? I spend more than 9 dollars a year just in chewing gum.

What 's the point ?

Purchase quality gear and it will last a lifetime.

[flechero]

Let 's do some math:

200 dollars / 22 years = 9 dollars per year

It would have still been a bargin at twice the price.  

[Raul]

More math:

Curado 200 ( 120 )/ GLoomis GL2 ( 125 ) + shipping = 260 / 12 years = 13 dollars per year.  

And I still have both and use them a lot.

[The_Natural]

Quality and value have as many definitions as the # of people asked to define them.  Just be careful not to stereotype a group of people based on something you appear to have little knowledge of.

For anyone to make a blanket statement that condemns high or low priced gear, based on cost, is both irresponsible and ignorant.

This agrument is tired... most of the time these threads are started by someone who is trying to justify their own gear.  I could care less what anyone uses but lets keep it factual and honest.

Amen!

 

Excellent post.  I hear a lot of anglers mention income, but I had four very nice combos at 15yrs old that I saved up and purchased mowing lawns.  My last partner drove a Range Rover and had new Ranger 521, but didn't see the value or reasoning for expensive rods or reels and used bps extreme combos.  I'm the same way...I have $800 rod combos, but buy my cargo shorts at walmart for $10 because I don't see the value in the  Lucky brand Cargo shorts or Abercrombie cargo shorts.  There is no right answer... only opinions.  it's like asking if a certain food tastes good.

[SPEEDBEAD.]

Quality and value have as many definitions as the # of people asked to define them. Just be careful not to stereotype a group of people based on something you appear to have little knowledge of.

For anyone to make a blanket statement that condemns high or low priced gear, based on cost, is both irresponsible and ignorant.

This agrument is tired... most of the time these threads are started by someone who is trying to justify their own gear. I could care less what anyone uses but lets keep it factual and honest.

Amen!

Excellent post. I hear a lot of anglers mention income, but I had four very nice combos at 15yrs old that I saved up and purchased mowing lawns. My last partner drove a Range Rover and had new Ranger 521, but didn't see the value or reasoning for expensive rods or reels and used bps extreme combos. I'm the same way...I have $800 rod combos, but buy my cargo shorts at walmart for $10 because I don't see the value in the Lucky brand Cargo shorts or Abercrombie cargo shorts. There is no right answer... only opinions. it's like asking if a certain food tastes good.

There is your point right there.  Nice and big for all to read.  Fish with what you have and are able to afford.

[lubina]

Now the flip side-  I have a TD-Z BBS that's a $400 waste of money.  IMO it's a bad value and a mediocre reel.  I only bring this up to show that there are some bad experiences with high $$$ gear.

.

I think that you are in a very Elite Minority on this.   ;D