Rod /Reel advise

writeaccess

I'm planning on buying a new fishing rod. I havent done much fishing and don't know much about it.

I'm in the drogheda area and would mostly be trying my hand on the shore although i'd like to be able to use it in rivers too
Any advise of the type of rod/reel i shoud get ?
cheers

jd

What kind of budget do you have...
Where do you intend to do your sea fishing-estuary,rocks?
same question for fresh water?
Jd

writeaccess

I would pay up to €120 or so but i don't know the going rate.

Probably mostly from the rocks although i would like a versitale rod (if such a thing exists)

Illkillya

If I were you I'd get a medium-light spinning rod, 9 foot maybe so you'll get a good cast from the rocks but it wont be too awkard for the river. I have a small, strong spinning rod which I've caught trout, rudd, pike, cod, etc with, but what its designed for (mackerel/pollack) is what its worst at because it doesn't cast well.
theres no need to spend much, because these versatile rods and reels are usually good and cheap, you'd get a good rod and reel for 80 euros. The problem when you're fishing from the rocks sometimes is the tackle... you could end up losing a lot of lures if the ground is rough.

writeaccess

Nice one. I thought it would be much dearer.... Thats pub talk for ya.

Already noticed that loosing the tackle is the big problem from the rocks. Seems if you don't know exactly where the weeds aren't your in for a hard time

LastIrishMonkey

anything good would cost a bite more than 120 euros soz m8 but i spent £300 pounds for a light rod for the new trout season 2 years ago

jd

Originally posted by LastIrishMonkey
anything good would cost a bite more than 120 euros soz m8 but i spent £300 pounds for a light rod for the new trout season 2 years ago

You can spend up to that amount of money if you want..
I'll put it another-way more people drive Nissans than BMW's but both cars will get you into town...and the BMW won't get you there any faster when you are stuck in traffic (granted it's a nicer car)..
It is not necessary to spend that amount of money for the type of fishing wruteaccess ins interested in. When I was 6/7 I had a light 6ft spinningrod-not ideal-but I still caught fish and enjoyed myself.
I have a 6ft rod thompson boat rod and an okuma reel loaded with 20lb which I have sometimes used boat fishing and I have regularly outfished guys with gear costing 3-400 euro loaded with braid. And I have enjoyed myself as much as any of them
I remember when I was a kid, my dad (who is not into fishing-he slags me thats its probably one of the most inefficient of human pursuits!!) would bring us out on a charter from kilmore. The boat was used to ferry people out to the salteees, and the skipper, a great guy called Willie Bates (rip), would then stop off and let us fish for a few hours. The thing was at that age none of us had boat rods, so we took the top off our spinning rods and fished with the bottom half. We enjoyed ourselves and caught fish-mackerel of course, but cod, pollack, and others too.



Now I'm not saying that rod and reels may not be worth that kind of money.. but I do have cheaper rods permanently in my car boot just so I can go fishing "en spec"

jd

Originally posted by writeaccess
Nice one. I thought it would be much dearer.... Thats pub talk for ya.

Already noticed that loosing the tackle is the big problem from the rocks. Seems if you don't know exactly where the weeds aren't your in for a hard time

Try using a rotten bottom. I have used stones as weights when the ground is really rough.

Illkillya

hehe.. for home made rottom bottom leads you cant do better than Blue Tack imo Stuff it full of bits of metal to make it heavy and smooth it over - surprisingly it survives the cast, and the water doesn't make it any less resiliant. For the rocky ground, you might be better off using a float.

I dont agree with LastIrishMonkey on the price of a versatile rod. His £300 trout rod would not be versatile at all I'd say - try reeling in a conger with it. Most expensive rods are very specialised, and would not be versatile. An exception to this would be pike rods, or carp rods, which are strong and long enough to serve efficiently as sea spinning rods, and bait fishing rods for both light fish and heavy fish.

westerly

HI

FWIW... I would recommend a 9-10 ft salmon rod (spinning rod) which will give you more than enough muscle to handle anything in a river (bar a truly massive pike) and will also give you the option of light sea fishing, especially spinning with lures for bass.
I've been experimenting this summer with using floating pike plugs for bass and it has worked quite well (3 in five outings).

You can pick up a decent rod/reel combo for 120 EURO however you get what you pay for. If you are learning again, stick to a spinning or fixed spool reel - don't let them sell you a multiplier.

The reel has to match what you are putting it up to - Mitchell make nice spinning reels, reasonably strong but check the bale arm for strength and also check the handle (some screw in handles have a small pin holding them in place that will often be the first thing to go, especially if you go piking and put pressure on the reel). Also check the reel's line capacity - for mixed fishing I would recommend 12-15 lb line, to which you can add a shock leader if you are using legering tactics on the sea shore. You will need 150 yards capacity minimum for the kind of fishing you are looking at... finally this kind of rod and reel combination will serve you well in later years when you add a beachcaster to your armoury as you can use it for light spinning work whilst waiting for a bit on the longer distance cast, or continue to use it inland.

FWIW...

Kieran


PS: Love the tip about the blue tack - new to me! If you want a ready supply of rotten bottom weights, just go to the local tyre repair centre as they have throw all the old lead balancing clips in a bucket...

Gearoid

I hope yee don't mind me ressurecting this thread, I'm totally new to fishing and I'd like a little advice on a rod and reel and maybe some baits.

I want to be able to fish from the beach where I heard is a good spot for Bass. I also want to be able to catch Mackerel later on in the summer, Is it possible to get a rod for this and to catch Salmon or would u advise on a totally new rod? I'm more interested in getting something for using off the beach and the pier for now so if u could give me the names of the rod and reel i'd need I'd appreciate it, also what type of bait do u need for catching Bass?

westerly

Hi Gearoid

Try the website at www.sea-angling-ireland.org under tackle and that will help , as will posting on the forum there.

It depends on how much you want to spend... but I would start with a decent 10 foot salmon spinning rod and fixed spool reel, loaded with 15 lb line and for rocky shore and pier fishing using 60 lb shock leader. It works although not off a beach. It will also catch that bass and plenty of mackerel ... so long as you limit the lead to 3 ozs and try not to hit the horizon!

Some shops will have a combination for well under 100 Euro, but do bear in mind that beachcasting is another game altogether - the rods go from 12 to 16 feet long (!) and prices to match. You should also consider using a mulitplier reel which is 100 Euro plus for a decent one and there is a completely different casting action with multipliers (more complex) hence the advice for beginners to stick to fixed spool reels... Some good brands listed on the website. Read the mag reviews. Join a local Sea Angling Club - they are all delighted to see new people take up the sport and you will get insured cheap and get to fish competitions.

FWIW

Kieran Hanrahan

vicount

Illkillya wrote: »

you could end up losing a lot of lures if the ground is rough.

If you can go at low tide take a few pics on ur phone,,take note of where to fish and where not too,, when u find ur spot stick something in a ditch thats noticable as a marker,, takes time but it saves a lot of rigs,,

Octopus

vicount wrote: »

If you can go at low tide take a few pics on ur phone,,take note of where to fish and where not too,, when u find ur spot stick something in a ditch thats noticable as a marker,, takes time but it saves a lot of rigs,,

I bet he wishes he got that tip 8 years ago :D:D

vicount

Octopus wrote: »

I bet he wishes he got that tip 8 years ago :D:D

Ha ha ha im some tit....:rolleyes:

sheesh

a couple of years I got a 11' ron thompson salmon rod for about €60 in a local shop great casting rod and i would recommend it, I use it for spinning off rocks for pollock mackeral and bass and bait fishing for flatties. you should pickup a decent saltwater fishing reel for about the same price if you can shop around Shimano penn etc.

as someone else said 15lb line will be enough. Its strong enough to let you pull out of weed while being thin enough to not affect the cast. I use Stren.

a setup like that should keep you very happy for a couple of years.