lookin to get some fishing gear

[spidertoy]

and want to know whats everybody use around here to catch fish, can be lake and or river gear wanna learn about it all...

eventually I will be asking about bow hunting equipment, and hunting rifles and so forth, but this thread here is reserved STRICTLY for fishing gear, I will start another thread about the hunting gear before hunting season

 

[Jaydog]

Depends on what you are fishing for, I mainly fish for bass and so I use baitcast reels w/spiderwire line and med/heavy action rods between 6 and 7 1/2 feet long. For Trout I use a light spinning combo with 6lb fluorocarbon line on a 5' to 6' in length.

 

[spidertoy]

okay, what kinda rod/reel combo? brand name? wheres a good place to buy from?

 

[wrecker1]

MY best thing is a boat. I hate to sit on a bank and wait for the fish to come to me.
We bought cheap reels and poles at the local pawn shop, so the invetment isn't too much, as we don't have a lot of time to do recreational things anymore.

 

[Jaydog]

Starting off I would recommend getting a combo from Sportsmans Warehouse, or off the internet at www.bassproshops.com or www.cabelas.com If you are just getting into fishing, then just tell them what you are going to fish for and they should be able to point you towards a good combo. There are thousands of rods and reels, and are all pretty good, Abu Garcia, Pflueger, and Shimano are all quality producers of reels. Rods are more about feel and what you like, I prefer Falcon rods, but they are higher end rods and I don't recommend them unless you plan on doing a few tournaments. Quantum, Shakespeare, Shimano, Browning and Diawa, are all good rods.

Then the debate starts about what line to use.....

What fish are you thinking of going after?

 

[spidertoy]

trout to start, theres a good fishing lake less than a mile away from me, and eventually I might get into more "sport" fish if they are good eating

 

[kyle1]

unless you're catching the trout that have been in the lake for a while(holdovers, most lakes are stocked with little guys that are raised on cat food, so they taste like crap) they aren't that great eating. some of the best tasting fish in the lakes around here are perch. they don't get very big but they're easy to catch and there's a lot of them.

you don't have to invest a whole lot into fishing gear if you're starting out, and even the high end stuff is kind of chump change compared to buying 4x4 parts. i'd start off with a light action 6-7' spinning rod rated for around 4-8lb line, and get a matching reel, put some 6lb test on it. get an assortment of hooks, weights, and smallish lures, any decent sporting goods shop will set you up. don't forget your fishing license!

though i like fishing the lakes most of my fishing has always been in the rivers for salmon and steelhead(steelhead mostly). after august this last year the salmon fishing turned to crap, the fish didn't show up and then all the rivers flooded in november. so far the steelhead fishing has been decent, i got this little guy last friday