what rod and reel to buy

[owey87]

it's time for a new rod and reel and wondering what sort everyone recommends.
mostly fish land based and just off shore in the tinny around gladstone.

thinking of going for a bait caster overhead setup but still a great fan of the good ol spin reels so all advice looked into.
want something tough but lightish , been buying ebay cheapys with no reserve for ridiculiosly cheap for to long lol

also anyone know much about a brand called "quantum"?
really like the look of the smoke reel




http://www.quantumfishing.com/produc.../Smoke-PT.aspx

[Rockfish]

I haven't had a lot to do with Quantum reels but i do know on some models in the PT range the main drive gear is made of an Aluminium alloy. This may or may not have a significant effect to the reels longevity. Otherwise the reels appear quite good light weight and meant to cast well, not as smooth as a shimano curado or daiwa hrf/advantage or zillion though.

I would highly recommend the Shimano Curado E5 love the reel. Will cast any weight very easily and predictably. For the price you can get them from the states you can even get a Daiwa Zillion for less then a Quantum Smoke here. IMO both the Zillion and Curado are tough as they come, cast well, have good drags, and if something does break down the track you can get parts easily.

[Horse]

For general use in the cheaper price brackets you can't go past a spin outfit for versatility. Whats your budget?

[owey87]

budget probably would be $600 give or take , hookups just around the corner so want to have all the gear ready, to many got away last year.
with snapped lines,incorrect rigging,sh*t gear etc.

[Sheik]

Hey Owey
Just took my chrissy present, s Shimano 12000D out with Dr Dan, Travis and Tim catching mainly parrot and litte reefies. Did hook up a decent red throat and have to say that the reel was brilliant. Was able to pull up a No 12 sinker with no probs from 70metres and I've paired it with a cheap $35 shimano rod like the ugly stick and silstar crystal tip. Performed really well with braid. Has been engineered to cope better with braid, and whether that's true or just marketing I don''t know but I do know I'm very happy with the way it went. It's got the toggle on the back of the reel to allow you to let line out when you need to let the fish go abit, and I used that when I was having trouble keeping on hte bottom. That way I didn''t have to put the bail arm over every time. Only problem with using the bait runner switch was that it sounded like the drag was going off and the boys in teh boat got a bit sick of jumping around every time it went off!
regards jim

[Horse]

With a budget like that I would be grabbing something like a Stradic 5000 and a T-Curve Revolution 701 SW Spin with 15kg braid. It would cover most bases from throwing live baits and bigger lures from the shore and throwing metals at pelagics to light reef fishing. If you buy wisely ( from OS) you should have enough to also pick up a lighter rod more suited to throwing smaller lures. Just change spools to a lighter braid and away you go. In time you can pick a reel more suited to the rod but it will get you out of trouble for now

[Rockfish]

Baitcasters are great for throwing lures accurately. For just about everything else a spin rod will do the job as well if not better. Just think about what you want to do with your new combo. If its throwing lures to jacks and barra a low profile baitcaster will be perfect but if its for dropping a livey over the side or tossing spoons for pelagics i would go a spin combo.

[Daintreeboy]

I've had a fair bit of experience with the Stradics. Performance wise they are brilliant. Corrosion resistance wise they are terrible. I'm referring to the FH Pearl coloured models (previous model to the current one which is now the FI). I doubt they have improved the resistance that much.
For salt water and if Shimano is the brand the Baitrunner, Spheros, Saragosa or Twinpower FC reels are the way to go. I use a lot of Twinpower reels and love them, plus they fit in your budget. They are also relatively light which is what you are after.

For size perspercptive the 6000 size is a big jump from the 5000 size and is a 50lb vs 30lb type of leap so keep that in mind.
Spend more on the reel and less on the rod and for 600 bucks you'll get an awesome combo.

In the Daiwa range there is the 4500 Capricorn J, Saltist and seagate spin reels that will hold up well in the salt. Again go for the 3500 size for 20 to 30lb or 4500 size for 50 lb.

Agree with above comments about the baitcasters. I have a Curado 200E7 and it's great but would not use it to fish off the beach or inshore. Not enough spool capacity and just not suited to that sort of fishing.

Hope this helps.

[Horse]

I've had a fair bit of experience with the Stradics. Performance wise they are brilliant. Corrosion resistance wise they are terrible. I'm referring to the FH Pearl coloured models (previous model to the current one which is now the FI). I doubt they have improved the resistance that much.
.

The old FH were a good design let down by some pretty ordinary materials. The FI seems a lot better with my 3000 showing little corrosion after a couple of seasons

[owey87]

thanks for all the help guys i got a nice little daiwa spin setup , and than a curado on a graphite abu rod already caught a 70 cm barra on the curado and 2 45cm+ grunter on the daiwa