Rod & reel setup for a noob? - Kayak Fishing Adventures on Big Water’s Edge

steveooo · 05-07-2009, 08:57 PM

Welcome to the sport and the board. For what it's worth, yellowtail are not tuna, they are part of the Jack family. Pretty common confusion. Last year, yellowfin tuna were close enough to get a good shot on a kayak, but I don't think anyone locally got some off the yak.
I would encourage you to get involved in the MLPA process as well. It is a very real possibility that our fishing grounds are going to be shut down. Now is the time that it is important to get involved to try to save what is important to us. There is strength in numbers and persistance. Check out the info on other threads of when and where meetings will be held.
See you on the water.

MarkT · 05-08-2009, 06:30 AM

Rods are rated with a range like 12-30, 15-40, 20-50. In each case the rod tends to be best at the middle of the range. Traditionally a 12-30 is a 20# rod, a 15-40 is a 25# rod and a 20-50 is a 30# rod. In a Sabre/Calstar/Seeker these would be the 270, 870, 670 respectively. Oher manufacturers have followed these naming conventions (originated with the original Sabre rods back in the 60's). The cheaper rods are lower on the range. I've seen 12-30 rods that I wouldn't use for more than 15#, 20# on a 15-40, etc. Pull on them so see what they fell like. You could go to Big5 and check out the Penn Sabre (not the same as the original Sabres!) or Ugly Sticks both of which are low cost rods.

In your case for a YT rod, I'd look at nothing less than a 20-50 rated 670 or other rod that's up to pulling 10# of drag fishing 30# line.

A Penn Jigmaster 500 or 545GS, Shimano TLD15 or 20/40 or Daiwa SLX40 would be good reels for this. These are all solid reels up to the rigors of yak fishing. Some of the more high-maintenance, expensive, metal reels don't really like all the saltwater you get into on the yak.

Holy Mackerel · 05-08-2009, 06:34 AM

Njovin, Please attend the MLPA meeting if you can, it would be a good place to meet some local LJ, and OC kayak fishermen.

But to answer your question, it depends on your budget. As stated, generally, for live bait, I prefer 7ft, 20-50ish rod, with a Shimano TLD 15 lever drag, it is nice when you want to use weighted baits.

These are some nice reels too, I have a few of these, I use for surface Iron, and YOYO: Torium 20/30, Daiwa Sealine 40/50, or you can upgrade to the Trinidad, or Saltiga repectively. (saltiga does not have a clicker)

FWIW, I caught my biggest WSB on a Penn 500, on a BIG 5 $30 7ft rod. So if money is tight, that is a good start.

Chris

lapulapu · 05-11-2009, 10:41 PM

Sealine 40 or 50 ha or sha, with Ugly Stik Tiger rod, 6'6" or 7' rated 15-40 or 20-50. You can probably get a good deal on the Sealine off Craigslist ($80 or so used, $110 new), and the rod should cost less than $60 almost anywhere (big 5, Turners, Walmart). If Boater's World is still open, they might have one left.

Hunters Pa · 05-12-2009, 02:19 PM

Get to a Boaters World ASAP. They are getting pretty lean on the sticks but I picked up a Seeker last week for 40% off

dsafety · 05-12-2009, 04:36 PM

Craig's list usually has a bunch of rods and reels for sale. Classic Penns are very common and usually a good buy. Rods are a mixed bag.

Bob

JrBasser · 05-13-2009, 12:56 PM

The sealine is a really good reel once you get used to the whole super freespool thing. It makes it super nice for throwing irons. The only thing I don't really like about my sealine is that the clicker is really soft and live macs can pull the clicker easily (but who cares right, its my jig reel). On my 40 at least, I have a 20 that I use as a bait reel and spectra and the clicker works awesome.

I really like the penn 500 for a cheap easy bait reel because it holds up and has a nice strong clicker. The penn sabre rods and all are good, but you can generally find the seeker rod for about $70, which isn't too much money (I got my 8 foot seeker american jig rod for $70 at sports authority). Even at full price that setup will be primo and will land you yellows very well.

njovin · 05-14-2009, 06:55 AM

Finally picked up a used (but loved) Penn 500 for $45 on CL and a new Penn Sabre 7' 15-25 for $40 on clearance at Big 5.

Did check out Boater's world, but it's slim pickins at this point. West Marine had some okay deals, too.

05-07-2009, 08:57 PM	#1
steveooo Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Posts: 1,922	Welcome to the sport and the board. For what it's worth, yellowtail are not tuna, they are part of the Jack family. Pretty common confusion. Last year, yellowfin tuna were close enough to get a good shot on a kayak, but I don't think anyone locally got some off the yak. I would encourage you to get involved in the MLPA process as well. It is a very real possibility that our fishing grounds are going to be shut down. Now is the time that it is important to get involved to try to save what is important to us. There is strength in numbers and persistance. Check out the info on other threads of when and where meetings will be held. See you on the water.

05-08-2009, 06:30 AM	#2
MarkT Deep Release Specialist Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Mission Viejo Posts: 94	Rods are rated with a range like 12-30, 15-40, 20-50. In each case the rod tends to be best at the middle of the range. Traditionally a 12-30 is a 20# rod, a 15-40 is a 25# rod and a 20-50 is a 30# rod. In a Sabre/Calstar/Seeker these would be the 270, 870, 670 respectively. Oher manufacturers have followed these naming conventions (originated with the original Sabre rods back in the 60's). The cheaper rods are lower on the range. I've seen 12-30 rods that I wouldn't use for more than 15#, 20# on a 15-40, etc. Pull on them so see what they fell like. You could go to Big5 and check out the Penn Sabre (not the same as the original Sabres!) or Ugly Sticks both of which are low cost rods. In your case for a YT rod, I'd look at nothing less than a 20-50 rated 670 or other rod that's up to pulling 10# of drag fishing 30# line. A Penn Jigmaster 500 or 545GS, Shimano TLD15 or 20/40 or Daiwa SLX40 would be good reels for this. These are all solid reels up to the rigors of yak fishing. Some of the more high-maintenance, expensive, metal reels don't really like all the saltwater you get into on the yak.

05-08-2009, 06:34 AM	#3
Holy Mackerel Señor member Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: San Diego, CA Posts: 1,627	Njovin, Please attend the MLPA meeting if you can, it would be a good place to meet some local LJ, and OC kayak fishermen. But to answer your question, it depends on your budget. As stated, generally, for live bait, I prefer 7ft, 20-50ish rod, with a Shimano TLD 15 lever drag, it is nice when you want to use weighted baits. These are some nice reels too, I have a few of these, I use for surface Iron, and YOYO: Torium 20/30, Daiwa Sealine 40/50, or you can upgrade to the Trinidad, or Saltiga repectively. (saltiga does not have a clicker) FWIW, I caught my biggest WSB on a Penn 500, on a BIG 5 $30 7ft rod. So if money is tight, that is a good start. Chris

05-11-2009, 10:41 PM	#4
lapulapu Junior Join Date: Mar 2009 Posts: 6	Sealine 40 or 50 ha or sha, with Ugly Stik Tiger rod, 6'6" or 7' rated 15-40 or 20-50. You can probably get a good deal on the Sealine off Craigslist ($80 or so used, $110 new), and the rod should cost less than $60 almost anywhere (big 5, Turners, Walmart). If Boater's World is still open, they might have one left.

05-12-2009, 02:19 PM	#5
Hunters Pa Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Fullerton Posts: 1,361	Get to a Boaters World ASAP. They are getting pretty lean on the sticks but I picked up a Seeker last week for 40% off

05-12-2009, 04:36 PM	#6
dsafety Olivenhain Bob Join Date: May 2008 Location: Olivenhain, CA Posts: 1,122	Craig's list usually has a bunch of rods and reels for sale. Classic Penns are very common and usually a good buy. Rods are a mixed bag. Bob

05-13-2009, 12:56 PM	#7
JrBasser Senior Member Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 260	The sealine is a really good reel once you get used to the whole super freespool thing. It makes it super nice for throwing irons. The only thing I don't really like about my sealine is that the clicker is really soft and live macs can pull the clicker easily (but who cares right, its my jig reel). On my 40 at least, I have a 20 that I use as a bait reel and spectra and the clicker works awesome. I really like the penn 500 for a cheap easy bait reel because it holds up and has a nice strong clicker. The penn sabre rods and all are good, but you can generally find the seeker rod for about $70, which isn't too much money (I got my 8 foot seeker american jig rod for $70 at sports authority). Even at full price that setup will be primo and will land you yellows very well.

05-14-2009, 06:55 AM	#8
njovin Junior Join Date: Apr 2009 Posts: 11	Finally picked up a used (but loved) Penn 500 for $45 on CL and a new Penn Sabre 7' 15-25 for $40 on clearance at Big 5. Did check out Boater's world, but it's slim pickins at this point. West Marine had some okay deals, too.