How much do you spend on your rod/reel combo?

[rockfisho]

My cheaper light estuary combos are around $250 while my more expensive ones are around $800. On average it's about $400-$500 for most outfits. 

 

 

Some of my friends tell me that I am spending too much money on gear that I wouldn't even need 

 

While fishing enthusiasts around me have been telling me that it's worth investing in really higher end gear (e.g. Shimano Stella etc.) from the mid tier stuff that I use. 

 

 

I personally think that I am in the sweet spot for price to performance value but  I was wondering how much on average do people spend on gear around here?

 

 

 

 

[ellicat]

[AUS-BNE-FISHO]

I try to get the most reasonably priced combo that will still do the job but also be pleasant to use, personally the most expensive combo I have is worth about $400. People spend thousands on their hobbies so there’s no reason you can’t spend that much on fishing gear! 

[ellicat]

You certainly don't need expensive gear to catch and land most estuary fish. However, if money isn't an obstacle and you like the top of the range gear, then go for it.

[Angry51]

And there's some worms missing out of

that can already.

[Rebel]

Mate, My Grandaughter catches Bream on a $100.00 combo.

The fish don't know what you are spending on them.

I spend around $450.00 on a beach combo. I do a lot of beach & rock fishing. In saying that I always shop around for the best price.

Good luck.

[Bob9863]

My lure set ups are all Nitro rods ($350-$450) and Stella reels ($1100-$1400) and my baitcasting gear is Nitro rods ($350-$450) and Diawa Ryoga and Steez reels ($800h-$900)

Ive got two cheap bait rods that aur Shimano rods that I cheap at $50 each at a closing down sale and Shimano Nasci reels I got for $150 each. 

I've also still got my old favourite rod from when I lived in Darwin am ugly stick with an Abu Garcia Ambassadeur C6500 on it. 

Honestly I could do all my fishing with those cheaper outfits an would still catch just as many fish. 

If your a serious dedicated game fishermen then it might be well worth investing in the more expensive rigs that can take more abuse, or are a serious finesse fishermen. Then buying a more expensive outfit world be beneficial to you. 

For me, I buy them simply because I like using top of the range gear, and to my thinking if I look after them and get them serviced every year. Then they should last me 20-30 years, or twice as long as a mid tier one would have and cost the same amount over their lifetimes anyway. 

[mangajack]

Stradics (not Ci4 models) and $150 max rods is all i use.

[WildeFishing]

Oh god, this is very subjective and as Ellicat posted, a can of worms haha. Most anglers have this discussion regularly. See the difference of opinion from your friends to enthusiasts! Like the old Billabong slogan, "Only a surfer knows the feeling", this rings true for us too I think in some ways!  

You can catch any fish on a K-Mart combo or the best combo. A Toyota Corolla and a Rolls Royce will both get you from A to B just fine, one just feels a lot nicer and the price difference is considerable, same same with combo's, both do the same job, but one will feel a lot nicer than the other and cost difference is there as well!  

As already mentioned, you can get a beautiful combo for that 250-400 range, its what you prefer and your budget allows.  

I stopped buying cheap a long time ago, but that's me. I went down the very very slippery slop of the best gear (It doesn't take long either!!). Once you dip your toe over the edge, you fall and are sliding very fast down that slope hahaha I use near $2k combos for just my flathead fishing, is it needed no, is it excessive, for sure. Does the gear feel amazing, my god yes, yes it does! Once you get a taste, there is no comparison in terms of weight, sensitivity, action, smoothness etc. You would not even think a 500-600 combo would have much difference to a high end combo, but let me tell you there is and some differences are night and day. I only lure fish as well, I don't use bait, as a lure fisherman, I can notice and feel the differences.  

But I also see and get value out of my gear, I am fishing a minimum 3 days a week and sometimes 7 days. So, they are the tools of my trade so to speak and I get the use out of it, I am also lucky to be able to be in a position to buy it. I seen a meme the other day, it said "People see my lure collection and think I am rich" he said back "Nah mate, I am just irresponsible" haha That's probably me lol I can afford it but I probably shouldn't, but fishing is my passion and life. You buy what is good for you, makes you happy, what your budget allows, as long as you are fishing, is all that matters!  

If you are a regular fisherman and love it, my advice is to buy the best rod and reel your budget allows! But I have mates that are just as serious about fishing as me and they buy cheaper combos, purely because they don't look after their gear, they acknowledge that, and buy gear that if it breaks, they have not lost too much. I very much look after my gear, so that is a difference too and something to consider.  

At the end of the day as long as you are fishing that's the main thing, could be a handline or a $2k flathead combo hahaha  

 

 

[Bretto77]

4 hours ago, WildeFishing said:

At the end of the day as long as you are fishing that's the main thing, could be a handline or a $2k flathead combo hahaha  

Just yesterday a mate of mine went out off Cairns. He was the skipper and likes his high end gear. He got them onto plenty of fish (as per usual). Him and his expensive combo loaded with 65lb braid was no match for the skilled operator of an 80lb handline. He got his backside properly handed to him . 

I understand that this may not always be the case, but I couldn't help thinking about this thread last night when he was telling me about his spanking.

[Junky]

From hand me downs to 2k. 

 

They all work for their purpose. 

The reason I spend big on outfits is because they last if you look after them, and they serve their purpose. More for the larger species. 

 

I have mid to high end reels that are almost 20yrs old and still in excellent condition. 

 

I don't really care what I'm using, so long as I'm not losing. 

Busting off due to equipment failure gets old real quick. It sends you mental.

My high end gear gives me confidence that I can lean on it and it will respond. That's my number one requirement. 

 

[Andrew_P]

My Toyota Corolla fits most of my fishing rods in it as well as a full esky, and tows a boat too! Haven’t seen a Rolls Royce backing down the boat ramp - yet!

+1 on the stradics. The older ones were bulletproof. Saragosas are nice too. I have a Thunnus which is a beautiful baitrunner. 

i have Shimano overheads for trolling/reef work. From TLDs spooled with mono to Talicas with 80lb braid. Haven’t let me down. 
 

rods rods rods! I have collected a few! Anything from 50 year old Snyder Glas fibreglass to high end high modulus graphite blanks/titanium guides I’ve built myself. I’ve been building my own for a few years now and learnt pretty quick that quality is far more important than price point. I can spend up to 10 hours building a rod - why would I invest that time on cheap blank and crappy guides when I can get one down the road for $100.

I started a thread on here about quality products that don’t break the budget - will see if I can find a link to it  

 

[Andrew_P]

Favourites

here is the link. Would be great to see people add to the list!

[crazywalrus]

It is what makes you happy at the end of the day.  My reef combos now are around $1600,  Shimano Talica reel and a Wilson venom rod.  10 years ago I started with $500 combos, shimano tyrnos reel and live fibre rods. Both catch fish. Some are light then others to use. 

[Huxstang]

A bit like my golf gear - you cannot buy a golf swing.  But nothing wrong with enjoying using good stuff.

The balance of a quality rod and reel, the mechanical precision of a nicely machined reel and the reaction of a high end blank.  If you can afford it - do it.  Bit like golf clubs, high end shafts and forged irons feel remarkable even if you aren’t Tiger Woods.

I have a mixed bag of gear, Shimano reels and my old Abu’s from the early 90’s.  I love the action on my old Loomis 665 but the Venom Stickbait is so powerful and smooth makes me want a Venom baitcasters.  Modern reels are an absolute revelation.  The Bantam is so much nicer than the old Calcutta’s or Abu’s, you could seriously cast it all day.  The smoothness of carbon drags and the crazy amount of pressure they can give at the same time is also things you get with $$ spent.

 

 

[Ed.]

My most expensive reel was about $800 on sale and for rods about $350-400 for parts only as I built them, the most expensive rod off the rack I have bought was about $320, having said all that you don't need to spend anywhere near that amount for a setup, and could get away with using a setup up between $60-200, depends on what fish you want to catch, where and how you want to catch them, if you like to use good quality gear and want it to last, etc., etc.

I knew a lot of professional fishermen who preferred and would just use hand lines on a plastic spool from a boat (about $2-$6) and they caught plenty of fish, as they did it for a living, the results speak for themselves.

Off a boat you can use anything, from a shore base and need to cast out then a rod and reel will be required, so no simple answer as so many factors need to be considered.

 

[Memsmullowayhunter]

FISH: Oh look his using a Stella with a shimano grapler, I definitely want to be caught by that expensive set up. 

All jokes aside generally my combos are usually between 300-500 (I am a bargain hunter so generally look at the second hand market)

I also think it depends on target species and type of fishing.

If I was to ever chase larger/harder fighting species like GT or big kingies, I would be more at ease with a quality reel like a Saragosa (brand new i think like $330) as opposed to Something on the cheaper side.

I see people spending $1000 on a squid combo and think to myself why?

 

 

[mzaakir]

depends how much fishing you do to be honest, if you going every month or two a $400 combo is fine for me but if im fishing every few days or every week id get a $600-700 combo since its lighter and more enjoyable to fish. I fish once a month and i got a $600 combo, spent $300 on it second hand and it was brand new used twice

[Ed.]

I suppose it's a bit like cars, someone wants to drive a Mercedes and others will drive a BMW or even a Hyandai, they each have their particular features, niceties and performance but in the end they all get you from Point A to Point B, and some are nicer to drive than others. For example have a look at the following setups I have.

For my GT setup I chose a Penn Spinfisher SSV8500LL (under $200) and a Shimano Anthem SW PE8-10 ($320) rod, total about $520 on special, Penn also make the Slammer in the same size but another couple of hundred dollars more. I looked at the specs and whilst not exactly the same, the Spinfisher is a decent reel and would be more than adequate for the job. So for my needs I couldn't justify spending any more. I would hardly use it more than once or twice a year so at that rate it will last me a lifetime.

I also have a Fathom FTH30LD2 which is a compact and light, but strong 30lb overhead 2 speed reel, and at that size should handle the majority of fish that swim in Morton bay or outside it with possibly the exception of 3m+ sharks or giant bill fish, I then came across a Makaira 15T, 15Kg size, 2 speed, more solid and slightly heavier reel.  However it is similar in capacity than the Penn, with a bit more drag but the selling point for me was the helical cut gears which are much nicer to use than the Penn. That reel was a $850 dollar reel which I got on special for $700. Both of these game reels reels will catch the same sort of fish but on special the Makaira still cost more than twice what I paid for the Penn. To me, it was worth it, as it is a more solid reel and will handle more stress from larger fish than the Penn, at the end of the day I would enjoy using it much more than the Penn, even though the spec's are similar, hence the analogy of the cars.

I could have bought a much cheaper reel and rod which still would have done the job but probably wouldn't be as nice to use. So pretty much of the all of these reels will catch similar fish, but there also comes a time when you have to justify the cost of a setup. If money is no object, then go for the expensive gear, but it isn't a necessity to do so. Especially if you are only going to use it occasionally. Using the more expensive Makaira probably isn't going to end up with me catching more fish, but I will enjoy using it more and for me in this instance I was prepared to pay more for that reel than I normally would. For my use and needs, I would have a very hard time trying to justify paying any more for a reel and rod setup.

 

 

[Sylvathorn]

And ya know what, yes I do have a bit of mid to high end equipment .................... but I've still got a couple of old Alveys too

[Sylvathorn]

And back in the day (we're talkin the late 70's and early 80's) I was buying my first Ambasadeurs (7000c, 5000C & 3500C) and honing & polishing the drag washers for hours getting the drag smooth as silk.

Then came my Lord Howe Island trip, gotta get a hot game reel, fell in love with the flashy gold of the Penn Inter's, got a 50 W, had a couple of test runs ......... there I was, honing & polishing the drag washers again!
The moral of the story ????

does it really have to have a moral?

[Ed.]

Went to a local Tackle World store today as I had some time to kill whilst waiting for the missus's car to get serviced nearby and checked out the Shimano Anthem SW spinning rod in a PE3-5 rating as I have its bigger and stiffer PE8-10 version, so the sales person hands me the rod and first thing I check out is the guide alignment with the backbone, sure enough it is out by 90 degrees.

Salesmans response is that they are all made in China, as if that is a good enough excuse for it, now this rod was about $380, so not a cheap rod, for that price I would expect a quality product. Obviously not, so I just walked out. Generally I avoid Shimano products due to this lack of quality control and no interest in fixing these sort of issues.

[jimee]

 

Starting from zero fishing gear at all didn't allow a fortune to be spent on rods. My main rods are Shimano sedona combos. 1-3kg, 3-6kg and 5-8kg combos. $159 each. And then I have 2 berkley boat rods @ 7-12kg. Bought one at half price at $44. It was delivered with the bail arm bent on the reel, so they sent a replacement, and I kept the second rod. This also happened with one of the shimano combos as well. Rod was broken and I kept the reel. Then bought the Ugly stick 10 foot beach combo with a 6500 reel for $100 on clearance and can now swap the reel between the beach and boat rod. 

I'm also braving it and ordered a $30 reel from temu for the other boat rod as the berkley reel is rubbish. 12kg rod and the reel holds 100m of 12lb. The rods are solid stump pullers though. Well worth 2 for $44. And you got about $10 tackle with each of them too. Will do a report on the temu reel after I get it. 

In all honesty, even if money was no object, I doubt I would use high end stuff. It may feel great but it is certainly not needed to have fun and fill an esky. 

 

[Angry51]

Good write up mate, you don't need a rolls royce to go shopping.

[Bob9863]

I'm a fan of using the same reel on multiple rods, a really good reel is expensive but by matching it with some different rods for different fish and conditions it gets a bit cheaper because it does more.

But you don't need high end gear to catch fish, I just love using top tier gear as I love the feel of precision equipment. My whole life I used whatever was decent that that would do the job at a good price, but now I like using the best I can afford because I can and I love super smooth reels and rods that cast like a dream. They will also be with me for years to come if I look after them and that gives me more memories with each particular bit of gear.

[ILuvFishing]

Being cheap myself I don't spend a lot as I can not catch fish on a cheap rod and reel as I can on an expensive one. Seriously though I just bought a couple of Daiwa Aird X rods and Laguna LT 2500 reels, they seem great for bream, they're budget alright but I haven't got the skill to spend heaps, but like others have said it's whatever you desire and feel comfortable spending.

[tiotony]

I think depends on the level of difficulty of the fishing your doing. I have a fishing mate who insists on using cheap rods/ reels/ braid/ leader/ terminal tackle and consistently gets 90% less hits and loses 90% of the fish he hooks, chasing barra/ salmon/ queenies etc. I have longer casts, smoother drag, more robust leader etc. Meanwhile he outfishes me 10 to 1 up the river on the little stuff - bream, grunter etc.