need setup advice

[new2saltwater]

It broke, yes my friends, out at sebastian inlet in florida something grabbed my line and took off, after it broke my 30 lbs test line, my reel wont stop releasing line, there is no lock feature i guess you would say (if a fish grabbed my line with out holding the handle it could go till my line came out.) Well the good news is that was a cheap little rod and reel, the wife feels horible that my real is broken, no more than 150$ any suggestions on rod and reel? I fish off of peers and some times in the banana river, a little surf fishing but not a lot...

[sprtsracer]

It broke, yes my friends, out at sebastian inlet in florida something grabbed my line and took off, after it broke my 30 lbs test line, my reel wont stop releasing line, there is no lock feature i guess you would say (if a fish grabbed my line with out holding the handle it could go till my line came out.) Well the good news is that as a cheap little rod and reel, the wife feels horible that my real is broken, no more than 150$ any suggestions on rod and reel? I fish off of peers and some times in the banana river, a little surf fishing but not a lot...

What kind of reel, brand, Model #, etc. I might be able to fix it. If it cost $150, it should be "fixable" and may be under warranty, or did you mean you wanted to spend about $150? PM me the info and I'll let you know. If it's a "Wal-Mart" special, you are better off to trash it. If it is brand name (Shimano, Penn, Daiwa, etc.) then no charge other than part(s) and shipping, unless you want me to wait until I come that way to pick it up. Larry

[kingfisherman23]

Sounds like you sheared a pin in the reel somewhere. Unless you are dead-set on getting a new one (and your old one is a quality model) then you should think about taking sprtsracer up on his offer. I have it on good authority he does great work.

Evan

[new2saltwater]

I appreciate your want to help but the combo i have now is the wal mart speciaql, i bought it just to see if I really was going to enjoy salt water fishing and I love it so now im looking to get something that will help me catch better fish and just work, the wal mart ones drag stopped working after one week

[Cerberus]

You want to go spinning or conventional?

What kind of WalMart rod do you have? Is it still any good? Many of those "cheap" rods are not too bad, it's the reels that suck...

[new2saltwater]

Thats the rod is still manageable, but the thing is I have had a very hard time hooking anything, i get the bights, and I was wandering is there something in the pole that is making the fish freak out? I pretty much use the same rod my dad used when he fished freshwater its an ugly stick, 39.99 for the entire combo but when i bought it i didn't know the differance between a sheep head and a snook. Now that I have more knowledge I would like to have a better rig. Plus if I don't start bringing fish home to the wife its going to be a dark cloudy day!

[new2saltwater]

The the rod is still manageable, but the thing is I have had a very hard time hooking anything, i get the bites, and I was wandering is there something in the pole that is making the fish freak out? Am I just not that good of a fisherman, where I put a shrimp on the hook and it some how gets the entire thing off of it without even pulling hard? I put the shrimp all over that hook, I swear they like plot how there going to get the shrimp off just to taunt me... I pretty much use the same rod my dad used when he fished freshwater its an ugly stick, 39.99 for the entire combo but when i bought it i didn't know the difference between a sheep head and a snook. Now that I have more knowledge I would like to have a better rig. Plus if I don't start bringing fish home to the wife Im going to go ice fishing in Florida before she lets me go again! :eek:

[racewire20]

Don't take it the wrong way, But that's funny right there. Welcome to the world of saltwater bottom fishing. Somehow I don't think the fish are so vain that they really care what rod and reel your using. Remember fishing is like gambling, some you win, some you lose. In your lifetime of fishing, I promise you'll feed the fish more shrimp than you could conceivably eat yourself.
Now, look at the fishing bible about salting baits, salting your bait will make it tougher and will make it hold better. Chances are you are losing it to current, small fish or crabs. If sheepshead are around they will actually chew and crush the bait without pulling on it. Just give the rod a slight lift from time to time to see if there is any weight or pressure on the end. Putting a rod in a holder will produce less fish than holding it. Your not a bad fisherman, just a rookie. I promise, all fishermen get there a$$e$ handed to them every once and a while. Just keep at it and watch the veterans, ask questions and you'll be wearing em out before you know it.

Good luck and, keep at it!

[new2saltwater]

Hey I appreciate that, my mother in law says its called fishing not catching (my wifes family is from spain)! Soon enough ill be bringing them home, until then, rod not that bif of difference put your money into a good real?

[Cerberus]

Thats the rod is still manageable, but the thing is I have had a very hard time hooking anything, i get the bights, and I was wandering is there something in the pole that is making the fish freak out? I pretty much use the same rod my dad used when he fished freshwater its an ugly stick, 39.99 for the entire combo but when i bought it i didn't know the differance between a sheep head and a snook. Now that I have more knowledge I would like to have a better rig. Plus if I don't start bringing fish home to the wife its going to be a dark cloudy day!

Nothing wrong with an Uglt Stik, I have quite a few of them. I know the combo you have, a decent 6-7 ft rod with a disposable reel. I have a couple of the same thing that have come my way and I use them til the reel dies, then get a better reel that matches the rod.

Look at the side of your Ugly Stik, it will have the rod length and line rating printed on it. Based on that get a good spinning reel that matches it and go catch fish.

I can recommed reels that I own and use with no trouble, the Daiwa Black Gold and Okuma Epixors are very nice and will give great service for a fair price. Others will chime in with their favorites.

Once you have more experience knowing what kind of fishing you do you can be more selective on your next purchases of even better gear.

[Cerberus]

I promise, all fishermen get there a$$e$ handed to them every once and a while.

Oh, how true...

[new2saltwater]

Nothing wrong with an Uglt Stik, I have quite a few of them. I know the combo you have, a decent 6-7 ft rod with a disposable reel. I have a couple of the same thing that have come my way and I use them til the reel dies, then get a better reel that matches the rod.

Look at the side of your Ugly Stik, it will have the rod length and line rating printed on it. Based on that get a good spinning reel that matches it and go catch fish.

I can recommed reels that I own and use with no trouble, the Daiwa Black Gold and Okuma Epixors are very nice and will give great service for a fair price. Others will chime in with their favorites.

Once you have more experience knowing what kind of fishing you do you can be more selective on your next purchases of even better gear.

it says medium to heavy 8 - 20lbs line

[new2saltwater]

do I have the best wife or what, comes home from work and tells me to look in the back of her truck and there it is a penn 650, I think that I will keep her!

[Cerberus]

Yes you should!

[Drumdum]

do I have the best wife or what, comes home from work and tells me to look in the back of her truck and there it is a penn 650, I think that I will keep her!

No doubt,looks like the wife did some research... ;)

[new2saltwater]

The question I have is what maintenance I need to make it last

[Drumdum]

The question I have is what maintenance I need to make it last


penns are usually some tough sumbeetches,just keep it out of the dunkings...

[Cerberus]

penns are usually some tough sumbeetches,just keep it out of the dunkings...

What he said.

Rinse it off with fresh water after every outing. Tighten you drag nut all the way down before using a gentle rinse, not a hard spary, then back the drags off before storing the reel.

Every few trips I strip the line off mine through a towel to get the salt off, wipe the spool with fresh water, then wind the line back on in the other direction.

A couple times a year open it up and oil or grease the bearings. No need to do more unless you dunk it.

[Cerberus]

it says medium to heavy 8 - 20lbs line

I have two of the freshwater version of this rod, SP1101 7' 8-20 line. I hang a Daiwa BG-15 or Okuma Epixor EF-55a on it and it goes to the beach with me every time, no matter what else I bring down.

I use them for casting lures in the surf, river and bridges and for light bait whiting rigs on the beach. Big whiting, blues, spanish and snook are a blast on this kind of tackle.

You might find the gathering guide (closest to the reel) is a little small for the size of your Penn 650, but not to worry. It will work fine.

Wife gift rules specify that you must fish with the reel and bing home fish with it before you are allowed to consider any other tackle purchases ;)

[reelfishin]

There should be a switch on the reel to let it free wheel, Have you check to make sure it is not in the free wheel position? Also it could be just stuck. If it is a new reel then I bet it can be fixed fairly easily.
We fish all the time with 25 dollar poles and reels in saltwater. We fish for the smaller fish when using them because it is more fun with them than big poles and reels. Also easier to use. They have lasted three years now and I suspect next year will do them in. Saltwater will have a go at the insides of them. But we expect that. I might try and find stainless srews to replace the ones in there if I can find them. What I am saying cheap poles have thier function.