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View Full Version : New Surf Fishing Gear setup - feedback/experience to share



drewski
08-02-2013, 04:14 PM
As you'll find, this is my first post on the board. I'll openly admit I am usually one of your typical lurkers, but based on the friendly feedback and advice (namely from bachiboy who I PM'd asking for tips and he gave great advice, thank you again brother), it inspired me to contribute a bit here myself. Hope others newer to surf fishing like me find this helpful.

Brief background:
Grew up fishing local SoCal piers, barges, and 1/2 day local water trips. Moved to the bay area for work nearly a decade ago, and got completely immersed in bass fishing. Ponds, lakes, reservoirs, off limits property - you name it. Recently moved back to Orange county, and decided to give surf fishing a try. My bass fishing rig is a 6' spinning IMX G Loomis rod outfitted with a cheap (but super light) Mitchell 308x reel. Naturally, I am partial to light tackle and artificial lures (call me pansy, but I hate getting my hand dirty :Neutral:) Strong preference for spinning over bc, simply due to what I'm used to using.

Criteria
Rod criteria: Sensitive, fast tip, strong backbone, light, but able to handle up to an oz of lead. i should also point out I do not like rods that have too much flex, as I prefer the added sensitivity at the compromise of more potential casting distance.
Reel: Spinning, smooth, and again light was key for me. I'm not too picky when it comes to reels, as I feel you get more out of $ invested in rods..
Goal of overall rig is something that is good for surf fishing little surf perch, up to halibuts (if I'm ever lucky enough to land one).

As part of my shopping list, I considered the following rods: Shimano Clarus MH 8'6, Templefork Outfitters MH 8'6" steelhead rod, St. Croix Premier M 7', Phenix (forget model, but very light and great feel) 8'.

Right off the bat, I picked up the Clarus and paired it with a Sahara 2500FE based on my local tackleshop's recommendation. Took it home, and hated how the reel balanced with the rod. The rod also felt very limber to me, too limber in fact, as I didn't like how much it flexed. Decided to keep the reel (which isn't the lightest out there but good enough) and continued the quest for a rod. I picked up an 8" Phenix rod and it felt good (much more sensitive tip than the clarus), but only came in a single pc configuration and lugging around an 8' rod in my car just wasn't practical for me

Headed down to Bassproshop (which is synonymous to a Toys R Us for me) and tested out the rest of the gear on my list. BPS was one the few shops that carried TFO stuff, which is what brought me there. Picked it up, and it was definitely a better feeling rod than the Clarus. Lighter, slightly more sensitive, but again, I think the length of the rod just makes it way too flexible and bendy for my preference. Next I went onto the St Croix Premier 7', which felt absolutely great and balanced well with my reel. Sensitive tip, light, and great backbone. Having said that, I found it to be a tad short for what I was looking to do and preferred something at least 7'6 in length for ease of casting.

Bingo
Feeling defeated, I went towards the back rack of rods and picked up a Berkeley Lightning rod. Ah, good ole Lightning rods - what I consider as some of the most bang for the buck rods out there. I own a 6'er that I've always used a back-up rod to my Loomis, and for the $, I loved it. I was disappointed to find out though that the new Lightning rods are designed differently now! The coil that screws in the reel felt very fragile, and I've read reports of them breaking after normal use. Next to the Lightning rods was a different line of rods called Lightning Shock rods. Apparently they are designed for braided lines, which really didn't matter to me (nor does it really make a difference). Split stick and the reel holder was much better designed (whew). I found a 7'6 1 pc in ML rated up to 5/8 oz, and it felt great. It did not have the bendy, flexible thing going on as I found with the Clarus, and was relatively stiff especially for a ML rated rod. I threw my Sahara reel on there, and wa-lah. Well balanced, light, and great overall feel.

As bachiboy pointed out to me and I 100% agree with, balance of the rod is so important. It's one of the most overlooked aspects of picking out a rod. I don't know one can pick out a rod without bringing a reel with them to test out the feel of the rig. Here it is, near perfectly balanced.

42206

I had budgeted 150 some odd dollars for my rod and about a bill for my reel. I walked away spending quite a bit under that, and happy. :Beer Toast:

I put my gear to the test yesterday and It did not fail me - landed about 6 perch within an hour (http://fishingnetwork.net/forum4/showthread.php?74923-Laguna-Beach-Surf-Fishing-Report-8-1-2013-Good-surf-perch-action) and the rod sensitivity and balance both felt fantastic.

Hope this was helpful to some out there, and thanks for reading. See you on the surf! :Fishing Hole:

bachiboy
08-02-2013, 05:51 PM
Ahhh, that answers the question I had in your other post. Glad you were able to find the right fit and that I could help. Looking forward to hearing about all your adventures with the new toys!!!:Wink:

Good luck!!!
Don

DockRat
08-02-2013, 10:19 PM
Thanks for the report and info.
Welcome to FNN.
DR

DockRat
08-02-2013, 10:20 PM
Whoops, double post. 'My Bad'.

7' 7" Manute Bol 'My Bad'


One day in November 1988, the Warriors were playing the Chicago Bulls, and Michael Jordan caught the ball on the perimeter, then drove around his defender and skied for the rim. Bol and 7-4 teammate Ralph Sampson rose with him, the fiercest shot-blocking pair in the league taking on the best player in the history of the game. But Jordan kept climbing and then flushed the ball through the basket, sending Bol in a daze toward the bench, where teammates were laughing, eager to hear his excuse. "What happened?" they asked. In response, Bol uttered two words that Warriors players had never heard paired, joined together in a phrase that soon would become ubiquitous on blacktops across America. Eventually, legend would hold that Bol created this saying, though some linguists dispute that claim. Either way, when Bol delivered it in his rumbling, Dinka-inflected baritone, the Warriors players erupted as if they'd just heard the best joke of their lives.

"My bad," he said. "My bad."

For the rest of the season, Warriors players said it whenever they made a mistake, always low and guttural in their best impression of Bol. When players were traded the phrase spread, and before long everyone across the league was saying "My bad."

Read More: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2011/writers/the_bonus/07/07/bol.excerpt/index.html#ixzz2asfKu3QR

http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f187/hilbilly415/8a85fdce.jpg (http://media.photobucket.com/user/hilbilly415/media/8a85fdce.jpg.html)
FOUL
DR

drewski
08-03-2013, 12:17 AM
lol, dockrat that is hilarious. i never knew that is how 'my bad' came about. but i sure do remember good ole manute bol. in fact, i think my first basketball card ever was a manute bol, nba hoops card. he was one lanky, tall mofo

DockRat
08-03-2013, 11:29 AM
Yah, that is funny. I just learned that last week from a co-worker.
It is such a popular phrase these days.