Rock fishing Rod n Reeel combo advice

[Kooks]

Hey Raiders,

I'm looking to get a rock fishing set up and am looking for advice. I have approx $150 to spend on the set up.

What I'm looking for a set up to use off the stones. I will be targeting anything from bream to Kingies and everything in between. I don't want a huge heavy rod as I do enjoy holding my rod more than just putting it in a holder.

Any thoughts?

Cheers

[bennoz]

well i can tell you kingies off the rocks you'l need a heavy rig. you dont have the advantage a boat has to move into deeper water or away from snags.

also a long 12' ft rod has its advantages ... and disadvantages. a light game species like kingies will leverage the long rod length and put the hurt back onto you

casting distance plays a bit part in spinning from the rocks if your hunting pelagics. look for a rod with a cast rating of between 40-100g.

bream luderick snapper salmon etc you'l want a lighter tip and not such a heavy reel. something that can deadlift 2-3kgs straight up a rock face (if your high up)

my point is - a jack of all trades rod is a bit of give and take in various aspects.

for your budget your looking at a rod / reel combo using mono. go into various shops and ask them to show you some outfits. The sales are on now so you should get a good deal.

make sure to get a BALANCED outfit !!!

get them to rig it up and feel it for yourself. The rod should balance around the front of the reel. at the base of the top handgrip. you can have the heaviest gear in the world but if its balanced its so much easier on a long day

[abecedarian]

Not trying to rain on your parade mate but trying to get a rod and reel combo for kings for $150 is probably not going to work. Chasing bream and flatties is not a problem with a cheaper combo but the reel is likely to let you down on the bigger kings. If you can aim to spend about $150 on a reel you should be able to pick up a reel that will do the job, then you'd be up for about another $100 or so for a rod. The type of rod you use is different too. For kings you'd want a 10-15kg rod about 10-12 ft long depending on what the rocks are like where you fish and how strong you are. The stiffness of the tip will be different, for kings you'd be casting heavier baits which would benefit from a stiffer tip. For bream a light rod with softer tip will allow you to feel bites better and cast lighter baits. I guess what I'm trying to say is that the old saying "jack of all trades, master of none" really does apply to fishing. My advice is spend your $150 on a light outfit and save up for a decent heavier outfit to cover the kings etc. The other option I can suggest is keep an eye on the sales forum here and try for a good secondhand outfit. That may get you into an outfit that started life at $400 for your budget.

[Spooooled]

You can probably pick up a shimano baitrunner and a silstar crystal power tip which should do the job for around 200 dollar mark or maybe less

[Guest Aussie007]

go a penn combo a reel will set u back around $100-$120 alone i think there combos sell for $150-$180 and the HT-100 drag washers are smoooooooooooooooooooooth

[the one that got away]

If you increase your budget to $200, it would definetly open up the options and atleast get a half decent combo.