If you are just starting out, go with a spincast or a spinning outfit. For an all-around combo which can be used in freshwater and pier fishing in the ocean, go with something about a six-foot to seven-foot-long rod. It should have a medium power rod. Rods come in power from light to heavy so, medium is a good power to start with. The rod will also have a range of lines that is best for this rod. See picture at end of blog.
For a medium rod for saltwater, it is ten-to-twenty-pound line. The rod will have the specifications on the rod just above the handle. As far as the reel, it can come with pre lined which is usually ten-pound line. This poundage of line is okay in most applications. The range of lines that you will use should be between the four-to-twelve-pound line. The lower end is used for trout and panfish. The higher poundage line is for bass and catfish or about any fish off a local pier. Trout are notorious for being line shy which means if they see a fishing line, they avoid it. However, when you get older, like me, and try to tie a fishing knot with four-pound line, this can be difficult to see. I am not a trout fisherman, but I will fish for any fish. The main reason that I do not target trout is that trout have scales, and it can be cumbersome to clean and fillet. Now that I am older, the reason has been me not being able to see the light line to tie knots. With catfish, they have no scales, and they need heavier line weight.
I use a Shakespeare Xterra big water combo (https://www.amazon.com/Shakespeare-Xterra-Bigwater-Combo-7-Feet/dp/B0007RNF9Y/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_product_top?ie=UTF8) for alot of my ‘bait and wait’ presentations. I, also, use a baitcaster setup, but that will be covered with another post.
See picture at end of blog. This is the combo I got for twenty dollars about twenty years ago and it has outperformed my others. It is a good value and it has not disappointed me yet. You can still find the Shakespeare Xterra around, but not brand new. Shakespeare, like other companies change models from time to time. Any big water combo will do the job for ‘bait and wait’ situations. It is a seven-foot medium rod that came with fourteen-pound line. I have fifteen-pound line on it now because I mostly fish for catfish on it. Buy this combo or something very similar and you will not go wrong with it.
This is, by far, a good beginning set up to use for fishing. I use this for all my freshwater applications and as well as saltwater pier and short party boat tours.
