Looking to buy a rod and reel that are ultra light and that won't break the bank. Any suggestions? Is an Ugly Stik a good choice?
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Looking to buy a rod and reel that are ultra light and that won't break the bank. Any suggestions? Is an Ugly Stik a good choice?
Bass Pro Microlite's are nice and only $39.99. (Wait a few weeks and they'll be on sale for $29.99.)
Bass Pro also has several inexpensive UL combos. The rods are usually 4'6" or 5', though.
Also:
Cabela's Pro Guide for $39.99
Cabela's Fish Eagle II on sale for $49.88 ($30 off the regular price)
For the reel, it's hard to go wrong with a Shimano or Daiwa.
I use the Ugly Stick, they seem to work fine. I also use the pflueger UL Micro Spin Combo 39.95 @ Gander Mountain. If I need to replace a rod I buy Ugly Stick.
Shimano makes a few around $29.00-$39.00 that are good for casting jigs. You can find them at Academy stores. Wally Marshall signature series are good in that price range as well from Bass Pro. Ugly Sticks serve their purpose, but are on the heavy side it being fiberglass. A 5ft UL Ugly Stick makes a descent dock shooting rod. Casting jigs I would go with graphite, it will be lighter with far greater sensitivity. Reel wise a Pflueger would be hard beat for smoothness versus price. I would go with something like the president model, some like the Trion. I know the president is smooth.
UL Ugly stick 5' $29.99 and a pflueger 6725X reel $59.99. I have 3 of this setup and they work extremely well. Wouldn't change for anything..
Shakespeare sells some at Wally for around $20. Tiny and fun, mine aren't much different.
I have a Walmart ultralight Ugly stick combo that cost me about 30 bucks,it works really well.
I just put this combo together about a month ago and I've been real happy with it. The dockshooter was around $35 and the U101 from Abu Garcia was $24.99. The dockshooter is a little stiffer than your typical ultralite, but you can bend the fool out of it and shoot 1/32 jigs a mile.
sj
I'll tell ya what I use, and you can take it from there :p
Primary dock shooting outfit :
Cabela's ESP Panfish Rod 5ft spinning w/Shakespeare Alpha XT 1000 (trigger spinning reel).
Here's the rod : http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/te...=esp&noImage=0
Secondary dock shooting outfit :
Quantum 635N UL spinning rod 5ft w/same reel.
I purchased both reels from the consignment bin, at my local tackle store ... about $15ea. The Cabela's ESP rod didn't cost me anything ... it's a prototype that I fieldtested for the designer. The Quantum probably didn't cost me over $20 (and I probably got it out of the consignment rack, too ... just can't remember, for sure).
My fishing partner uses Berkley Cherrywood 6ft spinning rods and UL spinning reels (don't really remember what brand ... probably Shimano or Daiwa) ... and is satisfied with them.
All outfits are equipped with either Stren Gold 4lb mono or Mr Crappie Super hi-vis yellow 4lb mono. (we're line watchers ;) )
Whatever way you go ... 5-6ft length -- light to med action -- smooth winding reel w/good drag system ... will get you into the game. What brands you choose will be dictated by your budget price range ;)
I've used about every spinning outfit I own, to shoot docks with ... from 5ft to 8ft rods -- UL to 2000 series reels -- and microlite to med/hvy action rod blanks. And I've used them all successfully :D ... it just boils down to what feels good to you, and still performs the job successfully. Learning the art of dock shooting, with accuracy & distance, is job one ... after that it's just a matter of personal preference, as to what outfit feels/works best for you.
... luck2ya ... cp :cool: