# best inshore rod , reel, and line combo?



## TomFL (Oct 2, 2007)

Honestly the rod I pick up more than anything is a Shimano Stradic, stradic MGFI, or Sustain 2500 sized reel, and a Shimano Crucial 7' MH action. It's a very fast-action rod, which I like. It's pricey, but carries a lifetime, over the counter warranty, and I've used it a bunch so it's paid for itself many times.

This rod has incredible sensitivity, a great tip for accurate casting and enough power in the blank to put the hurt on some big fish. 

I spool it with either 10 or 20lb powerpro depending on the season/fish I'm after. 

This setup has caught everything from small trout/snapper casting live 3" pilchards to 40+lb tarpon inshore, and big jacks, 30+lb snook, bonito offshore on 3/8+ oz lures.

The only issue I find with this setup is using powerpro and a heavier mono leader. The tip guides are too small to pass a knot through using anything more than 30lb, which isn't a big concern unless you're snook or tarpon fishing here. 

If I could find a rod this light, with this sensitivity and action/power with larger guides, I'd be all over it. 

-T


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## Gramps (Nov 1, 2007)

Custom build on a lamiglas 7'6" fast action blank, titanium guides with a Team Daiwa Advantage spinning reel loaded with 10lb PowerPro.  It has handled over slot reds, spanish mackerel and just about any and all inshore species.










2nd rod from left with the longest grip.


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## out-cast (Jan 27, 2009)

> Custom build on a lamiglas 7'6" fast action blank, titanium guides with a Team Daiwa Advantage spinning reel loaded with 10lb PowerPro.  It has handled over slot reds, spanish mackerel and just about any and all inshore species.
> 
> 2nd rod from left with the longest grip.


Yep. I've witnessed it too.


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## Brett (Jul 16, 2008)

Thumb burners rule... 

Abu-Garcia 5600 on a Shakespeare 1120 Ugly-stick
loaded with 12 lb Ande pink mono


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## Bissell (Feb 27, 2010)

Diawa 2000 SOL on a 7' Gloomis GL2 with 8 lb braid
Fish it from offshore to the shallows


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## [email protected] (Feb 28, 2010)

7ft fast medium All Star ASR series rod with 3000 shimano Saros with 10lb yellow power pro. handles anything i need it too.


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## paint it black (Nov 3, 2007)

I'm really loving my Shimano Terramar.
Also, I really like the Meidum Light Gary Loomis TFO spinning rods. 
At $100 they're very affordable, and cast a mile paired up with a Stradic 3000fi with 10lb power pro.


I love the Shimano Crucial rods, but they tend to break VERY easily.
As well as the carrot stix. 
And I understand they have lifetime over the counter warranty.
But there's no counter on my skiff, so if it breaks on the water, that's one rod down.


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## [email protected] (Feb 28, 2010)

the cruicals are baitcasters rods right??


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## paint it black (Nov 3, 2007)

> the cruicals are baitcasters rods right??


They got em for both spin and bait cast.

They're ultra sensitive.
They feel great.
But the tip will snap off very easily.

Just like the Carrot Stix.

I'm not a big fan of the All Star's cause they're meat sticks.
I like balance...lol

I'm loving my 7'6" Shimano Teramar Medium Extra Fast.


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## [email protected] (Feb 28, 2010)

> > the cruicals are baitcasters rods right??
> 
> 
> They got em for both spin and bait cast.
> ...


ya i thought thats what you were talking about the baitcaster rods. but west marine was having a big clearence sale and i picked up a shimano crucial 7'6 heavy fast action baitcaster rod for $10. and also a shimano clarus 6'6 medium extra fast action for $15. but the all star is actually small. it has a medium back bone but they had another one they had was a meat stick.


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## paint it black (Nov 3, 2007)

> > > the cruicals are baitcasters rods right??
> >
> >
> > They got em for both spin and bait cast.
> ...


Wow, that's cheap.
The Crucials are usually around $150 if I remember correctly. 
I actually went into BPS to buy one, but they were out of stock of the spinning ones.
All they had were bait casters and a random size in spin.
So I went with the Teramar instead. 

The only All Star that wasn't meat stick status was the "trout" one.
The others are rather stiff and meaty. lol


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## PVredfisher (Jan 11, 2007)

My goto spinning combo right now is either a St.Croix Legend tournament 7'6" med-light or a St.Croix 7'Avid med action. All paired with a Shimano 2500 carbon stradic


Spinning rods get 15# white spiderwire ( i think its the invisbraid ?) or 14# Superbraid


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## [email protected] (Feb 28, 2010)

> > > > the cruicals are baitcasters rods right??
> > >
> > >
> > > They got em for both spin and bait cast.
> ...


ya i got the one that says (redfish). but ya i saw those crucials at bass pro and was amazed at the price. but i like doing some baitcasting or as i saw another post (thumb burning) lol. those are paired with a shimano corvalus and calcutta with braid.


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## PVredfisher (Jan 11, 2007)

> Thumb burners rule...


 [smiley=1-thumbsup3.gif]


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## paint it black (Nov 3, 2007)

No bait casters allowed on my skiff! Leave those at home for the lakes! 
You'll get shat on by tails when you're struggling to sight cast a tailing red 50' off the bow in a foot of gin clear water.


Ask me how I know? My buddy has an Allstar rod with a Calcutta with 20lb pp.
It's like clean shot ruined by birds nest, short cast, or any other bs. 
Gets REALLY annoying after busting your ass poling after a school for a 200 yards to have the shot blown for using that crap. 

And he is skilled with it. 
He uses it great with heavy lures like spoons. 
Or to pitch light lures at shorelines.


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## Flyline (Mar 3, 2008)

Dang where do I begin with?

2. 7'6'' hurricane backbone spinning rods with PENN captiva 4000C2 spinning reels spooled with 10lbs back country Andre mono line.

2. 7' Hurricane backbone spinning rods with PENN captiva 4000C2 spinning reels with 10 lbs braided line.

1. 6'6'' FIN NOR heavy action spinning rod with PENN Captiva 6000 spinning reel with 30lbs Briad. Heavy topwater plug, diving plug or jig rod.

This is what I use for inshore fishing.


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## Brett (Jul 16, 2008)

> No bait casters allowed on my skiff!
> It's like clean shot ruined by birds nest, short cast, or any other bs.
> Gets REALLY annoying after busting your ass poling after a school for a 200 yards
> to have the shot blown for using that crap.



;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D

I'll remember that Eric....your boat, your rules...I can live with that. 

Do you feel as strongly about flycasters who choke too?

And what's your opinion on the use of zebco 202's? :-?


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## mark_gardner (Mar 18, 2009)

well as of lately the ci4 2500 shimano paired up on a 7'2" and a 6'8" cumara spinning rod med.hvy action are my main 2 rods i carry, the lightweightness and sensitivity are unlike anything i've used so far, i never thought i'd like the handles on the cumara rods but after using them my opinions definitely changed. both rods serve different duties but with these 2 rods i honestly feel i can handle anything the north florida inshore can throw at me


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## Bob_Rogers (Oct 14, 2009)

Sustain 4000FA on a Cape Fear 8-17 (now 6'10", cut 2" offa the butt), filled with Sufix 10 lb Tritanium Plus. This set up is like an old best friend, has the tip to accurately throw the lightest baits and the guts to haul em outta the bushes.


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## joshuabward (Apr 3, 2010)

Well my favorite rod of all time for inshore got lost today. It was a Calcutta bait caster on a discontinued can't find them anywhere 6'6'' graphite ugly stik pro lite (not to be confused with walmart special ugly stik). I had a live mullet set out on a couple of rods and I have yet to put in rod holders in my boat so the rod was leaned against the gunnel and before I could grab it, it went over fish attached (although it did not keep me from jumping in after it) all this on top of losing my costa del mars sunglasses when throwing the cast net last week. 

losing any other rod or even my trolling motor would have been better.


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## DuckNut (Apr 3, 2009)

All custom made rods with Fin-nor mega lite or Quantum Cabo reels.


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## Yoreese (Oct 15, 2009)

Shimano Stradic 4000 with Loomis Greenwater GWR930S 7'9" and 10# PP, this combo will catch reds, snook, bones or permit. If I could have only one rod for the open flats this would be it.


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## eric_f (Aug 14, 2011)

My favorite reel is the quantum energy. Reel retails for 180. well worth the money.


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## Sfl_Reds (Mar 25, 2010)

Inshore. 1. 7" Allstar asr series with a  shimano stradic 4000fi love the feel and balance of it, paired with 10lb power pro

2.  7" Ugly stick custom graphite with an offshore inshore extreme iex50 "surprisingly its been a great reel" got the last one in display for a steal, paired with green 10lb power pro 

offshore.  2 7" ugly stick tiger lites with daiwa BG30's one has 20lb power pro the other has 25lb ande "pink" mono.

not the best/most expensive stuff out there but they get the job done.


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## paint it black (Nov 3, 2007)

> Inshore. 1. 7" Allstar asr series with a  shimano stradic 4000fi love the feel and balance of it, paired with 10lb power pro
> 
> 2.  7" Ugly stick custom graphite with an offshore inshore extreme iex50 "surprisingly its been a great reel" got the last one in display for a steal, paired with green 10lb power pro
> 
> ...


Welcome aboard, another Hialean!
lol


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## paint it black (Nov 3, 2007)

But anyway, I really like the Shimano Teramar rod.
I have a 7'6 Medium Action: Extra Fast paired up with a Stradic 3000fi.
Can't go wrong with it.
I also have another Stradic 3000fi on a Fenwick rod, and wow that's terrible.
It's just that my Abu rod broke, so it's on the Fenwick for now.

I'll probably buy a Gary Loomis TFO spin rod for it.
I love those rods in Medium Light action.


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## Sfl_Reds (Mar 25, 2010)

> > Inshore. 1. 7" Allstar asr series with a  shimano stradic 4000fi love the feel and balance of it, paired with 10lb power pro
> >
> > 2.  7" Ugly stick custom graphite with an offshore inshore extreme iex50 "surprisingly its been a great reel" got the last one in display for a steal, paired with green 10lb power pro
> >
> ...


thanks alot dude i gotta go check out your rig sometime lol


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## floridanative1028 (May 30, 2009)

Pflueger Arbor 7440 on an 8' medium action Falcon Coastal Xg with 10 lb. Jerry Brown. Casts bucktails a mile and has hauled many monsters on live bait. I call her my sniper rifle.


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## paint it black (Nov 3, 2007)

> > > Inshore. 1. 7" Allstar asr series with a  shimano stradic 4000fi love the feel and balance of it, paired with 10lb power pro
> > >
> > > 2.  7" Ugly stick custom graphite with an offshore inshore extreme iex50 "surprisingly its been a great reel" got the last one in display for a steal, paired with green 10lb power pro
> > >
> ...


Let me know.


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## greenwater (Jul 2, 2010)

These answers are going to be as varied as the boats we navigate. Fishing the Texas coast for redfish and speckled trout, my personal axes consist of...

Stradic 1000 on a 7' medium light custom Lamiglas inshore spinning with 15lb Sufix stretch braid

Calcutta 201DC on a 7'6" medium custom built St. Croix SCIV spiral wrap with 20lb Sufix performance braid

Nautilus FW 7+ on a 9'-6" custom Lamiglas G1000 with SA 8WFF Magnum Tropic Sharkskin
All three are in my boat and rigged for different situations at all times.


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## Canoeman (Jul 23, 2008)

Not the best I'm sure, but I like 'em. 

I have two 7' Fenwick Technas, rated 4 to 12 lb, one medium and one med fast that I use with stradics.

I throw 1/16 and 1/8 with the med and 1/4 with the med fast, both with 10 lb PP.

The rest of my rods, except fly rods, never get used. :'(


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