TexasKayakFisherman.com

Still new to kayak fishing, and coming back to fishing in general.

I'm in the market for new poles and reels. I see a lot of combos out now and wondering if those are they way to go. I'm trying to stick around the $150 mark for pole and spinning reel but not sure which way is most cost effective. Any input as fara as combo vs separate, or brands or models I should pick up would be great.

Right now I have a old 5.6" Ugly stick with a spincast on it, and then a 7' Ugly stick combo I picked up from a buddy but the reel is pretty lame. Thinking about switching it out.

I'll be going after channel and blue cat, and hybrid, largemouth, and sandbass in lewisville lake

I prefer to pick the reel I want, and then walk around trying it on different rods to see what feels the best. I favor Shimano reels and have spinning and baitcasting reels on Fenwick, Berkley, Bass Pro, and Shimano rods.

I do the same thing as ^^. I also try to target what type of fishing I am going to do with the rod/reel.
For reels I prefer Abu Garcia and Shimano for rods.

No brand loyalty here, and I'll buy a combo just as quick as mix and match. It's all about what feels right and what looks like it's going to catch the fish.

Zebco (Quantum and Browning), Berkley, Abu Garcia and Shakespeare are brands that have done well for me. Be sure to give them a good looking over in the store. Play with them all you can in the aisle. Even top dollar brands put out duds and stuff gets broke in shipping, from people manhandling it and from it being put together wrong at the store. Seriously. I was rod and reel shopping today. Three reels were jacked up on the shelf. Handles falling off. You name it.