Best Rod and Reel Combo for Striper

[apb]

For trolling, I use Ugly Stick Tiger rods, ML, 8 foot with 6500 series abus. 20# line. These are for downrigging jigs and running live bait off planers.

Casting, I built my own. Medium to Medium Heavy rod, 7 foot with 5500 series abu, 15# line (plugs) or 12# line (jigs). I can cast striper plugs all night with one. St. Croix makes several models that would work well too.

I also change out the drags on the reels to smoothie drags. Much better drag washers than the stock ones. You can also upgrade the handles to the power handle if you need a little more torque. I do that on the reels I use in tailwater areas. I don't see much concern for casting distance at night. Tried 8 foot rods for a while, but found the 7 footers easier to handle when running close to the bank. Also a little more accurate when casting.

Andrew

[Bonefish]

Thanks, Andrew. That's the info I needed.

[JoeB]

Andrew, where do you get the smoothie drag washers?? Never heard of them. Thanks.

[apb]

http://www.smoothdrag.com/ is the home page for the company. I believe you can order straight from them. Get the extreme smoothies or the newer carbonex ones.

http://www.hatterasoutfitters.com/ also has them and all kinds of replacement/upgrade parts for abu reels. Listed under reel candy.

If I remember right, the newer abus have a better drag than the older ones. The old ones leave a lot to be desired.

Andrew

[JoeB]

The new ABUs have a carbon matrix drag that's pretty good. But, I have several older models that are due for new drags and I'll try the smoothies. Thanks much.

[PRO V LE]

Those 7ft6in tele. rods are on sale at BPS for $19.95 ea.
I,ve got 6 of them and they work for me. They come in a MH and H style.
I also have one of the newer Garcia 6500 with the built in linecounter , still in feild test mode on that one.

[roberte68]

I'm trying one of the Daiwa AccuDepth Reels right now, seems to work pretty good but since I've gotten it I heard mixed reviews. Anyone else have experience with them? The guy at the BP in Russell Springs said that he has yet to see a reel counter reel work well. I would like to try the Abu but ouch!! they are costly.

Most of the time I use 5500C Abu's and 6 1/2 foot Med Action Ugly Sticks

[apb]

You can also get a line counter that attaches to your rod and works with any reel. I think Shakespear makes them. I've got a couple that I used when running umbrella rigs several years back.

Andrew

[apb]

Did a search on Cabelas for "line counter" and found the one I mentioned:

http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/te...nter&noImage=0

$9.99 at Cabelas. Bass Pro probably has them too.

Andrew

[roberte68]

I've seen those but I didn't think they would work very well, So far I really like the Accudepth reel.

[cumberlandguy1]

I use the Accudepth reels without any problems. They are perfect for trolling.

[JoeB]

All line counter reels are inaccurate as to how many feet of line are actually out. They count revolutions of the spool, and don't know if your reel is slightly low on line or what diameter of line you are using. However, they are equally innacurate. If you have the spools filled equally with the same diameter of line, and let one out 100 ft on one reel and 105 feet on another, they may not be actually at that exact distance out, but they will be spaced by 5 ft, and that's whats important in downrigging. I used the accudepths this past year, and I think they are a heck of a reel for the money. But, don't use them to measure line when you are down rod fishing, or you'll get burned. Put the bait clicker on, and measure the line against your rod.