Any fishing people over here

Don’t really visit the dark side much but need to ideas on new gear. Did our first high school tournament yesterday and quickly realized we brought a knife to a gun fight. Time to upgrade rods and reels and hope for less issues. What’s some of the good stuff these days? Trying to not break the bank in one trip but upgrades need to happen before the next tournament with some time to practice beforehand.

Still weighed in but equipment issue’s definitely cost a couple of fish.

What are you using now.

Fishing tournaments is an expensive hobby.


You can buy decent fishing reels in the 100 buck range that feel good but the longevity of them will not be great.

Best reels have been shimano for a long time, diawa makes one as well but higher end and repairs aren’t as easy. Lews makes a fine reel then abu Garcia.

I don’t know anything about all the newer things like 13 fishing etc

My son has a cheaper lews combo that did ok, but he picked up an academy brand baitcaster and it gave him hell all day long. I made him take my old trusty daiwa setup and it’s on its last leg but ironically everything he caught was on it. I don’t mind spending the money but I’d really rather not go crazy either.

I like Lew's on reels.
St. Croix and Falcon on rods.

T Line, mono and Power Pro braid.

Fresh or salt?

Check out the Garcia Max x reels. My granddaughter is on her high school bass team and I got her 2 left hand from tackle warehouse she really likes them. $49.99 . What division or you in ? We have our first tournament at Texoma this Saturday.

If you can make a trip to scheels, they always have deals on some sort of rod that is pretty decent. I go once a summer, never disappoints me. Last summer I was there, they had lews rods (usual retail $100) on sale for $20 a piece. I bought 5 just because I know how hard I am on my stuff. It was their "jig" rod but I have found they throw spinnerbaits and topwater REALLY well also. I always stick with Daiwa reels, they fit my hand really well and they have outlasted any other reel I have owned within the same price range. The daiwa CC80 has always been a solid reel for myself. You can go one step further and get the CA80 reels and they have been outstanding also. These are what I started with and surprisingly still going strong after 8 years of really fishing consistently. Rod wise, I have a slew of 80-100 dollar rods that I still catch fish on and feel bites on, but I am slowly stepping up into nicer stuff. Dobyns rods are hard to beat for their price point but it could get out of hand in a hurry if you are not careful, especially trying to overhaul a new set. I wouldn't overlook the Daiwa Aird x line either. THEY ARE NOT bottom contact rods by any means. They have a lot of parabolic action but I bought 2 of their 7' med rods that throw crankbaits REALLY well for the price and I have 2 of the 7'3" rods that I throw chatterbaits/spinnerbaits on and they are outstanding for that application. You will miss bites dragging anything on the bottom with them though. Personally, the lews entry rods are much better for this application.

If I was to go out and buy new rods today and wanted to piece together 4-5 rods to cover most applications, I would go with 2 rods in the 7'-7'3" range that were med heavy fast tips. Lews carbon fiber blanks with the CC80 reels. This should cover anything bottom contact (Jigs, texas rigs, tokyo rigs, etc)
I would get 1 rod that was 6'8-6'10" for jerkbaits
And I would get 1 of the aird x daiwa 7' for small crankbaits (will retrieve crankbaits all the way down to 15' comfortably)/squarebills, etc, and 1 aird x 7'3" for spinnerbaits, chatterbaits, swim jigs.

Hope this helps, this was the setup I kind of started with when I was fishing tournaments out of my duck boat and just having fun. I placed top 5 in most of those tournaments. It has become a lot more serious since then but I made it happen with 5 rods and I know you guys can too. Good luck and happy fishing.

Shimano slx reels are quite nice for the price.

We are in the east division, had lake Palestine this week. Lots of teams didn’t even weigh in from what I heard and even with one fish he did better than many. He was nervous since it was his first one and being a freshman. I’d bet from here going forward it gets a little easier on him.

Thankfully he’s got a good experienced captain because of it was on me we would have probably not even caught fish yesterday. I had to be an observer since his partner couldn’t make it and I’ll say this even I learned a lot.

Shamano reels are hard to beat. I have 2 citicas that are 20 years old and still work great. The curados are are a little more expensive but good reals also. I’ve always used Falcon rods but I’m sure there are others that are just as good or better.

My .02 cents is any Shimano Model that begins with a "C" is damn hard to beat and will put up with a lot of abuse. And you can get them serviced and brought right back to new when they do start to mess up. Lot's of good rods out there these day's. Added a Dobyn's to the collection in the spring and seems to be a touch more sensitive than other similar price rods.

My Curado’s are 15 ish years old and in great shape. I wish they got more use though.

Oxner?

Bring you pond scum reel down to the coast big boy

Flashman gave you a lot of good advice on equipment that you can use. I will add that too much equipment for a youngster learning can be a handicap. Since you are in East Texas you might be better off to start with fewer techniques and master them before getting a pile of equipment. Flipping trees, frogs, buzzbaits and hydrilla requires a long heavy 7'6" duty rod and high speed reel with braid. Next would 7'3" medium heavy with a fast tip worm rod and high speed reel for spinnerbait, chatterbait, and football jigs. Another 7'3 composite rod with a 5 to one gear ratio reel for cranks and topwater is needed. A designated worm rod in the 7'3 range with a high speed reel is a must. Last is a 6 1/2 to 7 foot spinning set up for shakey heads, smaller jigs and drop shots. As far a line 50 pound braid is heavy enough for the flipping rods and I would go mono for the others. I prefer big game over flouracarbon as it is more forgiving of nicks and abrasions and line weights can be adjusted to the water clarity but go as heavy as you can get away with. A good net is a must and learning how to use it will land you more fish than trying to flip them in the boat like the pro's. BTW I prefer Lew's reels and Falcon rods.

Catching is the easy part finding them is the difficult part. Might try looking a this guy's packages on TFF to help you for practicing in your upcoming tournaments. He has a pretty good reputation. https://texasfishingforum.com/forum.../contour-study-maps-50-each#Post14445484

Last thing is since I don't fish the lakes in East Texas that much any more I have some old paper maps you can have if you want them. The spots I have marked on them may not be any good any more but the maps are fun to look at instead of looking on the computer maps. PM me your address if you want them.

Just saying I’ve not heard of a Dadgum high school bill fishing tournament.

Fresh

If you're boy weighed in, he should be proud. My nephew is a Senior and has been on the fishing team since he was a freshman. He would weigh in a little over half of the time. He ended up accumulating enough points to qualify for the regional tournament at the end of the year. I like Lews, and my son likes his shimanos. Id follow the advice of the two guys about that seem to know what they are doing.

Shimano Curado for reels

Poles are per person choice

First of all congratulations on the event. There are definitely a lot of options out there and some good suggestions. When I first started in bass clubs I used the Basspro Extreme combos exclusively and worked just fine. Once I was comfortable with those I went and upgraded to better rods and reels. I personally was a Abu Garcia and Revo reel guy and Falcon rods. I would recommend getting 3-4 good combos for the following ( Texas Rig, Spinnerbait, Small crank bait and maybe a Shakeyhead ) you can use a spinning rod for the shakeyhead or even a bait cast , we used both. Watch the TFF for some deals on rods from time to time. You can find deal on good rods for anywhere from $75-100.

What school you fish with?

Good luck

Obviously you don’t live on the coast….

I’m more of a crank telephone guy on fresh water.

I can’t image going wrong with higher end shimano, Dawia , concept 13 etc then match rod action to lure

In my opinion, no need to break the bank. I’ve known many good fisherman (including guides) that do very well with relatively cheap rigs. If it were me, I’d be looking on FB marketplace or Craigslist. People often give up on bass fishing or guides upgrade their stock and try and unload their used equipment. Personally, I’ve had good luck with Lew’s reels. A good fisherman can catch all day long on an inexpensive setup.

go to duckettfishing.com - buy a rod over $100 and get a free reel (you can get a $330 combo for $140 right now).

Worst advice on the www today.

1st time you set the hook using a ducket rod it’s a 2 piece rod. I couldn’t imagine the quality of the reel that he’s giving away, but I’d assume it belongs in a gumball type machine for sales.

All I use are Duckett rods and have been for years. And I can use whatever I want. I did have a 40# bull red break a MH spinning rod a number of years back when I got him to the boat and he decided to run, but that's the only issue like that I have ever had.

I've probably set the hook on 1200 bass this year alone and no breakage.

So, I hate to call you out for answering objectively to a subjective suggestion, but, in short, your statement "1st time you set the hook using a ducket rod it’s a 2 piece rod." is a flat out lie unless by "ducket" you do not mean "Duckett."

Lews reels are great and all i buy anymore.

For rods, given this is a HS fishing team and cost likely matters somewhat, the Academy branded solid black rods called Tac40 are very good for the money. My good friend works for corporate and designed them and had them built. They are a replica of a VERY popular high end rod brand for 1/3 of the cost. Spool them up with Seaguar Ivizx and braided line depending on the technique.

Set the hook harder.

Okay - gonna give you that one!

I’ll say I’ve not used one since he first started pimiping those white piece of garbage out. It was all I needed.

Fish don't know the difference between cane poles spin cast or bait casters. I've caught more big bass on a zebco 33 than anything else. For salt I have use my premier bait casters. They have out lasted some high end reels.

To be fair, you and your coastal buddy could wreck an anvil...jus' sayin'

Edit - I did lol at the set the hook harder comment

Judd not everyone is petite.

Oh yeah, love catching and frying up some “ditch pickles” aka large mouth bass….

PM me sometime this winter, after gun season, about looking at some of the tackle I have inherited and need to dispose of. I'm in Palestine and already sold my 22' Deep V Offshore/Texoma boat, and we don't fish anymore, since leaving Texoma. We also chase ReSale antique furniture & all kinds of items from Dallas to Tyler & Lindale for our antique business and see lots of different things from peoples downsizing efforts. There was an auction last nite in Rusk that had lots of tools and furniture and bargain basement hunting stuff in it, but fishing tackle does not sell well until after Jan/Feb so's now is a good time to learn the ropes and who does what to get ready for the spring season.

FYI 5+years ago when we started the Resale Business after moving here , I bagged 200 bass & striper lures to sell in the shop and sold 10-20% of them .... ain't gonna do that again for sure 'cause it took me a month to bag that many lures 1 at a time.

Also a place I used to hit regularly when I was in the Lake Tawokoni Bass Club is a long time tackle repair place in Dallas who's name escape's, me over off what used to be called "Industrial, " south of all the truck docks,1 block west of the the Goodyear Tire & Rubber bldg at the RR underpass on west Inwood I think it is , and south of the Kuby's big game processor warehouse which is around the corner & 2 blocks west, on the left side of the street of the 1st east/west street at the north end of the Goodyear bldg .

If you know Jimmy Smith, from Smitty's Sporting Goods on Jefferson in Oak Cliff, is now supposed to be a striper guide on Tawakoni last I heard, tell him hello from Ron at the old long gone Schoellkopf Company in Carrollton.
Ron

Southwest I think is who you are referring too.

Yes they rebuilt a couple reels for me. Ceramic….

PM me sometime this winter, after gun season, about looking at some of the tackle I have inherited and need to dispose of. I'm in Palestine and already sold my 22' Deep V Offshore/Texoma boat, and we don't fish anymore, since leaving Texoma. We also chase ReSale antique furniture & all kinds of items from Dallas to Tyler & Lindale for our antique business and see lots of different things from peoples downsizing efforts. There was an auction last nite in Rusk that had lots of tools and furniture and bargain basement hunting stuff in it, but fishing tackle does not sell well until after Jan/Feb so's now is a good time to learn the ropes and who does what to get ready for the spring season.

FYI 5+years ago when we started the Resale Business after moving here , I bagged 200 bass & striper lures to sell in the shop and sold 10-20% of them .... ain't gonna do that again for sure 'cause it took me a month to bag that many lures 1 at a time.

Also a place I used to hit regularly when I was in the Lake Tawokoni Bass Club is a tackle repair place in Dallas who's name escape's me over off what used to be named Industrial south of all the truck docks, the Goodyear Tire & Rubber bldg at the RR underpass on west Inwood I think it is , and south of the Kuby's big game processor warehouse which is around the corner & 2 blocks west, on the left side of the street.
Ron

Southwestern Parts and Service on Mockingbird. They seem to always have a rack of rebuilds that customers forgot to comeback and get. Great way to get a higher end reel that works like new at a decent price.

When I was still teaching I helped start a team for our high school. I’ll share a few observations from that experience.

First of all as many others have said, the fact that he weighed in fish is awesome. The tournaments will get tougher as the water gets cooler so starting with some confidence going in is good.


The number one difference maker for our teams was prefishing. Unless your captain has competitively fished on all of the lakes in your division you have to find a way to get on the water at least once before tournament day. Preferably closer to the tournament to ensure you have a good understanding of water conditions.


In relation to gear, it was very common for our kids to go to academy and buy the $100 Baitcaster colors in fancy colors. But then on the water they spent half the day pulling backlashes. These kids would have been better served buying $60 Shimano spinning reels and an $50 all star rod and would have spent much more of the day with their lure in the water.

If your kiddo is truly comfortable making 1000+ casts with a Baitcaster you really need to look at the reels from Daiwa, Abu, or Shimano that start in the $150 range. Amazon Warehouse and Tackle warehouse often have feels on the mainstream reels. Learning to understand the braking system and exactly what they do will make for a better day on the water.

Final thing related to tackle would be to keep it simple. I am assuming your son didn’t catch his fish in 20’ over a brush pile using a drop shot that he saw on live scan. Like 95% of high school anglers he is beating banks and docks. He needs to think about 2 flipping baits and 2 moving baits. I’ve caught more fish on a watermelon red baby brushhog. So I have a great deal of confidence in that bait. Other options for bigger flipping baits would be a beaver style or jig. As far as moving baits, I like either a sexy Shad colored square bill crank bait or if the water is horrible a chartreuse square bill. I’ve caught more fish on the smaller 1.5 size but caught much nicer fish on the 2.5. If there is much vegetation or stick ups I run a paddle tail swim bait with a belly hook so I am not spending too much time retrieveing crank baits. Most of the tournaments don’t allow you to start fishing at first light so I wouldn’t focus too hard on top water, but if you can I like a POP R or soft plastic frog.

Hopefully his team mate will be back on the water for most of the tournaments. Encourage the boys to have a tag team approach to fishing. Guy in the front of the boat throwing a moving bait while the guy in the back flipping stick ups trying to find scraps. If one pattern sticks out go a little bigger or smaller to try to maximize their approach.

Last thing would be you don’t know cold until it’s 35 degrees on Texoma blowing 20+ miles per hour. Having warm gear will make the day much less miserable. If you have deep pockets the Bass Pro 200mph suit is the best. If you are on a budget yhe academy version with layers underneath work. Since this is the hunting forum if he has coveralls that’s might work but it won’t buck the wind as well.