TackleTour

rod, reel, and line, which setup would you keep? Which one can't you live without?

For me it would be the MH Tatula Glass (721MHRB-G) and a Zillion TWS 6.3 with Hedgehog Air HD's and spooled with 40# J-Braid. Love that combo. It's my most versatile and practically bulletproof. It's not the most sensitive, though not too shabby considering, it's pretty tip heavy, but not so bad I can't deal, it will cast a really wide range of baits a long way with little effort, keep a treble hook buttoned, and set a single hook no problem. It can be used to great effect in practically any situation. There's always a place for it, whether in open water or slop, at a farm pond or in the middle of the lake. The stout carbon backbone complements the forgiving glass tip, making it a jack of all trades and master of swim jigs, chatterbaits, spinnerbaits, cranks, and most topwaters, which makes it a total blast to fish. It can literally go from deep cranks to flick shakes without flinching. Granted, it's not the best at either, but it will get the job done. It's a love affair. Even though it's not my priciest, certainly not my lightest, best balanced, or most ergonomic, and maybe not even the combo I'd consider my favorite overall, I would still feed the rest into a wood chipper before I dared give it up.

Custom LSCR 7'3" HXF off a PB blank, Shimano Core 100MgFV w/ ZR's and 65# Maxcuatro Braid.

I can punch/frog/swimbaits up to 2oz, I've used it for jigs down to 3/8oz and in a pinch I could throw a senko or shakyhead.

i'd have to keep my zebco(yep, zebco) Cardinal 4 reel-consistently perfect for over 40 years! rod would be a G.Loomis sj783 GL3 i built from a blank. 15# braid would do the trick.

rockchalk06 wrote:Custom LSCR 7'3" HXF off a PB blank, Shimano Core 100MgFV w/ ZR's and 65# Maxcuatro Braid.

I can punch/frog/swimbaits up to 2oz, I've used it for jigs down to 3/8oz and in a pinch I could throw a senko or shakyhead.

The rod I frog with is pretty versatile, too. Works great for 1/2 oz jigs and deep divers both.

nctrucker wrote:i'd have to keep my zebco(yep, zebco) Cardinal 4 reel-consistently perfect for over 40 years! rod would be a G.Loomis sj783 GL3 i built from a blank. 15# braid would do the trick.

Ha ha, right on. That's a unique combo! That a spincast?

no, not a spincast, it's an openface spinning reel. in the 60-70's abu built the cardinal 3, 4, and 6 for zebco with an abu badge and a zebco nameplate on some of their excellent spinning reels. i bought one, used, in the mid to late 70's. fished it relentlessly through the decades.
i've never had the first problem with it. i did replace the winding cup in the late 70's due to paint wear. caught my PB largemouth in the last few years here in NC. i've come to give it the respect it's due. it has a bit of a cult following in some circles(steelhead). i just like it 'cause it doesn't give any problems.
if i was able to fish for larger prey than what i do currently, i'd go with a daiwa BC(tatula or zillion) and maybe a phenix k2 of some sort. braid of course.

some choices just can't be made so....

Cristo wrote:some choices just can't be made so....

Lol, that's pretty hardcore.

If I put 50# braid on this one it would do everything

Probably Dobyns DX744 with a J Dream.

down4ttown wrote:Probably Dobyns DX744 with a J Dream.

One could be more than happy with just this combo.

(Not sure if a J Dream can handle salt water though and that is something I would avoid.)

My calcutta conquest 200 with a 7'2 med/heavy cumara worm rod. I can throw just about anything without a treble hook with this setup.

steez 8' ags and steez sv tws.

Can throw 1/10th up to 2 ounces. Jerkbaits to swimbaits, Great for bottom contact and moving baits...

Line..probably 15lb 40g

Stella 3000 (FB in my case) and a NRX XMR 804

SteveSchmelzle wrote:Stella 3000 (FB in my case) and a NRX XMR 804

X2! Gloomis NRX 804s xmr. Mine splits time between Shimano Ci4+ 4000, and Quantum Cabo 40 PTse depending on if I'm bass fishing or inshore fishing. Sweet rod!