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What is your Rod/Reel setup for the surf- proven setups and why

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norcalkat

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Ok there is a lot of newbs on here and this thread keeps on popping up.  Maybe if we can make this a sticky then guys can see what others  have been using fishing the surf for stripers. 

 

In my opinion a lot has to do with the type of fishing you like or want to do.  What lures you plan on throwing and at what weight. Please as you post explain why you went with your choice and what you like about it. Be specific on what line you use and what lures really do well with your setup.  This will help some people who can't make it to the hat fling get a better idea on what setup to run with. 

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Ok, I'll start it off..

 

I like to fish only lures, most of my lures I use range for 1oz to 3oz.  so that is my sweet zone.  i think 90% of my lures are in the 1oz to 2oz range to be honest. I am primarily a catch and release fisherman so my goal is to hook and land my fish as quickly as possible.  I try to keep my battles with fish under 5min.  I think when you use to small of a rod and reel, you increase your chances of losing the fish and you also increase the chances of the fish dying because you have over exhausted it fighting it for 20 min walking up and down the beach.  I usually land my fish right where i hook them.

 

Now my setups are probably as expensive as you can get, but i am fortunate to have the ability to purchase the best stuff out there.  I fish the hell out of my stuff. 

 

  • My 1st setup is a Shimano Stella SW 10k with 40lb braid( i also have another spool with 50lb braid)  I use Jerry Brown Solid braid, never had one issue with this stuff.  Great reel and as I abuse this reel, i really have no worries because it is covered by Shimanos no questions asked Platinum warranty.  All my reels have upgraded Carbon Matrix drag washers and Cals Grease that I had Alan Tani upgrade for me. 
  • This reel is setup on my CTS 11' VT 1-3oz custom rod.  This rod is a joy of a rod.  It is a lightweight rod and has a nice parabolic bend to it with a semi soft tip for a fast rod.  I love using this rod at night when i know i will be fishing hair raisers up to 1.5oz, sp minnnows or some nice 2-3 oz topwater wood.  This is my big boy setup.  

 

  • My 2nd setup is a Shimano Stella SW 6k with 30lb solid Jerry brown Braid.  Once again a very nice reel that will handle the abuse.  Upgrade Drag washers with Cals Grease. 
  • This reel is setup with a CTS 11' S7 1-3oz custom rod.  This is my metal, SP, bucktail  or anything i need to get distance with.  When i know there is a chance i need to get past the breakers this is the rod i bring out.  If there is wind present this is the rod i bring out 100%.  While this is a very fast rod it has a nice parabolic bend to it also!

 

  • my 3rd setup is really ultra light for like small stripers (up to 22") or Surf Perch or Surf Halibut.  The rod i use is a Shimano Schymatar 8'6 1/4oz- 1oz.  Great rod for really light fishing and when i know there isnt any big fish around.  I have hauled in 15lb fish with this rod but I knew i was going to be keeping the fish.  I have used this rod also for fishing the bay and fishing the rivers for steelhead. 
  • it is paired up with a Shimano Symetre FJ 3000 with 20lb braid. 

 

Hope this helps give you an idea on the what , and why.  

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Yep yep good idea......here we go for the umpteenth time lol

 

My two MAIN setups:

 

Rod/reel 1: Okuma SST Salmon rod 9' (7.8 oz) 1/2-1 1/2 oz. with a Shimano Sedona 4000 11.3 oz. reel for SP Minnows and bucktails. 40 lb. power pro slick8 with 60 lb. mono leader to a snap.

 

Rod/reel 2: Also an Okuma CSX-902MH 9' (10.2 oz) 2-4 oz. pared with a Shimano Sedona 5000 11.1 oz. (same size as the 4000 just holds more line). With this set up I'll throw my bigger wood plugs.

 

 

 

I chose both of these set up because they are on the cheaper side, light, and I haven't had a problem with them. 95% of the time I'll throw 1/2-1 oz. lures with the SP being my heaviest.

Edited by pickle
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  • another rod I have used in the past and loved it a lot was the St Croix Mojo Surf 10' 6" 3/4oz -4 oz.  While it is rated 3/4oz-4oz in reality it is best at 3/4 oz to 2oz.  At 1.5oz to 2oz is the sweet spot in my opinion where it flies.  This rod is really lightweight for its size, when people would pick up this rod to test it, the first words out of their mouth always was "geez! this setup is light!" 
  • I had this rod paired up with a couple of different reels, the Shimano Power Aero Albrid but for many reasons i got rid of that reel and ended up putting the 6000 Stella SW on it.   In my opinion anything bigger than the 6000 and it will take away from the lightness of the setup and be too clunky.  If i would have to do it all over again I would pair this rod up with the Shimano Saragosa SW 6000 (its a 5000 series reel just with a spool with more line capacity) if I had a little bit of a budget to deal with.  30lb braid and you are set.  you can land some decent size fish and fish the lures that most of us West Coasters use. I did add a knob at the end of the butt of the rod and put 2 quarters in it it, to give it more of a balanced feel. 

 

I will say this ferrel setup is a 70/30 split but if you can manage transportation of this setup then it is a very SOLID starter setup. 

Edited by norcalkat
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New School setup- Daiwa Coastal SP Surf 10ft w/ Penn Clash 5000

Old School Setup- St. Croix Triumph Surf 10ft w/ Penn 704Z bailless

 

Both setups can go as low as 3/4oz.  My hairraisers are usually always 3/4 oz or 1 oz. 

 

I use 20lb fireline on the 704z and 20lb suffix 832 on the Clash.

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I moved to the west coast 4 years ago, and have 3 combos that I've used almost exclusively for Surf Fishing stripers with (and occasional Bay foray but i've never really been successful inside the Gate)

  • 1st combo - Daiwa Exceler 100HSA baitcaster + 6' Berkley Lightning Rod. This was my cheap combo when I moved West. I already had the rod from freshwater fishing back east, so I only had to shell out $75 for the reel. Despite the short length, I caught my first 2 west coast stripers on this setup over the course of 4 months before the spool release broke. I was actually fishing for perch with a berkley gulp worm, and managed to grab my first striper, which being from back east, I didn't even know existed out here. After I realized I live in Striper Central, CA - I quickly got more interested...

 

  • 2nd combo - Shimano Curado 300E - supertuned + Shimano Clarus 10' Steelhead rod - 1oz-6oz. Love this combo. I fished it the rest of my first season, up until February this year- so roughly 3.5 years. I need to lube the sh*t out of it with marine grease to keep it working tip-top and I also keep a supply of non-rusty bearings on hand, but you can't go wrong with this setup if you like baitcasters.

 

  • 3rd combo - Van Staal VS200 + 10' Lamiglas Ron Arra surf pro (XSRA 1205-2) 1-4oz. I've only been using this rig for 4 months now but have already landed 12 fish on it. I love it. It was expensive, but with the amount of surf fishing I do, absolutely no regrets.

 

 

I too generally throw in the 1-2.5oz range. Mostly SP minnows & bucktails with occasional popper/metal. Generally I like to use 30-40lb braid. Currently I have 30lb KastKing braid on my VS200. It's super cheap, and I've never once lost a fish due to a failure in the braid. I've been using it almost exclusively for close to 2 years now.  At <$25 for 500M, it's pretty economical compared to the other more popular name brands.

 

I like the strength of 40lb test, but I prefer the casting distance of the lighter 30lb.

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Most of us probably have several outfits for the surf and will favor one over the others depending upon the conditions.  I will say, however, that the most fun surf outfit I own is a Daiwa Lateo Pirate 106M paired with a Shimano 4000 FI filled with 6# Sufix braid capped off with a 30 leader and breakaway spin link.  For early season schoolies (where fish are generally under 10 lb.)  this outfit is a whole lot more fun than my Talon.  The 106m is rated to 1.4 oz., but the sweet spot is 1/2-1oz.  It will comfortably handle loads to 1.25 oz., tho.  The 6# braid is a joy to cast, but even more importantly and impressive for those who like to fish jigs and plastics is that the sensitivity of light braid MUST BE EXPERIENCED TO BE BELIEVED.

 

Lest I get flamed, let me reiterate that I only use this outfit when conditions allow.  I do, however, find it to be the most fun during early season.

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I assume we are only listing applications using surf rods?

 

10'6 St. Croix Premier 3/4 - 4.  This was a starter rod that ultimately was too much rod for my personal preference.  It balances well with a penn 4500/5000 or shimano 5000/6000 sized reel.  I sent this out to FL to use primarily as a chunking stick.  It was a bit heavy for all day plugging.

10'6 GLoomis 1264S.  I would rate this rod 1/2-1.5oz.  Moderate action and parabolic bend, a favorite of mine for lighter plugs.  I also sent this rod to FL as it did not serve much purpose here on the west coast for me.

10'6 GLoomis 1266C.  I believe this rod is rated 1-5, but feels more like 1-3.  This was my rod for fishing cliffs, rocks, and shelves.  Fun rod for plugging swimbaits, bucktailing, and metals.  Paired well with 300/400 sized casting reels.  I stopped using this rod after getting a sealed spinning reel however and I got tired of dealing with corroded baitcasters.

9' CTS S7 1-3.5.  Faster actioned rod which is currently my go-to for cliffs, rocks, and shelves when I still want a little distance but is not the setting to lug around a 10'+ rod.  Pairs perfectly with a VS150 with 20# or similarly sized reel.  Works at night for the beach when the fish are in close, or any beach without a sandbar where the fish tend to be closer in.

 

Next rod for next season will be an 11' CTS VT, specifically for open beach distance casting.

 

I echo bass11's sentiment for light to ultralight braids.  Assuming your knots are good, 30# braid is a BEAR to break.  Even with 20# braid, you can usually land 15-20# fish out here within 5 minutes assuming your rod has the appropriate leverage.   

 

So unless fishing around some significant structure, it is unlikely that anyone will break off a west coast striper using 20# braid in the open surf, and most people can get away with even less.  Just beware of wind loops when using thinner diameter lines.   All that being said, if using baitcasters, I never go less than 30#, simply because the thinner lines will dig into the spool.  And I know there are applications for heavier braids, not for the strength, but due to how the bouyancy of heavier leaders/lines affect certain plug actions.

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  • 3 weeks later...

I have been fishing for stripers for about 20 years and from all these years i have obtained too many setups but one of my favorite for minnow lure from 1/2 to 1 oz is my 11 foot magabass xor shadow xx pair with a shimano twin power 5000 spooled with 30lb 832.this rod has a really good parabolic bent also.... setup #2 is my popper rod 2016 st croix legend surf 10.6 medium pair with a van staal vs150 x series spool with 30lb 832 also good parabolice bent and super light set up....3rd setup g loomis 11 footer MH pair with a zeebass 25RB spool with 40lb 823 this is my goto rod for metals and heavy plugs...4th setup is a gloomis 8.6 hotshot pair with a shimano stradic 4000 ci4 plus i use this for bucktail in the bay.....i use this eod for salmon also...

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I have been fishing for stripers for about 20 years and from all these years i have obtained too many setups but one of my favorite for minnow lure from 1/2 to 1 oz is my 11 foot magabass xor shadow xx pair with a shimano twin power 5000 spooled with 30lb 832.this rod has a really good parabolic bent also.... setup #2 is my popper rod 2016 st croix legend surf 10.6 medium pair with a van staal vs150 x series spool with 30lb 832 also good parabolice bent and super light set up....3rd setup g loomis 11 footer MH pair with a zeebass 25RB spool with 40lb 823 this is my goto rod for metals and heavy plugs...4th setup is a gloomis 8.6 hotshot pair with a shimano stradic 4000 ci4 plus i use this for bucktail in the bay.....i use this eod for salmon also...

also use a 9 foot phenix black Diamond 1 to 3 oz for bucktail in the surf pair with a shimano ultegra ci4 plus spool with 30lb 832 super light and thie rod has a adjustable reel seat to balance out setup better...
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Ok there is a lot of newbs on here and this thread keeps on popping up.  Maybe if we can make this a sticky then guys can see what others  have been using fishing the surf for stripers. 

 

In my opinion a lot has to do with the type of fishing you like or want to do.  What lures you plan on throwing and at what weight. Please as you post explain why you went with your choice and what you like about it. Be specific on what line you use and what lures really do well with your setup.  This will help some people who can't make it to the hat fling get a better idea on what setup to run with.

 

do you have to perform alot of maintenance on your shimano reels when used in salt conditions...
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i service 1 time a year, but i use my stella's in the surf, on the boat, in the bay, in the rivers....etc.  i prob swap those reels on like 5-6 of my rods to be honest. so they get put to use!  when i sent it to shimano it comes back new basically.  I just sent my 10k to get serviced yesterday, i should have it back prob mid next week.  love that platinum service from shimano.

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i service 1 time a year, but i use my stella's in the surf, on the boat, in the bay, in the rivers....etc.  i prob swap those reels on like 5-6 of my rods to be honest. so they get put to use!  when i sent it to shimano it comes back new basically.  I just sent my 10k to get serviced yesterday, i should have it back prob mid next week.  love that platinum service from shimano.

Thanks for the info dog..i meant kat
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