Second Hand Heavy Duty Popper Rods

[QuintrexII]

Hi guys,

looking to by 2x long casting, light weight, but strong rods suitable for all-day popper throwing for GT's, Pelagics etc in Nth Qld type waters.

Have been trying without a lot of success with my current sticks - because they are heavy and not specific for the task.

I've seen some pretty nice GLoomis sticks in the shops for around the $500-600 mark, but given I buy 2x at a time (Yes, the fiance loves fishing too!) I am looking to start buying quality rods/reels second hand, rather than average stuff brand new.

Can anyone give me some advice on brand/model details.

As mentioned must be light so can cast all day, and cast far, as well as being strong down low.

thanks in advance

[Blue_Escape]

QII,
you probably need to add some more technical details i.e. what line class/drag ("strong down low" is a bit relative) you plan to fish, braid or mono- action of the rod, overhead or spin reel, size of reel for balance, size/weight of poppers you want to cast, boat or land based, etc... not trying to be a smart @ss but if you want useful answers the more detail the better.

Also what sort of price range? Obviously not $5-600 but there are some very nice rods around the $300 mark new like the Nitro Distance Spin Magnum or Godzilla. A beautiful Egrell for ~$100 more or the ubiquitous Live Fibre for ~$100 less.

IMHO buying second hand opens another can of worms...previous damage may not be evident (particularly graphite) till you hook a fish of a lifetime , no warranty etc....

Cheers
John

[bayfisher]

As Blue_Escape said we probably need a Little bit more info. If its a popping rod your after The shimano t curve range has a specialty GT rod around the $450 mark or heavy spin rods around the $350 they are an absolutely brilliant range of rods competitively priced. The daiwa monster mesh range is also worth a look they are also around the 300 mark and offer some pretty serious value for money.

Cheers Chris

[QuintrexII]

Hi Guys,

OK - here goes.

Bought 2x Stradics at Xmas - 6000 and 8000 spooled with 50lb braid, so looking spinning style outfit., have 2x spare spools(one for each reel) so will look to spool one with 80lb and the other with 30lb to give options.

I actually matched the Stradics with wilson live fibres 15-24 and have had great success already trolling with them, but they are the sticks that I mention are far too heavy for a proper popper session.

Looking at slugs in the 80-180g range.

Price - this is depends on the quality etc and that's why I mentioned second hand as I thought may be able to get a $5-600 excellent rod for the cost of a brand new "good" rod. I know we all buy a rod here or there that we don't use as much as we thought we would.

thanks

[Pistol_P]

Daiwa have some new rods set to be released at the end of this month.

They are a new range of 'Monster Mesh' spin rods to add to the existing range.

They look very good and are 7ft and the heavy model 8'3ft but come with three different ratings.

Medium light....rated PE 1-3 to cast 40-80g
Medium.....rated PE 2-4 to cast 80-150g
Medium heavy....rated PE 6-8 to cast 200g

I will be making a purchase myself as they are two piece rods with the detachable butt section which is awesome for travelling.

$$$ wise they should fall into your budget.

Pete

[GPB]

What rod are you getting Pete?

[QuintrexII]

Thanks for that - had a look at daiwa website and could not see mention of the new models/lengths you list.

is there anywhere on web that shows them/shows prices etc?

[bayfisher]

http://www.toddstackle.com.au/compon...art/Itemid,27/

This should give you an idea of price and what is available in the range, The 8'3' popping rod is available now, i haven't heard or seen the 7ft models mentioned above as yet.

Cheers Chris

[Blue_Escape]

Bought 2x Stradics at Xmas - 6000 and 8000 spooled with 50lb braid, so looking spinning style outfit., have 2x spare spools(one for each reel) so will look to spool one with 80lb and the other with 30lb to give options.

I

QII
please do a search in the forum on Stradic failures...
They are nice reels, I have a few myself, but they are not designed to fish 50lb, not to mention 80lb braid.

[scuttlebutt]

80lb braid will be wasted on the stradic. You won't be able to make enough drag with that reel to get the most out of 80lb braid, plus you'll probably break it anyway.

My 2c

steve

[QuintrexII]

Thanks for the info - have looked through previous threads.

I suppose I can only vouch for my experience - and to say that I purchased the stradic as an entry level/budget reel for the job I wanted it to do. (once again, given I buy 2x of everything)

But The results I have experienced have left me pleased first 3x months and largest Mac to 25kg which gave blistering runs and the drag handled smooth as silk.

I will definitely take on board the 80lb idea and probably match both reels with 30 and 50.

And am thinking the new 8'3" monster mesh is a a good buy - will wait for release and see if any shops reduce below the $299 RRP. But hey, even at that price seems to be a good deal.

So thanks again guys. appreciate your time in replying.