Cheap Gear V Expensive Gear

[Flex]

Go on a 2 week fishing trip and have your "cheap gear" blow up from massive fish annihilating you every 2 seconds and have a fishing trip ruined and see if you dont go out and buy expensive reliable gear afterwards

I went up far north QLD with a ABU 7000,6000 and what i thought expensive 10,000 model.


My 6000 free spool lever to cast broke, my 7000 had gear in the main shaft stripped and made the reel unusable and my 10,000 level wind broke.

Expensive gear has many advantages
1- It always pulls more drag for its size, so you catch bigger fish
2- Reliability, you know when you hook up the gear will work 999 times outa 1000
3- generally the bettergear is more easier,fun to use.


But everyone has a different definition of whats cheap and whats expensive.

To me a cheap reel is anything under $200. All my reels are worth between $200 and $450. for the ifshing I do a $400 reel is far superior to a $100 reel. But to buy a $800 wouldn't gain me that much for over a $400.

But, for someone else a $400 reel might not be that advantageous because they dont catch fish that stresses their gear all that much.

Horses for courses. I find over the years what you consider "expensive" changes with the fishing you do

[Leighton]

get the good stuff, hours of fishing pleasure in my garage/front lawn and I even take it out in the boat

[BtotheM]

I think that expensive gear only holds it own in the bream comp market, (casting hundreds of times in a session, catch good fish on very light drags and feeling every little touch and bump) thats why i buy very good gear for bream and that.Fishing outside i dont think it matters much, as said before light line always wins!!!!

[BtotheM]

Except up north fishing reefs with very heavy drags or jigging then the good gear counts!!!

[rhycebullimore]

BIG time, when i drop a 300 gram jig down to a large school of macks or 10-12 kg emeror the ONLY thing i wanna be fighting something like that on is my saltiga combos.

[2rods]

Love my good gear (BLING) it is reliable, smooth and fun to use. You will not hook more fish but you might land more with good gear..

A good barra out fit cost us around the $600+ mark.

Bottom gear... well the last one cost around $950.... (Torsa 20 on a live fibre rod)

Get the best you can afford and enjoy it.. The way I look at it is if I look after my gear my kids can have it when I am departed.

[Ryan.S]

I know the feeling mate, my brother and i went after some schoolies last year and the usual spot wasnt firing. I had a $90 Berkley Dropshot with a $450 Diawa Fuego and 25lb Fireline. He had a $35 Jarvis walker combo my nan bought me. After a bit of persistance he landed 2 any I got nothing. But having said that i went fishing with my little cousin last week with some cheap combo's and had nothing but trouble with them. Wasn't very relaxing. and busted off 3 times because the drag sticks. I gues it comes down to knowing that the gear is going to handle it when you hook that once i a life time fish. For me anyway.

[Tangles]

Just dont see the big deal about it, you spend your money how you see fit, if you want to buy an expensive reel or a cheap reel, your choice, its your dollars. I just look at all the other crap Ive accumulated over the years, Ill happily add a few reels to the hobby pile.

Each to their own, I just happen to work on the 'just in case' principle followed by the 'who cares'.

mike

[Horse]

I think Nagg nailed it. Most gear available today from the major distributors will catch most of the fish we are targetting. The big variable is how much you enjoy using the super smooth hi tech gear. Many people would not enjoy their pastime anywhere as much without the top line gear they have put together.
Each to their own I suppose. I tend towards functional mid priced gear but use whatever you are comfortable with

[NAGG]

One thing I hate doing is paying twice for a piece of kit - By that I mean buying something cheap ( cheaper) & then using it ...... only to feel that I didn't really get what I wanted or the gear has shortcomings - - - with the end result being that I go & buy what I should have in the first place! ........ nothing worst than looking in the garage & seeing rods & reels that you dont use ....... because you dont like it ..... or it doesn't perform the function that you intended to use it for
These days ...... I focus more on the functionality & feel ...... do my homework & make the best informed decision .......... Then buy it at the best possible price .

Nagg

[Outsider1]

There is nothing wrong with having the best gear you can afford, the mistake some make is that they assume that the good gear will make them better fisherman with no further effort. Good gear and no clues or effort will still add up to zip in most cases.

A bit like buying the same Golf clubs that Tiger uses and assuming you can now play like him.

Cheers

Dave

[1lastcast]

Check out the reel below works well but i spend more money on deep heat for my arm after using it lol ,lol

[Outsider1]

Hi Mono,

I have one of those Penns somewhere in the garage. How much for the handle? LOL.

Cheers

Dave

[1lastcast]

sorry mate she`s not for sale it wouldnt catch as many fish with a stock standard handle lol,lol

[jtpython]

As you know jase i use 80lb mono on my bottom outfits and have fished side by side guys with same bait same rigs and at stages will fish them clean out of the water , i remeber in the end of march we filled our esky to the top with 2 of us and my father only caught 3 legal fish ... go figure and the same a mate we took out caught all the spanish on his rod while ours were in the water same depth same rigs ......... if it was an easy thing to understand i wouldn't have to work lol but such is life my friend
JT