Best gear for the money?

[Nauti Natured]

OK everyone .... here is the deal. I just blew my wad on this boat and am tortured because I have no gear. I have been out a few times and managed to have some fun on my old, light spinning gear on the Fat Albies and spanish but I know as the warm weather rolls in this spring I will be jones'n to get out to the stream and my bluefish spinning gear is not going to cut it.


So ... my question to you is:

What is the best gear for the money? I am looking to go after Wahoo's, Dolphin, Kings,Tuna (any), and maybe the occasional Billfish. Eventually I would like some gear big enough for big bills and Giant Bluefin.

Of course I want Tiagra's and and all the good stuff but I am trying to decide if I should get some TLD's or something of the like for the mean time or should I just hold out for the really good stuff and deal with it. I am kind of thinking that I should do what I need to do to get fishing and then Ill keep the cheap stuff for beaters and upgrade as funds allow.

Feel free to comment not just on rods / reels but gear in general including what to pull. I am starting from scratch!

I am sure this is not an uncommon dillemna so I am looking forward to your thoughts.

Thanks!

[whitey]

For the money you can't beat a TLD on a Tallus rod.

[clt_capt]

The TLDs make a great choice. They will handle most of what you are likely to see on a regular basis. Add a hand line planer and you'll have a great start.

You'll be able to handle most tuna, Wahoo, kings, and dolphin as well as kings and the stray sails. Heck with a bit of luck and good boat handling, you'll have a shot at a small blue.

If you can afford to buy 3 or 4 at one time, you may be able to get a deal from some of the tackle shops - and maybe from some of the SFC Sponsors.

Good Luck

[Nauti Natured]

For the money you can't beat a TLD on a Tallus rod.

Is it worth the extra $ for the Two Speeds? What is the difference with the LRS model? I am looking at the 50's.

Sorry for being so ignorant. Like I said I am starting from scratch. Ever since I have been down here I have been able to benefit from being able to use other's gear.

Are the TLD 15's good for kings?

[Nauti Natured]

If you can afford to buy 3 or 4 at one time, you may be able to get a deal from some of the tackle shops - and maybe from some of the SFC Sponsors.

Good Luck

Thats what I plan on doing. I want to buy my live bait setups and a bunch of 50's at once. Hopefully that will be a big enough order to get a deal.

[Bay Fishin]

Is it worth the extra $ for the Two Speeds? What is the difference with the LRS model? I am looking at the 50's.

Sorry for being so ignorant. Like I said I am starting from scratch. Ever since I have been down here I have been able to benefit from being able to use other's gear.

Are the TLD 15's good for kings?

The LRS is the 50 TLD with an 80lb class drag.
15s are good for kings I dont know if they have a fast enough retrieve.

[Squid]

Is it worth the extra $ for the Two Speeds? What is the difference with the LRS model? I am looking at the 50's.

Sorry for being so ignorant. Like I said I am starting from scratch. Ever since I have been down here I have been able to benefit from being able to use other's gear.

Are the TLD 15's good for kings?

The difference in the LRS model is that it has an 80 class drag CURVE.....NOT an 80 class DRAG. (A lot of people have been confused by this in the past.) The drag washers in an 80 are FAR larger than in a 50 however in the 50LRS models you can attain the same drag pressure (with freespool) as in a 50. Over time and under major pressure (such as a planer rod), the 80 will hold up better due to these larger washers.

For offshore fishing in NC from a center console a 50LRS will do everything you want it to do and then some. I have NEVER seen a time when you couldn't turn and chase down a fish by the time he dumped a 50. (And yes, this includes bluefins.....which I have caught MANY of them on 30's with no trouble what so ever!) To get spooled by a fish on a center console doesn't make any sense with the speed you can chase one down with an angler on the bow.
Sorry for the short rant......

As for the TLD15's....they will work fine for kings however the better (and cheaper) choice would be the Shimano Speedmaster. For king fishing, a star drag is far superior to a lever drag since you can make very small adjustments in drag pressure (either increase or decrease) while the fish is running. Take a look at the tournament king fishing boats in the SKA or FLW.....over 90% of them are using star drag reels regardless of manufacturer. The retrieve speed on the Speedmasters is also higher (6:1) which allows you to quickly gain line (44 inches of line per turn of the handle) on kingfish that speed back to the boat, which they are very famous for. The TLD15 is a 4:0 gear ratio resulting in only 30 inches of line per turn of the handle. While it may not sound like a lot, the Speedmaster will gain line 1.5x faster than does the TLD15! This is a HUGE difference when a fish turns to come at you.
For versitility, you can't beat the TLD15's though.....they work for kings (but not the best), they are EXCELLENT for sails when they move inshore during the summer, they are excellent pitch bait rods for sails or whites in the stream, and they are a blast to catch mahi's on nearshore. I've got my TLD15's spooled with 50 lb. Power Pro on 7' 15-40 lb rods and use them exclusively for pitch bait rods and for sails.

Hope this has helped and keep the questions coming.....we're all here to help each other out!

Bryan

[Nauti Natured]

Awesome Information!

Thanks everybody.

[Angler Systems]

Check out these reels from Diawa as well. It is a sweet product and we are selling a bunch of them.

http://www.daiwa.com/Reel/detail.aspx?ID=60

[hotrodmarlin]

For offshore fishing in NC from a center console a 50LRS will do everything you want it to do and then some. I have NEVER seen a time when you couldn't turn and chase down a fish by the time he dumped a 50. (And yes, this includes bluefins.....which I have caught MANY of them on 30's with no trouble what so ever!) To get spooled by a fish on a center console doesn't make any sense with the speed you can chase one down with an angler on the bow. Sorry for the short rant......

AMEN BROTHER!!! Don't apologize for that rant. More people need to read it and understand it.

Nauti- If you're trying to get offshore with as little money as possible, in my opinion you cannot go wrong with TLD25's. They will handle 90% of what you're going to catch offshore.