CyberAngler

Hi all, Hope I am in the right spot on this board. I have just got out of the Marine Corps and am leaving southern california and moving to Fort Myers. I have been lucky enough to enjoy some of this great fishing and am bringing my 19' Carolina Skiff with me. My best friend is currently in Fort Myers and is stoked to get out and do some fishing once I arrive. I want to get him a rod and reel since he does not have one of his own. He is helping my wife and I out with the move and we think it would be a nice present. I am familiar with everything we california's use, but am curious how much of a difference in rods and reels there is. I currently use mostly Shimano reels (baitrunner 4500's and the calcutta 400) and Seeker rods (6 1/2'-8' one piece 15-45#). I would like to get him a good spinning reel starter combo that will be good for all around (grouper, snook, tarpon, etc) fishing. Any and all advice will be greatly appreciated.

Jason

A 20 lb. spinning outfit would be a good “one-size-fits-all” choice for grouper, snook and tarpon;, but I’m not sure what you have in mind as far as price.

Personally, I would go for a custom 7’ rod with a Diawa BG60.

BG’s are good quality, relatively inexpensive (about $80, much less than some of the $200-$300 reels out there), and they are extremely rugged and great for saltwater use.

I really don’t know of any rod “brands” I would recommend. Most of my experience is with custom rods. If you need more info on custom rods, I can recommend specific blanks. For your purposes, you are probably better off going to a Bass Pro Shop and asking a sales person to show you their 20 lb. spinners.

I live in Cape coral and have about 30 differnet rigs

Most were bought on ebay from "bigfishsports"

I have pics of my experiences at

http://www.angelfire.com/fl3/622/morebt.html

Glad to help out