Do you have a "Beater Rod"? 2024

nameiztaken reply :

Do you guys use beater rods and reels for bank fishing? I used to use a shakespear outcast (like $11 new) and shakespear agility ($40 new) as a bank fishing/beater rod, that thing put up a good fight, lasted 2 seasons before I gave it to goodwill!

I love having a rod I can just throw around. How about you guys? If you have a beater setup, what is it?

RoLo reply :

My most frugal outfit was a cane pole without any reel

nameiztaken reply :

On 3/12/2017 at 10:42 AM, RoLo said:

My most frugal outfit was a cane pole without any reel

I started fishing with a stick from a redwood and some recycled line! Beat that! caught a lot of gills on that setup though, cant seem to catch them with an actual rod nowadays... :/

I've seen some people fishing for mackerel on the local pier with empty soda cans spooled with line, thats it. I guess you gotta make do with what you got!

iabass8 reply :

keep it PG.....keep it PG.....keep it PG.....I can't.....carry on.

nameiztaken reply :

On 3/12/2017 at 10:51 AM, iabass8 said:

keep it PG.....keep it PG.....keep it PG.....I can't.....carry on.

pretends to have understood the joke.. wait, it was a joke, right?...

RoLo reply :

With a cane pole, we used to cherry-pick panfish thru clearings in matted weedbeds.

We also used a cane pole to 'skitter' for chain pickerel, a word I haven't heard in 50 years.

A spoon or pork strip is sledded across the surface (it actually works).

Roger

NYBasser reply :

I've got a South Bend rod that I use to mess around while bed fishing for bass. The rod is super whippy and has no backbone or sensitivity whatsoever, so it's more of a sight fishing rod.

nameiztaken reply :

On 3/12/2017 at 10:55 AM, NYBasser said:

I've got a South Bend rod that I use to mess around while bed fishing for bass. The rod is super whippy and has no backbone or sensitivity whatsoever, so it's more of a sight fishing rod.

haha I have this shakespear rod that reminds me of a super long soft spring, the slightest twitch will throw the tip 2 feet... I have no idea what you could use this thing for...

KDW96 reply :

I use the same rods id use in my boat. Fishins fishin

nameiztaken reply :

On 3/12/2017 at 11:08 AM, KDW96 said:

I use the same rods id use in my boat. Fishins fishin

Thats what I do nowadays, I dont mind a few scratches, but you know, hitting a rod on rocks on purpose is kindaaaa fun

That and when a random 10 year old walks up to you on the bank and asks like 400 questions about fishing (including if he can use your rod), letting em use a cheaper one is cool. I'd hate to be the guy who told the kid interested in fishing he cant use a rod of mine for a bit. (not like a random kid would know how to use a cheap baitcaster right off the bat)

DINK WHISPERER reply :

Most definitely have beater/bank combos. I have 2 Lews speed sticks from Walmart and 2 Daiwa excelers .... on sale at TW for under $50 right now. Both 7ft, one MH/F and one M/F. One reel in 7 ratio and one in 6. Both with 30lb braid and use different leaders as needed.

NYBasser reply :

On 3/12/2017 at 11:00 AM, nameiztaken said:

haha I have this shakespear rod that reminds me of a super long soft spring, the slightest twitch will throw the tip 2 feet... I have no idea what you could use this thing for...

I find that the whippy rods work really well for topwater carp at the local pond

hunterPRO1 reply :

i use the zebco rhino 6'6" mh as a beater rod, i will either have a 33 or a black max on it with 17lb stren mono.

i can take the two pieces apart and put it on the dash and if i have 10 or 20min at a local pond i can take advantage of that.

also have a daiwa laguna spin rod and a lews ah 300 with 10lb stren i use for senkos, another cheap combo that i wont go swimming for.... usually.

niether rod has much sensetivity and the eye on the laguna is cracked so soon im going to change it out for a cherrywood

CenCal fisher reply :

i keep a shakespeare agility in my truck at a beater rod

Raul reply :

Hmmm, nope, no "beater" anything, I like to fish with my stuff, I do have "foot patrol" gear but that's because the rods are two piece but by no means they are "cheap" .

Jeff H reply :

All mine are beaters, as are my reels,

Bass fishing is best reply :

I have 2 ugly stick combos (6ft and 6 6) that I bought at Walmart for $20 that are always in the car, and the 6ft comes out on the Kayak sometimes. I picked up a Shakespeare Reverb combo for $5 too that I used to trade in at BPS. It actually felt decent but could tell it would last a season at best so I bought another one for next year. I actually hope some kid asks me about it, I'll just give it to them. More kids should be outside fishing.

bigturtle reply :

I dont have any rod that I can just throw around, I cherish all my equipment and take care of them because they are all pricey.

Gundog reply :

I used a ugly stick for years as my fun rod. It was a 6 ft. medium that could cast small lures a country mile. When I would go fishing after work I would throw that rod in my truck. It had almost no backbone but when you are catching dinks on almost every cast it was perfect for the situation.

dwh4784 reply :

My frog rod is beater from head to toe. Shimano Callisto (at least 10 years old) mated to a $25 Shakespeare MH rod. Still yards them out of the thickest cover. The reel is sounding pretty awful though, I expect to have to replace it soon.

ww2farmer reply :

I have a bunch of Berkley Lightning Rod Shocks that I use right along side rods that cost much more, and/or are custom built.

But I don't consider them beaters. They are fantastic rods for the money,and I buy them when ever I see them on sale.

Bluebasser86 reply :

I've caught some monsters fishing from shore, I'm not risking losing them by fishing with gear I wouldn't use otherwise.

Raul reply :

On 3/12/2017 at 3:35 PM, Bluebasser86 said:

I've caught some monsters fishing from shore, I'm not risking losing them by fishing with gear I wouldn't use otherwise.

My thoughts exactly.

AC870 reply :

On 3/12/2017 at 12:42 PM, Jeff H said:

All mine are beaters, as are my reels,

This.

offsidewing reply :

I use same gear no matter where I'm fishing. If I'm bank fishing I usually just take two set ups. Caught my PB small mouth off a dock, so you never know.

new2BC4bass reply :

On 3/12/2017 at 10:35 AM, nameiztaken said:

Do you guys use beater rods and reels for bank fishing? I used to use a shakespear outcast (like $11 new) and shakespear agility ($40 new) as a bank fishing/beater rod, that thing put up a good fight, lasted 2 seasons before I gave it to goodwill!

I love having a rod I can just throw around. How about you guys? If you have a beater setup, what is it?

No. Even when a young boy fishing a K-Mart special, I knew better than to mistreat my gear. I'd have to go without for awhile if I broke it. My first year fishing was with a cane pole with a few yards of line tied on. That's as cheap an outfit as I have ever fished. Cheapest I use since getting back into fishing is a 6' MH Lightning and Daiwa Procaster 100HN...$47 total plus $1.02 tax on the rod.

snake95 reply :

I keep some rods on the less expensive side in the trunk. As mentioned in a current post, that's where I keep an ugly stik and a vengeance, 2-pc'ers. Because I have them with me, they are what I use the most. I am almost always a bank fisherman and so as others have stated I don't have a division between regular-duty and beater. I wanted to know what I felt like to fish a St. Croix Mojo Bass, my idea of a high-end rod, and so I use that rod from shore whenever I can.

I also have a Daiwa Coastal reel with a blue finish that made it look like it belonged in a hot rod museum, but I've actually used it for its intended purpose - casting for stripers off a rocky jetty - and it now looks like a reel that has been beat among the rocks and surf, saw some action, and caught some stripers.

roadwarrior reply :

Fishes in trees reply :

I have some rods that I don't mind lending out to people - decent graphite spinning rods that I came across on sale here and there. I fish a charity event at Truman Lake every fall and I bring enough extra gear that the soldier I'm taking fishing can fish any bait that I'm fishing and have a reasonable chance at success - that time of year mostly cranks and spinner baits, but I bring a pitching rod also.

However, I don't lend out my first string jig rods, or my first string spinner bait/square bill/ chatter bait rods, or any rigs that it would bug me to have to replace if it got broke and I wasn't the one who broke it.

.ghoti. reply :

I used to. Sold them, or gave them away. Somebody is getting some good use out of some stuff I had just hangin out in the garage.

If somebody needs to borrow a rod and reel from me, they get a pretty good one.

BassWhole! reply :

Nope, tackle is for using. I'm not going to purposely mistreat or abuse (actually I go full McEnroe every so often, but its rare) rods and reels, but when something breaks, it breaks. If I wanted something to cherish, ogle and treat daintily, I'd buy art and hang it on the wall.

Darren. reply :

On 3/12/2017 at 10:42 AM, RoLo said:

My most frugal outfit was a cane pole without any reel

I have a number of long poles (fiberglass and one graphite)

that go from 10' to 20' in length. Some of the best (most fun)

fishing I've ever had.

As far as frugal, though, I spent some $$ on my graphite pole

and it has paid off in spades.

david in va reply :

Well I guess all my stuff is right good , or I would not be fishing with it And if I lone you a rig, it will be as good as I am fishing with. If it is too good to lone a buddy it is to good for me to use , thus I would not own it anyway. Man this is fishing, If I am fishing with you I want to catch more and better fish than you, but not because I have better equipment, because I am a better fisherman

And that new open face I got in the mail , well that might be one of them beaters . I wouldn't put that POS off on anyone.

I give it a try today. ended up with a bird nest the 4th or 5th cast

Mosster47 reply :

On 3/12/2017 at 3:35 PM, Bluebasser86 said:

I've caught some monsters fishing from shore, I'm not risking losing them by fishing with gear I wouldn't use otherwise.

Same. The bruiser I caught today was from shore.

Fishing is fishing.

rippin-lips reply :

I buy what I buy because I get enjoyment from using it. So weather I'm on a boat,in a kayak, or on the bank... I'm going to enjoy it. How many 2yr olds you know fishing with a Megabass combo. It can be replaced but memories can't be.

jdz197 reply :

Berkely Cherrywood HD spinner with an old Abu Garcia cardinal spinner.

Berkely Cherrywood HD casting rod with an Abu Garcia Silvermax.

It's hard to beat that rod for $20, though the spinner version is a 2 piece and calling it 'medium heavy' is a joke, it's more medium-medium light.

the reel ess reply :

I don't have a rod that gets thrashed. But I have an older ML (feels light by today's standards to me) 6' Eagle Claw rod that my dad bought me when we were headed to the lake when I was about 17. It was less than $10 and claims to be composite. I have it paired with an UL spinning reel that is Academy's cheapest house brand model. I take it along often times. It's my primary creek/small river/crappie/bluegill combo. When bass just won't bite anything, I'll tie on a Roadrunner or Rooster tail and start targeting the dinks. I catch some nice bluegill and crappie that way. It beats getting skunked and the fight is fun on the light action rod.

BTW, Academy has that reel on a combo for $20. That's what I paid for the reel alone.

http://www.academy.com/shop/browse/fishing/rod--reel-combos/spinning-combos?facet=mfName_ntk_cs%3A%22H2O+XPRESS%22

MNGeorge reply :

I have a 6'6" medium action Cabela's brand trigger stick rigged with an old BPS Supreme baitcaster I use solely for wading...don't care if it gets dunked or broken.

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