Selected Budget Tackle-Up to the task??

[Patrick Parisienne]

Hi all,

Looking at a trip to Townsville QLD in June, with some GT fishing on the menu.

Have walked around shops and seen some GT rods, and suitable reels, which are dirt cheap compared to the Carpenters, Ripple Fishers etc.
Examples are:

Daiwa Monster Mesh Max:    8'6" long, rated to PE 8,                        $220
Berkley Venom-Viper GT :      7'6" long rated to PE 8-12, 26 kg drag $399 
Xzoga   Taka -Pi 7710:          7'7" long, rated to PE 10, 25kg drag     $450

Dogfight  Expedition 10000 reels $399 30 kg drag.

I myself have 2 budget stickbait / tuna combos.

Shimano Terez 40-80 lbs 6'9'', Tuff Tackle 10000 Sniper, 320mtrs 80lbs Rovex Depth Finder braid, $520 all up.

Daiwa Monster Mesh PE 3-6, 7'2", Tuff Tackle 10000 Sniper (used), 450mtrs 65lbs Jerry Brown Hollow braid, $400 all up.


Now I realise the reels won't feel as smooth as Stallas and Saltiags, and rods may not be as light, or powerful as the top end stuff....
...but in people's opinion, is gear at this sort of price point suitable for GTs, doggies etc?

Cheers,

Pat

[Mark Harris]

Hi Patrick, no comments on any of those rods as I know little or nothing about any of them.

What do you mean by "Dogfight  Expedition 10000" reels?

[Patrick Parisienne]

Hi Mark,

Made an error. It is the XT Dogtooth Terminator.  Available at Tackleworld stores for $380 now I think.. Maybe a good back up reel for some.

http://www.ifish.com.au/store/products.php?product=XT%22Dogtooth%22-Terminator

My Tuff Tackle reels are basically the same thing, but I got them much cheaper!!! I bought a spare 12000 spool (600mtrs of PE 8 capacity) for $50, which is good value I would think, when you consider it comes with a Carbontex drag stack...

Tuff Tackle now also have a range of CNC machined reels that look good for the $$$$ too...

Cheers,

Pat

[Mark Harris]

Patrick, I don't think you will find many fans of Tuff Tackle reels in this forum.

I suspect the XT Dogtooth Terminator is another rebranded Chinese reel?

In that price bracket, I would recommend a Shimano Saragosa 18000.  A proven, tough reel that gets the job done.

[Patrick Parisienne]

Hi Mark,

People not impressed with the product or the people?

Don't know where the Dogtooth is made, but it wouldn't surprise me these days. I guess you ALWAYS get what you pay for.....

[Ben Furness]

If you wanted to keep the price on a combo reasonable I would go with the absolute best reel and line I can afford and compromise on one of the cheaper rods that have been proven to get the job done. I.e. Shimano GT Special.

[Bernie Keys]

I actually had a look at one of these in a tackle world. They seemed OK but how they actually perform long term is another matter.

The general appearance of the reel (XT Dogtooth Terminator) looked OK, sort of what you get with the better (top?) end of the Chinese offerings.

They look fairly substantial but whether they could sustain a big days fishing (if anyone was able to fish continuously with those sort of drags ) would be anyone's guess. Sort of reminded me of the older Penn eggbeaters, sort of heavy and workmanlike rather than light smooth and fashionable.

If I was in the market for something that I needed to use 8kg drag on I would consider one of these reels (effectively derateing it), but they are physically heavier than their expensive opposition, but then they are substantially cheaper too.

One thing we should all remember (well those of us old enough  ) was that in the early 60s the Japanese had a pretty awful reputation for producing junk (tinny jap crap !) but it only took 10 years to change. Now they set the benchmark in quite a few categories.

China will be the same but they will be much quicker; they don't believe in the fundamental concept of copyright (neither do I) but they do seem to have some sort of respect for patents.

[Mark Harris]

Why take the risk, when a proven performer like the Saragosa is available for similar money?

[Kasey Leong]

Hi Patrick,

Your note about the uncanny resemblance between the Tuff Tackle Sniper 10000, and the XT Dogtooth Terminator (what a name!) is not without reason.

I believe they actually all come from the same OEM factory in China, who produces them by the thousands, and then brands them (and makes some minor adjustments, e.g. handle) according to 3rd parties who them market them in the various countries (e.g. Tuff Tackle, XT, etc).

So, they're not copies per se - same manufacturer, same reel (more or less), just different name (and price - which is up to the marketeer)

Here's another one: http://www.knkfishing.com/pd-ajiking-wahoo-wh-8000-spinning-reel.cfm

[Patrick Parisienne]

Ok, so the reel side of things has been addressed. Any thoughts on the rod side of things?

 I think I'll leave heroics to another time, and stick to PE 8-10 max rods. Thoughts???

[Matt Born]

this can give you an idea of reels - rated per cost, and then over all.
http://www.alanhawk.com/reviews/lists.html

I agree that you should spend your cash on a reel - this is essentially the thing that controls the amount of line you loose or gain....

the rod is an aid to this.

it will then be a matter of balancing the rod against your reel, and your wallet.

[Ben Furness]

I was surprised that the Saltiga came in a close third behind the Penn. Doesn't seem to be many fisherman using the Penn, can anyone comment as to why?

[Patrick Parisienne]

Surprised me too! I think you always take these tests with a grain of salt....

I know a lot of Kingy fishos in Sydney swear by the Penn Slammer reels, never seen a Torque reel though.

Surprised that the Ryobi Carnelian is in the 'rubbish' group. I've read where one of the New Cal operaters use them with 100lbs braid, and Samurai rods successfully. Of course, longevity is unknown....

I started this thread because it seems more and more "GT" targeted gear is coming onto the market, at much lower than traditional pricepoints, and this forum is THE place to get relevant info whether it cuts the mustard or not..... 

Cheers,

Pat

[Mark Harris]

I was surprised that the Saltiga came in a close third behind the Penn. Doesn't seem to be many fisherman using the Penn, can anyone comment as to why?

I think Alan Hawke almost surprised himself at how much he liked the Penn Torque.  If you read the individual reviews of the New Saltiga and the Torque you will see why.

On that top 5 list, the presence of Accurate Twinspin and absence of Shimano Twinpower SW surprises me!

As to why we see relative few Torques being used in the popping/jigging world, would you leave the house with something that ugly?

[Robin Loi]

hi patrick, can't write what is already written about your reels of choice. like what you said, you ALWAYS get what you paid for and Mark has already given his thoughts about it (which I concur).

about your choice of rods, amongst the three, and personally for me, there is only 1 rod i'd take along with me i.e the Berkley. i've used a couple of rods from berkley (lightning rods) for about 10 years now (and i'm still using it) and not only has it withstood the test of time, it impressed me with its resilience and versatility. obviously, good maintenance of the rod, or any rod for that matter, is essential too. the Venom-Viper GT, i've a few mates of mine using it and all their feedback are that its performance is pretty decent (not too stiff, a tad bit heavy but still manageable, ablility to cast heavy poppers and stickbaits). the Venom-Viper GT will get the job done albeit with lots of back-breaking pain if a monster's at the end of the line. naturally, overall performance/material used, it doesn't belong to the 'premier league' of popping rods but the Berkley should be able to hold its own.