Travel Rod and Reel combo

[Amr Kehila]

Travel rods have come a long way and I think you'll see a greater selection as airlines tighten up on baggage restrictions and the 2 metre long rod tube becomes a thing of the past.

Some of the top end makers have been experimenting with them, even on heavy gear. I have a Carpenter BLC 83/35 3 piece that handles 100g lures and PE5/6 nicely, I still don't have enough confidence to put my all into that rod and I'm very conscious of line angles, although other people have caught some great fish on it (if it's any consolation I'm pretty much the same with all the BLCs I've tried). I also have a Fisherman Monster CC 80GT.T PE8-10 150/200g GT stick that I will lean into with confidence and have personally caught good fish on without an issue. Be careful of the tip section though, good casters can loosen the join after a few casts, not a problem it just requires the odd check.

The obvious problem with heavy gear and 3 piece rods is the join in the blank, I think that's improving all the time. The less obvious problem is that the length of the butt section limits any true portability, the Carpenter breaks down to 95cm and the Fisherman to 89cm..still too large for most luggage but better than the 1.8 metres than most 2 piece rods typically break down to.   

I know it doesn't specifically address your issue as these are expensive but viable travel rods is something that interests me.

Regards,



Trev         

Sam, others might disagree but it's hard to place faith in a 3 piece rod for this kind of fishing! Unless it's from a reputable gt rod company. Shimano and daiwa are not when it comes to rods.Get a proper 2 piece with a join at the butt. Something like a gt special or demon blood 82xh. If you don't want to pay for a rod tube, find a mate who's a plumber, get a 6.5 foot length of pipe with screw ends and load up the bubble wrap.

As for a reel, if your not going to go top end, a new saragosa 10000sw can be had online for $329 and will take well over 300m of pe6, has enough drag at 15kg and the ratio of 4.9 makes it useful for popping and jigging. The spool lip on the gosa sw's is awesome for casting too.

As for lures, it's hard to go past the halco haymakers, river2sea dumbells and river2sea rovers if budget is a real issue. Or the next step up is jai big head poppers and stick baits and then the nomad lures. Grab a few packs of owner st66 5/0 trebles for the belly hooks and owner sj41 9/0 tail hooks connected with owner hyper wire size 11 split rings. A lot of brands make comparable equipment so shop around.

With 2 each of the halco and river2sea lures, this setup can be had for under $1000. You may get your ass kicked should you come across a big fella but it's a start. Just remember that if this becomes a sport you want to actively pursue, buying cheap stuff works out way more expensive in the long run as the gear will simply not stand up to much abuse.

My 2 cents.

Two great answers based on going either direction. Thanks for taking the time guys!

[Trevor Skinner]

Amr,

As if on cue a couple of very nice GTs have been landed on Fisherman 3 piece rods in the last few weeks, so they're certainly a viable option.

Suzuki san landed a great fish of 52kg (weighed) fishing 2 weeks ago with Ocean Active in Halaniyat. He used one of his Monster CC three piece rods, this time the 68GT. Nick Bowles landed a 45kg fish on a Monster CC 80GT three piece.

Ocean Active and Fisherman have uploaded footage of the 52kg fish onto their Facebook pages and it makes for great viewing. Suzuki is 64 and is in total control. The boat handling by Cam Mundy and Nick is also first class.

There is also footage of the 45kg fish as well not yet uploaded.

Watch this space.

Regards,


Trev     

[Amr Kehila]

It's such great footage! Those new 3 piece Fisherman rods look the business too Trevor!

[Alex Gomez]

What a legend!!!

The rod seems to be more than capable, it looks to have a bit of a flat spot in the middle though?

I'm just amazed that a man that age can own a fish that size and the fact that he did it with a 3 piece rod!!

Amazing effort.

[Amr Kehila]

The whole time this thread was running i felt like mentioning the Fisherman offering but didn't because of the OP indicating cost as an issue. Nice one Trevor