Good Morning,

I've been fishing all my life... but I know next to nothing about spinning reels, I have always thrown and always will throw baitcasters. However my wife (of one month) has only ever thrown spinning reels growing up. I want to start bringing her along on our fishing trips and was hoping someone could give me some guidance on 2 different rod/reel setups.
1 setup would be more for flounder/trout fishing with live bait and the other would be more for Jetty fishing. I use two different set ups personally. Have a Curado 200B on a Skeleton v2 for our channel/bay fishing, and a Calcutta 400B on a croaker smoker as my preferred Jetty set up.

Any recomendations on a similar set up but for spinning reels? She isn't nearly as avid as me and my family so I dont want to spend a fortune on a couple combos that she may use 5-10 times a year, but at the same time I dont want to set her up for failure with a setup that will not allow her to succeed.

And i know NOTHING about Spinning Reels and the types of rods that should accompany them. Any insight would be greatly appreciated!

I am kind of in the same boat. Been doing some reading. I went with a Penn Battle II 2500 for her to use for trout & reds. (ordered it off Amazon for $75) Haven't picked out exact rod yet, but it will most likely be 7 ft Medium/ Fast rod.

For trout and reds....I have always used a Med. Light 7ft. rod. altho I mostly use BC reels and rods now. I like a long handled rod...9-10" cork ones. You can get what you can afford. Personally I could care less about custom rods and stick to whats on the stores rack...usually Ugly Sticks. They are fine rods IMHO. Good luck

Buy 5 cheap Chinese reels online for $10-15 each (size 2). throw one away once it dies (usually lives for 1-2 years depending on usage). If you have free time -- you could always take it apart, clean, oil and put it back together (if you dunked it). Those reels are pretty good, to be honest -- light and smooth, just not built for saltwater.

Regarding rod -- Berkeley Lightning. Very light and very good (for $40). Not as good as skeleton, of course.

Flukemaster of YouTube fame is touting 3 new-to-the-market spinning reel models by "13 Fishing" and one of the three is under $50. They are made out of one of the new carbon materials, look really good and definitely not throw-aways. I watched him spin it a few times with the handle and it looked very fluid.

No, it won't be like a Shimano Stradic Ci4+, but the carbon will make it lighter than most, often more water proof.

For what you are describing, I'd get the cheapest reel model, size it according to what it will be used to fish for . . . they have a 1000 (small) up to a 4000 (large) range, tie on and reel up a high quality mono in the appropriate size, I like Sufix Elite, and go have some fun.

As for a starter rod, yes, an Ugly Stik would work well enough, very forgiving and actually the rod that several studies have shown to be danged near impossible to break.

Brad

My GF was kinda in the same boat, never fished a lot and only goes out about 10 times a year. I had fished spinning reels most of my life growing up and always used Daiwa reels. I didn't want her frustrated with cheaper gear especially if she got a good fish. So I chose the Daiwa Legalis 3500H paired with an Abu Garcia Veritas 6'6" rod. Spooled Power Pro 30# braid and 50" Flurocarbon leader. She has been able to comfortably handle 20" reds with the rig. Total of about $175 but not to have her give up because of her gear was well worth it IMHO.

Every brand will have different level of spinning reels depending on price and quality (just like baitcasters). Personally, you can't go wrong with Shimano and Daiwa for more lightweight while still having a high drag. Penn is awesome if you're looking for something more durable and can take a beating though you will sacrifice weight. Stick to a reel that is saltwater sealed so you get more use out of it. The Daiwa BG seems like an awesome reel for the price point, around $70ish depending on size. It feels as smooth as a Shimano Stradic ($ 200ish) and also very light. Penn Conflict is pretty good bang for your buck reel. Quantum Smoke is very light and saltwater sealed with a very high drag. IT ALL comes down to how much you're willing to spend.

For rods, I would recommend getting a rod in the same value as the reel. The more you spend on a rod the lighter a rod you can usually get without sacrificing strength. I would recommend a 7' MH fast action pair with a 2500-3000 size reel for the flounder/trout and which you will also be able to use on the jetty. For the bigger set up, just go with whatever size she is most comfortable that's bigger than 7ft MH.

For the reels, get which ever brand she has used in the past and is comfortable with and get the inshore model or at least the mid-level model. I like Pfluegers. If you can find a Pflueger President XT, you will have a great reel for a moderate price. For the rods, I really like Falcon Coastal XGs. For the jetties I would suggest the Medium Popper; for the trout and flounder I would suggest the Wade Fisher Medium. MH I typically designate for targeting bull reds and big black drum.

Shimano Symetre on a Teramar rod...15 pound power pro. Have used this combo for years and landed a bunch of good fish including some big jacks.

Show her your love, get her G rod 7'6" M or MH inshore rod. She will love that rod. Daiwa Black Gold spinning reel is the best value to the money you can get. This set will handle both style fishing you mentioned, and save you some money at the end.