I am looking to start upgrading my fishing gear and was wondering what is more important to upgrade first the rod or the reel most of my rods are $50 or less same as my reels I also would like your opinion on what brand of equipment you like and why and price range I will probably start upgrading one combow every 2 to 3 months

I prefer a nice rod, but I have caught some of my biggest fish on my cheap rods. It�s almost like karma or something, when it�s all said & done, you are what dictates what fish you catch. It�s not the rod or reel that really matter.

I bought good reels first then slowly upgraded my rods.

IMO though it�s 6 of one and half dozen of the other. All personal preference. Some will argue rod is more important since that is where you feel the bite. Don�t think either view is wrong. The $50 gear available today is miles ahead of the most expensive gear available several years ago. Cheap isn�t always inferior either.

Either way
Honestly just look at what deals come up first and go that route
There are a lot of good used rod and reels out there

I upgraded my rods first and still have not upgraded my reels. I have about 11 or 12 200B5s and 6s that I bought a LONG time ago. I use Dobyns rods for most of the fishing I do, and they work great. Best decision I made in fishing, I think. Of course, the reels back when I bought them were $75 each on sale, so I would recommend looking at both when the new ones come out and buy the older models. Get some great deals that way. Hope this helps. Tight linese, keep safe and good luck.

Thad Rains

I upgraded one combo at a time until I had all rods of the same brand and all reels of the reels of the same brand. Sold all my older rods and reels to make it happen. Glad I decided to do it as it made fishing easier and I�ve caught a lot more.

Thanks for all of your input and advice

Agree with whichever is on sale

It�s easy to find a good rod $65-100 especially November to March
Having a nice reel that is durable, casts far and seamlessly, with a powerful drag rating sure is a nice luxury
You can find good reels for around $80; but going up just a little in price point can make a big difference with reels

One of my old buddies used to say "The bass can't tell what brand of rod you're fishing with!" And although, obviously they cant tell what kind of reel you're fishing with either, I prefer to spend my money on reels that have good bearings and even more importantly, a smooth drag. I have several $99 rods that are just fine but I like to get as nice of a reel as I can afford.

If you are moving the bait with the reel, I say reel, if you are moving the bait with the rod, I say rod, me personally for my style of fishing its rod first and as far as brand Lew's

As far as reels go, I think the best bang for the buck is the Daiwa Tatula CT on ebay. Great reel for the price. You can also find some rods that will work just fine for you in the $100-$150 range. Many people seem to like the Academy brand of rods and they are less than $100.

I do have several Shimano Curado K reels that I really like but the majority of my reels are Diawa and Lews. If I had to choose only one brand to fish with it would be the Lews.

Reel, it's what brings the fish in.I like daiwa reels zillions are my favorite, you can find used ones on here sometimes.

Reel.

13 Fishing.

Rod

Falcon.

Dobyns is all name, made in China.. I prefer a Falcon Lowrider over that Champion XP.

I use Abu 6500s most of the time And revo reels for lighter lures. eBay is a good place to get quality rods and reels for a good price if you don't mind a little wear and tear.

Well sir, Falcons are now made in China too. The expert is the only US made model and they are in short supply.