I�m a cat/crappie/saltwater guy but some friends of mine recently started doing friendly bass tourneys against each other. So I�m looking for a good all around setup for under $200. One rig to do It all. Probably throw spinner baits, Texas and Carolina rigs, and maybe crankbaits.

Recommendations all the way down to the line. Thanks

Go higher end on the rod to get the feel. T Riga are so versatile here, but you need that feel. Also with cranks and spinners being Abe to feel the vibration from your lure to make sure it is getting the right action helps a lot. I have a dobyns that I love with a revo on it. Probably about 200-220 for the full set up and I can use it with all of those platforms. I can get you the full details on the setup this week.

Yeah man if you don�t mind I�d appreciate the details.

Falcon BuCoo SR rods - $100
Abu Garcia Revo X - $100

This is a hard $200 combo to beat. I love got several and really like them.

Tyler, what�s the best weight of the rod, gears on the real, and line for do It all?

Dobyn's Fury 734c
This rod is considered heavy but fishes more like a med heavy.

Shimano SLX150HG 7.2:1 Lews LFS SS1HA 6.8:1 Lews Revo x REVO4 X-HS 7.3:1
I like Shimano/Diawa reels. Personally I believe the SLX is much better than the other two listed but its more a matter of personal preference.

15-17lb Fluoro or Mono or 50lb braid to a leader.
Line really depends on what you like to fish with, what you are fishing around and what you are throwing.

For an all around rod the BuCoo 7' Heavy would be my choice. BuCoo's run a little light to me. As Taylored stated above about the Fury, BuCoo is the same. 7' H fishes more like most MH rods. 6.6:1 or 7.3:1 Revo X, depending on preference. I would probably go with a 6.6:1 if I was only going to have one combo. 50 lb braid. You can run straight braid or run a braid to flouro or mono leader when you need to.

Agree with the above. The Falcon Bucoo and Jason Christie Heavy rated rods also have a more moderate fast action making them very versatile.
For crankbaits and other treble hooked lures you could go with braid to 7ft of a stretchy mono like 12lb big game
Then for jigs,trig etc change to a less stretchy copoly or fluoro leader

I really like the rod highlighted below

Falcon Bucoo and the bass pro qualifier when it�s on sale is a great value

I would say 7'3MH to be the most veristal rod and a lews LFS speed spool is difficult to beat. Maybe a Diawa Tatula or Fuego. Ebay both under 100bucks

Lew's Mach Crush Bait cast combo- $199.99 Retail

I don�t really want to jack with leaders for combo. Think 12lb mono is versatile enough for cranks/spinners/and Texas rigged plastics?

I would recommend 14lb at least but depending on how and where you fish you can get away with 12lb. Line diameter is more critical when it comes to cranks. 10 or 12 will give you better depth but without a technique specific parabolic rod you might want to stick to 14 for those too. However....keep in mind mono floats which will damper your crankbaits ability to dive as well. Cranking IMHO requires specific gear but can be done with mono and regular rods.

I guess I�ll go ahead and run braid. Do y�all do like an Alberto knot for braid to fluoro/mono leader? That�s what I do for saltwater when fishing for trout and reds.

Maybe its just because I've accumulated so many rods/reels but I'm at the point where I'd rather have 3-4 setups than 1 "all-around" rod/reel combo. Especially with the affordability of the newer rods and reels available. At minimum I'd have a 7'4" Heavy, 7'3" MH and one more Medium action rod for cranks.

Shimano has rods from $39 (on sale on TW right now) up to $179 that are all great for the price. And for reels they make several different models of the SLX even in a DC model now. I'd spend a little extra and get the nicest reel you can afford and then go as budget conscious as you need to on the rod. And for line, I'd recommend Seagaur red label.

Takes 30seconds to 1 minute to tie.
I like the method in the video. I do rub in a drop of superglue after cinching down the knot and cutting the tag ends.

The line to hook knot will fail before this line to line knot.

Trust me I understand that. I�ve got so many setups for crappie, cats, salt, etc.
I can just count on one hand the times I�ve bass fished in the past 10 years. That might change but for now, just one.
I do have a ML spinning reel I use for trout that I think would be good for drop shot, so I guess technically I�d have two setups.

So say I said forget cranks and just got a setup specifically for soft plastics (Texas and Carolina rig). What would you get for that?

Best widely available rod at everyday price for Texas Rig and C-rig

I'd go with the Shimano SLX reel @ $99, and a Shimano SLXCX72MH rod, 7'2" med-hvy with XF action. Also 99 bucks, gets you the combo for $198. Spool it with 20-30lb Power Pro braid for mainline, and 12-15lb Seaguar Red Label flouro for leader, or 12lb Berkley Big Game if you like mono.

That'll get you into the game for your budget level.

Follow this advice if you are only going to use it for a Tx. rig and a C. rig. Basically there are two lure weight ranges for M/H rods. Depending on the brand of rod the lighter action M/H it will start at 1/4oz or 3/8 and then end with 3/4 and the heaver action in a M/h will be 3/8 to 1oz. You will have to choose which model will work best for you. How light of a Tx. rig are you planning to throw and how heavy of a C rig do you plan to throw.

If you do 1/4 to 3/8 on the Tx. rig and 1/2 to 3/4 on the C rig, I would choose the lighter action rod.

Haha....this was me. I catfished hardcore for years. Crappie was my life for just as long. Was actually a guide for a while down here on the coast were I use to fish 300 days a year. Avoided bass fishing like the plague. Guess I knew what it would do to me and I was right. I have now hand built 25 bass rods of all weights and lengths. All technique specific to my needs. One thing you will find about bass fishing is the need never ends. Terminal tackle/line/soft plastics/hardbaits/topwater/frogs/swimbaits/dropshot/shakey/ribbontail worm/straight tail worm. Once you have loads of it collected and rods and reels to go with it you then will need somewhere to store all of this stuff that you "need" while fishing. That was the ONLY reason I quit fishing for bass out of my aluminum crappie/catfish/bayboat. "Needed" storage for all of my stuff so I bought a bass boat.

Careful.....this "one combo" could easily become a lifetime of debt. Lol

So the next �tournament� is set. We fishing the Brazos river north of Granbury (tin top). Not anyone�s first choice but it�s close. Any ideas for that part of the river?

I�ve never heard of that area, let alone anyone fishing it. I would fish boat docks and shaded areas when the sun gets high. Topwater in the morning. Spinnerbaits around structure. Texas rigs are always good.

Completely agree. It would be hard to get a rod to do all those things well. You would be surprised how much a rod can make a difference on the action of your baits and just your overall experience of a technique.



Haha, so true.