mauser06

ok tonight i went back out catfishing....wasnt doing too well..missed one(sure its because i am using too small hooks) but no other takers..few nibblers but thats it. right before i was going to pack up i got a hit. set the hook and the fight was on. not a MONSTER but a nice one....he ran me in the SAME log pile i been having troubles with...gota be a logpile...car.....train..theres something BIG down there lol...so he runs me in and i try to fight him out..he snagged me up good. i finally felt him get off.....so im trying to break the snag free. walked backwards and had a but of tension on the rod but not all too much bend in it..i heard a metal pop and kapow! my rod snapped! the metal snap was a guide snapping off. that let line go too fast and put a wierd bend in the rod and made it snap. no biggie..35$ walmart special "southbend CATFISH rod" lol..i got more then 35$ use out of it...(it was made of WOOD!)

but anyways....my summers almost over...new bow will be here in a day or 2...i need bigger hooks for my bigger bait and bigger fish......i need better rigs...so i need your guys help....i may just buy 2 rods and put the reels from the junk rods on them for now....i dont wanna sink serious cash into rods i abuse and will only use a few summers...ill be graduating college in 3 years hopefully and hopefully movin outa here....i dont wanna sink a couple hundred into each rig and i move where them rods will be useless to me..so i need you guys to recomend some good reasonable catfish rods and reels...or combos etc....id reallllly like rods that werent WOODEN lol...i really dont have a problem with the reels.....they hold 20lb test mono fine...they arent the smoothest or great...but they work and i havent had much problems..but ill take reel recomendations too..keep in mind my big catfish will probably only be 10-20lb....our state records only 43lbs for a flathead though i knowwww theres bigger..im stuck on the bank so my fishing spots are limited...something ratedfor 20-30 lb line should be fine..and a few ounces of weight.......so lets hear the recomendations...rods...reels...combos...dont matter long as i aint selling the truck to buy them lol.....

mauser06

hmmm after some searching at "Catfish connection" i found a few nice lookin rigs....i really like my Okuma UL reel i bought for troutfishing....smoooooth as heck and took a good heavy use this spring and isnt showing any signs of giving up...so i kinda like the Okuma Avenger Bait feeding spinning reel. it has a bait feeding bottom drag. im guessing its on or off. basically setting the spool VERY light but enough tension to keep the line on it...something like that probably..but its like 30-35$..thats not bad...6BB and 1 SS roller..all sealed...heavy duty gearing etc..seems like a good reel for the money...

as for rods im looking at Eagleclaws Catclaw 9ft Heavy spinning rod..or a 9 and/or 10foot Berkley Glowsticks...id like something 8-10foot for casting reasons...that makes life easier and i wont throw out a back or arm trying to get that extra couple feet....i dont know about either rods....i kinda like the glostick idea though...wonder how well it works..i rather fish in the dark but seeing the tip is hard and no bait alarm doesnt help...id love a baitcaster with an alarm but i dont know much about them...maybe i can get a bait caster and a spinning...

on a side note i maybe able to rig the old rod back together..if not i still have ONE rig and an extra reel...thatll make life nice. i can take 3-4 rods fishing if i buy 2 new ones...when i break off or gota cut a hook off or something i can have spares ready to roll and can keep bait in the water at all time being i can only fish 2 rods by law......we will see......probably be my self bought and paid for birthday presents like i did last year lol....thats when i bought my trout setup....figure 50-75$ a piece...that aint too danged bad.....and they should be pretty nice rigs and should take anything.....

farmcntry

I use Ambu 5000c's and Berkley Power Rods. About $135.00 each set up. I have 3 of those. I also have 3 Ambu 6000's on Berkley Lighting Rods, about $165.00 each, got 3 of them. The Lighting rods IMO are the best. But I cat and carp fish constantly when I'm not hunting.

HighDesertWolf

the walmart here has ambassadeur 6000/berkley lightning rod combos for 70 bucks. you might check out wally world in your neck of the woods. even if you bought the rod and reel seperate it aint gonna cost you no 165 bucks... wally world sells the ambassadeur 6000 for 60 bucks and the lightning rods for 30 so together it would be 90 bucks but if you can find the combo it will save ya 20 bucks.

I have a Ambassadeur 6000 on a 7 foot ugly stik light its my catfish rig I have it spooled with 20 lbs berkley big game I absolutely love the setup with a 1 oz sinker it will cast a mile well realistically about 60 yards.
I bought my Ambassadeur 6000 off ebay for 42 bucks with shipping it was still under 50. the 7 foot ugly stik light I picked up on clearence at wally world for 15 bucks normally they go for about 40 bucks on that note wally world is great about clearencing stuff you should keep an eye out for rods marked for clearence I once got a berkely lightning rod for 6 bucks on clearence at wally world.

heres a pic of my catfish rig

HighDesertWolf

by the way heres the specs on the ambassadeur 6000 i know you will want to know them:

Aluminum spool
line cap 155 yds/20 lbs
instant anti reverse
1ss ball bearing/ 1ss roller bearing
on/off bait clicker

the cool thing about ambassadeur reels is they are pretty easy to upgrade most models the parts are interchangable so you can get more ball bearings from abu garcia to put in your reel. my ambassaseur 6000 now has 2 ss ball bearings and the roller bearing I swapped out one of the bushings with a ball bearing. I not trying to push ya to buy one just I highly recommend them I know if you had one you love it and never regret owning one.

My uncle is a big time striped bass fisherman and he has developed several upgrade kits for the ambassadeur reels. some are pretty economical I think a basic bearing kit is around 30 bucks and some of the kits can get pretty pricey. Im about to get one of his premium kits which upgrades all the bearings/bushings to abec 7 ceramic bearings and upgrades the brass gears to stainless steel and upgrades the drag to a higher performance multiple washer system the kit normally sells for I think around 200 bucks if you get a ambassadeur reel and you are interested in any of the upgrades PM Ill hook ya up with the details.

farmcntry

Depends on what 6000's 5000's etc you get.
Bass pro has the 6500C3's combo for $139.94 and the 5500C3's combo for $129.94.

The 6000's I have are the CarpMasters.

farmcntry

http://www.basspro.com/servlet/catalog.SearchResults?cmid=TOP_SEARCH_GO
Check it out.
Crap didn't work.

But you can click the link and then put in "Ambassadeur" in the new search field.

mauser06

thanx guys.....ive always heard good stuff about the ambassadors..just dont know much about a bait caster...if i cant set one up cheap enough maybe ill go that route..a bait clicker would be nice

HighDesertWolf

a 6000 is a model they make its not a 6500. I understand what you mean now but alot of folks on here wont. just be courteous and specify so there isnt any confusion. thanks


also gotta ask how did you ever come across carpmasters?? asfar as I knew those were only available in the UK.

Criggster

IMHO, southbend rods are junk! I ordered one from a catalog supplier and it broke within 6 months! If you want a rod that is virtually indestructible go to walmart and get an Ugly Stik catfish rod. They are white and I guarantee you will not break the rod. Also, I have a Berkley big game rod that has held it's own, and is a good rod for the money. They sell for around $35.