Fishing Pole: Ugly Stick

[wacki]

I'm thinking about getting a decent rod/reel combo. I've heard great things about the Ugly Stick. Is it really that good? Should I go for something else?

[Pepsquad]

What type of fishing are you doing?

[wacki]

General Indiana lake fishing, there are a couple of large reservoirs nearby that I will take a boat out into. I'm going for fish that are big enough to eat.

Believe it or not, the only fishing I've done up to this point is deep sea and Boundary Waters/Quetico park. So I've got a lot to learn about this stuff.

[scrub]

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I'm thinking about getting a decent rod/reel combo. I've heard great things about the Ugly Stick. Is it really that good? Should I go for something else?

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I've had one for about 15 years, and I still love it.

scrub

[Glenn]

Personally, I really don't like ugly sticks. My favorite low-end rod is the Berkley lightning rod. If you are willing to spend more than $40-$50 you can do a lot better than either though.

[scrub]

[ QUOTE ]
Personally, I really don't like ugly sticks. My favorite low-end rod is the Berkley lightning rod. If you are willing to spend more than $40-$50 you can do a lot better than either though.

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True dat.

My Dad had one of the Berkeley rods when I was growing up--I didn't like it as much as the Ugly Stick, though.

scrub

[Ray Zee]

hey they arent great but work fine. get med. action or medium light about 5 1/2 footer. with a shimano or diawa reel. total cost about 70 bucks. should cast well 6 to 10 pound test line and 1/4 oz. or less lures. if you are trolling you want a litle bigger but thats no fun anyway.
if you fish all the time spend more but just a small upgrade that you wont notice much.

[Leo99]

Ugly sticks are ok for the money. They were a lot better relative to other rods when they came out 20 years ago but there are better rods now. When kind of lure wgt/pound test are you looking for? I like the high tensile graphite rods as they are lighter and have better actions. Let me know what ugly stick you're interested in and I'll try to find you something better.

[Patrick del Poker Grande]

I don't know much about fishing rods any more, but my father-in-law does a lot of fishing I think on Lake Superior mostly, but also in the smaller lakes and rivers in Northern WI. He wanted, and got, an Ugly Stick for Christmas and was pretty happy about it.

[wacki]

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Let me know what ugly stick you're interested in and I'll try to find you something better.

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I don't know much about this regular lake fishing, so I intend on following Ray Zee's specs. If you know of a good rod that falls in that area, I'm all ears.

[Leo99]

Based on your newness to the type of fishing you're going to do, I think the Ugly Stick is a fine place to start. They're rather forgiving in case you happen to step on the rod or treat it rough. Not that it won't break, but it will put up with more abuse than a better rod. After you figure out what kind of fishing you like to do (trolling, bait, lures, etc) you can get a better rod. I have a arsenal of rods all for striped bass fishing. A rod for small plugs, big plugs, soaking bait, drifting bait, etc.

[Ray Zee]

you didnt say what kind of fishing and what fish you are going for. that makes a big difference in choice. my suggestion is for casting on lakes for fish in general of all sizes. if you troll you will need something heavier if you go deep or with big plugs. if you are flippin for bass or something like that then a whole different setup is in order. but mine will do fine.
get a cabelas catalog or go online to them and look through the choices. that will help alot. then ask someone you will fish with what they use. then get something a little lighter and more sporty, as most fishermen use too heavy a gear most of the time.
if you like fishing you will end up with many rods and crap so your first purchase shouldnt be too far from the general sense of things. good luck. and get a ruler in centimeters and measure your fish with that and tell people that figure was inches. it increases your stature in the fishing community.

[Cubswin]

and get a ruler in centimeters and measure your fish with that and tell people that figure was inches. it increases your stature in the fishing community.

I have an 18 inch penis /images/graemlins/grin.gif

[Ray Zee]

i said centimeters not millimeters.

[ricochet420]

Ugly sticks aren't bad for the money. If you have a bass pro shops or something like it, go there and get a nice rod/reel combo. For a hundred bucks, you'd be suprised.

[KungFuSandwich]

[ QUOTE ]
with a shimano or diawa reel.

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Diawa reels own.

[jakethebake]

[ QUOTE ]
Personally, I really don't like ugly sticks. My favorite low-end rod is the Berkley lightning rod. If you are willing to spend more than $40-$50 you can do a lot better than either though.

[/ QUOTE ]
I've had a Berkley for years...along with my Lew's Speed Spool reelthat I actually caught out of the water when I was a kid. Someone had dropped it in. I cleaned it up and have used it for over 25 years. I bought the rod arou nd the same time I think.

[M2d]

I just got back home from a business trip and saw this thead. how much do you want to spend?

[wacki]

<$100

[M2d]

shoulda gt this outta the way earlier:
lakes exclusively?
100 for the rod or 100 for the total setup (rod+reel)?
lures or bait?
bank or boat?
trout? bass? striper? catfish? walleye? other?

[wacki]

shoulda gt this outta the way earlier:
lakes exclusively?

No oceans for this rod. If I need to buy a seperate rod for rivers, I will. So yes, you can assume exclusive lake use. Just curious, what is the difference between lake/river rods?

The lakes we will fish are in Arkansas, Indiana, Ohio, and Illinois.

100 for the rod or 100 for the total setup (rod+reel)?

Was hoping to keep it around $100 for the whole setup. If going higher will make a noticeable difference I might do it. I'm just now getting back into the swing of things.

lures or bait?

Does that really matter when choosing the rod? I don't care honestly, whatever works best.

bank or boat?

Again, does that matter? I have a buddy that fishes large lakes/reservoirs. He does mostly bank, but we are going to probably going to start canoeing/kayaking and try to catch some fish that way. I will most likely fish by boat if I have a choice.

trout? bass? striper? catfish? walleye? other?

Smallmouth, largemouth, and wipers. We are going to specifically fish for wipers as they fight the hardest.

Thanks for the help. Sorry about the delay, but in between work and my buddy being out of state, I didn't have the answers for you. The last time I've fished it was in Quetico park/Boundary Waters which was when I was in highschool. Excellent fishing up there if you already didn't know. I'll probably buy a setup in a couple of weeks and then post pics. /images/graemlins/grin.gif