I want to buy my husband a really lightweight rod amd reel for fishing (not fly fishing). Any recommendations? Budget is $350 US.

Edited by Laurie_Ann on 12/06/2006 21:47:43 MST.

Will he be fishing for small fish like trout or large fish like salmon primarily?

I would imagine that it would be small fish like Lake Trout and Bass.

An ultralight 5 piece spinning outfit is appropriate for this fish size range. A fly casting bubble or lures can be used for trout in combination with a spool wound with 2-4 lb test. An additional spool wound with six lb test would be appropriate for bass. The sets come with light-weight plastic carrying cases but, I don’t carry any case to save weight. I just bind the five rod pieces with two thick rubber bands to make one thick rod piece for transport.

I have used the same Daiwa MiniSpin system for ~20 years of backpacking without any problems ($35 retail). There are more expensive solutions available but, I don’t understand their value propositions. See http://www.mysimon.com/Fishing/9000-11034_8-0.html?mlpid=31082145 for a couple of major retail sources and additional reviews. Remember that the extra spool for bass is a separate product that you need to order.

Edited by richard295 on 12/07/2006 16:13:29 MST.

Thanks Richard. That is a lot more reasonable than I thought which means I can get him a few other toys. He is impossible to buy Christmas presents for because he gets all of his backpacking/canoeing gear through our company because we gear test items all the time. Fishing gear will be perfect and with the savings I could get him some nice lures and his fishing license.

Richard, thanks for the advice on the Daiwa MiniSpin. My girl friend gave her son an open-reel version for his birthday. I have to say it is a nice piece of gear.

We also picked up some 4lb Vanish fluorocarbon line for the clear mountain waters. He should have lots of fun catching trout with the setup.

The weight of the rod + reel + line + swivel is 8oz.

Update: Decided to pick one up for myself and it's a great system. See what the MiniSpin is capable of with 4lb line here.

Edited by pappekak on 04/19/2007 10:54:25 MDT.