Red Snapper Rod and Reel Setup

Shimono Talica 16 w/ 7’ Red Lion “Black Out” rod

LINK

My go to is a penn fathom star drag 20w with some cheap bass pro broomstick rod and 80lb braid. Probably a $250 setup all together. 10 years and no issues. I see the reels are much more expensive now than they used to be.

Get something with a line counter. It makes it much much easier.

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Get something with a line counter. It makes it much much easier.

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And if not a line counter spool it with the metered Depth Hunter braid, makes it so much easier to be able to know how deep you are.

All good suggestions and remember that tons of ARS have been caught on True Temper fiberglass rods with a Penn 309 reel. I still have my Uncle's old rig that has Dacron on it I think.

I like my "bottom" rods to be able to handle whatever might bite because anywhere you're fishing for ARS there's a good chance that a big gag grouper or AJ is in the same neighborhood

I think that the shimano speedmaster is the best bang for your buck conventional reel on the market. They're a two speed lever drag reel, so if you hook into a big gag you can kick the reel into low gear and horse it off the bottom. They come in several different sizes. I think the 12 is probably the best ARS reel for the price that you can find.

I've got this reel in a 12, 16, and 20 because I like a little more versatility in my "bottom rigs". I wouldn't feel undergunned trolling big mahi or wahoo lures with 16 and 20 reels.

I almost exclusively slow pitch jig for bottom species now, but I've held onto my speedmasters to let buddies use or to repurpose as trolling setups when we go. I've got 2 shakespeare tiger lite conventional jigging rods that has caught hundreds and hundreds of ARS and pairs well with the speedmaster 12 or 16.

I've got a larger 7' daiwa rod on my 20. I use that to drop huge baits for gag and RG

Depending on your depth I would skip a dedicated spinning setup for ARS altogether. It just takes a lot more energy than a conventional. The speedmaster 8 and 12 are perfect "guest" reels for ARS


I should also clarify I fish almost exclusively natural bottom in 150-250 feet. If you're targeting them in 80-90' then a spinning reel is a great tool for that. I am the quality over quantity guy on the boat when I'm dropping baits. I always reach for the biggest bait left in the livewell. The Shimano Torium is a lighter weight conventional star drag reel that is also a great ARS setup

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My go to is a penn fathom star drag 20w with some cheap bass pro broomstick rod and 80lb braid. Probably a $250 setup all together. 10 years and no issues. I see the reels are much more expensive now than they used to be.

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Mine are pushing 40 years old and still working like new. I doubt if I paid more than $50 for any rod and reel I use bottom fishing. All it has to do is spin in one direction for a couple of hundred feet and horse that load back onto the spool for a couple of hundred feet. I haven'y fished more than a couple of hundred feet deep since I sold my boat in 2006.

Penn Battle PASS IV 6000

You don’t have to spend $1500 on a Talica combo. Get a Penn Battle combo in a 6000 size. You don’t have to worry about level winding. You can drop butterfly, high speed jigs, you can cast a plug a mile for cobia, mahi and even tuna. Fish from the beach, etc.

Way more versatile if you are going with one set up.

I have conventional stuff, spinning reels, etc., and if I had to take one rod-reel combo out, it’d be this set-up on a reasonable budget.

that is a nice reel but I hate a spinning reel for snapper dropping

That was my point…nothing worse than handing your $1000 convention set up to an offshore novice and finding all the line jammed up on one side.