berganm

I was just wandering if using a manual reel is a better advantage on piers than regular reels? if so why?

el pescador

Unless you grew up using one, I would not recommend a manual reel. They are harder to find and your options are limited. Stick with what you are used to, but if you are just getting into it, I'd get a setup to match your targeted species and learn from the guys out there on the pier. There are always a few guys who don't "know everything" but are willing to teach what they know. My rec. for an "all-around" setup is a 4000 size reel (I like shimano, especially the stradic--check ebay) with a 7-8 foot rod for 8-17 pound test and spool it with 10 or 15 lb power pro. You may lose a big one but you won't be yawning the whole time you're reeling in the smaller stuff. I've caught kings to 25 lbs on that rig but not at the pier, but you'll be able to handle most anything else short of cobia with it. There will be a lot of opinions on this, by people with more experience than me, but I hope that helps.

yucarenow

i would not use a 4000 on the pier for kings or cobia....try an 8000 or a penn 704z if you don't want a manual



just mho

el pescador

I guess I should clarify--I mostly fish for Pompano, Sheepshead, Redfish, and Spanish mackerel at the pier, and I use a 2500 size reel. To be fair, no one reel is going to cover everything, and it really is an impossible compromise because of the range of sizes of fish you may encounter. Two reels are definitely better than one. I should have assumed that the manual bail question referred to targeting larger species, but I just put two and two together. I would certainly agree with the above poster about the reel size for Kings and cobia--I used a Penn 7500ss before they tore our pier down.