Is this a good or bad idea?
 

I've been living in Louisiana for a few months now, and would like to get into some inshore saltwater fishing. My plan is to buy a Shakespeare Ugly Stik Tiger Lite and pair it up with a Pflueger President XT. According to Pflueger's website, the President XT can be used in fresh and saltwater, so my intention is to use this setup for inshore species and also big bass in freshwater. I will probably only fish saltwater once or twice a month.

Good or bad idea?

Personally I would spend a little more and get shimano products. quality gear.

I'm not sure where you are located or your price range but my personal preference is Shimano products are hard to beat.

If you are in the Sulphur/Lake Charles area, try a local tackle shop like The Tackle Box in Sulphur or Lake Charles Tackle in Lake Charles.

These type of places can give you one on one customer service to equip you with the best you can get for your price range.

IMO, that Tiger rod is too heavy, get a nice medium action and you can handle everything inshore.

You'll replace that reel more times in a year and spend more on replacement. If you want to stay cheap with warranties, the h2o express reel at academy holds up well for the low price and has a lifetime warranty, paired with a shimano clarus that also has lifetime warranty. Lookin at ~150.

sammich

the action on that rod is probably a little heavy to fish for trout with, although it would be fine if you are targeting redfish, drum, or sheephead using dead or cut bait.

Okay, so the reel is out. Thanks, mcjaredsandwich.

As for fish species...I'm not quite sure what I should expect to catch. I have no experience with saltwater. I'll be using shrimp and small pinfish in the Lake Charles area. What will that get me?

Well, according to Bass Pro Shop, the Ugly Stik I'm interested in is a medium, mriguy. It's this one here: http://www.basspro.com/Shakespeare-U...ct/71840/52742

What kind of spinning reels are available at Lake Charles Tackle and The Tackle Box, guys?

They have many differnet reels for sale. My suggestion to you would be to go into one of those two stores and tell them your budget, experience level, and how and where you plan to fish. I guarantee you will leave with a quality setup AND some fishing tips

I'm about an hour away from Lake Charles in Leesville. I'm willing to save up if I have to, but, for now, let's say $200 is my limit.

I'll do this when I get the chance. Thanks!

It would be well worth your time and money to go by Tackle Box in Sulphur and meet OB, he can point you in the right direction on rods, reels, baits and I am sure he will even point you in the direction of a few fish without selling you a load of crap that you won't use...... he can set you up good for fresh and saltwater

Thanks. I've heard of Lake Charles Tackle, but not The Tackle Box. Looking forward to checking both out.

Hey, guys,

What kind of fish species can you catch in the Lake Charles area? Redfish, black drum, specks, what else have you caught? Only thing I've caught so far is pinfish and that was on dilly worms (my old man refused to buy some dang shrimp).

Croaker, flounder, nasty cats, caught a hybrid striper at i-10 beach last fall...

Those are the more desirable species. Of course, you'll also catch croaker, hardhead catfish, and gafftopsail catfish. There are a lot of gafftops as you go closer toward the jetties. If you fish live bait, you'll probably get the occasional oyster toadfish, stingray, and shark.

I'm a fan of the gafftopsail catfish.

Alright, thanks.

Just looked at pictures of oyster toadfish, and those things are hideous. How would you even go about unhooking those things?

It's been a while since I've caught one, but I think we used to cut the line and retie a new hook, same as with stingrays. We prefer not to mess with stuff that can hurt you. Now I'm sure some folks will chime in and say, "No need to waste a good hook, all you do is ..." But why risk it? Cutting the line also gives most fish a bigger chance of survival than extended handling to remove a hook (not that I care too much about stingray and oyster fish survival).

If you catch croaker big enuff to clean they are good fried