Reccomend a rod (without micro guides)

[matmew]

Hi all,

New to squid fishing and initially purchased a Quickfire/Sienna combo from Anaconda to get me started. Heaps of fun, caught some squid, but now looking to upgrade. Bought a few new rods to try out, both with micro guides, and am having a lot of trouble with the action compared to the quickfire rod. I really enjoy using the quickfire rod actually, the flex, the casting action, and... the lack of micro guides.

Can anyone reccomend a rod that's a step up from the Shimano Quickfire, with similar guides and action but a little more premium?

Thanks for reading. Looking to pair with a Stradic/Sol/Vanford, 15/20lb braid.

[Tackleberry]

Why such heavy braid ?

[Sebb]

Hi all,

New to squid fishing and initially purchased a Quickfire/Sienna combo from Anaconda to get me started. Heaps of fun, caught some squid, but now looking to upgrade. Bought a few new rods to try out, both with micro guides, and am having a lot of trouble with the action compared to the quickfire rod. I really enjoy using the quickfire rod actually, the flex, the casting action, and... the lack of micro guides.

Can anyone reccomend a rod that's a step up from the Shimano Quickfire, with similar guides and action but a little more premium?

Thanks for reading. Looking to pair with a Stradic/Sol/Vanford, 15/20lb braid.

The micro guides on squid rods supposedly help with the casting and control. I can't think of squid rod that has no micro guides.
What sort of trouble you get from the micro guides?

You can always buy a soft plastic / lure spin rod and look for regular action rod. Most of spin rods nowadays are fast or very fast action (which you can still use but not as nice as using a squid rod). I know the blue Daiwa Infeet is a regular action rod.

[Seniorfisho]

First thing I would do is go down to 10lb braid or less if you are chasing squid. I am not a big believer in squid rods as you can catch them on a broomstick. Just a buy a good quality spin rod. Veritas has a new range and would be an upgrade on what you have

[matmew]

Why such heavy braid ?

I'm new to the game, I figure something a bit heavier will be more forgiving when getting snagged and the lighter line seems to be harder to untangle and more susceptible to knots.

[yepi'mon]

Why such heavy braid ?

I'm new to the game, I figure something a bit heavier will be more forgiving when getting snagged and the lighter line seems to be harder to untangle and more susceptible to knots.

10lbs braid would be fine - just up your leader to 15-16lbs if you are fishing a weedier spot.

If you are fishing from a boat then there is no real need for a squid rod other than they offer some finesse on things like feel, action and loading of rod when you catch a squid .... but if you are land based then a good 8ft+ squid rod will help you get a bit more distance in your cast and work the jig accordingly. The micro guides help with this (somewhat).

Anyone who tell's you that you can catch a squid on anything is right. I can also take the bus to work but it's nicer to drive.

[Andrews]

Welcome brother!

I think for a first combo, that sienna/quickfire combo is dynamite. That was my first combo and loved it, but I agree with an upgrade if you're getting serious!

I think there are a few good tips here, micro guides take a little getting used too, but they do help with casting distance, control and most importantly, sensitivity! Those squid can be picky, so being able to feel more really plays to your advantage!
I'll vouch for a squid rod, but only if you're serious about using that rod for just squid and if you're land-based, otherwise any good soft plastic/soft bait rod will get you further and be more versatile.

Dedicated purpose squid rods have an advantage, often they're softer tipped, longer and overall give you a more sensitive action and the ability to feel weight (weed, squid, etc). This greatly plays into your advantage when you're land-based for distance and when the action of the squid jig is of most importance.

LENGTH: Most people will 100% sell you towards, the 8"6 or 8"3 models and honestly, there really isn't much of a difference. Land-based yeah sometimes you want to cast far - BUT, the further your cast the less sensitivity you will have towards the jig. The second biggest factor to consider is that the jig sized recommendation changes from 7"9 to say, 8"6. Example is the 20 Emeraldas (my rod in 7"9), recommended size is #1.5-3.5, the 8"6 is #3.0-4.5. This means, the longer the rod, the less sensitive it will be.

BRAID: I agree with the advice here, stepping down your braid to say 10LB is will play to your advantage. You will be able to cast further and have greater sensitivity. If you're worried about snags, bulk up with the flurocarbon, run say 80cm+ of 15lb fluro. If you're going to break your line, the knot will blow out before the fluro or braid.

This all depends on what you're looking for, and if you already have other rods. Happy to chat more, I may be semi-inactive here as I move house over the next fortnight, and the best way to reach is on Instagram @FishingAndrew - 100% land-based squid fisho - moving to fish in the next month haha!

[cobby]

First, on the braid, ignore breaking strains, period. For comparison sake always use diameter as you'll find 15lb Powerpro is .19mm thick, a still cheap yet decent braid like Majorcraft Dangan x4 (available at Anaconda. I've had it on a lure outfit since November 2019 and the only wind knot issues I've ever had are casting 2-3gm lures into 15 knot+ winds in the dead of night) is .13mm thick with a breaking strain of 18lb. So you can actually have a high breaking strain mainline without causing larger than necessary joining knots.

Not knowing what specific rods you've tried or what sizing is on the quickfire, one to hunt down is a previous model Daiwa TD Black 702L Squirt. Pretty sure that's got a size 5 tip which is no where near as small as micro guides

[Sebb]

First, on the braid, ignore breaking strains, period. For comparison sake always use diameter as you'll find 15lb Powerpro is .19mm thick, a still cheap yet decent braid like Majorcraft Dangan x4 (available at Anaconda. I've had it on a lure outfit since November 2019 and the only wind knot issues I've ever had are casting 2-3gm lures into 15 knot+ winds in the dead of night) is .13mm thick with a breaking strain of 18lb. So you can actually have a high breaking strain mainline without causing larger than necessary joining knots.

This is true and good point.
That PE rating (diameter/thickness) used to confuse me with the breaking strain. Now I check them before purchasing any braid lines.

[matmew]

Hi everyone. Thank you for all the information, really great. I think I've found my problem, and it's not so much the micro guides as the rod I purchased (BB806ML) is ML action, it's pretty rigid, making casting feel weird.