# Surf rod recommendations?



## mattfox (Jun 6, 2014)

I only surf fish about once a year but last week we were in alabama and the people using long surf rods were catching more fish than us. I spoke to 1 of them and he was using 10-11' rods. Does anyone have a recommendation on a brand than won't break the bank? I don't want to spend a lot since I wont use it much.


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## fish4food (Feb 11, 2011)

Look up SharkChum posts. All the surf info you could ever ask for! 

Heâ€™s the Chuck Norris of surf fishing...


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## buton (May 23, 2016)

Ugly sticks wont break the bank.. you can even find them at walmart around houston area for 50 to 80


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## hystyk1921 (Sep 19, 2015)

mattfox said:


> I only surf fish about once a year but last week we were in alabama and the people using long surf rods were catching more fish than us. I spoke to 1 of them and he was using 10-11' rods. Does anyone have a recommendation on a brand than won't break the bank? I don't want to spend a lot since I wont use it much.


tsunami trophy II has fuji k guides and better hardware then an ugly stick. around $100. what was he catching? i would look into a rod that can throw 3-6oz or more for bait fishing.


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## mattfox (Jun 6, 2014)

Thanks for the input. They were all bait fishing. I saw them catch a little of everything, pompano, whiting, black drum, small sharks, stingrays,trash fish. We basically caught the same fish as them but it just seemed that they were catching more. The second bar was really far out this year. They were able to cast into the deeper part of the gut than we were and that seemed to be where the majority of the fish were.


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## gotmuddy (Dec 19, 2013)

I have been very happy with okuma longitude rods. I have both spin and casting. Both are great.


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## Smitty (Jul 1, 2005)

Penn Prevail or Penn Battalion (a bit more $). I also have the Okuma mentioned above. All good.


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## willygee (Jun 21, 2013)

Are you fishing around Galveston/SS area or are you speaking of Bama surf? Bama surf seems a bit different than here so that would potentially change your tactics, target species and setup. Check YouTube for a guy called Bama beach bum if you continue to fish there and setups for targeted species. Fishing surf isn't just abt rod length or far you can get it out - heck sometimes fish are right in the wade gut depending on conditions


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## mattfox (Jun 6, 2014)

Yes I actually fished with Bama Beach Bum 2 weeks ago. I got his input on rods and I was just wondering brands people like. His rods are a little more expensive than I want but he told me there are lots of brands and price points. He uses his all the time, it’s hard to justify an expensive rod for me since I will only use it about 1 week a year if I’m lucky


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## gotmuddy (Dec 19, 2013)

mattfox said:


> Yes I actually fished with Bama Beach Bum 2 weeks ago. I got his input on rods and I was just wondering brands people like. His rods are a little more expensive than I want but he told me there are lots of brands and price points. He uses his all the time, itâ€™s hard to justify an expensive rod for me since I will only use it about 1 week a year if Iâ€™m lucky


How was your experience? His videos make him seem like a sub-par guide but I was thinking of fishing with him regardless this sept.


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## mattfox (Jun 6, 2014)

He was fun to fish with. He told us up front that fishing has been slow and let us decide. We chose to still fish and we caught sting rays, Lady fish. Gaftops, and a little shark. No fish to take home but he warned us. He was a blast to hangout with


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## willygee (Jun 21, 2013)

mattfox said:


> Yes I actually fished with Bama Beach Bum 2 weeks ago. I got his input on rods and I was just wondering brands people like. His rods are a little more expensive than I want but he told me there are lots of brands and price points. He uses his all the time, it's hard to justify an expensive rod for me since I will only use it about 1 week a year if I'm lucky


Ha. That's pretty funny. That area he fishes is interesting, definitely seems to lay flat more often than here, definitely more clear, more defined rips, seems like the first gut is fairly deep right off the shore.

Anyway, for my surf setup I use daiwa beefstick and model higher (called sealine, I think). Both are 10' budget type rods, sealine seems better quality. Again, worthwhile to research a little on surf fishing techniques, setups, targets, etc to make the most out of your yearly trip. Second, what someone said before - lookup sharkchum, one of the best surf fishermen and gave info freely (ran into him at sargent one time and gave me and a buddy great info and even made us a couple of surf rigs and just gave it to us). Wish he still posted here!


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## bigfost (Oct 11, 2004)

No doubt Sharkchum would have strong opinions and lots of advice...even for an area he had never fished. LOL


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## Killerbee (May 10, 2018)

Okuma longitude are a great inexpensive option. 8 have 4 12 footers


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## LittleDrummerBoy (Sep 3, 2020)




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