New to surf fishing

[Tank]

Hi everyone I want to get into surf fishing this year and I recently purchased a 10'6 Tica and I am looking to purchase a reel for the rod.  I don't want to spend a bundle but want one that will work for bait as well as lures and could hold up with the saltwater .  Also if you could let me know what weight of mono to use (never used braided) as well as lures?  Thanks for your help.

[FishOn]

Welcome to the site!
What's the rating on the rod? I'm assuming something 2-6 ounces or so with that brand at that length. If so, a Penn Slammer 560 with 30lb berkeley fireline is a very user friendly combo imo. If not a slammer, you couldn't go wrong with any of the older US made Penn ss series or Z series. A drunk monkey could service all of these reels and get years of use. Fireline is a good compromise between mono and power pro type braid. Plus you'll get less wind knots with fireline than with braid and it will handle lures better than mono and bait equally well. Which area do you plan to frequent?

[Tacklebox Joe]

Tank, here is a good thread below to read. plus read the thread "reading the sand" by Paul. They will give you some great insight on getting started

http://njsaltwaterfisherman.com/forums/index.php?topic=20467.0

[ped579]

Welcome Aboard Tank,

You have found the right place for beginner information.  The guys are pretty free with their information and in fact most are willing to meet up with you on the sand and give personal seminars.

With that said will you be a walk on the beach fisherman or a drive on one.  If you fall into the category of the latter I am sure many of us will be glad to meet up with you on the beach.  If not we can meet up at ont of the B&T's and have you drive along with us.

Its not to hard to get into this great sport but, go slow in the beginning and work your way up.  I have a 10' dolphin surf (by Tica) outfit I linked with a Penn 560 Slammer and use 30# Power Pro.  I find that this works well for me over the years.

One of the reasons some people like other brands of braid is that the others are a bit more stiff and the line does not wrap around the struts of the guides where as the Power Pro is more supple and thus becomes more loose on the cast.  Either way you go it is going to have a learning curve to it.

One thing I would recommend is to make sure you have a long enough leader so you are not picking up the braid with your hands as it will slice right through your skin.

As far as lures there are tons of them out there and well everyone has their own preferences.  The learning curve on lure choices never ends.  Be prepared to spend the bulk of your money on them as like with any sport there are things you never have enough of.  At this point I am going to recommend getting use to 1 or 2 Bait ans Tackle shops in the area you are likely to fish.  Once you have spent some time and money you will find that they will be glad to share a lot of information that will get a fish into your box soon enough.

Bait is another thin that will change with the season and the tides and surf.  Stripers love clams and will be the bulk of your bait but from the surf you can catch a large variety of other fish so for them your choice will change.  Blues for instance love Bunker and will devourer a hook that is presented at the right time tipped with a chunk of nice smelly and oily bunker.

For early season catching especially if you fish the inlets white bucktails tipped with pink whatever is a good choice in the late winter early spring.

Well I hope this will help as you can see as it takes time to read short tidbits like this and it will take time to learn the ins and outs of the surf.  I like the hunt and have been doing it for over 50 years.  It never gets old except for the prices of stuff every year going up.

I hope this helps and if you would like to go out and hit the beach one day just drop me a PM and I will see if we can link up.

Happy Catching

Paul

PS where will you be fishing the bulk of your time?

[Fireman Ed]

  also welcome aboard.. Your location also will change what type of gear you want to use. Good luck 

[Tank]

Thanks for your responses guys I really appreciate your help.  I just went out today to /dicks sporting goods and purchased a couple of bombers a bucktail some hooks 4/0, 3/0 and 2/0.  I also got a tackle bag to store the lures. 

I plan to do both ride and walk but I am not sure of where you can take your truck on the beach.  My buddy has a house in Margate.  Are there any good spots around that area?  Whhat times of the day are good?

My Tica Rod is fast action 2-8 oz.

Thanks again

[ped579]

Which Dicks did you go to as one of our members is at the Manahawkin store and can help you out down there.

As far as riding the beach you will need passes for any one you can think of.  I an located in Toms Rive so my home beach is Island Beach State Park.  The price for the yearly beach buggie pass is $195.00 or $50.00 for a 3 day pass.  In every case you will have to carry specific equipment in the veh.  so make sure you check with what ever municipality your planning on riding their beach.

Happy Catching

Paul

[FishOn]

Thanks for your responses guys I really appreciate your help.  I just went out today to /dicks sporting goods and purchased a couple of bombers a bucktail some hooks 4/0, 3/0 and 2/0.  I also got a tackle bag to store the lures.  

I plan to do both ride and walk but I am not sure of where you can take your truck on the beach.  My buddy has a house in Margate.  Are there any good spots around that area?  Whhat times of the day are good?

My Tica Rod is fast action 2-8 oz.

Thanks again

IMO you will have a hard time throwing light lures with that rod. Bombers cast like potato chips even with a rod designed to throw them. Then again sometimes the fish are literally right at your feet. Two good choices though as far as lures go. as far as future lure purchases, get yourself some  2-4 oz pencil and bottle neck poppers in white or yellow, some heavier 1 to 3oz 'tins' like Hopkins, deadly dicks, kastmasters and finally get a couple packs of 6 inch rubber shads in white. I'd gladly meet up with you at a B&T and help you spend your money.  Rocky jetty beaches are often fished differently than shallow sandy beaches so keep that in mind.  Read through all the stickies and relevant threads to surf fishing and pack your mind with info.

[Tank]

I am from Delaware County Pa, so I go to the Dicks in Wilmington Delaware just across the Pa line. 

Being from Pa I will probably be hitting the beaches in Southern Jersey from Barnegate down to Cape May.  Are there any recommendatiions as far as productive fishing from any of the south jersey beaches? 

[Tacklebox Joe]

IMO you will have a hard time throwing light lures with that rod. Bombers cast like potato chips even with a rod designed to throw them. Then again sometimes the fish are literally right at your feet. Two good choices though as far as lures go. as far as future lure purchases, get yourself some  2-4 oz pencil and bottle neck poppers in white or yellow, some heavier 1 to 3oz 'tins' like Hopkins, deadly dicks, kastmasters and finally get a couple packs of 6 inch rubber shads in white. I'd gladly meet up with you at a B&T and help you spend your money.  Rocky jetty beaches are often fished differently than shallow sandy beaches so keep that in mind.  Read through all the stickies and relevant threads to surf fishing and pack your mind with info.

 ....to add to FishOn, IMO don't just go with one rod. the rod you have is a good chunking rod or heavier lure rod. Pick up another rod rated in the 1/2oz to 2oz range to throw the lighter stuff

[FishOn]

I am from Delaware County Pa, so I go to the Dicks in Wilmington Delaware just across the Pa line. 

Being from Pa I will probably be hitting the beaches in Southern Jersey from Barnegate down to Cape May.  Are there any recommendatiions as far as productive fishing from any of the south jersey beaches? 

I dont fish down that way too much, but I'm under the impression thats largely a bait game down there.  Find a good reputable local B&T in the area you plan to fish and they will help you fish the local area properly.  Fresh bait is key. Good clean fresh clams, sandworms/bloodworms, fresh bunker, and you might want to pick yourself up a crab rake for the summer time

And yeh keep that rod for bait or heavy lures and get an 8 or 9 foot rod rated up to 2 ounces max for the bombers and small jigs

[ped579]

 

All I can say is don't rule out Island Beach State Park.  I know many guys that travel to the park just to be able to drive and fish unobstructed for approx. 10 miles.

I live in Toms River and very rarely travel down that way any more. 

[Tank]

This is a stupid question but what do you use for a leader?  I have never used leaders other then steel leaders for bluefish, that were already attached to the hook.  How long should the leader be and should you use a barrel swivel to attach your line to the leader then a clip swivel to attach to the hook and/or lure? 

[Tacklebox Joe]

My .02, if you're using lures....use a fast clip. Makes it easier to change out plugs.

[Tank]

What is .o2?  sorry

[SurfJockey]

What is .o2?  sorry

Two cents.  Joe was giving you his opinion.

[Tank]

Thanks Jason

[ped579]

Many people use a leader at the end of their braid to make it safer to land a fish.  If you grab a braided line it is a good possibility to get cut.  A leader is usually made out of either monofilament material or fluorocarbon material.  Ise a barrel swivel at one end and a fast clip at the other.  As far as poundage line I use anywhere from 20 to 80 depends on what I am fishing for.

Hopw this helps.

Happy Catching

Paul

[Tank]

I have a Penn 650ss that I have used when offshore fishing.  Would this be ok with a 10'6 Tica? casting ability?  Also it hasn't been used in about a year and a half, what type of maintenance should I do to it?  What should i grease or spray with WD 40?

[Bucktail]

Tank,

That reel would be a fine match for that rod. 

As far as maintenance, skip the WD40.  In the long run it will do more harm than good.  Best thing you can do is open the side plate and, if it looks a bit dry, add some lube (such as Penn Blue Grease) to the gears and a couple of drops of oil to the bearings.

If you don't feel comfortable opening it up, then you can skip the first part and just add a drop of oil on the line roller, handle and bail arm.  Then take off the spool and put a couple of drops on the main shaft so it gets down under the rotor.
 
If it's in really bad shape, you may want to send it to Penn or bring it to your local B&T for a complete overhaul.

Good luck!