I recently got some good advice on selection of a spinning rod and reel and actually caught my first striper on it this weekend at the canal near the railroad bridge. I am also interested in getting a bait casting set up with braided line for the canal as well as some surf fishing. I know there are many choices out there but I would be interested in a few opinions. My price range is around $250.00 MAX. What is meant by backing and how much do you need? If anyone hears of a rod and reel found on 495 please let me know, it flew out of my truck last sunday.

here is a good start . there is a sabre 1089 for sale in the clasified section of this site.

Sabre 1089 Custom Conventional $120 :

Rod is in very good shape. Some normal marking on blank but absolutely fine structuraly. Red
and gray wraps, cork tape butt and fore grips. The only weird thing with it is that it does not
have a Fuji reel seat. It has Fuji BNLG guides which is important but the trigger seat is not a
Fuji... It's a nice rod which I only used last year that caught a bunch of fish over 20 pounds up
to the mid thirties. My primary rod for eeling and heavier plugging with the backbone for
working tight, rocky areas. It was built at Gil's in Wakefield and is the last custom rod I have
that I haven't built myself... Otherwise, it is in great shape. I picked up a 1089 Batson (same
blank, different finish) to put together this month because I want all of my rods to be "My
Rods" ... These usually go $180-220 New

It's a sweet rod Fishdoc - I'm gonna miss her... Matched up with a 6500TCST or Big Game with Smoothie Washers and you've got a versatile stick for the Breachways, Eels in boulder fields, mid size plugs and a decent rod for the Canal (not a heavy stick by canal standards)... And it's proven as it has a lot of fish over twenty pounds and a half dozen over 30... The others can recommend the braids as that thread will transpire every week or so. Last one ended yesterday I think :P

The rod is going fishing with me this weekend too, probably her final outing :'(

John R (05-30-2001 19:58):
It's a sweet rod Fishdoc - I'm gonna miss her... Matched up with a 6500TCST or Big Game with Smoothie Washers and you've got a versatile stick for the Breachways, Eels in boulder fields, mid size plugs and a decent rod for the Canal (not a heavy stick by canal standards)... And it's proven as it has a lot of fish over twenty pounds and a half dozen over 30... The others can recommend the braids as that thread will transpire every week or so. Last one ended yesterday I think :P

The rod is going fishing with me this weekend too, probably her final outing :'(

Who's rod is it? Will you take less then $120.00, lets say $100. If so let me know. Can this rod take braided line?