with most people using braid nowadays line rating doesnt help much though a few manufacturers a finially catching on. basically the lure rating on the rod is what you can cast with it. as an example my cod bait rod is rated 1-8 oz and i routinely use a 16 oz sinker on it while bait fishing and in a pinch can jig w/ it up to 12 oz. for stripers all you need are a couple of basic setups to get you going. get a rod rated up to 4 or 6 oz and you can use it to troll, liveline, jig and chunk with. i've got a penn rod rated 1-4 oz matched up w/ a penn320gt2 that is a basic all around setup i use for guests and a back up rod. for casting buy a nice lite rod rated for the size lures you like to throw. hope it helps. OR buy a specific setup for every way you want to target every species - which is way more fun
