Help with first rod and reel

[MikeD]

I went through the same process a few years ago and the owner of my local tackle shop set me up with something that chefchris basically just mentioned. I bought the shimano spheros 6000 class reel and paired it with the Star Stellar lite rod 9 footer 2 piece. I loaded it with 40lb braid and was off and running. I have used it for tossing chunks of clam and macks with 2-3 oz sinkers, wood plugs in the 2-3oz range, sluggos with jigheads, bucktails, swimming minnows and even eels. I have since bought some set ups that are more specific to locations and what I'm using for lures/bait, but it was a great set up that let me fish a lot of different ways and figure out what I needed down the line.