Choosing what size spinning reel to buy in West Palm Beach largely depends on the species of fish you desire to catch. Determining what sized line you will be fishing with will help tell you what sized reel is right for you. For Offshore fishing, an 8000-1000 sized spinning reel will get the job done for jigging and casting to pelagic species like mahi, blackfin tuna, wahoo and kingfish. If you’re into light tackle, a 4000-5000 sized spinning reel is great for pitching to mahi on the weedlines. If you are bottom fishing, an 8000 sized spinning reel will be a perfect match for you. For some of the smaller inshore species like pompano, Spanish mackerel and snapper, a light 3000 sized spinning reel works best. When chasing after the snook and tarpon in West Palm Beach, you will need to begin beefing up your tackle. For snook, you want a reel that holds around 300 yards of 30-pound braided line and about 20 pounds of drag. Anything 6000 sized and up will work. For Tarpon, your spinning reel should hold around 500 yards of 30-pound braid. An 8000-14000 sized reel will give you a good advantage. 15-20# braid -3000-5000 20-40#-braid 5000-8000 40-65#-8000-14000 80# braid 10000+

You want to use a spinning reel for its ease of use and versatility. The two best reels for beach fishing are the Shimano Twin Power and Shimano Saragosa SW.

Use a conventional reel for bottom fishing. Most anglers prefer a star drag reel for precise on the fly drag adjustments. Many of these reels are offered in both high and low gear ratios. A higher gear ratio will give you more line per crank, but less torque, leverage and stopping power and is good for high speed jigging and pulling your catch away from all the sharks. A lower gear ratio gives you considerably less line retrieve per crank, but much more torque, leverage and turning power. This is best for catching really big fish or slow pitch jigging. Bottom fishing specific reels have a “spool lock” on the side instead of a clicker which allows you to break off instantly and easily instead of tightening the drag or thumbing the spool to break off your snag. It is extremely useful!

Shimano has the best reels on the market because of their cutting edge technologies. The best fishing reels are: Shimano Stella Spinning Reel Shimano Tiagra Conventional Reel Shimano Stradic Inshore Spinning Reel Shimano Beastmaster 9000a Electric Reel

The right reel to use for kite fishing is a lever drag conventional reel with a high gear ratio. The lever drag allows you to adjust the drag quickly, which is essential when setting hook or dropping back to a fish on a kite. You need a fast reel that brings in a lot of line per crank because you will need to pick up a lot of slack line quick to come tight on the bite. The Shimano Talica BFC is made especially for this purpose and is the best reel to use for kite fishing in West Palm Beach. Another great reel to use for kite fishing is the Shimano Speedmaster II because they are extremely fast and lightweight. A light weight, compact reel is important when it comes to kite fishing because you want your entire setup to be lightweight and easy to maneuver around the boat.

There are a few applications where electrics are used in West Palm Beach. The first and most common is kite fishing. You will need an electric reel to raise and lower your kite which allows you to present live baits right on the surface in the most subtle way possible. Another application you will need an electric reel for is deep dropping. There are countless delicious species of fish to catch on the bottom reefs and wrecks. Many of which are found in over 1000 feet of water. Electric reels are used to quickly and conveniently drop and retrieve your heavy bottom fishing or swordfish weights/rigs in deep water. The final application electric reels are used for in West Palm Beach is high speed wahoo trolling, this is not necessary, or very common, but it is the preferred method for some of the serious wahoo fishermen because of how easily the fish are pulled in at such high speed and heavy drag.

Expensive reels are 100% worth the money. It is hard to truly appreciate an expensive reel until you catch your first fish with it. Expensive reels will pay for themselves as they will last 5-10 years if properly maintained.

The best way to match a rod and reel in West Palm Beach is to first select the reel you will want to use. Once you have that, there will be suggested line strength to use with that reel. Next you wil want to look at rods that have that have the same line strength range.