Panfish setup for a beginner

[ajandrs]

Hey all, first post as a newcomer to the fishing world. This past year myself and my kindergartener got involved in the boy scouts and one of the events was a fishing night and I’m not sure who enjoyed it more, myself or my boy. Needless to say after that night I went over to my dad’s house and dusted off my old spin cast rod and another one of my dad’s that’s probably older than me. My old rod is a MH action and probably 5’6” if I had to guess and after using it for bluegills for a couple weeks with not great results, I also wanted to try to get some bass on it, and I’ve gotten a few so far which has just hooked me in further … pun intended.



So it’s time to take the plunge into better gear, afterall better gear should offer somewhat better results and in turn, more fun for me and my boys. After talking with a couple friends they told me to jump straight into a baitcaster for a bass setup so after a lot of research I settled on the Lews TP-1 rod at 7’ with a MH / Fast action. For the reel I got the Kastking Assassin and so far they seem like an awesome pair … though I’ve only been casting in the back yard to practice but it seems pretty straightforward and I’ve only had one bad birds nest so next chance I get I’m taking it to the water.



So all that to finally get to my question – what would be a good setup for pan fishing. Like I said when I take my boys out we’re only trying to get bluegill at a local pond, but crappie is high on my list as well and will be heading over to the IL river this coming weekend with a friend to go after them. In my excitement last night I hastily ordered a rod and reel for a spinning setup and now I’m second guessing my choices … well for the rod at least.



I liked the Lews rod so much with the Winn grips I ordered another Lews TP-1 rod, this time a spinning rod at 6’7” with a ML / fast action. After doing more research it sounds like a Light action, if not even an Ultra Light rod is preferred by many. For the reel I ordered the Kastking Summer 2000 and Kastkings 4# mono green line. Will this setup work well for bluegill and crappie or would I be better off going with a lighter action rod. For bluegill I’m always fishing with a bobber and earth / wax worm, for crappie I’ll probably be using live minnows and maybe some small jigs here and there.



Part of me thinks I’m being a little stupid considering this rod / reel combo was about $125 for a newbie when any old spinning combo at walmart for $25 would be just as good. Am I putting too much thought and money into this for a beginner?

[Quillback]

Talk to your friend and ask him what he'll be using. Lots of ways to fish for crappie, and lots of potential setups.

Hard to explain all the potential ways to fish for crappie and panfish, but there are a bunch of videos out there. Do a search on Wally Marshall crappie videos as a place to start. Ol' Wally is always selling, so keep that in mind, but still some good stuff to watch.