“Whether you use fiberglass or graphite is up to you,” he says. “Fiberglass rods, such as Shakespeare’s Ugly Stik surf rods, work well, and glass is good for the beginner because it’s less expensive and more forgiving than graphite. It’s like crawling before you walk, progressing to graphite as you gain experience, but expensive graphite rods aren’t necessary.
“After you’ve decided on price, length, and action, you need to find a rod that fits you,” Edwards says. “Hold the rod with your right hand on the reel seat and place the butt of the rod under your right arm. If the end of the rod doesn’t at least reach your armpit it doesn’t fit, so keep looking. There are plenty of great rod makers—Penn, Breakaway, Shakespeare, All Star, Okuma, and Daiwa—just to name a few, so there’s a rod to fit you out there.”
Reels: “I like a reel with a free-spool feature when catfishing. For years this meant using only the Shimano Baitrunner. But now, Penn, Daiwa, and Okuma all make good free-spool reels. I’ve had to modify some. A design flaw in the 6500 Baitrunner, for example, made it difficult to get good distance because the bail would trip and cause a break-off. The solution was to cut the bail off and make it a manual pickup. For spinning, the larger 50 and 60 sizes with aluminum spools are best for distance casting,” Edwards suggests. For those who don’t need a free-spool feature, most all-purpose saltwater spinning reels are fine. Some good ones are several models in Penn’s lineup and those in Shakespeare’s Tidewater SS and Prius Bigwater series.
Line: “Which line to use is always a big debate,” Edwards notes. “Some fishermen want no stretch and others want abrasion-resistance. Rarely do you need anything over 20-pound test, except for your leader, which I’ll get into later. Because line diameter of the same pound test varies by label, I’ve gone to selecting line within certain diameter ranges; 15 pound is around .31 mm to .33 mm, and 20-pound is about .36 mm to .39 mm.
“My rule is don’t skimp on the only connection between you and the fish. I like Yo-Zuri Hybrid, and lately I’ve been using Sufix Performance Braid in 20-pound test. I like the greater sensitivity compared to mono, and I’m getting increased distance as well.
“The procedure I use to fill a reel is to first polish the spool with a car wax containing Teflon,” Edwards says. “Then, using a leather glove under heavy tension, pack on as much line as you can. Once the line is flush with the spool, I slowly add more until it almost touches the inside of the rotor. This is what I call my insurance—extra line that can mean a few more feet on the tournament field or a few more yards on the beach.
“To finish, I tie on a shock leader to the mainline. The shock leader gives you more line for extra distance, and because it’s heavier, it increases abrasion-resistance. I suggest 10 pounds of line-test for every 1 ounce of sinker, so if you’re casting 5 ounces, use a 50-pound shock leader. For most of my fishing, I use between 40- and 80-pound-test leader. Using a shock-leader knot, tie in a leader long enough to run from the butt of the rod to the tip and then down to the reel, with at least 5 wraps around the spool. That usually gives you enough shock leader to use all day,” Edwards says.
