Shakespeare Medium Action Ugly Stik Bigwater Combo

Long casts - good drag - can handle a large fish. I caught a 30+ pound Black Tip shark off the beach with this set up and this rig handled the fish easily. I landed the fish in less than 2 minutes. I spooled my reel with 20 pound braid, but wish I used 30 pound braid instead due to the size of the set up and solid drag this reel has. I ordered the 8 foot combo and 60 size reel. This set up is great for long casts into the surf - maybe fishing off the bottom from a boat. This would also serve as a good set up for pier fishing as well. It is too heavy in the hand for constantly throwing and retrieving a lure. Tip - If you want the super long casts you need to use a heavy "wind-on leader".

The Ugly Stik rod is great. I went pier fishing the past weekend and had a blast with it. However, the reel that came with it had a fault; it does not have the anti-reverse on & off switch. Amazon shipped out a new one to replace, perhaps a defective, reel; but, the replacement was the same. I used the rod with another reel, I already had, instead.Both reels had paint chips flaked off the handle, but the packaging wasn't so great to begin with.Overall, the rod is worth it. The reel wans't so great, I'm not used to using a reel without the anti-reverse on & off switch.

Came with the button of the handle cracked on the rubber bumper. Not a big deal just put some waterproof silicone in the crack.The reel is basically a freebee so no complaints. If it was more expensive I would say the real is pretty so so. A decent reel this size is probably in the range of $80-$90.

Had a HUGE problem with USPS. They actually lied and said they attempted to deliver when I sat by the door until 7 pm just so I wouldn't miss them. Pretty much ruined the father's day fishing trip I had planned for my fiance. However, Amazon did an EXCELLENT job at accommodating me! Just fantastic. So things didn't go as planned for Father's day BUT, the pole came today and my Fiance is ready to leave out the door to go fishing right away. He's really excited and LOVES his new fishing pole. It's also really nice looking if I do say so myself. Thanks Amazon.

Going to do some surf fishing and didn't want to break the bank and for $60 bucks it does just what I needed where other combos were upwards of $300 where I was able to set up the whole outfit for $129 to include pyramid sinkers, steel coated leaders, 30 lb spider wire line & sinker slides.The reel is so so and like others have mentioned it was an add on to make the combo if the reel lasts thru 118 days of surf fishing it will be worth the money spent for some great fishing on South Padre Island, TX

Good quality but waaaaay too heavy for my liking. This rod is like the freshwater equivalent of your typical saltwater rod in the sense that its heavy, has a big reel and is a bit awkward. Definitely not for your casual freshwater fisherman unless you're shooting for some big pikes and muskies

Awesome feel, excellent rod and reel weight. 6 his jus perfect for long casts and can used for both artificial and fresh bait.The only disappointment was that the reel came with virtually no grease in it so I had to pop it open and grease it up. After that, no problems at all!

Great pole as always. You can't go wrong with a Ugly Stick !!! Reel not so much !!!! Extremely cheap made !!! I will upgrade!!!