Walleye Rod

I am looking to get a new walleye rod but don’t really know what I am looking for. Any recommendations on a combo set up for $40 or cheaper?

Ugly Stick Dock Runner…but I’d probably replace the reel. Makes for a great pike rod too.

A lot of inexpensive combo’s but the reels will all be garbage. I’d head to Scheels/Reed’s/Joe’s/etc and get some in your hands. The cheap reels won’t perform when it’s really cold.

Abu Garcia has a couple decent combo’s in the $40-$50 range. I also agree the Ugly Stick rods are good for the price but the reels stink.

i like the jason mitchel dead meat rods. on sale right now at scheels also

Scheels doing their virtual event tonight and tomorrow. There may be deals. Good luck.

JM Dead Meat ($30-40) and a shimano sienna ($15-25) is one of my favorite all around combos! Quick tip, transitions to a good backbone quickly, the sienna is a quality little reel with good drag..and the price is right!

^^^^ This

For the budget you mentioned there is not really a good combo per say. Like other’s said the reels are going to be poor quality.

That’s good to know.

John Rasmussen wrote:

^^^^ This

For the budget you mentioned there is not really a good combo per say. Like other’s said the reels are going to be poor quality.

That’s good to know. Are there any combos of a slightly higher dollar mark that are ok? I have been looking at the 13Fishing stuff. Is their stuff any good?

I am a big fan of the snitch rod from 13 fishing. Only reason I like the JM Dead Meat more is the larger eyelets for ice issues when hole hopping. Their inline reels range in price and quality, but overall they make a good ice product (IMO).

I have not tried there ice rods, but have a panfish long rod I like. It usually goes like this the combo with a good rod, will either have a cheap reel on it or be priced at more than double your budget you gave. Maybe someone else will have a combo they have found that will do the trick, but I would find a rod I like, maybe spend a little more on that and go with a decent reel and the Shimano mentioned will work. I will say I found a Celcius combo that was ok I guess. I never use it anymore honestly now that I have a fishing rod addiction and own to many, I mostly use one of the three custom’s I have.

Agree with others and the Dead Meat Jason Mitchell rods. They are great budget rods.

I’m thinking about getting one of the dead meat rods. trying to decide between the 32 and 36 inch length. The 36 would be nice for hole hopping but would it be too long in a flip over?

Mr. Pike 81 wrote:

I’m thinking about getting one of the dead meat rods. trying to decide between the 32 and 36 inch length. The 36 would be nice for hole hopping but would it be too long in a flip over?

Depends on the flip over. Full size two man, probably not. But if you spend more time in the shack than hole hopping you might think about sticking with the 32.

Sylvanboat wrote:

Scheels doing their virtual event tonight and tomorrow. There may be deals. Good luck.

X2 for this. Also worth mentioning that Scheels will do a price match if you buy an item and it goes on sale within two weeks of your purchase. I bought the Otter Vortex Lodge for $350 a couple of weeks ago and saw it on sale for $300. I contacted customer service and got a $50 refund.

I fish with fishing rod snobs, if it ain’t custom, it ain’t sh….crap. That said, I found a deal on Craigslist for 4 Jason Mitchell long Walleye rods and 2 Dead Meat rods, that I could not turn down, basically all for the price of one, and all new in the wrapper. One of those deals you wonder where they came from, but he ensured me they were a prize winning and he was not a fisherman.

Anyways, I compared the long rods to the customs I have, and some elite brand name rods I have, and they surprised me at how nice they were, and the feel they had. My son claimed 2 of the long rods for himself, he liked them so much.

Have not gotten out with the Dead Meat rods yet, in a week or two I will, but if they are the same as the long rods, I will be very happy.

I ran all Jason Mitchell rods before my buddy started building customs.
The dead meat rods are solid. If you can find the older elite series species specific rods under the Jason Mitchell Elite line, those are great rods too. Tough to find anything other than the 24″ in stock anywhere though.

https://vandamwarehouse.com/jason-mitchell-elite-combo-by-clam/?sku=180CL9738&gclid=CjwKCAiAiML-BRAAEiwAuWVggnQiMNajNQWK3QufeNx_3ahTQIktdp9fKtNX4-acI7JwMHeic_1v2hoCWCQQAvD_BwE

I like the 13 Combos. May be a bit more than $40, but close especially if you find them on sale!

mahtofire14 wrote:

Agree with others and the Dead Meat Jason Mitchell rods. They are great budget rods.

Do you recommend a good reel that won’t break the bank?