whats a good cheep rod/reel setup for offshore sturgeon fishing i like to have a good hard fight so im thinking like 8 ft pole? or is that too small? and i never used baitcast reel so whats a goot durable entry level one that i can learn with that wont break the bank since ill probably{1}**** it up real good

Hello mmorter, I use a 6 foot ugly stik tiger made buy shakespeare with a bass pro shops cat maxx cm80 reel for sturgeon pole all togather it cost about $90.00 dollars. I live in Ca. also welcome to the club and the fourms.. I sturgeon fish about 10 days a yr out of my boat. but i'm going out monday on charter sturgeon boat with a bounch of my friends..JOHN

If your looking for something that will stand up to a Sturgeon and probably most other saltwater/freshwater monsters, go with an Ugly Stik combo. It won't break the bank and it will last you a lifetime.

I agree with the UglyStick but would pony up a bit more for a linecounter reel if you are not going to be casting. The linecounter set up will do double duty for salmon.

Hey, mmorter. I'm with the fellows above: you're not going to beat an Ugly Stik for toughness and brute strength. But (like my fellow Illinois Boy Pegsguy suggests) don't go super cheap on the reel. Fishing reels are like anything else you buy: you get what you pay for. Part with a few more sheckels and get something that can handle the severe load you will hopefully be putting on it. For baitcasters, that CattMaxx John suggests is probably a good choice, and like Pegsguy says, line counters are good for quite a few fishing tactics in both salt and freshwater. If you don't want a baitcaster, you'll probably have to go up a few more bucks to get a spinning reel that'll handle a sturgeon. Those fish have shoulders, man! Penn and Shimano both have a lot of beefy spinning reels that'd be up for the task, but you'll have to squeeze a little more juice out of that checking account or Visa. And if you get any huge ones, post some "Polaroid Proof" so we can ogle it and envy you. Tight lines.

make sure your setup is fit for braid to, and heavy braid at that.