What is the first bass rod I should buy?

Why This Rod

A 7'0" medium fast spinning rod fishes all six rigs below well enough that none of them needs its own setup. That list covers most of what catches bass from spring through fall, so one rod, one reel and one spool of braid gets you a long way into the sport.

If rod specs are new to you: power is how much force it takes to bend the rod, and action is where it bends. A fast action bends near the tip, a slow one further down the blank. Medium power is the middle of the power scale, and a fast action keeps the tip sensitive for light rigs. That pairing is what you want while you are still figuring out what you like to fish.

These rigs all put a small jig on light line, cast it a long way, and work it slowly near the bottom. A fast tip loads up well on those casts, and small hooks stay pinned instead of tearing free. A medium blank still has enough backbone to set the hook and turn a good fish, and the extra length gets you more casting distance.

Recommended Rigs

The drop shot is the one rig people argue rods over: some like a softer tip for it, some a stiffer one. On a first rod, fish it on the medium and move on.

When you outgrow this setup, the next three rods to buy are baitcasters, and the four rod lineup covers those.

Recommended Line

Spool up 15 pound braid in a color you can see, green or yellow, then tie on 10 to 15 feet of 8 pound fluorocarbon leader with an FG knot. Braid has no stretch, so you feel soft pickups, and it casts far because it is about as thin as 4 pound mono.

The fish only ever sees the leader, so the braid color makes no difference to it. The color is there to help you fish by watching the line instead of the rod tip: it falls slack when the bait touches bottom and slides sideways when a fish picks it up. Around docks and grass, step the leader up to 10 or 12 pound. If you are not ready to learn the FG knot yet, straight 8 pound fluorocarbon works fine. Tie on and go fish.

Recommended Gear

Rod

KastKing Perigee II, 7′0″ medium fast

Step up

St. Croix Bass X, 7′0″ medium fast or Dobyns Fury 703SF

Reel

Shimano Sedona 2500

Line

Sufix 832 braid, 15 lb, neon lime and 8 lb fluorocarbon leader

All three rods are the same spec, so pick by budget. Any brand's version of that spec will do.

On the reel, the drag is what counts. Any 2000 to 3000 size reel is fine if it pays out line smoothly when you pull it off by hand, and the Sedona does.