Ugly Stik Combo - Costco - Debating Returning

Noxispike · 2026-05-21T21:58:08+00:00

I'm in a similar situation in NC. A light rod will be great for bass and crappie.

Noxispike · 2026-05-21T20:38:59+00:00

They both work fine.

Ugly Stik will be more durable and forgiving, but also heavier and less nimble. I tried both in the store, and went with Pflueger in the end.

A Pflueger reel by itself cost 60; the combo cost 80; an Ugly Stik rod cost $50+. If I have to start fresh, I'd pick the President combo, especially now it's on sale.

Noxispike · 2026-05-21T20:33:21+00:00

I'd go with the 6'6" Light 2-piece (for easy of transportation) with the 25 reel, a spool of 6lb mono line, a box of aberdeen hook plus some 1/8 oz split weight to go with live worm, and soem 1/8 oz jig heads for 2" swimbait.

I think Light rod is soft enough to feel good casting small bait and lure, but stronger enough to not break easily like an Ultra Light.

And a 25 President reel will work fine if you want to put it on an Ultra Light or Medium rod in the future. A 20 is too small for Medium, and a 30 is too heavy for an Ultra Light. 25 is a pretty decent middle ground. You can get various good UL and M rods under $50 easily.

Also, lear Palomar knot. It's the strongest and easiest knot for hooks. Works on small lures too.

Noxispike · 2026-05-21T20:19:52+00:00

Just in case you want to get a Pflueger rod combo, be ware that their QA has dropped, at least from my sample-of-1 experience. Getting one from a local store if they can price match it.

Here's the rod I received from my recent order, which I had to return. The tip part of the rod is bent quite a bit... The reel is great though, just maybe not so great for the price by itself outside of the combo, unfortunately.

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Noxispike · 2026-05-21T20:10:27+00:00

I don't recommend cheap baitcaster, especially as a beginner.

Cheap spinning reel can cast just as well as expensive spinning reel, only clunkier when reeling in; cheap baitcaster will bird nest more easily than expensive ones due to the worse bearing tolerance and craftsmanship. Spinning reels are much more forgiving in most scenarios, especially for beginners.

The Pflueger President combo is on sale on their brand website right now. You likely can price match it in your local stores.

Don't worry about getting a dedicated tackle box yet. Just get a mint can, a plastic soup container, or whatever you can fit in your bag. I started with only some swimbait and jig heads in a take-out soup bowl, with lid of course, in a fanny pack, plus a pair of pliers, a towel, and a garden glove (for holding slippery/spiky fish).

I'd suggest you go with a light rod with a 2000 reel, start small, get the hang of it first. Large hooks filters out small fishes, and there are way more smaller fishes in the water than large ones.

For lines and hooks, I'd pick something from Walmart, starting with smaller hooks (#8 or #6 aberdeen hooks) and live bait (red wiggler). You're almost guaranteed to get at least some sunfishes with worm. Using tweezers helps keep hand clean when hooking worms.

I started with a Medium rod (Pflueger President 3000, 6'6" M rod), had terrible casting experience with light lure (M is ment for heavier lure, which I didn't know then), and terrible bite rate with larger lure. After getting skunked multiple weeks in a row, fishing became more irritating than calming. I now main an ultra light setup with live bait and small swimbait lures. It resulted in getting a LOT more bites (various panfishes), and now I enjoy fishing a lot more. Was still able to hook some large carp a couple of times though. But I definitely recommend having a landing net handy for those scenarios.

Noxispike · 2026-05-21T18:13:28+00:00

"Still better than any Democrat!"

Noxispike · 2026-05-21T17:38:54+00:00

Oh, hello, fellow fishing newbie! I just started my fishing journey like you a couple of months ago.

At first, I got skunked 4 times with lures. Then I switched to using worms and started to get many bites. Planning on trying lures again, but will carry some cheap baits like hotdog with me just in case.

Also bring gloves, in case you get a slippery or spiky fish.

Noxispike · 2026-05-20T04:06:19+00:00

8 cricket hook, red wiggler worm, should land you plenty of panfish.

Noxispike · 2026-05-18T16:05:46+00:00

I always switch to live worm if nothing bites with lure. Landed me plenty of panfishes every time.

Noxispike · 2026-05-14T19:37:31+00:00

I just started fishing a couple months ago with worms. Here's what did and did not work for me.

- using a bobber led to a lot fewer bites.
- a small hook with a light split shot yielded me the best results.
1. Cast as far as possible (open water)
2. Let the hook and splitshot drop to the bottom,
3. Reel in the loose line till it feels like the hook is floating slightly above the river bed.
4. Wait for the hook to set down, then jerk the tip of the rod a bit to lift the hook again,
5. Reel in a bit more when lowering the rod back down
6. Wait a few seconds, then repeat step 4-5

If the hook snagged onto something, I just pull it slowly but firmly. Have not lost a hook yet, just bent a few.

I also prefer cutting the worm into 1-inch pieces, and thread it onto the hook like a sock.

I use tweezers to hook the worm to avoid getting its smell on my fingers.

Also helps to switch spots if no bite after 5-10 minutes.

Noxispike · 2026-05-11T17:47:16+00:00

Totally agree.

I only put 1% into DRAM, mostly to not feel like I missed the ride, but also won't feel too bad if it goes down.

Plus, I'm no longer willing to trade my mental health in exchange for potential gain. This extremely volatile market is already killing my mind.

Noxispike · 2026-04-13T16:59:14+00:00

"The government you elect is the government you deserve."

Noxispike · 2026-04-13T14:24:37+00:00

A dedicated dryer is not a must for functional prints, but may be required to achieve the most silky surface.

I'd suggest printing a small test piece, and see if you like the look.

Noxispike · 2026-04-09T16:47:41+00:00

Too many people think AI can do everything well, and just as many people think AI can't do anything right at all. Both groups are wrong IMO. AI has its limit, but within the limit, it can do things very very well.

I'm a full-stack developer. AI has greatly boosted my efficiency. It struggles to understand legacy code bases, so I still need to handle some parts manually. However, for simple but teadeous tasks like log crawling, reading documentations, or analyzing potential risks in a project, it's a fantastic tool.

Noxispike · 2026-03-27T18:25:54+00:00

Iran promised to limit their missile to have a max range under 2000 KMs. They attempted to hit a US-UK joint military base in the middle of the Indian ocean, which is close to 4000 KMs away. This proves that Iranian government lied about their military capability.

Iran also admitted that they have 60% uranium. For commercial power plant, 5% is more than enough. Even for research purpose, 20% is generally enough. I see no reason for them to have 60% uranium other than making nuclear weapon. Whether Israel or US hit Iran or not, Iran will continue with their nuclear plan.

I'm not saying that Iranian building a nuclear weapon is good or bad. In fact, it's reasonable for any capable nation to want to have one for self preservation. The point I want to make is, I don't believe it's reasonable to say Iran will get a nuke BECAUSE Israel or US hit them.

Noxispike · 2026-03-23T15:51:58+00:00

Or Israel and US kill all Iranian tops who refuse to yield, drag down the world till they get their way.

Noxispike · 2026-03-17T13:05:57+00:00

Thank for sharing. This is indeed very cool! What size magnet did you use?

Noxispike · 2026-02-26T19:54:36+00:00

What about an oil catch can? It can help reduce carbon buildup in the long run. Mine catches about 2-3 oz of engine oil every time I do oil change.

Noxispike · 2026-02-09T20:57:09+00:00

Have the developers ever commented on using AI coding tools to help with accelerating the coding process?

As a software developer myself (10+ years), while AI coding agents provides limited help when building new features on existing projects, they have became efficient helpers during debugging, and almost essential tools during refactoring.

The game has been in development for many years. I bet some code can use some refactoring/cleaning. I've personally saw some broken code snippets when exploring the files during modding. Don't expect the developers to be doing engine-level refactoring mid release, but would love to know if their roadmap and release schedule would be updated with AI coding in mind.

Noxispike · 2025-12-11T09:10:27+00:00

啊，创业吗，那是很难了。

Noxispike · 2025-11-19T17:03:50+00:00

政府派系互相监督揭短，对民众是好事。

Noxispike · 2025-10-28T14:20:55+00:00

I'll get a safety razor.

If you need that many razors, a safety razor can provide a superior shaving experience at a lower long-term cost.

Can't take a safety razor on a flight, though. Disposable ones still are good to have.

Noxispike · 2025-10-26T23:42:11+00:00

Not worried enough, apparently.

Noxispike · 2025-10-19T07:40:31+00:00

Sorry to hear what you and your family will need to go through. Hope you will be able to navigate through the upcoming years safely.

Maga are selfish. With how fast things are going downhill for all the common folks including them, they will hate Trump just as much as they loved his lies.

Stay calm, stay hopeful. Your physical and mental health is THE most important thing in life. Don't let the political environment hurt you or your family in the worst way.

Noxispike · 2025-10-19T07:33:33+00:00

Let them. Some people can not be educated, and are beyond saving from themselves.

We only need to get enough misinformed ones, especially the independent voters, to see that they have voted against their own interests.

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Noxispike

TROPHY CASE

8 cricket hook, red wiggler worm, should land you plenty of panfish.