I have been surf fishing for several years now even though that I live over 100 miles from the beach. I don't cast artificials like some people do I only soak live and dead baits. I don't care if you have conventional or spinning reels  would like to see what everyone is surf casting with.
From left to right:
Penn 525 Mag on OBX 10.5' rod, Avet SX MC on an Oceanmaster lite 12' rod, Daiwa Saltist 30H on 13' Breakaway HDX, Daiwa Saltiga 40 on an Oceanmaster 12' heavy heaver, and a Daiwa Sealine-X 50HV on an Oceanmaster heavy heaver. The 525 Mag is the longest casting reel of the bunch, closely followed by the Avet and Saltist. The Saltiga and Sealine-X are my larger casting shark reels.

I know nothing about surf fishing....

What are those blue and flesh colored tubes coming off the back of the reels?


I was swimming in the ocean down on Daytona Beach while on vacation down there...walk by a guy that was surf fishing and i ask him 'What ya after?'  He goes...sharks....

I said sweet, but was thinking, great...i'm gonna be eaten.

It is latex surgical tubing. I flip it over the spool when casting and put my thumb over it. It keeps the spool from slipping under my thumb when casting large payloads like 8oz and a mullet. It really helps to keep your thumb from getting burned.


I wouldn't worry about the sharks. Just don't go swimming with a mullet in your pocket.      

That makes sense.

Fresh water fishing, we don't throw anything 8oz...

I wasn't too worried about the sharks, i was having lots of fun watching the Rays swim around though.

What's the tubing attached to?  I'm glad you posted this because I've been wanting a conventional setup for surf fishing for quite a while.  I've never used a real without levelwind before for casting.  Do you find it annoying at all to keep the line evenly distributed when you're reeling it in?  Also, why are levelwinds not on reels?  Complexity?  Fouling from salt?  Thanks.

The latex tubing is taped to the bottom part of the reel seat with clear electrical tape. Since I have been using conventional reels without a levelwind for so long, it comes as second nature to evenly guide the line on the reel. If I were casting plugs to stripers all day long I would use a spinning reel or a smaller levelwind reel but my fishing entails soaking bait on the bottom. Surfcasting conventional reels do not use levelwinds because it cuts down on casting distance and it does not easily allow a shockleader knot to pass through it. The knot gets hung up in it and either breaks the levelwind or the shockleader breaks.

Nice rigs!

Im a surf guy too.  Have a few spinning rods and a casting set up.  No pics though, Ill have to get some up but here's what I use.

8' Lamiglass Inshore Classic casting rod with a Shimano Calcutta 400B.  I use it for tossing metals off the jetties or similar situations.

10' St Croix Mojo Surf spinning rod(currently being repaired at the local B&T since I slipped and fell on the jetty last week chipping the epoxy off the ferrule) with a Penn Slammer 460 that I use to toss plugs to stripers and blues.

11' Tsunami with a Shimano Baitrunner 8000D that I use to soak bait ot toss heavy plugs.

9' Tsunami with another Penn 460 that I use as a back up or flinging plugs aound the jetties.



Im definitely looking to get a 12' casting rig to toss 8-10 oz bait for the fall runs of stripers here.

I too live quite a few miles away from the beach. Unfortunatly I don't have an pics.
However, I love fishing the surf and use a few different set ups, but the go to, and always the go to rig is a Van Staal VS250 on a throw around Penn Power Stick 9ft.
Greatest most worry free spinning reel you'll ever use.

Just got that same Saltist and put it on a 10' Offshore Angler rod.  Can't wait to try it this weekend.

I might have to try to tube thing. I run big Spinners on 11 footers and power pro in the 30 lb class Can whip it out there about 100 + yards. Alot of the long casters run those 525 mags, Penn has a new International out that has some potentail for long casting. Nice rigs