Help me pick a rod!

I’m looking to get a couple of rods. Most of my kayak fishing takes place in Cook Inlet or Resurrection Bay, mostly looking for bottom fish but also trolling or mooching for salmon. I’m not looking to get too specialized for any one thing, I like to keep it pretty simple and just have a couple of rods that I always take with me to cover most any situation. If I lose a fish or break a rod because I’ve exceeded the limits of the tackle, I’ll survive.

I currently have 2 rods I take out in the saltwater with me for salmon and bottomfish. 1 is a 15 year old Ugly Stik Lite 8.5’ Heavy Action casting rod with a Tekota 600 on it. The other is a Lamiglas MBS 8.5’ 12-25lb spinning rod with a Penn Conquer. I really like the Lamiglas and Conquer combination, it has performed well for me. For that matter the Ugly Stik/Tekota has been good too, though I’m not a big fan of the rod. Both predate me fishing out of a kayak, they were just the rods I had when I started and I’ve used them for the last 5 years.

I have family coming up this summer to do some kayak fishing with me, and I’d like to get a couple of rods to cover them while they are here and also be a bit more suited to fishing out of the kayak. Something a bit stiffer and shorter would be nice in some situations. I’ve been out looking a little bit, and the following are what have caught my eye. Ideally I would like to get two rod/reel setups, if the budget allows.

Shimano Trevala TVSC63MH - $170 - I really like the feel and weight of this rod. My preference for bottom fish is jigging, and it seems like this would be a nice rod for that purpose. I know there are many of you who fish Trevalas a lot, how have they handled heavier jigs like Williamson Speed jigs in the 10 oz range?

Tsunami Classic Series 7.5’ casting: 20-50lb line, 2-12 oz — $90 - This rod felt like it had quite a bit of power and a fairly sensitive tip, maybe a bit stiffer than the Trevala. Liked the feel in my hand, but I know nothing about them. Anyone have experience?

Penn Warfare 20 Star Drag Combo Rod/Reel - $80 - Anyone spent any time with these? Mostly interested in the reel, the rod would probably be a backup/guest rod.

Ugly Stik GX2 10-25lb Medium Heavy - $40 - Saw this pop up in the thread about jigging rods and took a look at one the other day. Seemed decent, especially for the price. Regardless of what I decide to get, I’ll probably pick one of these up just to see how it fishes.


I’d like to get one good quality conventional reel, probably a Truth SG Lefty retrieve. At this point, I’m probably leaning towards the Penn Warfare Combo and then either the Trevala or the Tsunami, depending on the feedback I get. I’m also open to other suggestions that fall into the (admittedly wide) price range above. Unlikely I’ll go any more expensive than the Trevala. And I’m kicking myself right now because back in February I saw this exact model Trevala on sale for $130! I appreciate any thoughts you all might have. Thanks for reading my novella.

I really like the trevala rods.  I have a MH and a H.  I have broken tips and real seats on them, but I abuse my gear. I think you will be near maxed out with 10oz jigging but i use 10 to 20 oz weights while trolling the MH trevala and it works fine.  My personal preference is the heavy but I also tend to use heavier line (50 to 65 main, 50 to 60 pound leader for salmon, 200 lbs leader for halibut).  I also tend to land fish a lot faster than many people might think is prudent.

I have been using seeker rods, but they are awful pricey. 

I also bought a gx2 about the weight you mentioned, I'd have to look.  Love stiffer sticks for kayak fishing so the one time I used it, it worked pretty well. 

Prior to kayak fishing I used Loomis and Lamiglass rods almost exclusively.  They are all broken now.  They don't seem to like being high sticked nor do they like pulling heavy divers.  Snapped them all on the first few times I used them after decades of service without issue from powerboats or shore.  Once again, I tend to abuse my gear so you may have better results.  No doubt they are great rods, but they don't work well when broken  lol. 

I posted this video earlier but as an example.  I am using the trevala MH with 10 oz of weight and my daughter is using the heavy trevala with I think 12oz of weight.

Thanks for the feedback Rudy. I'm pretty sure I'm going to get a Trevala at this point, I'm leaning towards the MH. When I'm using speed jigs or diamond jigs I try and stay under 7oz if I can, it should be able to handle that. Paired with an SG it should be a pretty good performer. I picked up the Penn Warfare rod/reel combo today, it will mostly see use as a backup and guest rod, unless I find that I unexpectedly like it a lot. The rod feels a bit more noodly than I like, but its hard to tell until something is pulling on the other end. Guess I'll have to get out on the water now to see how it fishes.