# Fishing pole for a 5 year old



## nuckinfutzracing

Hey guys, this is probably and odd request, but my nephew is turning 5 soon and I want to get him a fishing pole for his birthday. I don't want to buy him one of the plastic Disney version but something that he can learn with and use for a few years. But I also don't want to get him anything that is going to be too complicated and make him frustrated with fishing all together. So, I thought I'd reach out to the nearest panel of experts that I have access to. I was doing some reading online and saw that Zebco has a starter kit for kids so I was gonna look at that. I greatly appreciate any input from any of you who might have dealt with this situation already. 

Take care
Mickey


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## Captain Ahab

Skip the Zebco starter kit - at 5 he will be able to learn a spinning rod and reel just fine. Plus, he will have loads more fun


I suggest looking on ebay (etc.) for a used reel and possibly rod. If not, get a used reel and then get a $30.00 graphite rod (6') from your local tackle shop. You can get him a complete decent set up for less then $50.00 


Here is a reel that will be fine:

https://cgi.ebay.com/New-Shimano-IX...916?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item53e5e48b5c

And a rod:

https://cgi.ebay.com/Daiwa-Sweepfir...240?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item1c188bb0d0


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## BaitCaster

Back when I got my boy started (he was 5 as well) I got him a Zebco package that included a rod and two spincast reels (a 22 and a 33) from Cabelas. I don't think they still sell that combo, but they do have a number of other spincast combos - https://www.cabelas.com/catalog/browse/fishing-rod-reel-combos-spincast-combos/_/N-1100312/Ns-CATEGORY_SEQ_104595480?WTz_l=SBC%3Bcat104793480%3Bcat104762880

FYI, my boy graduated to using a baitcast reel pretty quickly (he insisted on having a reel like his dad's!).


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## bill

started my grandson at 6 with an underlever spincast. he is going to a spinning reel next.


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## bulldog

I was started on a tree limb with some line and a rusty hook but I would recommend a Zebco 33. They last forever.


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## Outdoorsman

Start with the Zebco..as said, they last forever... I still have mine from many many years ago...lol

If it seems too simple then he can upgrade to something else... never hurts to have 2 poles...even if your 5.... still fish with one (bobber) and cast with the other...

Outdoorsman


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## Brine

I started both of my kids casting spinning reels in the backyard at that age. IMO, it will help if the spinning reel has a trigger. Get him a micro setup so that everything is smaller.


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## redbug

zebco used to last forever... now they are almost worthless.
I would look into a spinning reel and at 5 you don't want anything to long.
If you can find an ice fishing set up you will be good to go.


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## KMixson

redbug said:


> zebco used to last forever... now they are almost worthless.



I heard the same thing. The newer ones are made to be disposable. Kind of like a one time use deal.


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## bearsphan3.14

I would probably look at an ultra light spinning combo. The rod will be smaller and easier to handle for a 5 year old.


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## PartsMan

I have noticed some "youth" combos around.
4-5" poles with decent reels on them.
I plan on getting one for my 4 year old this spring.

Casting with those little 2 foot poles is like throwing it by hand.


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## fender66

I've bought 3 Zebco 33 combos over the past year and a half. Between the three of them, I have about an hour of fishing before all three were TOAST. I've emailed Zebco and NEVER even got so much as a response. I will NEVER buy another one unless it's an old one in good shape. The old ones lasted....the new ones aren't worth the receipt that you get with it! I did buy a Pflueger Cetina that I like a lot. It's a spin caster and it even came with a second spool for line. A little more expensive, but worth not having to deal with more crap like Zebco makes now.


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## Outdoorsman

Wow..how times have changed....

Does anybody remember "back in the day" the old "Cane Poles"...long (sometimes one peice) with 1 "eye" on the end to tie the "string" too and then you just wrapped the string around the end of the pole. Did they have those in the south or were they just a northern thing...??????

Just remembered them while re-reading this thread.....

I still have a couple of them

Outdoorsman


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## fender66

My dad had about 4 or 5 of those that I remember using with a bobber from the bank. Wish I still had all that gear. He had a couple old baitcasters too.


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## KMixson

Outdoorsman said:


> Wow..how times have changed....
> 
> Does anybody remember "back in the day" the old "Cane Poles"...long (sometimes one peice) with 1 "eye" on the end to tie the "string" too and then you just wrapped the string around the end of the pole. Did they have those in the south or were they just a northern thing...??????
> 
> Just remembered them while re-reading this thread.....
> 
> I still have a couple of them
> 
> Outdoorsman



I remember cane poles without the eye on the end. You tied the line to the tip and then ran the line down the pole tying a series of half hitches so that if your tip broke you would not lose the fish.


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## bearsphan3.14

Here is a 4-6 spinning UL.
https://www.basspro.com/Bass-Pro-Shops-Wally-Marshall-Signature-Series-Spinning-Rod-and-Reel-Combo/product/10202312/-1525692


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## Captain Ahab

bearsphan3.14 said:


> Here is a 4-6 spinning UL.
> https://www.basspro.com/Bass-Pro-Shops-Wally-Marshall-Signature-Series-Spinning-Rod-and-Reel-Combo/product/10202312/-1525692




That is perfect!


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## bobberboy

bearsphan3.14 said:


> I would probably look at an ultra light spinning combo. The rod will be smaller and easier to handle for a 5 year old.



I agree and the other advantage is that with an ultralight, every fish feels like a whopper. I think that set-up would make it more fun and fun equals a life-long interest for him (unlike the guitar my son _had_ to have when he was 12).


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## basstender10.6

I know that shimano makes a spinning reel that is only $10 and you can get it a walmart and sports authority. Or you can get the spinning combo for only $25. it is a really nice set up for a beginner.


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## Travis91

I have had good luck with the "ugly cast" spincasting reels from walmart(i think there around 13 dollars) and just a shakespere excursion rod.. i have a set up similar for line and bobber fishing.


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## ray55classic

You can get him an el cheapo rod and reel that he'll either break or outgrow within a year or so {with you buying another rod and reel}, or bite the bullet and spend a little and get him something worth having to start his fishing career with, it's your choice. Check ebay I've gotten some nice new reels cheap with shipping.On the rods watch out or you'll often spend more on shipping than your saving For a good quality, bullet proof ,easy to learn and use combo try a 8 or 10 lb diawa silvercast spincaster with a light action ugly stick , he'll still be using it ten years from now .

P.S. I thought about what I said and I realized I 've been spoiling the heck out of my grandkids


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## screwballl

I have kids in the range (ages 8 and 3). With my oldest, we just kept her on the disney rods until she was almost 7. Even if they do stay interested and calm enough for fishing, the rods will end up in the water, so the disney ones that float are your best bet until they get a little older. I will most likely start my youngest next summer on the same basic disney rods until she is 6 or 7.


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## bailey86

what about one of these rods ???? https://www.daiwa.com/Rod/detail.aspx?id=213&parentid=226


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## Oldgeek

I'd go with Disney setup. No sense putting much money in one for 20 minutes of fishing a trip. My daughters both fished with Snoopy rod and reels! =D>


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## jkbirocz

I started my niece with a spongebob combo when she was 3, by the time she was 5 she needed an upgrade. I got her a pflueger spincast combo; its pink, 5 ft long and an ultra light. She always wants to go fishing but within the first 15 mins without fast and furious action, she starts wading in. The rod and reel work great, I always seem end up casting tiny jigs and just hook fish and hand her the rod. While the pflueger is definately a nicer setup, for starters there's nothing wrong with a mickey pole, or in her case, spongebob.


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## Bugpac

I just got both my Daughters one of these, they were 25.00. They had the disney stuff, it didnt out last the yard in 2 days.


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## flatboat

i used an old ice rig bout 2 ft long with a zebco . face it the kid just wants to do something with a 2 minute time limit , do a little boat riding do a little fishing . if they like it , one day a couple years late,r you can fish more than you ride.
ed


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## summers

I bought this for my 3 year old after the disney rod crapped out, its a two part rod and a reel that can be separated from the rod. Not bad for $12


https://www.basspro.com/Bass-Pro-Sh...-Rod-and-Reel-Combo/product/10207013/-1576280


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## GreenRiver

The Zebco 11 ultralight combo is a great choice for small children. The reel is the prefect scale for small hands and the rod makes a large bluegill feel like a smallmouth. I have one of my own that I keep in the boat. If the bass aren't biting I use it to throw a Beetle Spin for some guaranteed sunfish action.


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## begs

At 5 my son started with a 5'6" graphite pole, with a spincast closed face reel, after about 3 months of teaching him to cast, he wanted to do what dad did, so I handed him my spinning reel, showed him how to flip bail hold line twice to cast 1st time he did it was bad by about the 5th cast you would never know he didnt know how to cast a spinning reel, now he is 9 he wants to try a baitcaster, and the sad thing is I cant even cast a baitcaster, good luck on your decision, and anything you choose will be a good one...


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## AroostookAngler

My son is seven years old and just bought a Wright & McGill Skeet Reese pole yesterday from Dicks Sporting Goods for $25.00. It came with a rod and reel, a hat, DVD and practice casting weight. He loves it, he says it looks like a reel fishing pole, and we are off to catch his fist fish on this pole today.


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## bearsphan3.14

AroostookAngler said:


> My son is seven years old and just bought a Wright & McGill Skeet Reese pole yesterday from Dicks Sporting Goods for $25.00. It came with a rod and reel, a hat, DVD and practice casting weight. He loves it, he says it looks like a reel fishing pole, and we are off to catch his fist fish on this pole today.


That is a pretty cool looking setup. You'll have to report on how well it works and how it stands up to abuse.


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## Jasonalex84

Well my first pole was a cane pole too. My parents still have pictures of me running up the bank with my pole over my shoulder dragging catfish to shore cause I was only 3 and didnt have the strength to pick those 3-6 lb fish outta the water. It was a blast and some of the funnest fishing I ever remember doing. Then when I was 9 my dad and I made home made cane poles from cane we had found down by the creek by our house. Those were/are the toughest cane poles I've ever used and I still break them out for panfish on occassion. I even caught a 23lb channel cat hybrid on it about a year ago. THAT WAS A FIGHT!!! I ended up in worse shape than the pole. New line and it was good to go. My next fishing set up was a Zebco 33 on a 5ft fiberglass rod. I have no idea who made the rod but it was perfect for me from ages 5-10. It was easier to fish along creek banks with because it was so short and I wasnt having to fight overhanging branches just to cast. I've passed it on to my son now and between the two of us we've caught enough fish to feed a large army for a year or two. I agree with some of the other guys though. The older Zebco 33's are the way to go. I bought a new one for a girl I was dating a couple years ago and it was junk. But if you can find an older one at a flea market or yard sale you just cant beat them.,


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## MOE

When my son was 2, I bought him an ul spinning combo at walmart for about 15 bucks (shakespeare I think). Two years later he seen a transformer rod that he just had to have. I tried to explain to him that it was a piece of junk and that he wouldn't like it. Of course he insisted on it and I don't mind letting him learn a few leasons the hard way (seems like thats the only way he learns anything #-o ). He used it a couple times and it mysteriously disappeared. When I asked about it, he said he didn't know where it was. About six months later I asked about it again. He slipped up and told me he hid it. He is five now and is still using that same spinning reel, but every once in a while he will use the 2' transformer one. But after a few minutes, he remembers why he doesn't like it and puts it up.


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## autinboat

I have two boys...12 and 15 now....but years ago I bought them their first "real" rods/reels (Disney, Nickelodeon, cartoon themes didn't qualify). I bought two 5'6" Shakespeare Ugly Stiks and and I put an old Zebco 33 on one and an old Zebco 404 on the other. Those Ugly Stiks are pretty tough and you can't beat the "old" Zebcos. They are still using them now. I think the rods cost about $25 per at Bass Pro.


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## jacobk

I'd go with an ugly stick spinning set up, just because he's young and accidents do happen.


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## BOB350RX

basstender10.6 said:


> I know that shimano makes a spinning reel that is only $10 and you can get it a walmart and sports authority. Or you can get the spinning combo for only $25. it is a really nice set up for a beginner.


i just bought my nephew this set up, i wouldnt spend alot of money of his first pole the get dropped, stepped on, used as snake charmers  , swords all the such, i grew up with all younger cousins and such and was the only kid that realy fished so i got to take them out when thet got older wow talk about learning paitence, but good for you!


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## ITGuy

I would have to agree with an ultralight set up. I have always had a couple since I was a kid. My nephew uses one of mine after his spider man rod and reel died a quick death. It's short enough and it looks like a real fishing set up. I use an ultra light a lot of times with him so he see's I use the same thing. 

I have several ultra lights. I have a Browning rod and spinning reel I bought at Bass Pro (my favorite), had 3-Shakespeare Ugly stick spinning combos from Walmart, Shakespeare Micro cast Spincast combo from Walmart, and one other that I don't recall the brand of rod or reel. 

The Shakespeare spinning combos are ok but I have had one of the reels break after heavy use. Catching a 5# catfish and lots of use and abuse. Still lasted 4 years though and the rod is still going strong.


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## flintcreek

I agree with several posters the Disney setup is a good deal and probably good enough for a start. Remember, this rod and reel may get planted some where in the lake and pond, never to be seen again. However I do look for a reel that is not made on the rod, that way if the reel messes up you still have a useable rod or vise versa. I bought my daughter the Zebco 22 outfit and her cousin borrowed it at the pond last weekend and lost the top part of the rod, so at least we still have a good reel. I had a old rod left in the garage from her older brothers so we put the 2 together this morning and went out for a little while before it started raining. No fish caught, but she still had a good time, went by Academy and bought some corks and hooks and she got a new pair of sun glasses....along with eating a candy bar and drinking a coke while she was fishing....Oh and at 7 she flipped over stepping stones and looked through leaves and found the worms this morning. The rod and reel really don't matter it is the time.  

Flintcreek


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