Inshore Saltwater Fishing Equipment Cheat Sheet [Rods, Reels, Lines, & Lures]
- By: Luke Simonds
- on June 18, 2021
This inshore saltwater fishing equipment cheat sheet post has been put together to help you see that you don’t have to have a huge assortment of lures to be able to consistently catch fish.
Buying fishing equipment can be a daunting task given the endless amount of products that are being pitched to us fishermen as being a “must-have” item.
But after years of testing out a multitude of products, here’s what I have found to get the best results most consistently for catching redfish, seatrout, snook, and flounder.
Below are videos for the key items that are essential for inshore fishing:
- Rods
- Reels
- Lines
- Lures by Essential Type
- Small Paddletail
- Big Paddletail
- Jerk Shad
- Big Shrimp
- Small Shrimp
- Weedless Spoon
- Topwater
Best Inshore Fishing Rods
Here’s a short list of my favorites so far after testing many rods from various manufacturers at the $100 and $200 price points:
[$100 PP] TFO Professional – 7’6″ M
[$200+ PP] Best Overall] SS Custom from Mud Hole – 7’6″ M
Best Inshore Fishing Reels
This video shows the best reels we’ve found so far for overall value while being under $100.
For those looking for premium performance in a fishing reel, here’s a video highlighting a new reel that has proven to have an extremely good price to performance metric… we describe it as the best value premium reel.
Best Inshore Fishing Lines
Best Inshore Lures
The lures featured below represent the best of the best we’ve tested so far for catching redfish, seatrout, snook, flounder, and a variety of other species throughout all seasons.
Scroll down below to see the listing of lures as well as the ideal times to use them.
Note: Please be sure to go through the Mini-Courses for each lure so you can become an expert in generating strikes with them even if the fish aren’t actively feeding.
Ultimate Lure Arsenal Overview Video
Small Paddletail: Slam Shady 2.0
This is the best all-purpose paddletail on the market given that it’s color works great in all water colors throughout all seasons, and it’s profile enables it to work great when rigged on a jig head for deep water as well as on a weighted hook for effectively covering the shallows. Also, this lure’s body style even allows it to look great even without it’s tail so you can pull the tail off if the baitfish are very small and or if you need to decrease the amount of vibration the lure is putting off.
Given how well this lure works along with how versatile it is, it’s a must-have lure for inshore fishermen.
Get All Lures In The Cheat Sheet [10% Savings]
Big Paddletail: Slam Shady Bomber
When fishing in areas with larger baitfish 4+ inches, it’s smart to have a larger paddletail ready for action. Also, these larger paddletails can be extremely effective when fishing at night and/or in windy conditions because they cast farther and give off more vibration in the water enabling you to cover more water more easily while enabling the fish to more easily find your lure.
When fishing these conditions, the Slam Shady Bomber will typically outperform the Slam Shady 2.0, and they can be rigged on the weighted hooks and jig heads shown below to cover all depth ranges.
Get All Lures In The Cheat Sheet [10% Savings]
Jerk Shad: Alabama Leprechaun
When fishing in calm, clear, and shallow water, the best lure is often going to be a soft plastic jerk shad rigged on a weighted hook because it has great action in the water and very little vibration to make sure that it won’t spook off finicky fish.
These lures mimic both scared shrimp as well as small baitfish that live on the bottom, so the darker green color with some gold flash seems to be the color that works most often.
Get All Lures In The Cheat Sheet [10% Savings]
Shrimp Profile [Big]: Power Prawn USA
There are some situations when shrimp are running and the inshore fish get totally fixated on them, so it’s important to have some ready for action. The Power Prawn USA lure has risen to the top of the list for a big shrimp lure because it is super easy to rig and use while having an awesome strike-generating glide in the water.
This lure is 4.3 inches long, and it casts farther and skips better than any other shrimp lure I have tested while having great strike-generating action in the water. Best of all, it works great in all depth ranges since it’s super easy to rig on a wide variety of weighted hooks and jig heads.
All you’ll need are some packs of these shrimp lures along with whichever sized jig heads or weedless hook rigs based on the depth zones that you’ll be fishing and you’ll be catching a ton of quality fish when shrimp are the target prey.
Get All Lures In The Cheat Sheet [10% Savings]
Shrimp Profile (Small): Power Prawn USA Junior
These shrimp are my #1 choice of all for fishing docks because it’ll catch a huge variety of fish (big and small) with very little effort… just a basic bouncing motion along the bottom will catch a ton of fish.
Just like the larger Power Prawn USA, this Junior edition can be rigged on weedless hooks too making them a great choice for fishing heavy structure for redfish, snook, seatrout, tarpon, and a wide variety of saltwater species.
Get All Lures In The Cheat Sheet [10% Savings]
Weedless Spoon: Johnson Silver Minnow
Although soft plastic lures are amazingly good at catching redfish, snook, seatrout, & flounder, there are some situations where they simply can’t be used so it’s important to be ready for making a change when needed. A weedless spoon is typically the best choice if you’re fishing in shallow areas with structure and you can’t fish a soft plastic due to pufferfish biting off the tails. Also, these lures are great when fishing on windy days because they slice through the wind.
The best value weedless spoon we’ve found so far is the Johnson Silver Minnow.
Get All Lures In The Cheat Sheet [10% Savings]
Topwater Plug: Moonwalker
When fishing at night and during the twilight hours (as the sun is rising or setting) during the Spring, Summer, and Fall seasons, the topwater bite can be extremely good… plus it’s a ton of fun.
The Moonwalker has been the best overall performing topwater plug that I’ve use so far… we tested a bunch of topwater plugs, and pulled in the pros from the best performers and put them into this one lure.
Get All Lures In The Cheat Sheet [10% Savings]
Weighted Hooks (for soft plastics)
The use of weighted hooks for fishing the shallows will skyrocket results compared to using traditional worm hooks because they help make sure that the lure won’t helicopter in the water and the added weight will increase casting distance.
The hooks we have liked best for many years are the TwistLock hooks made by Owner because they are their patented TwistLock keeper while having a variety of hook and weight sizes.
We created Hoss Helix hooks more recently in order to better fit our Power Prawn USA lures… these Hoss helix hooks use the same keeper as the TwistLocks, but the Hoss hooks have a wider gap and a thinner shank diameter to allow for better hooksets with the Power Prawn USA lures.
Note: These are generally best for covering depth zones down to 2.5 ft relative to jig heads.
Jig Heads (for soft plastics)
When fishing in more than a couple feet of water, it’s crucial to be able to get your lure down to the strike zone, so having jig heads of various weights is a must for inshore fishermen. The best overall jig heads that we’ve found so far for soft plastic lures up to 5 inches in length are the Trout Eye jig heads from Zman because they work well for most soft plastic brands and their big eyes seem to help draw strikes.
Note: These are generally best for covering depth zones down to 2.5 ft relative to jig heads.
If you have any questions, please use the Comments feature below to ask them and we’ll be quick to respond.
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I’ve bought 5 Legalis now: four 3000s and a 4000. Can’t beat them for the price.
Well done. I learned so much with this video. This was worth digging through all the emails you send to find something useful.
So glad to see that you enjoyed this equipment cheat sheet post.
I saw in the comments below that you recommended two rods. I know one of them was the TFO Pro Medium but I couldn’t find what the other was. I’m in the market and I’m interested in your opinion. I was interested in the Bull Bay rod Salt Strong had but I understand you don’t offer that one any longer.
My #1 choice for an inshore rod our upcoming rod that we’ll be bringing to market in September… we’re been building, testing, and tweaking this rod for almost a full year, and it is now by far my favorite rod.
Hey for back bay fishing depths of 6-20ft deep, what size Trout Eye jig heads from Zman do you use while fishing with the paddler 5” soft baits? 1/4oz? Heavier?
Given how buoyant the Zman lures are, you’ll need more than 1/4th oz to get them down to the 10 to 20 ft depths. For those depths, I recommend going up to at least 1/2 oz. But for that, you’ll need to go with a bigger jig head like a Redfish Eye. Here’s a link to a helpful depth guide for matching jig heads to soft plastics: https://www.saltstrong.com/articles/depth-guide-lures-hooks/
Thanks much! For those of us who travel and want to pack everything in one suitcase, having a “bare essentials” list is great.
So glad to see that you enjoyed this cheat sheet Charles!
Some of us use baitcasters. Distance is far less important than accuracy and boat position when fishing shallow water. Baitcasters are more accurate and give up very little, if any, distance. It would be nice to have casting rods for sale.
Which baitcasting rods do you like best for inshore fishing?
TFO professionals 7’ & 7’6 MH & M in both
For me, I use the TFO Tactical series but have been playing with the professional (spinning) and may give the casting a try. I have it paired with the Shimano Tranx 150.
Which cheat sheet shows the size of the hook and weight for depth? Make sure I am using the right rigging
Here’s a link to that cheat sheet: https://www.saltstrong.com/articles/depth-guide-lures-hooks/
what about the best line color?
It doesn’t seem to matter about the color of braid as long as you’re using a leader line. Here’s a podcast we did on that subject in case interested: https://www.saltstrong.com/articles/best-fishing-line-color/
Hi guys. I understand 1 piece rods are preferred if you have a boat and the space to store and travel with them. I travel to Florida to vacation in a midsize SUV with a kayak and 1 piece rods are less convenient for me to travel with. Asking if you know of any 2 piece rods you would recommend I try? 7 foot, medium power is what I’m looking for. Thanks.
My favorite multi-piece rod is the TFO Travel rod (medium power). Toadfish makes a pretty good one too, but it’s a bit lighter so it’s best for smaller lures.
st croix makes a 4 piece travel rod. i’ve been impressed with mine, and it fits in a larger duffel bag.
Can I order a small FT reel pre-loaded with 10# braid?
We do not currently offer line loading service. Here’s a link to see the best way to load line to save money and get less twists compared to store line loading offerings. https://www.saltstrong.com/articles/how-to-spool-a-spinning-reel-with-braid/