Shakespeare Travel Mate Telescopic Rod & Reel Combo

Bought this for my dad for his birthday because he had been complaining that he never gets out to fish anymore because all his equipment is bulky and in the way. No more excuses for my old man now! He loved the small compact look and plans on taking this out fishing with him from now on. I just only regret not buying this for him sooner!. Seller shipped fast and everything was as described by seller and packaged appropriately. Thank goodness!

I'm going to divide this review into sections.Pole: the pole is pretty good, but it's probably closer to light action then medium. It is very compact, but the end section is a little flimsy. As long as you're carefull with this pole it will be pretty good.Reel: The reel is good, it's very smooth and has a setting where you can adjust how much weight you want the reel to be able to pull. Very good.Case: this case is good it has 8 removeable sections for lures and holds a lot. I was even able to fit a different reel (micro) and a fly reelat the same time. My only problems are that you can't really leave the reel on the pole when you put it in the case, and the latches on the case aren't the best. Overall very good.Overall I would highly recommend this product. Hope this was helpful.

Broke within the first hour. One of the screws attached to the reel came off without warning, falling into the water and making the reel unusable.Also the rod collapses into the handle but is stopped only by a thin piece of foam on the handle. So when collapsing the rod for travel/storage you will eventually punch a hole through the end of the handle. This is a poor design.I recommend you spend your money on a different collapsible rod, even if it costs a bit more. You don't want to be out fishing when this rod fails you.

I bought two of these for travel. Didn't want to fit my full size rod in the minivan for 700+ mile trip. Very compact awesome rod. I liked the reel, but it was a little hard for my little boy to learn to cast. Ended up putting a zebco reel on it and thinking about putting the extra spinning reel on another of my rods at home.

The pole is very light weight and easily setup. Reel works well. Casts great. The case it comes in, the doors in it, don't stay latched and spill their contents when you open it. I used it for fishing creeks and streams after work. I casted it about a dozen times in total, and caught 3 fish. All small, less than 14" long, Northern Pikes. On the 3rd Pike, the pole snapped at the second eyelette. The fish were not big enough to worry about breaking the pole, but it did. It broke before the 8lbs test line on it. I did buy a second pole, and so far it has lasted linger than the first pole. Some of those fish were twice as big as the 3 that broke the 1st pole. One 33" pike, 4 22" bass and a snapping turtle. Might have just been a fluke or defect with the 1st pole. The pole would probably be better if it were carbon fiber, but it has served its purpose. The carrying case needs some work to keep your lures and hooks seperated, but it still works.

Edit (6/5/15): the reel is OK, but the rod snapped in half. I guess I flexed it too much trying to untangle from a snag. In hindsight, I wish I had bought an ultralight rod-reel combo.Bought the 6-foot rod.Pros: Compact, portable, low price. The telescoping rod has lots of action, so catching even little fish is fun. The reel is decent and comes prespooled. Case seems durable but see cons.Cons: Not for lefties. If you hold the rod with your left hand and crank the reel with your right hand, you have to unscrew and switch the crank to the other side of the reel for it to fit back in the case. Every. Single. Time. The case design needs improvement. The case is made from hard plastic, but the latches are flimsy. On mine, the plastic that fastens one of the latches to the case is much thinner than the other latches. There's a small tear that eventually will get bigger cause the latch to tear off. It also takes a lot of trial and error to put the reel back in the case properly. You have to take the reel off the rod and position the bail just so to close the case.Summary: All in all, a decent starter rod and reel combo that's super portable. If I was a rightie, I'd give it four stars. But I dock two stars for the right-handedness of the case, the lack of QC on the latches, and the requirement to unscrew the reel from the rod to put it in the case.

This was purchased for a college student that loves to fish but doesn't have much room for storage. It was a Christmas gift so I just saw it . I was very pleased with this purchase. It comes in a very nice case that includes a tackle compartment . It is very good quality and a brand name..

Bought this for my son's birthday. He wanted a rod and reel he could carry on the jetski. This telescopes in and out, so losing a piece is not a problem. He loves it. The pole extends to around 5 feet and the reel is great. I recommend it if your traveling or have to get it into a small space to travel.