Florida is FULL of unknown places, or at least places that most folks will drive by for years, and not realize what a gem they’ve been missing out on. Fishing spots, restaurants, mom and pop stores, shady rest spots, and other great places to add to your list of places to have been, at least once. Here is one.
If you’ve read more than a couple of my posts, you should know by know that, as the bumper sticker on my truck says, “Fish Control My Brain”. I tell folks it’s my worst vice, and that I’d probably miss Thanksgiving dinner, if I thought the fish were biting and I could get away unnoticed. In fact, I may stagger out after writing this to try a bit of “therapy”, it calms me. ( I have a doctor’s appointment in the morning, stressing me a bit).

So after running into Jerry McBride of DOA lures, and seeing how easy he made catching fish seem, I got the bug to go fishing again (it runs in cycles with me), so I thought I’d drop by one of my favorite places to pick up discount fishing tackle, a place aptly named “Discount Tackle” in Ft. Pierce.

I love the place. My wife would have a conniption, whatever that is, if she walked in, and she would call it messy, or cluttered. I just think they have too much inventory for the time and space they have, not a bad thing, if you don’t mind looking around, or better yet, just ask for what you need. The owner, Ed, seems to have everything on site mentally cataloged. Need some boat rod roller tips? Ed knows where they are. Looking for that elusive Shrek kid’s pole? He has one of them left. He KNOWS his inventory. And he’s helpful. Almost to a fault, if you treat him with respect. And he, along with everyone else, deserves it.

(A side note here – I’ve seen folks not from this area walk into a business, complain about how its better “back home”, and then expect the business to bend over backwards for them. Morons. Haven’t they ever heard, “You catch more flies with honey than with vinegar” ?? If it’s so good back home, leave, go back there. This brings me to FHP Tip # 7 – “Change to match your environment. Trying to change your environment to match you only pisses off the locals…..and rarely works.)

I’ve liked Ed since my first stop at his store. On that first stop, he spent more time trying to get me to buy a dachshund puppy than to get me to by ANY fishing gear 🙂 Several times since then, he’s given me “super secret” lure combinations to try out, adding “I have a LOT more where that came from…” He knows I’m a fishing junky, so the first one was free… Sharp guy, that Ed.

Discount Tackle is located at 6745 N Old Dixie Hwy Fort Pierce, FL 34946-7417.
They operate on a simple business model – buy up odd and/or surplus lots, sort it, and find buyers. Remember that Shrek pole I mentioned earlier? At one point, I believe he had 10,000 of them, no exaggeration. I know I saw piles and piles of them, a very surreal picture. He’s down to only a couple now. Knowing Ed, he probably gave a few away, but the rest he sold, just like most everything he has. The inventory all rotates out eventually. I’m learning that if I like it while I’m there, I should get it, otherwise, it will be gone the next time I’m there. I’ve missed out on several juicy deals, but I’ve caught a few there as well (yeah, I said that).

What does he have? Fishing tackle of all shapes, sizes, and flavors. Dry flies for bonefish. Icefishing tip ups. Hooks, soft plastics, spoons, rods, reels, rods, and more rods. They can custom make just about any rod. They do reel repair. They cast custom lead weights in about any size and shape you can think of. They have parts, parts, parts. I love just wandering around, looking for that one gem. Its sort of like a fishing tackle version of “Where’s Waldo?”, only I’m looking for fishing tackle treasure. And I almost ALWAYS find some. And if not, I probably will on the next trip, because it will all be a new batch of goodies.

Today I picked up 27 rigged soft plastic shrimp, 600 yds of 40lb and 275 yds of 30lb Yo-Zuri fluorocarbon hybrid line, and two bags of Storm soft plastics. Cash price was about 50% of retail. And I didn’t even have to try to haggle with him.

So if you are ever in need of some fishing tackle, they are worth the drive. Being a family business, you’ll usually find Ed or Bev, or one of their kids there to help you. I’ve never had a bad experience there (other than coming back to find an item I didn’t by on a previous trip was no longer available). You’ll also probably see a dachshund or two, and some puppies. Be warned, Ed will sell you one if you aren’t careful!

If you aren’t local, they also have an eBay store found here: Discount Tackle’s Ebay store. From their page, “We sell fishing rods,reels,reel parts,guides,tip tops,hooks,line,vintage reels,custom rods,tools and much -much more.We handle freshwater and saltwater items.We also sell to dealers. Please add me to your list of favorite sellers and visit often. Thank you” Believe the “much much more” part! You can also call them at 772-464-5090 or email them at discountackle2010@yahoo.com

No matter how you contact them, let them know that FloridaHillbilly sent you, it makes me look like I’m doing something!

And THAT keeps my wife off my back! (So I can go fishing…like I am right now!)

Peace,

db

Note: This was written as a review, not a paid advertisement. I received zero compensation for this writing. In fact, I didn’t tell Ed I was going to write this until AFTER our transaction was over. When I did, he asked how much it would cost him. I told him nothing, that I like to write about places I find useful, helpful, or positive in some way. If anything, Ed has paid for this article by spreading good karma.