Liberal Fishing Tackle

Old school SF tackle shop (and pawn shop). No frills, musty, but every bit as helpful and cheap as you could want. I dealt with Doug, who may be the owner. He helped with tips and tricks for where I was going to go fishing, didn’t try and up sell me, and kicked in free gear. I bought a used spin casting pole and carrying case for $ 50. With it, he threw in about $ 10 of free lures and a tackle box. Way better deal than Amazon.
Only downside is getting hassled by weirdos right outside the door.
They also seems to be running some kind of discounts on the crossbows. Get em’ while they’re hot.

I came here yesterday for a couple of fishing poles and a new reel. The gentleman who helped me was very grandfatherly and knowledgeable. I told him what I needed and how much I wanted to spend. He suggested used poles and helped me pick out what was appropriate for the type of fishing I was planning. I was able to go home with 3 fishing poles with reels as well as a new reel for my existing pole under my budget. The store IS attached to a pawnshop but that means that the priced are sometimes negotiable. It’s a little sketchy outside but that’s to be expected for 6^th and Mission.

What can I say about this place? Well, if you’re looking for a clean tackle shop full of the latest and great tackle, then this is not the place for you. Lots of old equipment that in many cases was used looking. I went for hooks and lead. I was planning on using my debit card, but they’re cash only. I ended up leaving with a few packages of hooks. The prices werent bad on these. I will return for the sinkers. They had an assortment near the register, and the prices seemed pretty low.
The staff was unhelpful. The guy from the pawn shop helped me out. He seemed to have a hard time seeing the things the she shelves in front of him. He claimed to know nothing about fishing.

Last weekend I went to Sports Authority with my nephew to return a paint-​ball gun he bought there. So to kill time I wondered around the store and found some fishing poles and reels on sale and bought a couple. I next checked out some hooks and sinkers and could not believe how much they were charging for these small pks. of hooks, etc. I just would not pay $ 2.49 for a pk of 6 hooks. I checked Unilocal!and found Liberal Fishing Tackle and couldn’t be happier. Not only were the prices great (pk of 10 hooks for $ 0.50) but this place looks like the tackle shops looked when I was a kid back in the 1960’s. The way a bait and tackle shop should look. The staff were very friendly and helpful and assisted me in finding everything I needed. For as long as I continue to fish, Liberal Fishing Tackle will be my tackle shop.

To make this easy for you, lets do a little exercise. Picture what you’re looking for in a tackle shop. Now if what you pictured looked a lot like REI, or Bass Pro Shop don’t even bother reading any further. Liberal is not the right place for you. Save yourself the trouble of finding a spot to park your Benz in a neighborhood where it could easily get stolen. There are a couple of shops in the Richmond that sell new top of the line tackle for people who fish professionally or have disposable income. However, if what you pictured looked more like an old five-​and-​dime, and you can imagine your granddad hanging out there talking about the weather and chewing the fat with his buddies, then this is the place for you.
I spent the better part of two days looking for just such a shop with no luck. When I decided to try my hand at pulling a few fish out of the bay I had no idea that it would be so hard to find a tackle shop in this city. Isn’t San Francisco surrounded by water? But I’m happy to report that we do in fact have a nice little bait shop. Let me tell you a little more about it.
This shop has to be the place where all the old men on the piers go to pick up their supplies. Situated just south of Mission on 6^th St, Liberal Fishing Tackle is technically in Soma, but I’d call it «The Somaloin». Unfortunately this means I had to watch my bike carefully, but fortunately the folks at Liberal offered to let me bring it inside despite their cramped space.
Inside the store is well stocked with all the standard fishing gear; hooks, floats, sinkers, line, you name it. They also have bait, and used rods and reels. The store is connected to the pawn shop next door, and since fishing poles are often the first things that people get rid of when they realize that disposable income they had is drying up, they have an excellent selection. The guys at the counter – weathered and sage-​like old men – can be prodded into giving advice about what to use and where to fish. You will not find name brands, and shiny fancy packaging here. Most of the stock in this shop looks to be vintage 1978, but as far as I know fish don’t care.
This place seems to cater to those casual fishermen who don’t own their own boats, but who still need a place to restock on hooks and line from time to time. Not a terribly profitable undertaking, but a service that I’m glad that someone provides. There’s not a thing wrong with this place, even if there’s a little dust on the shelves.

In preparation for this weekend’s fishing extravaganza with «newly fished» boyfriend, we tried to see if we could «stay local» and buy from someone near the apartment.
I should have known better than to think I could find a good trout/​bass fishing store in the city, let alone on the godless skid row of 6^th street.
Located in a space that’s attached to a pawn shop, Liberal is dirty, dark, and terrifying. There are some rods and reels here, mostly «used.» eek. Mostly sea fishing too. A few new lures.
Lastly, the clerk, when asked about the rods, said «I just work here, I don’t know anything about fishing. » Er. Yeah. Okay. That about says it all.
Meanwhile the deeply drunk lady on the street wailed her song of despair.
If you’re in a hurry, in the daytime and need a few hooks, etc I guess you could swing in, but otherwise, you’re better off checking out the fishing department of the former Sports Mart – now called Sports Authority.