Rod and reel
The ideal rod for sardinata fishing is an M-type spinning rod, i.e. 7/28 grams. However, given that the sardinata is a fish you'll be looking for in the current, a slightly more powerful H-type rod (10/40 grams) is just what you're looking for.
This rod can also be used to fish for payara and peacock bass, so it doesn't take up any extra space. Attacks are fast and sudden, so a supple tip action such as moderate fast is ideal to avoid misses. What's more, this action is perfect for animating lures designed for this species, such as top water.
I prefer a spinning rod for better casting performance and animation of the lures used, but a casting model is of course an option.
Finally, a reel of size 2500 or 3000 is adapted to the power of this rod. The sardinata is a fish that responds well to fast action, so you need a reel with a high retrieve per crank revolution.
Bottom line
The sardinata has small teeth, but they are not sharp enough to require the use of a steel leader. For this reason, a 40/100 fluorocarbon leader is the right intermediary so as not to impede the swimming action of the small and medium-sized lures used for this species. To cope with the payaras and piranhas that live alongside sardinatas, using a steel leader is not disruptive and does not reduce the number of hits.
