If you are new to an area, you can pick up quite a bit of info by stopping by the local bait shops or google "fishing reports "new jersey" or the cities you want to consider. You can also search the coast line with googleearth to check for passes and pier that will be natural candidates for public fishing access. Sometimes you will have to pay a fee to fish or park but you should be able to home in on a good spot or two with these tactics. Reels can of course be moved from rod to rod but the reel should be of the appropriate type (casting, spinning, etc) and the rod should support the line weight you are using. For example, if your reel has 60# line on it and you install it on a 25# rated rod, you can easily break the rod if you catch an 80 pound fish. If the rod is too heavy and inflexible because it support very high line weight, it will work but will take some of the fun out of fighting the fish. Good luck!