Welcome to the site! Glad to see you've found interest in Saltwater fishing. It's a great sport, and very challenging. I have a couple recommendations in regards to some research you can do, that will help to narrow down the type of tackle, bait, and techniques you should employ in your area.
First of all, do the research on what type of fish are in your area, and what thier habitat is. When I say habitat, I mean this. Off of our coast, there are grouper and snapper, BUT, the closest you'll find them is 20 miles offshore. So, just because there are specific types of fish species in your coastal waters, it doesn't mean you'll have the means by which to target them. So, do the research, and figure out what types of fish will normally inhabit the areas of water you'll actually have access to. If you wanted to share your location, I might be able to add a little insight there.
Once you've done that, you'll be able to select the gear that best suits the target species. You don't want to buy a big heavy outfit if you're going to be targeting flounder or slot sized redfish. I actually just composed a review on a Shimano Trevalla/Penn Sargus spinning reel outfit, it should be a little farther down in the saltwater forum listing. It's actually a very versitile outfit, though, the price tag may deter you if your parents are not going to support your hobbie, or you don't have a job just yet. I would say though, any decent medium action spinning rod and reel combo should handle anything inshore in most areas, particularly along the East coast of the US. I'd got with 20-30 pound line on average. Go with an all steel reel, and a good rod. For the money, and for the budget minded, the Shakespear ugly stick is actually a fine rod, and in most places, under 30 bucks.
The next thing I would suggest you do is invest some money in a good castnet, and learn to become effective at using it. Once you learn how to use a net, all your bait is free at that point.
A cheap way to keep bait alive on a pier is with a live bait bucket. They are easily made with a bucket w/ lid, enough rope to make it to the water and compensate for high/low tide, and a drill bit. Simply cut a V in the lid, that will be the access point to get to the bait, with out having to take the entire lid off. I've seen some people actually cut an entire chunk out of the bucket lid, and use 7 strand wire to connect it back, so that it opens and closes with less effort. Next, bore a couple holes towards the top of the bucket, and run your rope through it. Lastly, bore some slightly larger holes all over the bucket, so that the fresh water can continue to flush through the bucket.
So, that covers what you might be catching, how to select a rod, how to catch your bait, and lastly, how to keep it alive. Digest that info, and more importantly, figure out what you'll be primarily targeting. What you are fishing for plays a big role in how you fish for them, and what bait to use; that is, if you want to be successful. Most people that fish piers and such simply walk out there with a 2 hook drop rig, and bait up with some of the 2.99 frozen shrimp or cut mullet that the pier sells. Well, most of the time, they don't catch anything but trash fish. If you really want to catch something great, you have to use great tactics. Write that down.... [cool]
We'll be waiting for you feedback, and we'll further get you ready for some fish catching, not fishing.
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