Hi All-
I've been getting back into fishing this year after a long hiatus - and this site has been incredibly helpful!
I grew up fishing topwaters & cranks on weekends on a small Connecticut lake and have great memories of reeling in bass, pickerel, perch, and bluegill. Now that all of my tackle from those teenage years is long gone, I have been reassembling my kit suited more to Massachusetts waters.
So far, I have a 6'6" medium flex, fast action spinning rod and a tacklebox bulging with new lures thanks to eBay, Cabelas, et. al. I have come to realize that it would be really helpful to have another rod so I can have one, say, rigged for topwater action, and one with a deeper crankbait or Senko, to save me having to tie about a hundred different knots every trip, and to be ready if the topwater action heats up while I'm fishing deep.
While I have mainly been targeting largemouth bass, I am curious about trout, once the fall stocking happens, and pike. I mainly fish in the greater Boston area, but have canoe access to throw on the roof until the end of November.
Soooo, since I'm not going to buy the six essential pro bass rods and a couple of fly rods and an ultralight setup, what should my next rod be?
I'm leaning to a light action spinning setup to handle my small & mid-size cranks, and let my current medium setup be my worm rod... any other suggestions?
Thanks!
-G
I've been getting back into fishing this year after a long hiatus - and this site has been incredibly helpful!
I grew up fishing topwaters & cranks on weekends on a small Connecticut lake and have great memories of reeling in bass, pickerel, perch, and bluegill. Now that all of my tackle from those teenage years is long gone, I have been reassembling my kit suited more to Massachusetts waters.
So far, I have a 6'6" medium flex, fast action spinning rod and a tacklebox bulging with new lures thanks to eBay, Cabelas, et. al. I have come to realize that it would be really helpful to have another rod so I can have one, say, rigged for topwater action, and one with a deeper crankbait or Senko, to save me having to tie about a hundred different knots every trip, and to be ready if the topwater action heats up while I'm fishing deep.
While I have mainly been targeting largemouth bass, I am curious about trout, once the fall stocking happens, and pike. I mainly fish in the greater Boston area, but have canoe access to throw on the roof until the end of November.
Soooo, since I'm not going to buy the six essential pro bass rods and a couple of fly rods and an ultralight setup, what should my next rod be?
I'm leaning to a light action spinning setup to handle my small & mid-size cranks, and let my current medium setup be my worm rod... any other suggestions?
Thanks!
-G
Not a bad idea! I know zilch about local trout fishing, but figure if they're stocking them, I wouldn't mind catching a few. I did do a fly fishing "school" last year and it seems like a very specialized technique for specific situations. Way more comfortable with spinning!
Thanks again,
G
Thanks again,
G
It really depends on what you plan on fishing for the most.A medium action will handle alot if not most of your bassin needs but is far to light for pike imo.A medium is also fine for trout but alot of guys want a light action for trout were as it better suits your average line class for trout and they want a little more battle.most guys I know fish trout with 2-6lb test were as they fish bass with 8 and up.If you want to catch pike I'd choose no less than a MH,also a good bass rod.now that I thinkabout it, if I were you,I'd keep my M for bass and trout and get MH to cover more bass and also as a pike rod
well, like bam said, it kinda depends on how you like to fish...
but since you've already got a 6'6" medium spinning rod - which, in my opinion, if you could only own ONE rod, that would be it - next (if it was me doing the buying) I'd go with a 6'6" or 7' medium or medium-heavy baitcasting rod*. (these are actually the 2 rods I take with me to the water 99.9% of the time)
I'd use the spinning for topwaters, smaller cranks, Zoom Flukes, lighter lures, then the baitcaster for spinnerbaits, worms, jigs, frogs, bigger cranks, rattletraps, etc.
After that, I'd get a medium-light or even ultra-light spinning rod for panfish, trout, etc... I've landed decent bass on ultra-light gear, but it takes awhile! hehehe
*this is assuming you use a baitcasting reel. If not, I'd do the same thing, but just make it a spinning.
but since you've already got a 6'6" medium spinning rod - which, in my opinion, if you could only own ONE rod, that would be it - next (if it was me doing the buying) I'd go with a 6'6" or 7' medium or medium-heavy baitcasting rod*. (these are actually the 2 rods I take with me to the water 99.9% of the time)
I'd use the spinning for topwaters, smaller cranks, Zoom Flukes, lighter lures, then the baitcaster for spinnerbaits, worms, jigs, frogs, bigger cranks, rattletraps, etc.
After that, I'd get a medium-light or even ultra-light spinning rod for panfish, trout, etc... I've landed decent bass on ultra-light gear, but it takes awhile! hehehe
*this is assuming you use a baitcasting reel. If not, I'd do the same thing, but just make it a spinning.
Yeah, I haven't ever used a baitcaster & have so little fishing time that the last thing I want to deal with is learning a new reel along with everything else.
But, I'm 99% settled on the MH 7' suggestion for heavier cranks & softbaits. In terms of species, I am feeling more like bass & bigger vs. smaller (ove the past few days, pike have become way more intriguing to me than trout) so the MH makes sense.
Thanks to all!
-G
But, I'm 99% settled on the MH 7' suggestion for heavier cranks & softbaits. In terms of species, I am feeling more like bass & bigger vs. smaller (ove the past few days, pike have become way more intriguing to me than trout) so the MH makes sense.
Thanks to all!
-G
Bass Pro Shops has the original Carrot Stix rods on sale for $109 - which is about $40 off normal price. AMAZINGLY light & sensitive rods. They also come with a lifetime warranty, so it's a one-time purchase.
http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Product_10151_-1_10001_10203728_100002006_100000000_100002000_100-2-6
http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Product_10151_-1_10001_10203728_100002006_100000000_100002000_100-2-6
I've had the same 5'6" light action Ugly Stik spin caster for about 15 years. This thing has ruled. It was the only rod I had for several years, until last year when I started getting back into fishing and got a few more rods. I still end up using the Ugly Stik with light crank baits and now, mostly with weightless Senkos. I grew up stream fishing with my dad in upstate NY, and this rod has been fine with lighter tackle for trout. I've had a Shimano Symetre reel on it for t the past 5-7 years with no issue. It's been a great setup for me, very versatile. Ugly Stik's are cheap and still hold up to catching big bass (I've caught a majority of my big bass on senkos, in the 4-5 pound range). It's also very durable if you bang it around a lot. I have an ugly stik baitcasting rod that I bought last year, which has also been great. I know several people who have Ugly Stik's for 10+ years without problems, great rods.
...Ugly Stik...
I had an Ugly Stik back in the mid-90s for ONE day. It was the most unbalanced, god-awful rod I had ever used. My wrist & forearm were literally sore after a single afternoon of fishing. I immediately took it back and got a refund.
I'm not saying other people aren't having good results from them, lots of people swear by em, I'm just sharing my one and only personal experience with em way back when... maybe things have changed since then? I know they're the rods used by the In-Fisherman staff, so...
If you guys read my last trip. I had a bit of bad luck with my favorite baitcasting rod.
So, if anyone can recommend a MH baitcasting rod for worming & jig fishing for LMB, 6'6" or 7'?
Thanks!
Do you have a price range in mind? That will really help guide your decision.
Yes the set up i had was from Dick's.
A 6'6" berkley lighting rod / abu silver max. Got it $50 after $20 rebate. For the money it worked well for me.
So, if I spent $50 for new rod, it would be a better set up than i had?
Here's a few options in the 50-75 dollar range. They're all decent rods. The Daiwa Pro Series is on clearance, and used to be a 100 dollar or so rod. Gets good reviews. The rest are just decent rods for the money.
http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Product_10151_-1_10001_104149_100002006_100000000_100002000_100-2-6
http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Product_10151_-1_10001_104157_100002006_100000000_100002000_100-2-6
http://cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/product/standard-item.jsp?id=0071643124741a&navCount=1&podId=0071643&parentId=cat20372&masterpathid=&navAction=jump&cmCat=MainCatcat20166-cat20372&catalogCode=IA&rid=&parentType=index&indexId=cat20372&hasJS=true
http://cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/product/standard-item.jsp?id=0060378123762a&navCount=1&podId=0060378&parentId=cat20372&masterpathid=&navAction=jump&cmCat=MainCatcat20166-cat20372&catalogCode=IA&rid=&parentType=index&indexId=cat20372&hasJS=true
the st. croix mojo bass series might be worth checking out. pretty solid like all st. croix series in general. i have 2 of them and they're pretty good for the money - 1 for drop shotting, the other is a 7' MH Fast action crankbait rod. the sensitivity is pretty good and they're pretty light.
greek,
fill out the survey on your dick's receipt and it would cost you $90. or google coupon codes and pair it up with free shipping...i know there's a 15% out there.
if you're looking for a 6'6" MH spinning setup, i would recommend a quantum energy PT. i have a few of these rods in the series and they're awesome. i think they're discontinued so they're very cheap right now.
http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Product_10151_-1_10001_98397____SearchResults
and like michael said, it really comes down to how much you're willing to spend. i have some around $100 and they're very good. i also have one originally around $250 i believe. can i REALLY tell a difference in terms of sensitivity and all of the other marketing claims from one at $100 that's comparable. to be honest, not really. and it also depends...if it's between a $100 or $200 spinning rod where i'm going to be fishing primarily senkos and baits you don't need extreme sensitivity, i definitely don't need a $250 rod. keep these types of scenarios or situations in mind - your primary style of fishing on the rod.
also, i have a 6'6" spinning ugly stick rod. personally, i dislike it. it does the job and it was my senko rod for awhile, but the thing is so bulky and heavy. also, it doesn't match up perfectly with all reels. the twist lock grip is pretty poor quality and i'm always twisting it to tighten it up. i'd gladly sell someone mine for close to $0 since i don't use or need it anymore (is this allowed on this site?).
greek,
fill out the survey on your dick's receipt and it would cost you $90. or google coupon codes and pair it up with free shipping...i know there's a 15% out there.
if you're looking for a 6'6" MH spinning setup, i would recommend a quantum energy PT. i have a few of these rods in the series and they're awesome. i think they're discontinued so they're very cheap right now.
http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Product_10151_-1_10001_98397____SearchResults
and like michael said, it really comes down to how much you're willing to spend. i have some around $100 and they're very good. i also have one originally around $250 i believe. can i REALLY tell a difference in terms of sensitivity and all of the other marketing claims from one at $100 that's comparable. to be honest, not really. and it also depends...if it's between a $100 or $200 spinning rod where i'm going to be fishing primarily senkos and baits you don't need extreme sensitivity, i definitely don't need a $250 rod. keep these types of scenarios or situations in mind - your primary style of fishing on the rod.
also, i have a 6'6" spinning ugly stick rod. personally, i dislike it. it does the job and it was my senko rod for awhile, but the thing is so bulky and heavy. also, it doesn't match up perfectly with all reels. the twist lock grip is pretty poor quality and i'm always twisting it to tighten it up. i'd gladly sell someone mine for close to $0 since i don't use or need it anymore (is this allowed on this site?).