spinning rod setups

[Skidsteer]

So I need a MH 7' jig/worm spinning rod? I already have a casting jig/worm rod

I like shorter rods from the kayak. Just seem more comfortable to use while sitting down.

[M1A4ME]

Never fished from a kayak at home for smallmouth bass, have waded the rivers when clear and fished from my boat in a couple of lakes and this is what I use/like.

1. River, small jigs/crankbaits I like a long fairly stiff spinning rod with 6 lb. test line on it. To me, the longer rod helps with casting distance and putting the bait/lure where I want it. Good 6 lb. test line is harder to see in that really clear water and I've never caught a really big fish from the river anyway (I've seen some, just never caught one). Gotta check that small diameter line every 2 or 3 casts for tears/frays though.

2. If I'm casting crankbaits (mostly in the lakes) I like a more limber rod. It seems the smallmouth hit hard enough/fast enough they just about do all the work setting the hook and a limber rod helps me keep from jerking it out of their mouth and helps get the bigger ones to the boat when they're doing all that direction changing (the rod helps me keep up).

3. Walleyes don't seem to fight much (in the lake) and I've caught them trolling on any kind of rod/line set up with crankbaits.

4. For mono filament I like stiffer rods, for the braded/fused line I like more limber rods (again, its that hook setting/line stretch, or not stretch with braided line) that seems to me to make a limber rod work better when setting the hook (then again, maybe I just get so excited at the strike I set it too hard).

5. If I'm Carolina rigging worms/lizards or fishing with a worm or walking weight I just like a baitcast reel vs. the spinning reel. Just a personal preference I guess.

6. For surface baits I like a longer stiffer rod, too. Most of mine are 7 ft. and I run 10 to 12 lb. line.

I have way too many rods/reels and tackle boxes. Okay for the boat but they just don't seem to work out for the kayak. Anybody pull a trailer behind their kayak? For an extra tackle box and cooler? I've done it on the river, in a canoe. The Greenbrier ain't real rough where we fished so we'd use one of those cheap blow up rafts. Three of us in the canoe just didn't leave room for the ice chest and a bigger tackle box for an all day float trip.

[bruce19365]

I usually carry two spinning rods, and 3 or 4 casting rods when fishing fresh water (bass are my primary target species). One spinning setup is a 6'9" MH for wacky Senkos, the other is a 6'9" M for finesse worms. Most times those are exclusive baits for the two spinning combos. Casting rods for everything else, one 6'9" M technique specific crank bait rod covers topwater to cranks down to 12', I rarely throw deeper running cranks - I don't like throwing them. Two or three 6'9" MH rods covers everything else. Did you get the idea that I really like a 6'9" rod? That is my standard carry but specific conditions or water may make me change out a couple.

I am in the camp that believes a good rod (mine are high end Kistlers) is more important than a high end reel for slow presentation lures (fast moving lures not as critical) if you cannot put a lure where you want it or detect a light bite then the reel only serves to retrieve the lure for another cast. I think this is especially true with spinning gear as once you open the bail to cast they all virtually perform the same. More expensive reels will have better drags, smoother gears and lighter weight and help with fighting a fish, but with most fresh water fish you can fight a fish with the rod using the reel just to take in line. Large fish like pike, muskie or stripers, a better reel with a good drag system and smooth gears would be my choice. Casting gear I think is a different story and your reels should be as good as your budget allows.

When it come to spinning reels I use Pflueger Supremes exclusively, they are light weight, have decent drags and are smooth in operation and my current reels are 4 years old and other than some cosmetic flaws (they are magnesium and do not like saltwater or heavily salted plastics like Senkos) they perform as well as they did the first day I fished with them. The Pflueger President spinning reel is a bit cheaper and you will not find a better reel at its price, I used them for many years.

All that said, personal preference and budget will be most important in determining which rods, reels and techniques you use in your fishing. High end equipment isn't a requirement to catch fish, but in some instances I do think it is an advantage.

[JKay]

For my freshwater bass fishing I use a St. Croix Avid, 6'-8", Med, X-fast with Shimano Symetre 2500FJ spooled with #6 Yo Zuri Ultra Soft line. I've had the a lot of different Symetre reels over the years and my feeling is the FJ series was Shimano's best of the series, including the newer one out. In Shimano's quest for lighter reels, the dimensions changed too. Some of their newer reels have clearances that are a bit of a knuckle buster at times.

For my freshwater pike fishing I use a Shimano Compre 6'-6", Med with Shimano Symetre 2500FJ spooled with 20 lb FINS braid and fluorocarbon leader

I agree with some of the others that you can get a very high performance rod by building your own. I don't have the time to take up another hobby, so I tend to buy decent retail rods and reels and don't feel like I spend a mint on them.

[EastSiideRyda]

Currently I use a Fenwick MF 7' with s Lews bait cast for my top water application. Just got a shermano crucial MHMF 7' cranking casting rod with an okuma reel for that. I just need one more setup for my worm/jig setup


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[silasvirus82]

Bignose has two nice Stella's for sale in the forum. If I wasn't about to buy a house I'd get them for sure.

[imagine29028]

I like shorter rods from the kayak. Just seem more comfortable to use while sitting down.

see Im just the opposite...I want something that I can swing around the bow with little line out, that last run before you land them. Thats why I dont go below 7' now.

[JohnE]

see Im just the opposite...I want something that I can swing around the bow with little line out, that last run before you land them. Thats why I dont go below 7' now.

Pretty much all my rods for the kayak are 7' or just slightly shorter. This is the best all around length for both spinning and baitcasters in my experience, though I know some guys with shorter arms do prefer closer to 6'.

[EastSiideRyda]

I do find it easier to pitch with less than 6' but that's standing in my backyard


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