What Bass Fishing Technique Deserves What Action

[MCTFisher9120]

Bass Fishing

 

There are very many different actions between spinning and baitcasting rods. And i would like to know what techniques suit a certain action. Example-Crankbait fishing=? Action, Jerkbait= ? Action and so on...main techniques I’m interested in would be dinger/senko fishing, crankbaits,jerkbaits, drop shot, topwater, live bait(minnows), spinnerbait, jig fishing, soft plastic jerkbaits, anything of that sort. Aside from the drop shot, I have used these techniques for bass fishing(going to try drop shot this year).

 

Medium Light Action

Medium Action

Medium Heavy Action

Heavy Action

 

A lot of you tourny guys should know what these actions of rods are used for as you and other anglers have lots and lots of rods. Under a budget, trying to decide on another rod/reel to get can be frustrating. As a shore angler i an not carrying around very long rods(7 1/2' max). As for different lenghts, i think it's about personal preference but I’m not going to argue as length does matter but is also something i consider on a individual basis.

 

Thanks in advance for the help and suggestions!

Edited January 21, 2009 by Mike The Bass Fisher

[Rich]

Personally I class crankbaits/jerkbaits/topwaters into the same rod category cuz I'm not a wealthy man and can't afford a rod for every lure. Basically you want a softer action in the tip of these rods because so many trebles tend to rip right out of the fishes' mouth with a stouter tip.

 

Anything with a single hook Medium/Heavy or Heavy action works best for me. Need some power to ram the hook home.

 

It takes time to see what suits you best and what works best for you. Those are just my personal preferences.

 

Oh yeah, and I agree on the length of the rod. Totally an individual choice.

[solopaddler]

Witch action? Naw I'm not a big fan of witches, they're too unreliable and frankly unpredictable.

You never know when one might turn on you.

I prefer to use voodoo dolls to eliminate my competition.

Edited January 21, 2009 by solopaddler

[MCTFisher9120]

Witch action? Naw I'm not a big fan of witches, they're too unreliable and frankly unpredictable.

You never know when one might turn on you.

I prefer to use voodoo dolls to eliminate my competition.

lmao, I'm glad somebody saw that early in the thread. Thanks for the heads up, i'll keep my eyes open

[kemper]

Most of my bass rods are MH, I dont waste time puttin them in the boat.

 

Its not really that specific of a science (for most of us that have wallets to worry about). Fish was feels right in your hand

[hirk]

Don't know what you have now Mike,but to cover everything you stated a 6'6"-7' med. w/fast tip spinning,6'6" med-med heavy w/a slow tip casting and a 7'-7'6" med. heavy fast tip casting will do it all with ease.

[drwxr]

I prefer to use voodoo dolls to eliminate my competition.

 

finaly you let the cat out of the bag...

[River Rat]

OMG....Rich summed it up well, but man...there is lots of science involved once you start experimenting and talking to people in the industry. Then you have to decide what line to choose for the proper rod, bait and application....it can get overwhelming for sure.

 

Go to the spring fishing show and talk to the peeps in the manufacturer booths. They can point you in the right direction and work with your budget.

 

This thread could go on forever..LOL

 

RR

[Victor]

As for different lenghts, i think it's about personal preference but I’m not going to argue as length does matter but is also something i consider on a individual basis.

 

O i just cannot help it lol

 

Great topic though

Edited January 21, 2009 by Victor

[Markystang]

Don't know what you have now Mike,but to cover everything you stated a 6'6"-7' med. w/fast tip spinning,6'6" med-med heavy w/a slow tip casting and a 7'-7'6" med. heavy fast tip casting will do it all with ease.

AGREED!! That's a great way to start.

Then you can start buying more of each for different lines and lures and stuff. That medium/fast spinning rod for example...have a couple of them. One rigged with a drop shot, one with a tube, one with a wacky dinger, etc. It's just nice to have a few rods rigged up and ready to go so you don't have to take the time to retie every time you want to try something else. Changing lures sucks. It's nicer to just have another rod ready to go.

Trust me brother! There's no end to it!

[MCTFisher9120]

Don't know what you have now Mike,but to cover everything you stated a 6'6"-7' med. w/fast tip spinning,6'6" med-med heavy w/a slow tip casting and a 7'-7'6" med. heavy fast tip casting will do it all with ease.

 

Well right now i got a 6`6 medium action, medium fast Shimano spinning combo, and I also have a 7`medium heavy BPS spinning combo. I really like to use the 6`6 for my jerkbaits, cranks, tubes, and live bait. While i use the other rod for soft plastics in the weeds, heavier bigger jerkbaits, spinnerbaits and the odd lure from time to time. I really have been wanting to get either a 7` medium action spinning combo, or a 7` medium heavy action baitcasting combo. I like the spinning because it is what i am good at but i have seen and heard from many anglers that a good baitcast setup is ideal for bass fishing. It`s all about money and looking for the right deal to come along, but I have been toughing it out and have been doing considerably well for what i have.

Edited January 22, 2009 by Mike The Bass Fisher

[richyb]

You dont need a million rods to catch fish . I have a 6'6 mh baitcaster for casting pretty much everything i want and i have a 6'6 med spinning rod that i like to use for my soft plastics and my lighter baits . I have a few other rods but they very seldom get used.

Get a bait caster and get practiced up, They make cranking big spinnerbaits a breeze !

[Greencoachdog]

I always incorporate the pelvic thrust into all of my techniques for Bass!!!

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rKGqjZgu-SE

Edited January 22, 2009 by GCD

[Cudz]

Witch action? Naw I'm not a big fan of witches, they're too unreliable and frankly unpredictable.

I agree. They are for the most part ugly as well (except for that one in bewitched).

I hate cats as well so I wouldn't even go out on a second date once I found out she was a witch.

 

As far as rods go, I have been fishing more med action with fast tips lately. Mostly 7' med action 1 piece rods. Great for crankbaits, jerkbaits, and spinnerbaits.

I also like a 7 ft med action spinning rod for drop shotting and dragging tubes.

 

I like a heavy action rod for fishing in the slop.

Most of my rods are MH 6'6 - 7' but I am slowly trying to replace them with medium action sticks.

[Victor]

You still don't have a baitcaster Mike? You probably should get one ... I'm sure eventaully you will want to try to learn it at some point, why not pick one up now during the off season and just learn to cast in the basement or something? I'm still not very good at it yet but I love burning the spinnerbaits/spinners using the baitcaster. Once you get better at it you should be able to get better accuracy and potentially distance too ... besides ... it saves the hassle to 'open bail, close bail" everytime you cast when you're retrieving the lures at a fast rate

[BillM]

It's official. Mike has cabin fever.

[Zubris21]

Mike, I'm not going to pretend I know a lot about the differences in Rods, but if you are concerned with money just stick with what you have. I have 2 rods but only ever use 1 of them. I have a 6'6" Medium action shimano soujourns (cheapy) rod and an Abu Garcia Cardinal 502 spinning reel. I use this rod for everything, from topwaters to soft plastics. I'll admit it might not have quite the backbone needed for jerk baits but I have caught all kinds of different fish with this rod on all kinds of techniques. Spooled mostly with 8lb mono or 10lb fireline. I use this setup for jigging or bottom bouncing for walleye. Tossing soft plastics into med. heavy cover for largies, flipping jigs for smallies, and casting or trolling Huskey jerk/ xraps for pike. Granted I haven't caught any fish much over 10lbs with this I feel as though I could, and land them without killing the fish (except maybe a musky).

 

I do have a baitcaster (old Shimano beastmaster) with a matching shimano rod (I think its only 6ft MH but haven't looked at it in a while). I had this given to me by my gma years ago as she won it at a bingo. I have never figured out how to cast it. I though there was something wrong with it. Brought it to a shop and had it taken apart and re-greased, but still no luck. I need a substantial wieght (over 1.5 oz) to cast it even 20 ft. There is no way I could cast a soft plastic at all with this. Now I know its probably just me, not knowing how/knowing the settings of the reel, but I don't even bother bringing it out because every thing I try shows no improvements. (its jsut too frustrating).

 

My advice, stay with what you have and save your money for a trolling motor for that new boat of yours. Looks like you already have a nice little collection of rods/reels and tackle, now start putting your money towards getting to the fish that have eluded you from shore.

 

** if anyone knows anything about the reel Im talking about please show me how to use it! it kills me!

[capt bruce]

I could type for an hour on this subject (I who owns many many rods , I have to explain this every time the wife asks "what did you buy another rod for) but to save time here is a link to a very good articule on rods . "http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/rodselection.html " hope this helps .

[OhioFisherman]

All of mine are medium or medium heavy fast tip action as per the label, but some have a softer action than others.

 

Not a matter of primary concern for me, more cover heavier action rod, crank baits I like a little softer action but not a big deal to me because most of my cranks don`t carry the standard hooks. Don`t use braid so the line absorbs shock.

 

I prefer a longer rod, 7 foot, but use 6 footers also, again not that big of a deal, first step is finding fish, figuring out their diet of the day, most rods will catch them if you find them and figure out what they want. Rod is a comfort factor.

 

Something I used all day long and the most comfortable got used more.

[Raf]

they're glorified panfish anyway. bobber and worm!

 

ok, for most of my bass fishn, I basically have two setups.

 

7' mh baitcaster, curado 201, 50lb Power Pro - go to for spinnerbaits, cranks, topwaters, etc etc also a pike rod.

7' mh spinning, 2000 series daiwa reel, 20lb fireline - soft-plastics, jigs

 

if i fish really heavy cover, I will pull out one of my "light" muskie setups (7', Abu 6501 C3, 65lb PP)

 

finally, if fishn smallies around little to no cover, rivers, rocks, I use a 7' ML spinning w/8lb mono.

Edited January 22, 2009 by Raf

[OhioFisherman]

LOL Raf, but muskies taste better!

[Mark Kulik]

Mike come visit the St.Croix booth st thespringfishing and boat show at the Int.centre 13-16th of Feb. check out the new Mojo bass line we'll have a great selection to try out.