ROD & REEL SELECTION TIPS
Here's a few tips when it comes to matching the perfect rod & reel setup for your bass and pike lure application:
JERKBAITS - For fishing jerkbaits such as our BASS JERKER, I will never ever ever ever use a baitcaster. Even though some superstar pros do, I don't, I won't, and I suggest you dont either. Use a spinning reel. Use a 7 foot spinning reel, one with some good backbone and flex to the tip. We are talking a medium action rod with a fast action tip. My favorite is the $29 Cabelas Whuppin Stick. Ugly Sticks will work, almost ANY graphite spinning rod will work, and I swear the cheaper the better!!! 6'6" rods will work just as well but don't cast as far as a 7 ft. Do not buy a $200 setup for this. I am more confident in jerkbait fishing than any other method, and I am intimitated by NO ONE that jerkbait fishes at a high level. I promise that rod brand/price is pointless with this presentation as long as you have that fast action tip, you are good to go. Spool with 10lb flourocarbon, twitch it as erratic as possible when they are active and hammer them bass!!!
IN-LINE SPINNERS/SPINNERBAITS - In-line spinners such as our LOVERTAIL 2, our #4 BAD BOY, or the store bought Mepps Aglia, are great lures to throw on any graphite rod with a fast action tip. But last year on Lake Michigan, I was throwing a Double Bad Boy for pike and giant smallmouth in the weeds near Gladstone, MI on a Rick Clunn S-Glass Deep cranking rod, and when I battled a pike, the moderate action of the fiberglass acted like a shock absorber during the battle. Also the less sensitivity compared to graphite made me react slower to the bite, giving the fish time to get the hook in its mouth for the set. I caught a nice pike later last summer on Old Abe Lake on a bad boy treble musky lure with the same results, and Alex has landed numerous fish on a Skeet Reese S-Glass moderate action fiberglass rod this year. I love the feel and fight of the Skeet Reese rod so much, and it sells at a great price at Walmart. I suggest using a fiberglass moderate action rod on in-line spinners, even the small ones, with a baitcaster spooled with 10-17 lb flourocarbon. You will not be disappointed!!! We havent lost a single fish yet on this setup up dating to last year and have lost plenty over the years on graphite fast action tip rods..... Check out Skeet's line of S-Glass rods, they are amazing and less than $100. Rick Clunn's line was discontinued but are online on a few sites. Mike Iaconelli also designed his DELAY SERIES Abu Garcia rods that are probably pretty awesome as well.
FROGS / BUZZBAITS/SWIMBAITS - For topwater lures such as hollow-body weedless frogs, swimbaits, or buzzers like our BEE WHACKER DESIGNS, there is only one way to go here - MH or H fast action flipping stick. Line must be 65 or 80 lb braid. You want the power and backbone of a MH or H, you want the fast action tip to cast far, you want a 7'6" to 8' rod for this. This is for casting into the nastiest junk you can find and for dragging out lunker bass over heavy cover. 7:1 gear ratio bait casters (I prefer Lew's) for reeling them back fast and for getting the bad casts back fast or your lure from the dead zones for the next sweet spot cast. Pick your favorite expensive rod and use that. I like the Abu Garcia IKE SERIES designed by my hero Mike Iaconelli and I am very happy with my St Croix Mojo Bass Swimbait rod for this.
DROP SHOT/TUBES/PLASTIC WORMS/CAROLINA RIGS/CREATURE BAITS/WACKY WORMS - 6'6" to 7' medium action graphite spinning rods. Fast action tips. Same as jerkbait rods but different line choices based on the application. Great for accurate casts, skipping lures under docks and cover, and very sensitive for bite detection. My favorite is my Fenwick that I bought from my buddy Tim Moua. Worst decision of his life was selling me that killer rod even though he won't admit it. You can get away with cheaper versions like whuppin stick, ugly stik, etc. Mike Iaconelli is a fantastic finesse fisherman and his finesse spinning rods are probably a great choice as well with high quality graphite.
HEAVY BASS JIGS / BLADED JIGS / VACUUM BAITS - For 1/2 oz + jigs, our FLAPPIN JIGS, or our VACUUM BAITS, use a 7'0" to 7'4" MH graphite fast action tip baitcaster rod. My choice is the Abu Garcia IKE SERIES by Mike Iaconelli. What an awesome feeling, sensitive rod! Pair it with a 7:1 reel and 17-20 lb high quality flourocarbon line. These lures need backbone and a fast action tip for accurate casting, handling heavy lures, and giving you power around cover and docks.
CRANKBAITS - For crankbaits other than jerkbaits, fiberglass rods with a moderate action is the only way to go. You need that flexability to not throw treble hooks off of a fish, and also the whippy rods will cast the crankbaits like a rocket. Spool with 10 lb flourocarbon. For Deep Divers without heavy cover on the bottom, you can use 8 lb to get a little deeper. Deep diving crankbaits need a stiffer longer rod, like a MH 7'8" to 8' S-Glass Skeet Reese or Rick Clunn Deep 2. for regular crankbaits like Rat L Traps, Shad Raps, Arashi baits, use a 7' Medium S-Glass like Skeet Reese's Crankin Rod. Spool again with flourocarbon around 8-10lb strength. Use a 6:1 ratio baitcaster for regular crankbaits, and use a 5:1 for deep divers for extra power and to not beat on the gears so badly.
All of this information I have gathered over the years from articles on bassmaster.com, in magazines, on Ike Live, from talking with the pros, and then going out and experimenting with my own fishing. The Skeet Reese rods are amazing to fish with and everyone should have one in their boat!!!!
Jesse
JERKBAITS - For fishing jerkbaits such as our BASS JERKER, I will never ever ever ever use a baitcaster. Even though some superstar pros do, I don't, I won't, and I suggest you dont either. Use a spinning reel. Use a 7 foot spinning reel, one with some good backbone and flex to the tip. We are talking a medium action rod with a fast action tip. My favorite is the $29 Cabelas Whuppin Stick. Ugly Sticks will work, almost ANY graphite spinning rod will work, and I swear the cheaper the better!!! 6'6" rods will work just as well but don't cast as far as a 7 ft. Do not buy a $200 setup for this. I am more confident in jerkbait fishing than any other method, and I am intimitated by NO ONE that jerkbait fishes at a high level. I promise that rod brand/price is pointless with this presentation as long as you have that fast action tip, you are good to go. Spool with 10lb flourocarbon, twitch it as erratic as possible when they are active and hammer them bass!!!
IN-LINE SPINNERS/SPINNERBAITS - In-line spinners such as our LOVERTAIL 2, our #4 BAD BOY, or the store bought Mepps Aglia, are great lures to throw on any graphite rod with a fast action tip. But last year on Lake Michigan, I was throwing a Double Bad Boy for pike and giant smallmouth in the weeds near Gladstone, MI on a Rick Clunn S-Glass Deep cranking rod, and when I battled a pike, the moderate action of the fiberglass acted like a shock absorber during the battle. Also the less sensitivity compared to graphite made me react slower to the bite, giving the fish time to get the hook in its mouth for the set. I caught a nice pike later last summer on Old Abe Lake on a bad boy treble musky lure with the same results, and Alex has landed numerous fish on a Skeet Reese S-Glass moderate action fiberglass rod this year. I love the feel and fight of the Skeet Reese rod so much, and it sells at a great price at Walmart. I suggest using a fiberglass moderate action rod on in-line spinners, even the small ones, with a baitcaster spooled with 10-17 lb flourocarbon. You will not be disappointed!!! We havent lost a single fish yet on this setup up dating to last year and have lost plenty over the years on graphite fast action tip rods..... Check out Skeet's line of S-Glass rods, they are amazing and less than $100. Rick Clunn's line was discontinued but are online on a few sites. Mike Iaconelli also designed his DELAY SERIES Abu Garcia rods that are probably pretty awesome as well.
FROGS / BUZZBAITS/SWIMBAITS - For topwater lures such as hollow-body weedless frogs, swimbaits, or buzzers like our BEE WHACKER DESIGNS, there is only one way to go here - MH or H fast action flipping stick. Line must be 65 or 80 lb braid. You want the power and backbone of a MH or H, you want the fast action tip to cast far, you want a 7'6" to 8' rod for this. This is for casting into the nastiest junk you can find and for dragging out lunker bass over heavy cover. 7:1 gear ratio bait casters (I prefer Lew's) for reeling them back fast and for getting the bad casts back fast or your lure from the dead zones for the next sweet spot cast. Pick your favorite expensive rod and use that. I like the Abu Garcia IKE SERIES designed by my hero Mike Iaconelli and I am very happy with my St Croix Mojo Bass Swimbait rod for this.
DROP SHOT/TUBES/PLASTIC WORMS/CAROLINA RIGS/CREATURE BAITS/WACKY WORMS - 6'6" to 7' medium action graphite spinning rods. Fast action tips. Same as jerkbait rods but different line choices based on the application. Great for accurate casts, skipping lures under docks and cover, and very sensitive for bite detection. My favorite is my Fenwick that I bought from my buddy Tim Moua. Worst decision of his life was selling me that killer rod even though he won't admit it. You can get away with cheaper versions like whuppin stick, ugly stik, etc. Mike Iaconelli is a fantastic finesse fisherman and his finesse spinning rods are probably a great choice as well with high quality graphite.
HEAVY BASS JIGS / BLADED JIGS / VACUUM BAITS - For 1/2 oz + jigs, our FLAPPIN JIGS, or our VACUUM BAITS, use a 7'0" to 7'4" MH graphite fast action tip baitcaster rod. My choice is the Abu Garcia IKE SERIES by Mike Iaconelli. What an awesome feeling, sensitive rod! Pair it with a 7:1 reel and 17-20 lb high quality flourocarbon line. These lures need backbone and a fast action tip for accurate casting, handling heavy lures, and giving you power around cover and docks.
CRANKBAITS - For crankbaits other than jerkbaits, fiberglass rods with a moderate action is the only way to go. You need that flexability to not throw treble hooks off of a fish, and also the whippy rods will cast the crankbaits like a rocket. Spool with 10 lb flourocarbon. For Deep Divers without heavy cover on the bottom, you can use 8 lb to get a little deeper. Deep diving crankbaits need a stiffer longer rod, like a MH 7'8" to 8' S-Glass Skeet Reese or Rick Clunn Deep 2. for regular crankbaits like Rat L Traps, Shad Raps, Arashi baits, use a 7' Medium S-Glass like Skeet Reese's Crankin Rod. Spool again with flourocarbon around 8-10lb strength. Use a 6:1 ratio baitcaster for regular crankbaits, and use a 5:1 for deep divers for extra power and to not beat on the gears so badly.
All of this information I have gathered over the years from articles on bassmaster.com, in magazines, on Ike Live, from talking with the pros, and then going out and experimenting with my own fishing. The Skeet Reese rods are amazing to fish with and everyone should have one in their boat!!!!
Jesse
