FryDog62

I’m in the market for an Expride (casting) as well. Will be watching TW this Spring but I kind of doubt there will be much taken off on them. Don’t know how close to MN you are but a local shop in Mpls will sell for 20% off most days. Or, the NW SportShow in April sells all rods/tackle for 20% off.

Sounds good - at least your spending your hard earned cash on the right priorities?

What size/action are you looking for? The most sensitive rod I have is an NRX but would be more expensive. Used ones as mentioned above could work. I also have an Orochi Braillist which has great bottom sensitivity but not sure that’s the size/action you want. My bias would be away from Dobyns, don’t get me wrong they are very good rods (I have two) but I think they are known more for excellent balance but not overly sensitive.

Very nice... Sure beats ice fishing!

Does anyone remember if Tacklewarehouse or Cabela's has a storewide President's Day Sale? There's a rod I'm interested they both sell but want to time around a sale. Thx

Just an opinion here, but I’ve spent the last couple years experimenting with jerkbait rods. One determining factor for me has been rod handle length. If it’s too long, the handle is always rubbing on your arm or side. I had a rod with a 15 inch handle (according to how Tacklewarehouse measures) and it was frustrating to use. So I experimented with one of these specific jerkbait rods that Lew’s makes with a 10 inch handle. Man it was easy to maneuver. But the downside is once you hook a fish (or get snagged) there is little/no handle to use as leverage to fight the fish or pull weeds. You end up just using your wrist and it’s also a bit awkward. Without sounding like Goldilocks, I found a rod handle right in the middle at about 13 inches to be ideal. Jerks great, doesn’t interfere, but enough handle/backbone for the fight. I have both Orochi and Shimano rods (not the jerkbait models) and they are excellent products. However they have 14-15 inch handles. My recommendation is if you can find one in a store and put a reel on it and see if it’s too long and awkward to jerk. It may be fine for you, but I know is too long for me. The rod I settled on is a Dobyns Champ XP that was made specifically for jerkbaits. It’s the 685 which is 6’8” in length. So it might be longer than what you were looking for but handle length also makes a difference in the overall maneuverability equation. Good luck in your search!

You should be fine with the 7-1 Mojo MF. I bought that rod (that I leave permanently at my in-laws place when I fish there out of state). I needed one really versatile rod for finesse and medium power applications. It’s a very good rod choice for a lot of the ways you said you fish ?

Best suggestion I have locally is Thorne Bros in Blaine. They modified a handle on a rod for me a few years back and did a great job..

Good stuff to think about... thanks for posting. I've changed some things around too. One is to use heavier mono/fluoro line instead of thinner braid and tie on a leader. Less knots to fail. Our only challenge here in the North is the heavy weeds/milfoil. Only braid cuts through it effectively, but I am using it less and less unless around/in the thicker stuff. Also as I stated on another thread recently, I changed the knot I use for tying mono/fluoro directly to the hook/lure. Am now using the 3 tag Grigsby knot. All due respect to the San Diego Jam knot users... but I have a bias against knots that only pass through the eye once. I don't have any statistical data, but passing through twice just seems to make sense it would be stronger and less likely to cut like a knife. Just my .02

That rod should excel for drop-shotting, and I think wacky-style Senkos too. Don’t think I’d throw a weightless Senko Texas-rigged into cover with it though.

I’ll have to try that out... I’ve had good luck with the Skitter Prop for smallies. Maybe a little extra tail feather would be even better.. ?

I don’t use the skirt in heavier weed cover, just a regular nail weight. A Texas rig is still more weedless especially when fishing more horizontally, but the Chicken Rig is pretty close..

Lol, my own modified Chicken Rig but it works. Yum Genie worm and a VMC Neko Skirt.

X2 on Chicken Rig

I’ve heard if you tie correctly and don’t cross the line over itself that a Palomar knot should hold on fluorocarbon. And after years of tying, I never noticed a problem with the Palomar knot until two years ago it gave way on fluorocarbon 2-3 times. I could see the curly cue at the end of the line so I know the knot failed on me. I thought I was careful tying the knot but most likely it was user error on my part or in a hurry. Anyway, last year I switched over to the Grigsby knot (aka 3 tag knot) and didn’t have one knot failure all year. I guess I’ll stick with that at least another season...

I tie the Double Swindle Shindo Knot with no less than 16X points and loop it around 5, 6 or 7 times depending on how well they are schooling..

Both rods SOLD

Near the bank, hard to beat a squarebill... off-shore a Keitech as mentioned above or a Dark Sleeper..

My 2 cents, yes you are missing out if not using a jerkbait. Sometimes they work when nothing else does, sometimes they work for all species not just bass. On our season opening weekend last May in Minnesota I had maybe my single best multi-species day of fishing. Entirely with a jerkbait and caught numerous 18-20 inch largemouth, a 27 inch walleye and an 11 pound pike (I even caught a huge, beautiful Sunfish I now wish I had snapped a picture of!). That day I used a Shadow Rap, Berkley Cutter and a Vision 110. Fish didn’t discriminate - it was all about the jerk-pause action. There were a few other boats out on this small 200 acre lake, all dragging live bait around and I didn't see any other fish caught...

I think there's a trade off here between line stretch and action of the rod. An Extra Fast rod with braid is a recipe for disaster IMO. If I'm around fairly heavy cover and/or longer casts, I still love braid (30-40 lb test). But then I'm using a moderate-fast rod to provide some "give" especially as the fish gets near the boat and takes off again. I also have a fast action rod that I use, and string it up with 10 lb Sufix Advance mono. Its about the same diameter as a lot of 12-14 lb monos. I like it because it has stretch... but less than most IMO. On long casts, I HATE setting the hook with a rubber band. Handles well, and can pull through light/moderate weeds... not as good as braid but its a matter of what is best compromise based on the cover present.

I mail USPS and the price break point is around 7 feet long. As stated above, be sure the clerk measures diameter and not circumference. I have sent rods 7 feet and longer in the standard TW type of cardboard rod tubes for typically $25-28. However, last week I mailed a rod in a much skinnier pvc tube that I had received from Kistler rods. And, the length was only 6'7" so the cost was down to $13.50. Another good practice, is to tape the rod down inside the tube, and bubble wrap it or use other packing. This keeps the rod tip from jamming into the end of the tube and breaking. I talked to the guys at one of the online stores that has a trade-in program and he said many fishermen are professional anglers, but amateurs when it comes to shipping and too often they receive damaged rods that can't be accepted for trade.

First time I threw a 10.5 inch Yum Mighty Worm was on a 5/8 oz Pumpkin ‘Ed jig in 18 fow - I just dropped it over the side of the boat to reset the tension on my reel. 3/4 of the way to the bottom I got nailed by a 19 inch largemouth. I thought this is what I should have been using all year! Have fished that exact set up half a dozen times over the past 5 years without a sniff...

I may give Pool 2 a shot this spring before the opener. Have never fished there but heard it can be good for big walleyes, but a challenge to figure out. Since our season won’t be open yet, why not? Was planning to trailer the boat down to KS, MO this March, but Lymes disease hit a couple family members hard and I doubt they will be fully recovered by then. Those plans on hold, Pool 2 looking more likely. Gotta lengthen the season as much as poss..

Me too, looks like a great rod...