15 hours ago, Bluebasser86 said:

I use a Hammer Rods Micro 6' 9" H/F. It's the best bladed jig rod I've ever fished. 

I use a very similar rod. Falcon Expert Head Turner. 6’10 H MF. I have 3 of them

13 hours ago, gimruis said:

 

I could see that.  Sometimes a fish hits and then swims right at you, creating the problem.  When I feel an interruption in vibration, I give it a good pull in case its a fish.  Sometimes they hit it kind of subtle that feels more like a weed and it turns out to be a fish.  If your reeling fast then the lure is definitely closer to the surface and you may be missing some fish deep too though, but as long as you are catching fish you must be doing something right.  If it aint broke, don't fix it.

Previously, most of my chatterbait bites were working it like a jig, ripping and dropping out of the weeds.  Hookups were solid.  Now I'm getting bit reeling in just fast enough to feel the blade, hopefully staying 7-10' deep.  With this slow rolling, my bait's just getting destroyed.  Going from  slow steady chatterbait thump to complete nothingness, followed by frantic reeling for what feels like 5-7 seconds just to feel any resistance so I can keep reeling, sweep the rod, and hopefully get a good hookset.  My odds are down enough to need to switch up stuff.  First was moving up to the 7.1 reel, now I think I need a rod that loads up more.  I'm gonna rearrange my baits and give a 734 or 706cb a shot.  The 2 bass I lost recently were incredibly angry jumpers pushing 22" right at the boat.  Either one would have been my largest bass in the last 2 months and I don't like this trend!  All sorts of memories are coming back to me about why some people like glass rods for these fish.

 

scott

8 hours ago, GetFishorDieTryin said:

Thats where a longer rod helps me out.  

I definitely understand that and its great advice.  Some swimjig bites are real similar and I have defintely found the 7'6" rod has treated me real well.

 

scott

2 minutes ago, softwateronly said:

The 2 bass I lost recently were incredibly angry jumpers pushing 22" right at the boat. 

The biggest largemouth I have caught this season was a 20 3/4 incher, ironically, on a chatterbait. It jumped too. It’s actually the biggest largie I have caught in almost 3 seasons.

7 minutes ago, gimruis said:

The biggest largemouth I have caught this season was a 20 3/4 incher, ironically, on a chatterbait. It jumped too. It’s actually the biggest largie I have caught in almost 3 seasons.

For me, the chatterbait is a big fish bait.  Numbers are rarely good, but the big girls seem to find them.  Now I upsize my trailers, using 6" spunk shads or 7" jerky J's which probably is a self fulfilling prophecy regarding the lack of numbers.  I see you're in Pike territory, one good thing about night fishing with large profile baits is those toothy critters haven't stolen much from me this summer.

 

scott

11 hours ago, softwateronly said:

For me, the chatterbait is a big fish bait.  Numbers are rarely good, but the big girls seem to find them.  Now I upsize my trailers, using 6" spunk shads or 7" jerky J's which probably is a self fulfilling prophecy regarding the lack of numbers.  I see you're in Pike territory, one good thing about night fishing with large profile baits is those toothy critters haven't stolen much from me this summer.

 

scott

It largely depends on what the trailer is as you stated.  I don't use a big plastic trailer like you do most of the time so that may correlate with catching smaller fish.  Being in Illinois you most likely have bigger bass than we do in Minnesota as well.  There is a new, bigger bladed version of Zman chatterbait just released that I may give a try (if I can find one for sale nearby).

 

Pike are an ongoing problem with spinnerbaits, chatterbaits, frogs, crank baits, etc.  Basically anything that makes some noise and is a moving lure, they love.  And now that the water has cooled, they are on the rampage.  I have been experimenting with leader material the last couple seasons to avoid being bit off too.  Some works better than others.

 

I did manage to catch quite a large tiger muskie back in August on a chatterbait though which was freaking awesome.  The skirt is shredded and the plastic trailer was mangled, but that's a fair trade off for me in this specific case.

Get whichever 3 power G Loomis MBR version you can afford. Great with almost everything:

Jigs, T rigs, top water, spinnerbaits, chatterbaits, and swimbaits (belly hook).

I think a softer rod gives you more advantages then just a higher landing %.  They cast farther with less effort and IMO it allows gives the bait a better action compared to a stiff rod.  

Its really important to constantly check the hook on a chatterbait and make sure its sticky sharp.  A good hook sharpener that can draw out a rolled point quickly is a must IMO. 

 

On 9/15/2021 at 11:23 AM, ironbjorn said:

Dobyns Sierra 704c or 684c if you prefer shorter. The rod is rated as H/F but Dobyns H is others MH and MH is others M and so on. The Sierra in particular is on the slower side or F, behaving more like a MF. It is THE "budget" Dobyns rod of choice for chatterbaits, spinnerbaits, swimjigs, lipless crankbaits etc. And it still makes for a pretty darn good rod for many other techniques like Texas rigs, 3/8oz jigs + trailer, some top waters, etc. 

 

$160

 

To me this is the most versatile rod in the world. If I could only have one rod it would be the 4 power Sierra, even if you gave me a $800 budget.

Spot on assessment in regards to the Sierra, I use a Serria 703c for chatterbaits/squarebills and find it's just right for most horizontal moving presentations. 

Absolute best rod I have found for this is the St. Croix Mojo Bass spinnerbait rod. Runs about $140. Normally I would not recommend a spinnerbait rod because many are too fast and stiff in the tip but this one is a 7 foot medium-heavy moderate-fast rod. It is a super soft tip and then good backbone. Perfect rod for spinerbaits as well, but people often like stiffer rods than this one. 

1 hour ago, Cody28 said:

Absolute best rod I have found for this is the St. Croix Mojo Bass spinnerbait rod. Runs about $140. Normally I would not recommend a spinnerbait rod because many are too fast and stiff in the tip but this one is a 7 foot medium-heavy moderate-fast rod. It is a super soft tip and then good backbone. Perfect rod for spinerbaits as well, but people often like stiffer rods than this one. 

This is the exact rod I use with 30# braid and a Metanium MG DC.

4 hours ago, Drew03cmc said:

This is the exact rod I use with 30# braid and a Metanium MG DC.

I personally like 15 lb Invisx just to add a hair more stretch and I sometimes fish the stealth blade jackhammer in clear water situation, but I could see it working great with braid too. That mod-fast tip gives a lot of forgiveness. 

2 hours ago, Cody28 said:

I personally like 15 lb Invisx just to add a hair more stretch and I sometimes fish the stealth blade jackhammer in clear water situation, but I could see it working great with braid too. That mod-fast tip gives a lot of forgiveness. 

Project Z is my choice, 3/8 for shallow water or 1/2oz for current or fishing a hair deeper. I have a few jack hammers left, but prefer to fish the OG, Elite and PZ. I have zero fish caught on any of the 35 Jackhammers I have owned. 

16 hours ago, Drew03cmc said:

I have zero fish caught on any of the 35 Jackhammers I have owned. 

 

This is one of the more bananas statements I've ever read.  Lol without trailers that's like a $500 investment... Zero fish!?!?

16 hours ago, Drew03cmc said:

 I have zero fish caught on any of the 35 Jackhammers I have owned. 

 I would be more than willing to relieve you of those completely useless things.

A-Jay

1 hour ago, ajschn06 said:

 

This is one of the more bananas statements I've ever read.  Lol without trailers that's like a $500 investment... Zero fish!?!?

Yep, sold em awhile back. 

59 minutes ago, A-Jay said:

 I would be more than willing to relieve you of those completely useless things.

A-Jay

Already gone or I would have taken you up on this.

21 hours ago, Drew03cmc said:

Project Z is my choice, 3/8 for shallow water or 1/2oz for current or fishing a hair deeper. I have a few jack hammers left, but prefer to fish the OG, Elite and PZ. I have zero fish caught on any of the 35 Jackhammers I have owned. 

Thats crazy! When Im having a tough time I switch to a jackhammer and then it usually gets bit. Different waters different tactics I guess. 

On 9/20/2021 at 10:15 PM, Drew03cmc said:

 I have zero fish caught on any of the 35 Jackhammers I have owned. 

Must be our lakes here. I found a black and blue one and fished it for a solid hour, 1 fish. Went to one of my baits and went back through the same area and caught several ?‍♂️ 2 pretty different vibrations but hard to think it made that big of difference. 

For y'all having bite from behind hook-set challenges, consider trying braid with a leader. You won't need to get much movement to get that hook good and set. Yeah I know it's a PITA to fiddle with a leader. I prefer a little softer rod with braid though. Or at least try it on heavier line which should start stretching later in your hookset. 

6 hours ago, Bluebasser86 said:

Must be our lakes here. I found a black and blue one and fished it for a solid hour, 1 fish. Went to one of my baits and went back through the same area and caught several ?‍♂️ 2 pretty different vibrations but hard to think it made that big of difference. 

I have fished them everywhere and I cannot get a hit. I throw yours or a Project Z and I am in. 

Doesn’t matter what I use for a rod I can’t catch a bladed jig fish to save my life. I’ve tried the original chatter bait, freedom, jackhammer, thunder cricket. The foggy( skirted and unskirted). I have a severe curse with jackhammers. Shortly after I tie them on they end up at the bottom of the lake  one way or the other. Since where talking rods lately it’s been the falcon head turner in the expert series. It should be great. Cast great, handles them great.  Pops them through everything well. Just can’t comment on how it handles a bladed jig fish. In my dreams it’s fantastic. 
now I’m sad. 

1 minute ago, Derek1 said:

Doesn’t matter what I use for a rod I can’t catch a bladed jig fish to save my life.

I think your fish are finicky...both of these on a Z-Man Original with a Pit Boss trailer

 

4 hours ago, MN Fisher said:

I think your fish are finicky...both of these on a Z-Man Original with a Pit Boss trailer

 

Nope it’s me lol. I’ve been out on more then one occasion where my buddies where catching. One time on my friends boat we were using the same exact jackhammer and trailer. He caught 10. I lost one.  Lol. 

The rod I use is the KK Speed Demon Pro Chatterbait Rod. 

Not sure if you did pull the trigger on a rod yet but remember black Friday or cyber Monday sadly is approaching fast lol. Can maybe get that next level of quality at your desired price point. I use a poison Adrena mh/ regular fast and love that power and action for 3/8 to 1/2 ounce chatterbaits. Good luck!