do you guys use the same rod length/action for your hard jerkbaits and soft jerkbaits? throwing a hard jerkbait is one of my favorite ways to catch green and brown fish, but i'm going to make it a conscious effort to throw more soft jerkbait style baits this upcoming season. i know lot's of guys throw flukes on spinning gear opposed to casting, but i feel much more efficient on my casting gear in this regard.

 

my current jerkbait setup is a 6'6 medium fast action daiwa tatula casting rod with a 6.3.1 tatula CT

The setup you have should be fine for both.

Sometimes I use a G. Loomis GLX 783C for soft plastic but it is my primary jerkbait rod.  It works great for both. 

I generally use the same rod for both (a M/F spinning).
 

The only exception is that I sometimes use a casting MH/F to throw the beefier soft jerkbaits (the old power jerk Shad) which have a firmer plastic that requires a little more oomph to get the hook through the plastic when setting the hook. It’s a little hard to cast at times but i add a 1/16 nail weight and bury it in the head of the bait to make casting a little easier.  For the standard super fluke with a 3/0 EWG the m/f either spinning or casting is fine. 

I use a st croix bassx m/xf 6’8” for my soft and hard jerkbait needs. I feel like it’s been a fantastic choice for me. 

1 hour ago, EWREX said:

do you guys use the same rod length/action for your hard jerkbaits and soft jerkbaits? throwing a hard jerkbait is one of my favorite ways to catch green and brown fish, but i'm going to make it a conscious effort to throw more soft jerkbait style baits this upcoming season. i know lot's of guys throw flukes on spinning gear opposed to casting, but i feel much more efficient on my casting gear in this regard.

 

my current jerkbait setup is a 6'6 medium fast action daiwa tatula casting rod with a 6.3.1 tatula CT

If you're throwing the fluke with a Tex-Posed round bend, EWG or even weighted worm hook,

as long as you can sink that hook, you should be good. 

A-Jay

 

11 minutes ago, A-Jay said:

If you're throwing the fluke with a Tex-Posed round bend, EWG or even weighted worm hook,

as long as you can sink that hook, you should be good. 

A-Jay

 

heavier gauge EWG to give it some weight 

10 minutes ago, EWREX said:

heavier gauge EWG to give it some weight 

Figured - So like a weightless Texas Rig.

 A Medium Heavy stick is usually my choice right there.

Especially fishing around a lot of hard & or soft cover.

OR

I'll go to a lighter wire hook and spinning gear with braid & a Mono leader.

But wait there's more - 

If you're in a mostly open water situation you can go nose hook with a even smaller hook.

Spinning gear here for sure.

Add an Owner CPS Centering Pin Spring to that rig and you're en fuego !

A-Jay

btw - sticking a small ball bearing swivel ahead of your bait can really help reduce line twist. 

 

1 minute ago, A-Jay said:

Figured - So like a weightless Texas Rig.

 A Medium Heavy stick is usually my choice right there.

Especially fishing around a lot of hard & or soft cover.

OR

I'll go to a lighter wire hook and spinning gear with braid & a Mono leader.

But wait there's more - 

If you're in a mostly open water situation you can go nose hook with a even smaller hook.

Spinning gear here for sure.

Add a screw lock to that rig and you're en fuego !

A-Jay

btw - sticking a small ball bearing swivel ahead of your bait can really help reduce line twist. 

 

i do have my 7’3 MH tatula elite i can use, especially with a heavier gauge hook that i can get a nice hook set on to drive that hook in. 

For hard jerk baits, you want a fast to medium fast, right?  Not heavy fast...I just started throwing Jerks and noticed they seem to have more erratic jerky action on a faster tip rod with less of a backbone.  Am I right?

54 minutes ago, Smallies said:

For hard jerk baits, you want a fast to medium fast, right?  Not heavy fast...I just started throwing Jerks and noticed they seem to have more erratic jerky action on a faster tip rod with less of a backbone.  Am I right?

definitely looking for more of a medium, fast action rod when throwing hard jerkbaits 

1 hour ago, Smallies said:

For hard jerk baits, you want a fast to medium fast, right?  Not heavy fast...I just started throwing Jerks and noticed they seem to have more erratic jerky action on a faster tip rod with less of a backbone.  Am I right?

also in colder water try to lengthen your pause in between your twitches to even as long as 8-10 seconds. most times you’ll get a nice reaction bite after that bait has been soaking for a bit. let the fish tell you what they want!

1 hour ago, Smallies said:

For hard jerk baits, you want a fast to medium fast, right?  Not heavy fast...I just started throwing Jerks and noticed they seem to have more erratic jerky action on a faster tip rod with less of a backbone.  Am I right?

yes you need something with enough give to help not tear the treble hooks out. but you dont want something so soft that the bait doesnt respond to subtle twitches.

I like a 6’10” medium fast baitcaster for both. 

You can definitely use the same rod for both so long as you have enough rod to drive home a jig style hook and still have a tip sufficient for working the hard bait. My personal preference is to use a spinning rod for hard jerkbaits and casting gear for flukes, but both of those rods could easily work for either bait.

I use 2 different rods. A hard jerkbait is a M XF and a soft jerkbait like a fluke is a MH F. Reason being, I am usually using a heavy wire EWG hook with the fluke. I sometimes only use a 1/8 oz weight or could be a 3/8 oz on a Carolina rig. 

MH fast casting for donkey rig. 
 

M fast spinning and casting for hard jerkbaits.  The spinning rod is something new that I will be experimenting with in 2022. 

Hard JB - 6'10" Med - Fast casting

Soft JB - 7'2" Med - Fast casting

after further thought and consideration i'll most likely be throwing soft jerkbaits on my 7'3 MH tatula elite since i beef my EWG up to add weight to the "weightless" rig

I throw them both on my top water rod, a 3 power mh/f. 

 

 

Mike

For hard jerkbaits I like a 6'6" m/f baitcaster, and for flukes I like a 6'6" mh/f baitcaster.  I'll be casting the soft jerkbaits in heavy cover, and hard jerkbaits in more open water.

On 1/4/2022 at 5:30 PM, EWREX said:

my current jerkbait setup is a 6'6 medium fast action daiwa tatula casting rod with a 6.3.1 tatula CT

That rod is a pretty stout medium. Should be just fine with a somewhat heavier gauge hook.

9 hours ago, EWREX said:

after further thought and consideration i'll most likely be throwing soft jerkbaits on my 7'3 MH tatula elite since i beef my EWG up to add weight to the "weightless" rig

You can just stick with the lighter wire hook and slip a tungsten pagoda weight into the fluke.