I live in an area where our main baitfish are bluegill and crawdads. I’ve tried using minnows with LiveScope and have caught a few, but nothing with great consistency or success. That said, this post isn’t just about minnows—it’s about choosing the right tool for the job, especially now that LiveScope has become such a dominant factor in how we fish.

 

I still keep my “old school” baits—like spinnerbaits for spring—but I’ve found that “new age” baits like the Magdraft have mostly replaced them, mainly because they’re easier to track on LiveScope. Of course, in dirty water or heavy wood cover, a spinnerbait is still the right tool for the job.

 

The issue I’m running into is deck space. Between all my forward-facing sonar baits and my traditional baits, I’m running with 12 rods on the deck at all times. What’s the right system for managing this? Are other anglers starting to eliminate the old-school baits completely, or is there a better way to streamline and balance both approaches?

I usually carry four rods that includes a fast moving bait, a slow moving bait, a finesse bait, and a jighead minnow to try to get them to feed up such as...

 

1 crankbait

2 football jig

3 neko rig or drop shot

4 jighead minnow

 

This usually covers all of the bases for me to target aggressive fish and inactive fish both... 

Depends on the size of the deck the boat has, I would say.

 

My deck really only has room for 4 max.  I do not lay them on top of each other either.  Even then, laying next to each other, the tips/line can sometimes get tangled, which I hate.

 

When I see pros that have like a dozen stacked on each side of their deck, I always wonder how they can keep them from getting tangled.  Can't figure that out.

 

7 hours ago, GoneFishingLTN said:

I live in an area where our main baitfish are bluegill and crawdads. I’ve tried using minnows with LiveScope and have caught a few, but nothing with great consistency or success. That said, this post isn’t just about minnows—it’s about choosing the right tool for the job, especially now that LiveScope has become such a dominant factor in how we fish.

 

I still keep my “old school” baits—like spinnerbaits for spring—but I’ve found that “new age” baits like the Magdraft have mostly replaced them, mainly because they’re easier to track on LiveScope. Of course, in dirty water or heavy wood cover, a spinnerbait is still the right tool for the job.

 

The issue I’m running into is deck space. Between all my forward-facing sonar baits and my traditional baits, I’m running with 12 rods on the deck at all times. What’s the right system for managing this? Are other anglers starting to eliminate the old-school baits completely, or is there a better way to streamline and balance both approaches?

 

I can comfortably have 5 rods out- 4 on deck and one in my hand- all on the passenger side of the boat.  If more are casting rods than spinning rods I can go up to 6 or 7 in total.  I don't like to, but I can.  Generally they stay separated and I'm not running any big or rough water or at any speed so I don't even strap them down.  From a 'how many lures' perspective, I will go in phases throughout the trip.  If it is a morning trip, I'm normally throwing a topwater first and have another moving bait in backup (spinnerbait, bladed jig, etc).  I'm not using FFS much if at all that time of day.  Then as the day progresses and the fish stop looking up I will pull out a texas rig or jig without putting anything away.  When I progress to a finesse rig, I've probably put the topwater away.  Similar if I'm on a lake where open water FFS is important- I'll pull out the rods that I fish for that set of techniques and normally put other stuff away.

 

I hear what you're saying about some baits fishing better for FFS and some not.  But there is no scenario where I need to have a dozen rods on the deck- depending on the lake, time of day, what the fish are saying, etc there are only 3-5 things that I will be throwing at any given minute.  If the lake and the fish are lining up where throwing a texas rig into grass is the answer, then I probably don't have a jighead minnow on the deck.  I might have a neko rig or jig.  I might have a frog or toad.  I'll be looking at FFS to see where the grass is and what the bottom contours are, but not looking at fish.  If I'm on a lake where isolated rock piles are the thing, then I don't have a bladed jig or spinnerbait on deck.  That's going to be a jighead minnow, neko/dropshot, maybe a jerkbait, maybe a bigger swimbait.  Regardless of the specific situation happening, I don't need a dozen rods for all those baits.  

 

19 minutes ago, gim said:

Depends on the size of the deck the boat has, I would say.

 

My deck really only has room for 4 max.  I do not lay them on top of each other either.  Even then, laying next to each other, the tips/line can sometimes get tangled, which I hate.

 

When I see pros that have like a dozen stacked on each side of their deck, I always wonder how they can keep them from getting tangled.  Can't figure that out.

 

 

If you watch some of them, if they are laying the rod down for more than a little bit they do the line twist around the guides trick.  And lures are usually hooked onto the reel in some way.

I normally carry 4 on the deck. It’s not too much effort to pull rods from the locker if needed.

 

I don’t have FFS on my boat, so I keep a crankbait, spinnerbait, free rig and dropshot on the deck - other stuff is in the locker until called for. 

Not running FFS / LifeScope currently...

 

I'm very particular about floor space in my boat. I might have an extra rod laying along the shelf to the left (you can barely see the reel), and sometimes put a few on the floor. I'm paranoid about stepping on or breaking a rod. I like the clean floor plan option.

 

The rest are tucked away in the center rod-locker. It's pretty easy to get them in and out.

 

And when it's time to run, or pack up and head to the ramp...I'm already most of the way there with this layout.

 

 

 

2 hours ago, gim said:

Depends on the size of the deck the boat has, I would say.

 

My deck really only has room for 4 max.  I do not lay them on top of each other either.  Even then, laying next to each other, the tips/line can sometimes get tangled, which I hate.

 

When I see pros that have like a dozen stacked on each side of their deck, I always wonder how they can keep them from getting tangled.  Can't figure that out.

 

How about I wonder how many they crush when stepping on them. I just can't believe how they leave no space to move around. 

I take 3 rods on almost all of my trips, 1 casting, 2 spinning. These cover almost ever thing I need to do. I have no problem cutting off a bait and thing a different one one. I don’t need a rod for every technique I use. I went out with a friend who had 14 rods on the deck. He had a different bait in each rod. He used 3 rods that day. He said it was too much of a hassle digging thru the rods when he wanted one. Everyone has different ideas on what’s best for them. I try to make fishing easier, not harder. YMMV

1 hour ago, Dwight Hottle said:

How about I wonder how many they crush when stepping on them. I just can't believe how they leave no space to move around. 

haha yeah, that too

I fish alone, (without ffs) own too many rigs, and spend a lot of time chasing schoolies this time of year.  I almost always have a deep crank, scrounger, br fish, kastmaster spoon, little cleo, underspin, and a jighead minnow ready.  That's 7 rigs ready for when they start busting the surface.  Then I have a worm rod, jig rod, and swim jig set up not to mention a couple daily random choices when I'm attacking structure/cover waiting for them to show themselves out in the open.  That's at least 10, usually more;  I just embrace the deck chaos because I see no other way.

 

scott

One solution is use small snaps like size 1 Owner Hyper weld and change lures quickly. The small snaps are very strong and light weight that don’t change the lure action, in fact improves the action on most minnow/jig, crank baits and spoons.

Rods with the same line and similar power/action you only 1 in lieu of 3 or 4.

I know it’s not copacetic for bass fishing but fishing outside school bass fishing is new to the majority of anglers.

Instarted using size 2 Hyper Weld snaps a few year ago for crank baits and a back seater use the size 1 for jerk baits, walking dog surface lures, small swim jigs etc., save carrying more then 3 or 4 rod combos.

Tom

PS, the Pro Hyper weld snaps are black.

 

 

Great news is that if you don't have a co-angler you can get another five or six in that spot. 

 

I feel your pain. I'm often toggling back and forth between outside weed edge and true offshore.

 

2x big swimbait (hard and soft, or diff sizes of soft)

2x hover/minnow/damiki

a-rig

jerkbait 

 

jig

t rig

bladed jig (sometimes x2)

swimjig

long crank rod (usually for mid or deep cranks, scrounger)

shorter crank rod (sqbill, flatsides)

neko

frog

 

sometimes a drop shot but I'm trying to lean into the neko given recent "FFS in texas" results

 

I'm sure I forgot one. 

 

It's too much, but I'm also messing around a lot learning what I can get the offshore fish to bite. Mostly I'd catch more fish if I just use FFS like 360 and cover good water. I'm betting that won't always be the case though. 

 

To many rods on deck is a sign that the fish aren't cooperating, I know.

 

Should I buy Livescope for my pond?

 

I'm very much a "don't yuck somebody else's yum" sort of dude when it comes to hobbies, so please read this question as coming from a place of genuine curiosity. 

 

How did you find yourself running a dozen rods on deck at all times? That feels like a choice driven by some super interesting experiences I'd love to hear about!

51 minutes ago, Rucksack said:

I'm very much a "don't yuck somebody else's yum" sort of dude when it comes to hobbies, so please read this question as coming from a place of genuine curiosity. 

 

How did you find yourself running a dozen rods on deck at all times? That feels like a choice driven by some super interesting experiences I'd love to hear about!

I’ve gotten to that point a few times more than I care to admit, especially in tournament situations when the fish have no intentions of cooperating with me. It was worse in the days before I learned to ignore the weekly fishing reports and stick with what I know works. After kicking a couple rods over the side, I went to my 4 on the deck.

On 7/22/2025 at 7:17 AM, GoneFishingLTN said:

I live in an area where our main baitfish are bluegill and crawdads. I’ve tried using minnows with LiveScope and have caught a few, but nothing with great consistency or success. That said, this post isn’t just about minnows—it’s about choosing the right tool for the job, especially now that LiveScope has become such a dominant factor in how we fish.

 

I still keep my “old school” baits—like spinnerbaits for spring—but I’ve found that “new age” baits like the Magdraft have mostly replaced them, mainly because they’re easier to track on LiveScope. Of course, in dirty water or heavy wood cover, a spinnerbait is still the right tool for the job.

 

The issue I’m running into is deck space. Between all my forward-facing sonar baits and my traditional baits, I’m running with 12 rods on the deck at all times. What’s the right system for managing this? Are other anglers starting to eliminate the old-school baits completely, or is there a better way to streamline and balance both approaches?

I have a Pelican Bass Raider 10 that I run forward facing sonar on. I have the Lowrance Eagle Eye 9 and the Lowrance Hook Reveal 9 TS mounted on a deck I built and also have my trolling motor mounted to the deck. That being said my deck space is extremely limited. I am only able to comfortably bring 6 rods, so I choose wisely on what I bring for the body of water I am fishing. Luckily my boat is designed specifically for the waters I fish and my tackle is too. This time of year I currently bring a frog rod, a jig rod, a cranking stick, a spinnerbait/bladed jig rod, and 2 spinning rods, one with either a fluke or senko, and the other one has my minnow that's either on a standard jig head or hover rig. If the topwater bite is on I usually tie a walking bait on to my cranking stick and a popper on to one of my spinning rods. I think 6 rods on the deck is more than enough if you know the water you are fishing. Even if it is a new body of water you could usually do just fine with 6 combos. I will sometimes throw an extra reel with braided line on the boat and could switch it to one of my rods if I need to. 

13 hours ago, Rucksack said:

 

How did you find yourself running a dozen rods on deck at all times? That feels like a choice driven by some super interesting experiences I'd love to hear about!

I know myself well enough to know that if I get the vibe to try something and I have to stop and dig another rod out, it's probably not going to happen. I do run paper-clip style clips on the jerkbait, short crank, and long cranking rods. 

 

I forgot carolina rig in my rod list above. That's definitely one I want setup already. 

 

The backdrop is that I like to experiment though. I'm known to take a bait that's working well and immediately put it down and start trying something else to see if I can learn something. 

 

I meant to take a picture last night but was so fed up with the tangles I just had to clean it up and put them away.

 

I was fishing a lake where I knew I was going to be using FFS all night.  I had 3 spinning rods rigged, my BFS rod, and my big swimbait rod.  But, I had two lures that I wanted to trial for action (new to me lures) so at one point I had 4 casting rods and 3 spinning rods out.  There was no way I could have fished like that. I had to stack casting on top of spinning to have enough room to walk up to the trolling motor.  I had a half dozen casts with each new lure and quickly put those rods away.  As it was, 3 spinning rods is too much on the deck.  They stick out soo far that you can't get any 'nesting' of rods together like you do with casting rods.  6 casting rods would be fine.  3 spinning is not.

 

23 hours ago, Swamp Girl said:

Should I buy Livescope for my pond?

 

 

 

Nah, just a flogger.  

When you think about it, we as humans fish paranoid. So worried about failure that it consumes our souls to the point of over worrying and overthinking
 

I’m just a bank fisherman, but even I can have this type of thing happen. There’s a reason my backpack weighs 12-15lbs. However, I also feel the need to have variety due to limited mobility. I typically carry 2 rods and will take three if I’m parked close by or can sit and play around in a good spot for awhile. If I’m run and gun; my bag and MH casting rod in seek and destroy mode

 

If you’re worried about deck clutter; strip it down and force your discipline and confidence. Even though I know I’m far from a good fisherman or any kind of best…you wouldn’t know that if you could get in my head lol

On 7/22/2025 at 4:46 PM, looking45 said:

I went out with a friend who had 14 rods on the deck. He had a different bait in each rod. He used 3 rods that day. He said it was too much of a hassle digging thru the rods when he wanted one. Everyone has different ideas on what’s best for them. I try to make fishing easier, not harder. 

Dude, I didn't know we had fished together before?!?

 

 

I started this past Saturday's tournament with 14 rods on the deck of my 1448. Part of the reason is because our trail makes the lakes off limits the two days before and I'm not usually willing to burn PTO on a Wednesday to practice for a $40 buy in. Add the fact that we fish 10 different lakes/rivers in a season and it's a recipe for going in blind more often than not. It doesn't help that I'm very analytical in my fishing and always looking for ways to be slightly more efficient. That means bringing extra rods to reduce downtime retying and having a lot of options at my finger tips to test things from dirt shallow to 40 feet. The only thing I've found to be helpful so far is putting unused rods away in the locker once I start to lock in on a pattern. A co-angler with small feet and good balance would help. 

 

One thing I do plan to try is some of the neoprene hook-proof rod sleeves for the ones in the rod locker. I hate going in there because I know it's going to be a battle getting to the rod I want and getting it out without tangling all the others. If I could store 10 rods in there with easy access, 8 on the deck would be very manageable. 

 

One tip I do with that many rods on the deck is to put all the treble hooked baits towards the outside. Reduces the risk of accidentally taking a hook to the foot.