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Posts: 1536
Location: God's Country......USA..... Western Wisconsin | With which rod do you trully get more hooksetting POWER. I know you can move more line with say an 8 footer over a 6 footer. But do you really have more power out there that far a way from the fulcrum point. My answer to this is less power but more movement. The way to convince your self of this is pick up a brick with your hand close to your body and then pick up the same brick at arms length. Let me know which takes more "power" to do. Just more of me over analyzing during the long cold winter. |
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Posts: 956
| It personally think that the fish hook's itself when he tries to eat your lure. Your hook set only tightens the line so the he can't throw the bait.
So my vote would be for a longer rod that can pick up the line faster. |
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Posts: 135
Location: Elgin, IL | Kind of a personal question... but as it relates to fishing, I'd go with the long rod too. I don't think you necessarily get more hookset power with the longer rod either. But gaining a fraction of a second in line pick-up after getting bit might make the difference between a thrown bait and a photo opportunity.
And besides, who really wants to be saddled with the whole "short rod" syndrome anyhow??
Mark |
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Posts: 440
| I would like to know if people loose more fish on the short rods vs the long rod. I am a short person at 5'6" and fish out of a aluminum bass boat, so I am real close to the water. I get tired of slapping the water all the time with the 7' rod. I am really considering going down to a 6' for jerkbaits, I am just a little concerned about loosing fish. Are the short rods that bad for loosing fish? |
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Posts: 1023
Location: Lafayette, IN | |
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Posts: 1023
Location: Lafayette, IN | A good piece of advice worth considering... Do you have a bait made of softer wood that you especially like to fish with? A shorter rod may hinder your ability to move the bait greater distances on the retreive and even force you to make tighter figure 8's at the boat. However, it gives you more force to move the wood bait in the fish's mouth as he sinks his teeth into the body of the bait. That's one big advantage to the new "plastic" glide, jerk, and prop baits. They are simply harder for the toothy fish to penetrate therefore making it easier for us to use longer rods and still move the bait for a good hookset. I'm being persuaded to go to longer rods for the increased side to side action and the wider figure 8's. I'll just have to jerk harder now....which is ok with me!
Edited by stephendawg 2/11/2003 2:08 PM
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Posts: 58
Location: Edina, MN | For most jerk baits, I find it much easier to control them on a shorter rod. Had a 6' Compre and lost a ton of fish on it. I just don't feel in control of a fish unless there is a good bend on the rod and for me any fish under 40" was literally waterskiing over the surface as I brought them in. Many straightened hooks and lost fish. Picked up a 6'1" Diamondback custom jerkbait rod last summer and there is no comparison. Better pop in the bait and a softer tip to better control the fish. If you go short, you may want to consider a rod with some give in the very tip. |
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Posts: 1936
Location: Eau Claire, WI | Mike....
I think part of it depends on the "action" or how the rod is spined in terms of hooksetting abilities.
Personally I find myself migrating to longer 7' to my longest 8' rods, yea I still have a few 6'6" but don't use them much any more. Three reasons really....
1. I am getting older and my back and legs last longer if I'm not bending over all the time to do a proper figure 8.
2. With the new "no-strech" lines we use today I prefer a little longer rod with medium flex/action whatever you want to call it. Basically I like the rod to have some "bend" during the fight. This lends itself to minimizing the abiltity of the fish to generate slack line thus throwing the lure.
3. I also like a rod that will allow me to "take" or net the fish fairly quickly. Playing the fish out till the end almost guarantees higher mortality rates once the fish is released. |
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Posts: 115
| I would have to say ,the longer rod. It's time to get rid of those 5X hooks and go with some more sensable styles. Let your rod take the shock and not the hooks,line ,split rings and other key components.
The ice sure is thick this year.
Mike k. |
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Posts: 20281
Location: oswego, il | If I am popping or ripping a bait hard, I like my 6'2" jerkbait rod. I don't want a soft tip for that and it really makes a big difference on how a bait reacts that way. A pain to figure eight but I don't get alot of 8 going fish that way anyway. Everything else I like the longer rod for. I can't really say how one hooks better than the other, I think it's more on how the musky struck the bait.
Edited by ToddM 2/11/2003 9:27 PM
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Posts: 4520
Location: Chippewa Falls Wisconsin | I am 5'6" on a good day...lol and love long rods. I do use a 6'6" sometimes for 6" Reef Hawgs and small twithbaits, but I prefer to use 8' rods.
8' rods give you lots of control when working the lure around cover, and around the boat when a fish is on. Does it set the hook better?...yes and no... Like Bill Schwartz said, the fish really has a lot to do with the hookset, but being able to pick up line quicker is a plus to setting the hook with a longer rod.
Once you go 8' most anglers enjoy them. You have to spend sometime with them and get a feel for the rod and the length. I am a short person and still dont SLAP the water. I palm my reels and work my baits with the wrist, more then my arms, so the rod is not directly down infront of me. Your figure eights with the eight foot rod is where it really shines. You can make big eights and never even move or have to bend over.
7'6" is also not a bad choice. I still used a few of them for light bucktails and cranking. |
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Posts: 485
Location: On my favorite lake! | |
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Posts: 485
Location: On my favorite lake! | I have to disagree with most of you. I don't think a long rod makes a huge difference. I think it has more to do what kind of baits you are throwing. Typically with a long rod you throw cranks, bucktail, spinnerbaits and other high percentage hooking baits. Many who use the shorter rods like myself throw only jerkbaits or heavy baits with them. Jerkbaits have a much lower hooking percentage. I tried longer rods with the jerkbaits and found them no better for a hook up percentage. There are advantages to both types of rods. I like longer rods if I want to make longer casts or I am using light baits. If I am throwing something heavy or want to make a pinpoint cast, I'd take the shorter bait because it is easier to control. Both long and shorter rods have there place! I have 2 6ft. rods, a 6'3, a 6'6, 7'0 and a 7'6. I tried a 8ft. but I didn't get one because I felt I didn't have good control with it because it |
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Short rod vs Long rod