Northwest Fishing Reports

Hey guys,

I am looking to get a new rod. I want a baitcasting setup. Specific rods are not needed but suggestions in weight and action based on the type of fishing I do. I fish in some seriously heavy lily pads and milfoil with senkos and grubs. ( I have others baits as well)

I currently have a 7" medion spinning rod and like the lenght, and a 5"6' M ugly stik spinning rod just because

I as thinking about getting a 7" MH baitcasting rig. I want to start using jigs more often as well.

let me know your tips and any questions that could help you all make a good suggestion.

EXPERIENCED ANGLERS ONLY:colors:

All I use are Ugly sticks. I guess that can explain my success lol. Pretty much Ugly sticks are my favorite because they have a lifetime warrantee. So if I ever break 1, I just take it back to the store and get a new 1. I stick in the 7' range as well.

if you are gonna be casting i would suggest a 7', but if you are gonna flip and pitch more at closer range then i'd go with a 7' 6". and yeah i would go with MH. do you already have a baitcasting reel or you got one in mind?

noclothes1 wrote:Hey guys,

I am looking to get a new rod. I want a baitcasting setup. Specific rods are not needed but suggestions in weight and action based on the type of fishing I do. I fish in some seriously heavy lily pads and milfoil with senkos and grubs. ( I have others baits as well)

I currently have a 7" medion spinning rod and like the lenght, and a 5"6' M ugly stik spinning rod just because

I as thinking about getting a 7" MH baitcasting rig. I want to start using jigs more often as well.

let me know your tips and any questions that could help you all make a good suggestion.

EXPERIENCED ANGLERS ONLY:colors:

Sounds like a good start if your fishing heavy cover, 7' MH. Stick with graphite rods, with a fast action. Just make sure to try the rig out before you buy it, and what I mean is go to a store and take the reel you want to buy and put it on the rod and feel the rig out. Make sure it's comfortable for a long day of casting or flipping.

Your going to want to have feel in your rod if your working plastics, so I'd stick away from the Ugly stiks...

If its your first baitcaster then the more money you spend the easier it will be to learn how to use it.

regardless of what you want dont forget you will get what you pay for.

basically any baitcaster under $100 is crap with the exception of maybe a few that will be great to start but then crap after a year (like bps reels). If you stick with something around the $150-$200 rang you will do well. A few suggestions are curados, revo st or stx, and pflueger supreme. I'm no saying there isn't a reel out there that is great for a first timer and under $100 but these are more like win win situations. Before you pick one go to a local store and hold them all in your hands because they vary in size and shape. Stick with something around a 6:2.1 ration and 28" of line recovery or lower (assuming you will use the reel for multiple tactics). High speed reels are only good for a few different styles of fishing.

As for the rod you can use jigs in so many different ways it would be hard to pin point one type of rod to buy because there are so many specialty type rods on the market. The only all purpose rod Ive ever seen is made by kistler http://www.kistlerrods.com/p/KR/c-/MgAPSMH69.html . I wouldn't even know where to start as far as rod info goes. Just to many options unless you want just a flippin rod look at something by Lamiglass.

You will probably get so many different suggestions that in the end going to the store and just buying what you like might be the best road for you.

noclothes1 wrote:Hey guys,

I am looking to get a new rod. I want a baitcasting setup. Specific rods are not needed but suggestions in weight and action based on the type of fishing I do. I fish in some seriously heavy lily pads and milfoil with senkos and grubs. ( I have others baits as well)

go to

www.shimano.com

:king:

download the rod catalog. look up the specific rod characteristics you are looking for. shimano should have a few rods for that task. they will tell you what action and power the rod gives you. they will also suggest lure weights and sizes recommended for that rod.

If a 7" rod is your ideal length, I might suggest a thread spool and a coffee stirrer...:bigsmurf: :brilsmurf

Sorry, I couldn't resist. I would pay close attention to the suggested lure weight of the baitcast reel when you are purchasing it. The only decent casts I had were with >1.5oz of weight on the line (12lb test). I ended up returning my Pflueger Trion because it birdnested 75% of the time and just stuck with my spinning setup. Some of my problem is that I didn't have anyone around to show me proper technique (you can't learn how to do everything from the internet) so I would definitely suggest teaming up with a willing angler with baitcasting experience you first few times out with it.

I know Sam and I could argue all day about Ugly Sticks, but don't discount them entirely. The Ugly Stick Lite does have action to it and is an excellent rod for the money. In the end get what you feel most comfortable with and tell us what you got and how it works for you.

Eastside:
By no means am I against Ugly Stiks. They were some of the first rods I used when I became a more serious fishermen quite a few years ago and even today I have two of them. Bought one maybe a month ago...

I do agree, for the money, they probably are the best value rods you can find for $40...I just think for soft, weightless plastics usage, I'd like to have a bit more feeling that the Ugly Stiks don't provide enough of.

No worries, I didn't intend it as an attack. No harm, no foul... its not like I get money from Shakespeare or anything.

Without knowing Noclothes' budget I wouldn't want him to discount getting an Ugly Stick for the same reason as a low-tier baitcasting reel. I equate a good rod to a good pen. The most expensive may work really well and look nice, but I'll always grab a Bic medium before my MontBlanc for its pure utility and ability to get the job done with no fussing. For rods the cost/benefit just doesn't pan out for me like it does with the improvement gained per dollar in reels.

EastsideRedneck wrote:I ended up returning my Pflueger Trion because it birdnested 75% of the time and just stuck with my spinning setup.

i have a trion and i think it's a great real for the price, got mine from a guy on another site over a year ago and it's still as good as new! but...for pitchin & flippin pads and stuff i would suggest a quantum accurist pt with the flippin switch. it's a really awesome real for $120.

WOW! thanks for all the advice. Forgive me if I don't respond to you each individually.

I was hoping to get an inexpensive baitcaster to learn on, and maybe buy a better reel if the one crapped out. That way I could spread out the cost.

So for fishing weightless plastics, like senkos, I'd want a 7' or 7'6" M action, graphite with a fast tip.
My 7' spinner is M action graphite already

For jigs I'd want a 7' MH.

am I on par?

So should I look toward a MH? That is what I was thinking.

I want to spend under $100 or less, my wife just gave birth to our first so I'm poor now.

check it:
http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/store ... 00_100-3-1

http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/store ... 00_100-3-1

http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/store ... 00_100-3-1

http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/store ... 00_100-3-1

as you can see they are all cheap, and probably junk, but I'll have a hard time convincing the wife to let me buy a decent rod and a good reel at the same time. So if I can get a cheap combo, with a decent pole, then when the reel craps out I'll have an excuse to buy a better reel.

I only fish from shore so it's not like I'm KVD or anything

Thanks guys I'll seriously consider all your suggestions

noclothes1:

You can base a lot about those combos on what people have wrote and realistically that's all you really have to go on since we dont have a BPS up here. They will all do you well for simple learning and it sounds like that's what you really want. If you have a hard time learning just keep with it because it is possible regardless of how much the gear cost.

thanks.

I wish we had a BPS around here. Let's start a petition!

So for the weightless senkos and grubs in some think lilypads and milfoil would a Medium or MH 7' work best?

fenwich makes a great rod with spincasting and baitcasting and for lily pad and seaweed ull want mh

noclothes1 wrote:thanks.

I wish we had a BPS around here. Let's start a petition!

So for the weightless senkos and grubs in some think lilypads and milfoil would a Medium or MH 7' work best?

Who knows, if Cabelas finds success up here BPS may follow.

noclothes1 wrote:thanks.

I wish we had a BPS around here. Let's start a petition!

So for the weightless senkos and grubs in some think lilypads and milfoil would a Medium or MH 7' work best?

7' MH is an all around rod you can use for jigs, senkos, spinnerbaits,and so on. It would be a good start!

I second that about the BPS around here.

One more thing if you're ordering on line and this is your first baitcaster. The right hand models mean you reel with your right hand and vice versa for the left, completely opposite from the spincasts. I'm right handed and I feel more comfortable reeling with my left hand and holding my rod with my right, so I had to buy a "Left handed" model. I always had huge debates with my fishing buddies about this concept.

EastsideRedneck wrote:

noclothes1 wrote:thanks.

I wish we had a BPS around here. Let's start a petition!

So for the weightless senkos and grubs in some think lilypads and milfoil would a Medium or MH 7' work best?

Who knows, if Cabelas finds success up here BPS may follow.

Cabelas? I'll have to check it out.

yeah there's gonna be a cabelas in lacy, still in the process of building it though.

The BPS Tourney Special is a very good all round combo. I have 3 of them and one of them is set up for just what you are talking about. Mine is a 7' MH and works very well. Don't let the cost fool you. You don't have to break the bank to get equipment that will both work well and last for a long time. I am on the water at least once a week and most the time 2-3 times a week, and this rod is always either on the deck of the boat or in my hands and have never had any issues with it.