Kokanee Rods

[Steelheadin360]

With Koke season quickly approaching and the kids wanting to fish more and more i need to pick up a few extra koke rods for my boat. I'm currently using the Tica 8' kokanee rods with abu 5501's and to be honest i dont like them , so im gonna replace them and save them for when i have an extra body in the boat. Nice soft tip for kokes but when im fishing lake patterson in winthrop and get on a 6# bow they have no backbone. So Im thinking about going to the Lami Jared Johnson 8' rods but havent heard a hole lot about them.

What rod/reel combo do you guys use for downrigger koke fishin?

[TroutSnipr]

Those Lami rods are the red finished glass blend ones right? There is also a white finished ltd edition "Team Kokanee' one as well that I was checking out at Sportco that is a micro-guide downrigger rod for about the same price. My brother in law has a couple of the 'red' rods and seems to like them quite well and says he hasn't had any quality issues with them.

https://www.kokaneetackle.com/p-642-lam ... r802l.aspx" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[jd39]

I use lamiglass kokanee rods with Abu black max's with 10 lb mainline. Last season was my first season targeting kokes specifically, did ok but still have lot's to learn and improve on. I'm now pretty much obessed with catching these little beauties and can't wait for this season.
My favorite lami koke rod so far is the red one that is 7'6", I've also used it for cutts on Sammamish which are larger and pull harder and the set up does fine. Not sure about a 6# fish though. Okuma/SST makes a kokanee rod that has more backbone b/c it's graphite and not full glass like the lamis, it's not that expensive either ~$50 at Outdoor/Sportco. I'd probably use a snubber with the SST kokanne rod and take it off when targeting the bows. That's probably your best bet if you want it to handle both.
The white lami 8' kokanee rod is a great kokanee downrigging rod but if you hook a 6 lber with that might as well be fishing with a wet noodle.
I had a Tica kokanee rod but after using it ~5 times one of the eyelets came apart, have stayed away from Tica ever since.
For ~$50 you get a little more than you paid for with Abu's Black Max but not much so no complaints or praise for this reel. If I knew I'd be hooking 6# trout I'd probably invest a little more on the reel though.
Hope that helps, good luck to you!

[Steelheadin360]

thanks for the input guys!

[narrows11]

What is the difference between a Kokanee rod & reel and a trout rod & reel?

[Steelheadin360]

reels are all pretty much the same. For downriggers you just want a good levelwind with a clicker incase you miss a take and beasty is peeling off some line.

The poles is were the difference is. 90% of "trout" rods are made from a stiffer graphite based blank and might have a sentive tip but don't offer alot of mid-rod flexiablity that is a must have for soft fish mouths. You can fish kokes on a trout rod but you will lose alot of fish due to the rod being stiff and not bending. Kokanee poles on the other hand are made from meterails like fiberglass and our very "bendy". if your grab the tip and pull it down the hole rod will bend, and it will do that very easily. wiggle the pole and it will do the funky chicken kinda like a fly rod. and the reason for that is so when those little chrome footballs and doing their insane head shakes and doing the tornado at the side of your boat the pole will bend with the fish instead of just tearing the hooks out. but at the same time some have a stiff butt section for applying power when needed. kokes dont need power, reel very very slowly and do not horse them and use a good "bendy". Hope that helps a little

[jd39]

What is the difference between a Kokanee rod & reel and a trout rod & reel?

Mainly flexibility, kokanee have softer mouths. The ultra flexable kokanee rods help prevent the hook from being pulled out. Generally speaking i use my kokanee trolling set ups for trout as well. So far it's been effective but the trout have been 1.5 lbs or smaller, kokanee sized basically. For bigger trout, say above 4 lbs, i'd start gearing up a bit if i was catching them consistently. Reels are the same to my knowledge.

[narrows11]

Alright thanks guys! Pumped to slay some footballs this upcoming season

[Idstud]

I have a daiwa heartland Kokanee downrigger rod that preforms very nice for me. This last summer I was playing in banks with it after reading they had planted koks in there in the past and hooked a 23inch walleye and it handled it okay. I was nervous. The lami red kok rods are nice as well I got one for my wife and have other friends that use them and catch bigger fish with them such as trout.

[Mike Carey]

I have caught koks with the red lami and totally love the rod, and my success rate is quite high with it. At Ed Iman's Fish Camp this year I got to speak with the Lamiglas rep and he told me the white rods would absolutely work on sockeye and he had anglers using the white kok rods on Baker. I will admit to being a Doubting Thomas to that statement, but I did get a good deal and updated all my other rods to the white lami rods. So this year it's all Lami rods for me and yes, I will give them a try on Baker, although the first one that gets ripped apart from a sockeye I will be contacting Lamiglas (if it happens)!

[jtmoore]

I dont think there is any better rod out there fore kokes than the fethystyx 761-2c I fish them for sockeye on baker as well

[Toni]

I have only had 3 kokanee rods. 1 okuma kokanee, 1 lamiglass (orange), 1 tica ul. They all work. I have had the tica the longest and have no problems with it. It is my favorite, next is the lamiglass, and lastly the Okuma.

If I get a new rod I would try the white lamiglass.

[TroutSnipr]

I don't see the Fetha Styx in their current lineup. Last I can find it looks to be a 2010-2011 model. It was also double the price of the red & white Lami koke rods @ $145.

[Steelheadin360]

he told me the white rods would absolutely work on sockeye and he had anglers using the white kok rods on Baker.

They have to replace them if the break so it would be fun to try out! I think I'm gonna go witht he white Lami's after hearing a little bit about them. Still got a bit to decide though, Greg doesnt get them in until next week. The real test will be patterson this may, 15+" kokes, monster bows, then get tied into a big smallie and see what they can do.

Thanks for all the input guys , I have kinda dabbled in kokanee fishing in the past but this year its gonna be my target fish, got the bug last year. so ill probably be asking a few more questions as the weeks go on.

[Toni]

he told me the white rods would absolutely work on sockeye and he had anglers using the white kok rods on Baker.

They have to replace them if the break so it would be fun to try out! I think I'm gonna go witht he white Lami's after hearing a little bit about them. Still got a bit to decide though, Greg doesnt get them in until next week. The real test will be patterson this may, 15+" kokes, monster bows, then get tied into a big smallie and see what they can do.

Thanks for all the input guys , I have kinda dabbled in kokanee fishing in the past but this year its gonna be my target fish, got the bug last year. so ill probably be asking a few more questions as the weeks go on.

If they have kokanee in Patterson Washingtonlakes.com needs to update the info on that lake page. http://washingtonlakes.com/LakeInfo.aspx?id=360&t=1

[Steelheadin360]

Patterson is my favorite lake to fish, huge hold over bows, kokes, perch, Lm and sm bass and ive heard rumors of tiger trout but i have no clue what they look like

[Mike Carey]

I will have to stop by the WDFW booth and ask them.

[Steelheadin360]

http://wdfw.wa.gov/fishing/washington/690/

http://wdfw.wa.gov/fishing/washington/species/9008/

[coretron22]

I have the red Jared Johnson Lami as well as 4 of the Okuma SST's (2 spinnning, 2 casting). I've landed a 37" Dolly on the Lami. My biggest fish ever.
I absolutely love the Red Lami - highly recommend it. It is a bit more whippy @ the tip than the Okumas. I use the Okumas as bank/shore rods mostly, but troll Ross Lake w/ both rods. When trolling with the Lami, the tip vibrates w/ the boat more than I like if I have it in the rod holder, so I prefer to hold it, which works out just fine because I can tell when a fish even looks @ my stuff it is so sensitive.
I like the SST line for it's value. There are better rods, but not for the same price IMO.

If I were going to Baker I'd definitely use the Red Lami. Playing big fish is a total hoot with a Koke rod. I've had numerous large Dollies and Bows up to 21" on it...no problem. No horsin' the fish in though.

[jd39]

he told me the white rods would absolutely work on sockeye and he had anglers using the white kok rods on Baker.

They have to replace them if the break so it would be fun to try out! I think I'm gonna go witht he white Lami's after hearing a little bit about them. Still got a bit to decide though, Greg doesnt get them in until next week. The real test will be patterson this may, 15+" kokes, monster bows, then get tied into a big smallie and see what they can do.

Thanks for all the input guys , I have kinda dabbled in kokanee fishing in the past but this year its gonna be my target fish, got the bug last year. so ill probably be asking a few more questions as the weeks go on.

Happy to help anyway I can, they're my #1 target when in season. Reading Toni's reports is how I got started, frankly I plagiarized her ideas and set ups to gain some confidence and put fish in the boat, then started striking out on my own / experimenting from there. Mike@Bills is another great kokanee fisher, there are a couple others too on this site. Toni's usually generous and will have her tackle in the picture with her fish (which is normally a limit!). I regard their reports as free education in kokanee fishing and remain grateful they're so generous with their knowledge. The best advice I can give is to take advantage of their reports.
Have never fished Patterson, looks like an awesome lake, hope I can make it out there sometime. Hope to see your reports of kokanee success from there soon too!