Chatterbait Rod and Line

[DavidSA]

in the last few years virtually all the big fish I have lost are when fishing small spinnerbaits and chatterbaits in the shallows during the spawn time. Big hogs taking me over hidden laydowns and stumps in the water. This year I'm thinking of using some heavy power rods with some tip and 15# Yozuri hybrid. Basically the same rig I use to throw bigger spinnerbaits over the grass at lake Okeechobee on the outer edge grass.

any others ideas? anyone having this issue?

[dragon1]

Ever thought about a heavy powered SGlass blank + braid?

[Jeffbro999]

Ever thought about a heavy powered SGlass blank + braid?

X2 If fishing open water(no grass) then a heavy powered crankbait rod with braid would work great. Enough power in the rod to turn the fish and still have some give in the rod to keep them hooked up. Braid will help with setting the hook.

What setup are you using now and what type of chatterbait?

We fish chatterbaits in grass and timber on Seminole and use MH and H fast action rods with braid to rip the bait out of grass and get the fish moving towards the boat quickly. We also went away from the Zman type baits and switched to D&M and haven't been losing fish anymore.

[dragon1]

I had a conversation with Matt about the venerable Seeker BS706 to be built for one of his clients, specifically to keep certain chatterbait bass buttoned on during hard pulls on short line.

Had me thinking about your current want/need for losing these big girls on the smaller spinnerbaits and chatterbaits over the laydowns. Personally, I would go with less stretchy line and a more forgiving tip/blank/rod that has a heavier setting backbone like some SGlass blanks/composite blanks are known to have...also, a shorter blank may help to get into the backbone faster.

[Vince Borges]

I fish and guide mainly on the California Delta, and fish Chatterbaits darn near year round! I tried many different action rods and finally nailed it down to the Phenix X13. It's a heavy action composite rod. About an 80/20 blend. 80% carbon fiber(mostly in the butt and power section of the rod) and 20% glass tip. This gives a soft enough tip to allow excellent hookups, PLENTY of back bone to set the heavier gauge hooks that most Chatterbaits have, and plenty of power to rip it free of grass and other vegetation, yet the right amount of tip to keep fish, especially BIG fish pinned! The rod is 7'6" in length. So perfect amount leverage and castability! And it makes a Great deep crank and grass rods for traps! I fish mostly with 50Lb braid with mine, mainly because of the amount of vegetation we have here. And I like the fast response of the line, but not to fast because of the glass tip!

[DavidSA]

I lost the biggest fish of my year last year with a Powell 703 CEF and 12# yozuri hybrid. I was fishing around standing timber when she hit. Never could get her up and she went into a submerged laydown and broke me off. I was just trying to maintain pressure on her but apparently she had the line at a 90 degree angle. I quickly rigged up a Gloomis MBR844 GLX with a Citica reel with 15# yozuri and caught a 4.5 on the next cast. The fish I landed though was only a fraction of the fight I had just lost

Similar experience with a small spinnterbait on a Steez 6'3Mh and 10# Yozuri the prior year. Looked to be open water but apparently laydowns I could not see.

The rods I am thinking of using is a Powell 714 paddletail rod. Very similar to Endurance 714. Very soft tip with a butt section that looks like a flipping stick. Another option is a Powell 764 Endurance mag Medium flipping stick. Ton of tip but the rod is a little longer then I like for accuracy casting. A crankbait rod with braid may indeed work. I still have a very nice custom Gloomis CBR847 from a guy just outside of Denver (who might be known as Dragon1). Typically that rod is bound to a big rattle bait this time of year. In prior years I have had fish missing chatterbaits or not staying buttoned up so this has kept me away from braid and stiff tip rods.

[bronzefly]

There are several really great options in the Megabass line if you want to consider their rods. I'm also a fan of braid with chatter baits in general, especially fishing them around heavier grass and wood cover.

In the X4 series, the F5-68X4 Super Orochi has a nice semi parabolic flex that's great for chatter baits. It's shorter and loads very nicely with 3/8 to 1/2 oz stuff for accurate casts. It has nice backbone as well.

In the Black Jungle series, the F5-71XBJ Deep Cranking Slow Rolling is an incredible chatter bait stick. Again, it loads nicely and I tend to use this for covering flats and making longer casts.

[njbasscat]

I used the X4 Destruction with 33lb braid all of last season for chatterbaits. It worked very well and has become my favorite chatterbait rod in heavy cover. It's got a nice tip and plenty of backbone to get the fish coming towards you.

[Martin Lo]

I fish and guide mainly on the California Delta, and fish Chatterbaits darn near year round! I tried many different action rods and finally nailed it down to the Phenix X13. It's a heavy action composite rod. About an 80/20 blend. 80% carbon fiber(mostly in the butt and power section of the rod) and 20% glass tip. This gives a soft enough tip to allow excellent hookups, PLENTY of back bone to set the heavier gauge hooks that most Chatterbaits have, and plenty of power to rip it free of grass and other vegetation, yet the right amount of tip to keep fish, especially BIG fish pinned! The rod is 7'6" in length. So perfect amount leverage and castability! And it makes a Great deep crank and grass rods for traps! I fish mostly with 50Lb braid with mine, mainly because of the amount of vegetation we have here. And I like the fast response of the line, but not to fast because of the glass tip!

The stunts I've pulled with the X-13 in a pinch...went from X9 to 10 to 11 then finally the X13. It'll get tested out as a light inshore stick bait rod early next year!

[cndbasshunter]

30-40lb braid.

[Mnbasser]

Phenix X-13 with 30 or 40lb braid

[toddmc]

Fish around beds in the spring don't always get the bait like they do other times of the year. This could be your problem if they are coming off. Use a trailer hook whenever possible. I throw at least 16lb. and usually 20lb. Sniper with vibrating jigs in hard cover. This helps prevent you from losing many fish. I only use braid when I absolutely have to around grass. There is an interesting video on TW with Ike and Jared Lintner talking about how the sound that braid makes on your guides travels down to your bait and results in less bites.
I fish around a lot of rock with vibrating jigs and I'm usually trying to make as long a cast as possible. My open water rod is a custom 7'3" heavy action graphite and my close quarters rod is a 7' heavy action graphite. I occasionally use my custom X-13 in open water, but I prefer all graphite with single hook baits.

[robchik04]

I use a Phenix M1 72MH and 30-40lb braid. Never had a problem. Had more problems using a glass rod.

[adam lancia]

There is an interesting video on TW with Ike and Jared Lintner talking about how the sound that braid makes on your guides travels down to your bait and results in less bites.

Do you have a link to the video?

[bemo]

Lots of good rod recommendations here. I would also throw the X7 Diablo Fastmove into the discussion. Great power and awesome chatterbait rod. It's probabably what I would want in my hand in the conditions you describe.