Sensitive Moving Bait Rods

A specialized forum to discuss anything and everything about your favorite or not so favorite fishing rods.
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Re: Sensitive Moving Bait Rods

Post by Cal » Wed Oct 09, 2019 9:20 pm

PerchHater wrote:
Wed Oct 09, 2019 10:52 am
I'd argue that you are feeling the bite, you're just feeling it in a different way! Incidentally that bite you speak of is one of the reasons I love fishing a bladed jig. Different strokes for different folks I suppose :lol:
Yes, but with the glass rod and fluoro, I don't feel the bait vibrating to begin with so can't feel it stop vibrating either ;)
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Re: Sensitive Moving Bait Rods

Post by bronzefly » Thu Oct 10, 2019 5:09 am

JBcrankaddict wrote:
Fri Oct 04, 2019 9:39 am
My opinion is to go with as sensitive a rod you can afford for any technique you normally use as it will make you more efficient on the water. So what’s your opinion on this subject?
I am 100% in agreement with this. One of my favorite moving bait rods is the Steez AGS 72MHRB. It's incredibly versatile, sensitive, light, loads baits beautifully, and is just fun to fish. I can feel a lot more of what is going on when cranking with this rod versus many less sensitive rods I've used. So yes, I'm on board with the more sensitive the rod the better...
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Re: Sensitive Moving Bait Rods

Post by goldrod » Thu Oct 10, 2019 6:09 am

dhottle wrote:
Sun Oct 06, 2019 10:22 am
Hogsticker2 wrote:
Sat Oct 05, 2019 10:10 pm
I think jerkbaits are the trickiest of the bunch. Finding the perfect tip speed for not over or under working various style and depth baits, yet having a blank that will properly load and flex deep enough (not to deep), to keep fish pinned. I believe sensitivity is a little more important here than with a crank or top water. I don't know, maybe I'm over thinking it. I've found what I feel is the perfect blend with popping blanks. Not too fast, not too slow, appropriate flex.
Your not overthinking it at all. Sensitivity is very important for jerkbait fishing especially with a moderate action rod. My perfect jerkbait rods are a custom Otterod built on a St Croix legend elite blank in a MHM used with braid & a leader. For straight fluoro I use a kistler z bone LEXF-3MH-70. I have also used a popping blank in a spinning rod application.

That’s why I went custom
I read reviews (opinions) and tried different brands but at the end of the day my jerkbait rod is an Otterrod custom spiral wrapped that is tried and true for me.
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Re: Sensitive Moving Bait Rods

Post by njbasscat » Thu Oct 10, 2019 9:29 am

That’s why I went custom
I read reviews (opinions) and tried different brands but at the end of the day my jerkbait rod is an Otterrod custom spiral wrapped that is tried and true for me.
[/quote]

Same here. I fish jerkbaits a lot and had Otterrods build me one a K2 blank spiral wrapped. It makes fishing a jerkbait all day pleasurable and is nice to look at too. That guy builds some killer rods. As for stock rods, I use a MB X4 110 Stick and a NRX 852. They are nice but aren't in the same league as the custom Otterrod.

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Re: Sensitive Moving Bait Rods

Post by Hogsticker2 » Thu Oct 10, 2019 2:04 pm

njbasscat wrote:
Thu Oct 10, 2019 9:29 am
That’s why I went custom
I read reviews (opinions) and tried different brands but at the end of the day my jerkbait rod is an Otterrod custom spiral wrapped that is tried and true for me.
Same here. I fish jerkbaits a lot and had Otterrods build me one a K2 blank spiral wrapped. It makes fishing a jerkbait all day pleasurable and is nice to look at too. That guy builds some killer rods. As for stock rods, I use a MB X4 110 Stick and a NRX 852. They are nice but aren't in the same league as the custom Otterrod.
[/quote]

Which K2 blank?

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Re: Sensitive Moving Bait Rods

Post by Tokugawa » Sat Oct 12, 2019 6:53 pm

goldrod wrote:
Thu Oct 10, 2019 6:09 am
dhottle wrote:
Sun Oct 06, 2019 10:22 am
Hogsticker2 wrote:
Sat Oct 05, 2019 10:10 pm
I think jerkbaits are the trickiest of the bunch. Finding the perfect tip speed for not over or under working various style and depth baits, yet having a blank that will properly load and flex deep enough (not to deep), to keep fish pinned. I believe sensitivity is a little more important here than with a crank or top water. I don't know, maybe I'm over thinking it. I've found what I feel is the perfect blend with popping blanks. Not too fast, not too slow, appropriate flex.
Your not overthinking it at all. Sensitivity is very important for jerkbait fishing especially with a moderate action rod. My perfect jerkbait rods are a custom Otterod built on a St Croix legend elite blank in a MHM used with braid & a leader. For straight fluoro I use a kistler z bone LEXF-3MH-70. I have also used a popping blank in a spinning rod application.

That’s why I went custom
I read reviews (opinions) and tried different brands but at the end of the day my jerkbait rod is an Otterrod custom spiral wrapped that is tried and true for me.
Yup. Custom here too for my primary jerkbait rod. Spiral wrap and a cut down blank for that perfect blend of give, tip and sensitivity. Sometimes they just swipe at the bait. Sometimes they just nibble the rear hook. You want to feel that as well as get the fish back when hooked poorly. Also makes a stellar topwater rod.

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Re: Sensitive Moving Bait Rods

Post by njbasscat » Tue Oct 15, 2019 9:41 am

Hogsticker2 wrote:
Thu Oct 10, 2019 2:04 pm
njbasscat wrote:
Thu Oct 10, 2019 9:29 am
That’s why I went custom
I read reviews (opinions) and tried different brands but at the end of the day my jerkbait rod is an Otterrod custom spiral wrapped that is tried and true for me.
Same here. I fish jerkbaits a lot and had Otterrods build me one a K2 blank spiral wrapped. It makes fishing a jerkbait all day pleasurable and is nice to look at too. That guy builds some killer rods. As for stock rods, I use a MB X4 110 Stick and a NRX 852. They are nice but aren't in the same league as the custom Otterrod.
Which K2 blank?
[/quote]

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Re: Sensitive Moving Bait Rods

Post by Jason Penn » Wed Oct 16, 2019 5:26 pm

bronzefly wrote:
Thu Oct 10, 2019 5:09 am
JBcrankaddict wrote:
Fri Oct 04, 2019 9:39 am
My opinion is to go with as sensitive a rod you can afford for any technique you normally use as it will make you more efficient on the water. So what’s your opinion on this subject?
I am 100% in agreement with this. One of my favorite moving bait rods is the Steez AGS 72MHRB. It's incredibly versatile, sensitive, light, loads baits beautifully, and is just fun to fish. I can feel a lot more of what is going on when cranking with this rod versus many less sensitive rods I've used. So yes, I'm on board with the more sensitive the rod the better...
so how does the ags compare to the mh flexlite? something about the flexlite has never been exactly "right" to me, but i seem to keep fish stuck with it. i've added a little rubber chair leg deal to it, and that seemed to help

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Re: Sensitive Moving Bait Rods

Post by Jeffbro999 » Mon Oct 21, 2019 6:39 pm

Some great answers in this thread, and seems like many have come around to using senstitive rods for most things. I think the way manufactures have gone from super sensitive high dollar rods that were only good for bottom contact, to super sensitive high dollar rods that are really versatile is the biggest reason this has turned around. JDM rods have always done a good job of this. When NRX was first released I was a little disappointed that they were all Xfast, and only jumped in when the MBR versions were released, and glad I did.

I am glad some brought up jerkbaits, as this is my favorite/most used technique and wasn’t even thinking about it. With summer jerkbaiting, sensitivity isn’t as critical for me since I’m ripping and not stopping, but a very responsive rod is a must so the rod isn’t bouncing around between jerks. Fortunately sensitivity and responsive rods seem to go hand in hand. Winter jerkbaiting is a different animal, and I look at it almost like fishing a worm. Twitch the bait, let it sit, and wait for the light tick that indicates a bite. Sensitivity is very important to me here, and definitely increases the catch rate.

This post was in no way intended to bash other rods. A couple things made me think about this so I wanted to ask. Watching bass tourneys and shows on tv, I often see guys get bit, rod starts loading up and I can usually tell they got bit, but there’s often a delayed reaction before they set the hook. I don’t think it’s intentional as they always look surprised, and knowing who their sponsors are(and rod colors)tells you what gear they are using, so it made me think. They usually manage to land the fish, but often miss those bites as well. Another reason was I allowed a friend to use my NRX 843 a couple weeks ago as we were throwing chatterbaits all day, and it really opened his eyes to what was possible. He was using a Cumara 6’9 MH/XF spinnerbait rod before, which is a great rod for the technique, but he was immediately able to start feeling the difference between bumping wood and grass, and bites, and soon enough he was fishing with lots of confidence. Some of the things he talked about on the way home, really made me start thinking about this.

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Re: Sensitive Moving Bait Rods

Post by Jeffbro999 » Mon Oct 21, 2019 6:45 pm

Cal wrote:
Wed Oct 09, 2019 9:20 pm
PerchHater wrote:
Wed Oct 09, 2019 10:52 am
I'd argue that you are feeling the bite, you're just feeling it in a different way! Incidentally that bite you speak of is one of the reasons I love fishing a bladed jig. Different strokes for different folks I suppose :lol:
Yes, but with the glass rod and fluoro, I don't feel the bait vibrating to begin with so can't feel it stop vibrating either ;)
Feeling a big bass overtake a chatterbait, to where the line just goes slack, was one of the main things I was thinking of when I started this thread. Being able to feel that bite with the NRX changed everything for me. Our big bass on Seminole like to run straight at the boat after the bite, so if you don’t react immediately, you aren’t getting the hook set.

Also goes with crank baits, and feeling when you get that tiny piece of grass on your hook that messes up the whole cast. Those are some of the things that are very important, but often overlooked.

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Re: Sensitive Moving Bait Rods

Post by Jeffbro999 » Mon Oct 21, 2019 6:53 pm

bronzefly wrote:
Thu Oct 10, 2019 5:09 am
JBcrankaddict wrote:
Fri Oct 04, 2019 9:39 am
My opinion is to go with as sensitive a rod you can afford for any technique you normally use as it will make you more efficient on the water. So what’s your opinion on this subject?
I am 100% in agreement with this. One of my favorite moving bait rods is the Steez AGS 72MHRB. It's incredibly versatile, sensitive, light, loads baits beautifully, and is just fun to fish. I can feel a lot more of what is going on when cranking with this rod versus many less sensitive rods I've used. So yes, I'm on board with the more sensitive the rod the better...
The question comes up a lot, usually in threads where it’s “which rod to buy for xxxx technique” and I’ve heard so many times that the better sensitivity is not needed, even when someone is ready to spend the money. I say go for it! And glad that some agree.

That AGS rod sound fantastic and I know you are a huge fan. Might have to jump on one one of these days. Little worried about those guides though after my issues with Recoils that aren’t supposed to break :lol:

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Re: Sensitive Moving Bait Rods

Post by bronzefly » Mon Nov 25, 2019 9:20 am

JBcrankaddict wrote:
Mon Oct 21, 2019 6:53 pm
The question comes up a lot, usually in threads where it’s “which rod to buy for xxxx technique” and I’ve heard so many times that the better sensitivity is not needed, even when someone is ready to spend the money. I say go for it! And glad that some agree.

That AGS rod sound fantastic and I know you are a huge fan. Might have to jump on one one of these days. Little worried about those guides though after my issues with Recoils that aren’t supposed to break :lol:
I've put in a lot of time with the Steez AGS rods. I've yet to have a single issue with them whatsoever. They are outstanding in my opinion. That Steez AGS 72MHRB is a spectacular rod indeed. I have mine paired with a Steez CT and it's a moving bait dream combo.
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Re: Sensitive Moving Bait Rods

Post by hungry_cow » Mon Nov 25, 2019 10:10 am

bronzefly wrote:
Mon Nov 25, 2019 9:20 am
JBcrankaddict wrote:
Mon Oct 21, 2019 6:53 pm
The question comes up a lot, usually in threads where it’s “which rod to buy for xxxx technique” and I’ve heard so many times that the better sensitivity is not needed, even when someone is ready to spend the money. I say go for it! And glad that some agree.

That AGS rod sound fantastic and I know you are a huge fan. Might have to jump on one one of these days. Little worried about those guides though after my issues with Recoils that aren’t supposed to break :lol:
I've put in a lot of time with the Steez AGS rods. I've yet to have a single issue with them whatsoever. They are outstanding in my opinion. That Steez AGS 72MHRB is a spectacular rod indeed. I have mine paired with a Steez CT and it's a moving bait dream combo.
How does the Steez AGS 72MHRB compare with the Destroyer USA Javelin? That is the rod I normally use for all my single hook moving baits as well as bigger treble hook baits with #1 or #2 hooks.

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Re: Sensitive Moving Bait Rods

Post by Cristo » Tue Nov 26, 2019 4:20 pm

Gary you are really tempting me with AGS Steez rods and my interest has also turned to the Black Labels 8-)

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Re: Sensitive Moving Bait Rods

Post by poisonokie » Tue Nov 26, 2019 4:52 pm

Cristo wrote:
Tue Nov 26, 2019 4:20 pm
Gary you are really tempting me with AGS Steez rods and my interest has also turned to the Black Labels 8-)
Me too, I really want one of those to go with my future Zillion 10.
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