What rod for jerk baits??

[DennisB.]

I am gonna try to become more efficient at this technique this coming season. Every time I tried in the past I feel that my rod selection hurt me. I would either use my cranking stick which felt to loose or my other option was a 6'6'' mh that I have set with floro for throwing senko's and it just didn't feel right. I am gonna force myself this year to do it right if it means that is all I take out with me until I get it.

[Revtro]

Personally, I'm shortening up my jerkbait setup this year.  I had a day on St. Clair this year where I jerkbaited for 7 straight hours and felt like my arm was gonna fall off.  I was sore the whole next day...yes, huge sissy boy.  

I am also lightening up the reel.  My hope is to buy a Chronarch MG 50 and a 6ft. lightweight rod to make the job much easier.  I find that with a shorter rod, I don't tend to overwork the bait as much as I do with a longer rod.  And it's much easier on the arm.  Those are the adjustments I'm making.  I caught a TON of fish jerkbaiting this year, so I definitely want to become more efficient as well.

[McCarter]

I have been researching this very subject myself.  I have read every article of jerkbait fishing that i can find, and while many vary in opinion, the same rod length and action has come up many times.  Plus, Stacy King, who i guess is a pretty good authority on jerkbait fishing, recommends the same rod as the bulk of the other guys.

They all say that in order to get the perfect 'whip', we should be using a 6' 6" Medium Light.  

I have been using a 6' 8" medium and it works ok, better that any of my other rods, but like you said, it just doesnt feel exactly right.

I will also point out that using flourocarbon with jerkbaits may not be the best choice.  One reason for this is that flourocarbon sinks.  It will get your bait down further, but a lot of times will not allow baits to suspend, if you are using suspending.  On the other hand, it will help floating style baits rise much, much slower.  But if you are trying to acheive suspension, why not just use a suspending bait.

Plus, with the low stretch property of flouro, it doesnt make it a great choice when fishing with small treble hooks.  Mono will help to cushion the hook sets better and keep from pullling the hooks out of the fishes mouth.  I learned this the hard way.

For smaller jerkbaits, 8 lb mono works great.  For larger jerkabits, i like 10 lb.  And for japanese imports i will use 12 lb if there are hungry toothy critters.

I am working on a jerkbait article from my own experiences over the past 4 years.  I have a bunch of pieces written, but i still need to add more, and then piece it all together.  I should be able to wrap it up shortly and will post it here.  I wish i had aquired a 6'6" rod this past season to play with as this could have possibly filled in some holes in my gear choices in the article.

PB himself

[DennisB.]

Wow, thanks guys.

When you say 6'6'' Medium light could it be an IM6 or should I opt for something higher.

[McCarter]

I dont think that sensitivity plays a big role in jerkbait fishing.  Sometimes you will actually feel them hit it, especially smallmouth, but for the most part you just see your line jump or start to move.

This is my opinion, of course.  Some others might feel that sensitivity is key to success with jerkbaits. 

I would say you would be just fine with an IM6 rod, but if you feel more comfortable with something of more quality, by all means go with it.

PB himself

[Skip Johnson]

Well heres my 2 cents worth
The west coast lakes fish jerk baits real well so I have thousands of hours jerking bomber long a"s and rapalas, I personely hate spinning rods but I always keep one in the boat just for jerking! If Im only going to throw jerk baits a little I always use a bait caster but if I know I will be throwing it for over 30 minutes I bust out the spinning rod becouse I dont tire as easily!
I like a shorter spinning rod 6' with a medium to medium heavy fast action and a shimano quick fire reel spooled with 10lb trilene xt.

the shorter rod  is less work to jerk and Im right handed so I have more strength and endurance in my right wrist.

[bshaner]

Spinning rods definately take the stress out of jerk baiting.  Just wish I could stand to use a spinning rod that long. 

B

[Skip Johnson]

I agree bshaner, I can back lash a spinning reel way worse than a bait caster!

Just gotta luv when 3 lines come off the spool, I carry 2 extra spools in my boat for my spinning reel I guess there just too simple for me.

[rufus]

Being from NE Indiana I used to get a lot of beatings with the old Rebel Tracdown minnow. So about 12 years ago I decided to learn as much as I could about jerkbaiting. I got to be known for only throwing jerkbaits after a couple of years, so everytime I would win a tournament you would hear guys say they must have been on that stupid jerkbait. I cannot remember too many big money finishes in the last couple of years, but I still have at least two tied on every time I am on the water. I still like to throw the discontinued Rebel tracdowns (I have quite a few stockpiled ) and I absolutely love the Lucky Craft Pointer 100's. I throw several other kinds including floaters, but these two are my mainstays. I like to throw them on both baitcasters and spinning rods. I like a 6' baitcaster the best. I use a 6' Loomis spinnerbait rod. It has  just enough give to save you a few fish, although I would like a little more. I am only 5'8" and a longer rod whips my butt. You will have a lot more control over the bait with a shorter rod and jerkbaiting is totally about the action of your bait 99% of the time. I like a 6'6" St Croix medium light for throwing it on a spinning rod. I throw it on a spinning rod at least 60% of the time. It wears on you less and you can control the bait a lotttt better with a spinning rod. The medium light allows the fish to take it better and you will lose less fish. There really is no set combo though for jerkbaiting though, every single rod will give the bait a different action. There are also a ton of variables to consider. If I am fishing shallow water less than 4 feet I always use mono in 10 pound or greater. It keeps the bait higher. If I am fishing more than 5 feet, I really like flourocarbon because it allows the bait to run deeper, but you will tend to lose more fish. These are not my set rules, it is just what I use most of the time. I always tend to lean on the side of whatever gets me more bites and worry about losing fish after I get hooked up. Fish what feels comfortable to you and experiment with a few rods, I am sure you have something now that will work fine. It is a great way to locate fish. For whatever reason fish love to follow jerkbaits and drive you crazy by not eating them. Many times I have found that they will take something else. God Bless and Good Jerking!

[yukonjack2]

I currently use a St. Croix 6' 6" MH baitcaster and 10 lb p-line mono as my set-up.  Seems to work great.  I broke  my sirst st. Croix just prior to the Escanaba stren series in 2005, aqnd had to get a berkley lightning rod from walley world to replace it for the tourney - actually, it worked ok, but damm do you get tired from it being so heavy. 

a note:  my day two boater used a Castaway hg40 6' 6" jerkbait rod and swears by it - best balance of whip and stiffnes vs light weight. 
David Reault TBF board member was repping them at one time I beleive.

http://www.castawayrods.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=JT66-HG40&Category_Code=hg40_fresh&Product_Count=7


I like the pointer 100's especially well - seems the action is just killer on the smallies, especially if you can lea ve it still for a few seconds.

good luck!

Jack

[Cheetam]

I've used everything from a 5'7" spinning rod all the way up to 7' spinning and casting rods.  Whatever length you feel comfortable using, I definitely wouldn't recommend anything over a MH Fast action rod.  My preference is for something Medium to Medium-light with a Moderate-Fast action...but that's me