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Angling gear is not one-size-fits-all, and as you gain more experience, you will likely crave more nuance in your rods. Here’s how to find the right one(s) for your needs.
A slower action rod bends all the way down to the butt and is parabolic or nearly parabolic in nature. Photo. Lenny Rudow
Some of us began our angling adventures with a cane pole, a piece of string, and a bent pin tied to the end. If you were a bit luckier, you might have been handed a closed-face Zebco Spincast fresh off the shelf from K-Mart. The luckiest of us might have been casting a G. Loomis with youthful aplomb. Whatever that first fishing rod was, there’s a good chance it didn’t take long to realize it had shortcomings – it wasn’t ideal for the type of fishing you enjoy the most.
Whatever your level of experience is in modern times, if you want a new rod you’ll be facing the same sorts of questions. Is a 6-footer the best choice, or would a 7-foot rod be best? What power and action do you need? What are the signs of quality in a rod’s pieces and parts? There’s all this to consider and more, so a deep dive into the particulars becomes necessary before you can figure out what the ideal choice will be.
Right-Size
Setting aside the 2-foot twigs used for ice fishing, the 12-foot flagpoles used for surf fishing, and the completely unique universe of fly-fishing gear, the vast majority of the adult-sized fishing rods out there today range from 6- to 8 feet. When it comes to length, the general rule of thumb is longer rods allow for longer casts. But as rods become longer, they can grow unwieldy, so some anglers feel that shorter rods allow for better accuracy.
There are several additional factors to consider. If you’ll be using a rod to fish from shore (shame on you for not taking out the boat!), long rods will be more likely to clip or tangle overhanging branches and power lines. If you’re fishing on a center-console with a T-top, casting rods over 7 feet or so can also lead to trouble with hitting the top, or smacking rods stowed in overhead rocket launchers. When it comes to rod length, the most important consideration of all, however, is the angler’s age. Young anglers tend to be vigorous anglers, and you should expect that they’ll cast with all available gusto. As a result, kids new to fishing should always be handed the shortest possible rod to reduce the “arc of destruction” that’s created during overly exuberant casts. For most kids under 10 or so, supplying a 4- to 5-foot rod will minimize the danger.
Power Play
Rods are generally rated from ultralight to extra-heavy power. The term “power” is supposed to describe just what you’d think – how powerful the rod is and how much force is required to bend it – but there’s no set definition or mathematical calculation that sets the parameters for any of these ratings. That means a rod stamped as “light” by one manufacturer could be marked “medium” by another.
It can be helpful to look at a rod’s line and/or lure rating, as opposed to judging by the power rating alone. Again, there’s no governing body setting standards, but it’s helpful to see what pound test line and what lure weight the rod was designed to handle when judging just how powerful it will prove to be.
A fast action rod bends mostly at the tip and progressively bends less. Photo, Lenny Rudow
Enjoy The Action
The term “action” is used to describe how a fishing rod flexes. Actions range from fast to slow with various extras, moderates, and mediums in-between but, yet again, without any defined parameters. Fast-action rods bend less as you go from the tip to the butt. Slow-action rods bend evenly from tip to butt and are parabolic.
Rod action is a critical characteristic for many types of fishing. If you’re using a lure or technique that requires a lightning-fast hookset, you need a fast-action rod because all of that bending of a slow-action rod will slow and absorb the force you apply when jerking the tip back. On the other hand, there are plenty of scenarios where you’ll want a slower-action rod that bends to apply or absorb pressure, such as when trolling or mooching from a moving boat that’s rocking in the waves.
A fast-action rod is generally advantageous when casting and retrieving artificial lures. Slower-action rods are generally better when trolling and for most forms of bait fishing when you may want to allow for a slow take then apply pressure gradually. In some cases, they’re also advantageous for catching fish that have relatively weak mouths, because sudden pressure can rip the hook free. A slow-action rod with lots of bend to it evens out the pressure of abrupt jerks and tugs.
Tip
They Look Similar, But …
It’s critical to recognize that there’s no such thing as the “perfect” fishing rod. The rod that’s ideal for slinging jigs to striped bass is very different from the one that’s best for trolling dodgers and spoons for salmon. In recent years, fishing rod manufacturers have moved further away from emphasizing rods for all-around use, and more toward specialization.
A revealing case study can be found by comparing Okuma Cat Slayer Custom rods to St. Croix Panfish Series rods. These rods carry about the same MSRP, and they’re both long and thin, but that’s where the similarities end.
Cat Slayer Custom rods are designed specifically for catfish fishing and are built using fiberglass, aluminum reel seats, and stainless steel guides, so they can take maximum loads without taking damage even when high-sticking the rod against an 80-pound catfish in a roaring river current.
St. Croix Panfish series rods, on the other hand, are made from SCII carbon fiber with cork grips, a nylon reel seat, and lined stainless-steel guides. It’s ideal for feeling the light bites of crappie or perch, but if a 50-pound catfish were on the line, you’d have as good a chance of snapping the rod in half as you would of landing the fish. Comparing these two fishing rods is akin to comparing a baseball bat and a Wiffle ball bat — they’re both bats, but they can’t be used interchangeably.
The bad news: If you want to use the best tool for the task every time you go fishing in a different way or for a different species, you’ll need to buy an entire set of rods. The good news: You now have a perfectly valid reason to go out and buy an entire set of new fishing rods! — L.R.
Material Matters
Most modern fishing rods are built with fiberglass, graphite, carbon fiber, or a mix of these materials. And when it comes to rods, the same truisms hold as they would for anything else made from the same materials:
- Fiberglass is nearly indestructible, but it’s also heavier and less sensitive than the alternatives.
- Graphite is lighter and delivers better sensitivity but costs more and breaks more easily.
- Carbon fiber is a step above graphite but pushes costs even higher.
As to which is “best,” that’s in the eye of the beholder. If you’ll be trolling with 10 ounces of lead on the line, sensitivity is essentially moot. And with an expensive rod made of techy material, you’ll be a lot more upset if Moby Dick suddenly strikes and the rod snaps in half. So, fiberglass is a hands-down winner in this case. On the flip side of the coin, if you try fishing for light-biting crappie with a fiberglass rod, you might not feel half the hits.
Along with the material of the rod, it’s important to consider what its components are made from. Most major fishing rod manufacturers build only the body of the rod, called the “blank,” then they add pieces and parts that are manufactured by different suppliers. The key components include the grips, reel seats, and guides.
- Rod grips are usually made from either EVA foam or cork. Which is best boils down to personal preference. Foam is grippy and lasts forever, but some like the feel of natural cork.
- Reel seats can be made from nylon, graphite, aluminum, carbon fiber, and combinations of these materials. They’ll match up with the overall strength of the rod and its ratings, but those subjected to lots of heavy pressure should be aluminum or at least have metal reinforcements at the hood and/or locking nut.
- Guides, meanwhile, should be stainless steel to stave off corrosion. Bare stainless steel isn’t great at preventing heat buildup from friction (which can reduce the breaking strength of your line in the heat of battle), so many guides have a super-slick ceramic insert of one type or another in the eye. The downside is that those inserts can get crushed, break, or pop out of the guide, so rods that are designed to take heavy-duty abuse usually go without.
Rod-Reel Combos
Why aren’t all rods sold with the reel already mounted in place? That’s a common question from beginners. It’s no secret that anglers can be very particular, so after gaining a fair amount of experience, they’ll usually choose rods and reels separately.
There are some well-matched combo rigs out there, but expect most to be relatively low quality. Once you move beyond the intermediate level into a higher class of gear (read: more expensive), rods and reels are almost always sold separately. — L.R.
Photo, Lenny Rudow
When judging rod pieces and parts there is one way to feel confident that quality levels are on or above par: Look for a tag or label stating that the rod was made with Fuji components. Fuji is universally recognized as a supplier of top components for rod building, and they’re used by many top-name brands. These manufacturers generally make sure you know it by adding a tag or sticker to the rod stating it’s been built with Fuji parts.
The one variable everyone needs to consider, which I haven’t delved into just yet, is cost. How much you’re willing to spend on a fishing rod is, of course, a personal decision. That said, remember that, like many things, an exceptionally low-cost choice rarely leads to satisfaction, while an exceptionally high-cost choice comes with diminishing returns. For most anglers, something in the middle or upper-middle range will do the trick. But whichever rod you opt for, one thing is for sure: It’ll beat a cane pole and a bent pin any day of the week.