crappie oppinions

[foodsaver]

I am wondering which of these rods the crappie pros on this board would choose and why? I am picking out a new crappie combo to use. they are all the same price.


http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/s...r=97080&hvarTarget=search&cmCat=SearchResults
or
http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/s...r=91169&hvarTarget=search&cmCat=SearchResults
or
http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/s...r=58570&hvarTarget=search&cmCat=SearchResults

 

[UTCAngler]

I am by far no crappie expert but i do enjoy it.Last spring i got the 5' Bill Dance Crappy Series combo
http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/s...1_91184_100003002_100000000_100003000_100-3-2
I really like my rig you may want to look into it.It was perfect for me & my budget.But from what i read about ur choices i liked your 2nd pick.I've always been told the more bearings the better, and that seemed like a very nice combo.Again i am the furthest thing from any kind of pro but i do like fishing w/an ultralite from time to time especially when you snag something bigger than expected.Im interested in these other guys opinions too.emoAngler

 

[Guest]

Any of those rigs will work for you Craig no more than your wife will let you fish anyway.emoPoke emoBigsmile
Seriously though, the second one is the better of the three. Stay away from the Wally Marshall stuff.

 

[polo-dog]

foodsaver, if you plan to shoot the docks and get way back under the docks I would go with number 3 with the 6 foot 6 inch rod. I do like the two piece rods and like the microlite BPS rods. I have two 6 foot 6 inch ultralite rods and a fairly large diameter reel that shoots farther than any other rod/reel combo that has fished with me shootin' docks, even DK if you can believe that.

 

[Guest]

Foodsaver, How are you going to fish for them?
I don't shoot, so all of my crappie rods are 8-9' long.

 

[drumking]

polo-dog - 11/27/2007 10:37 PM

foodsaver, if you plan to shoot the docks and get way back under the docks I would go with number 3 with the 6 foot 6 inch rod. I do like the two piece rods and like the microlite BPS rods. I have two 6 foot 6 inch ultralite rods and a fairly large diameter reel that shoots farther than any other rod/reel combo that has fished with me shootin' docks, even DK if you can believe that.

You might need 2 rigs. One for fishing docks like Polo and one for fishing docks like I do. Yesterday, with the wind conditions being what they were, I was wedged up against the docks. A 6'6" rod would have been impossible to fish with under those conditions and do what had to be done to provoke a strike.

I personally wouldn't buy a rod that I couldn't "feel" before I bought it. Some ultralights are so flimsy that they are useless when it comes to crappie fishing. Just ask my brother-in-law. He couldn't detect any strikes the other day. What I would reccommend is a little more expensive than those shown. I would buy a Shakespere micro-graphite 5.0 ul rod and break the tip off and beg Fat Albert to put another tip on it 5" shorter than it came. $14.95 at Walmart. The reel that I would buy would be an Abu Garcia Cardinal 102 which has a wide spool. $33.95 at Walmart. Do not buy a ul reel that has a narrow spool. You are asking for grief if you do. Now that is just what I prefer. emoBigsmile emoGeezer

 

[fishin'fool]

Food saver I personaly like the Ugly Stick ultra light 4'8", I use the reel til it craps out and put a Shimono reel on it. Or the Ugly Stick 2 piece Spin Lite. 6' Both rods are dang near indestructiable. I have never broken one. And they still have the sensitivity I like.

 

[Fishin Fool]

I use a Abu Garcia Cardinal 102 with a 5'6" Light Action Berkley Lightning Rod and yellow Mr. Crappie line in 8 lb test. I can flip to the back of most docks and still have got enough power to handle good sized fish if need be. Drumking is right about the narrow spool; all it is is a BUNCH of headaches or has been in my experience.

 

[polo-dog]

drumking - 11/28/2007 9:25 AM

polo-dog - 11/27/2007 10:37 PM

foodsaver, if you plan to shoot the docks and get way back under the docks I would go with number 3 with the 6 foot 6 inch rod. I do like the two piece rods and like the microlite BPS rods. I have two 6 foot 6 inch ultralite rods and a fairly large diameter reel that shoots farther than any other rod/reel combo that has fished with me shootin' docks, even DK if you can believe that.

You might need 2 rigs. One for fishing docks like Polo and one for fishing docks like I do. Yesterday, with the wind conditions being what they were, I was wedged up against the docks. A 6'6" rod would have been impossible to fish with under those conditions and do what had to be done to provoke a strike.

I personally wouldn't buy a rod that I couldn't "feel" before I bought it. Some ultralights are so flimsy that they are useless when it comes to crappie fishing. Just ask my brother-in-law. He couldn't detect any strikes the other day. What I would reccommend is a little more expensive than those shown. I would buy a Shakespere micro-graphite 5.0 ul rod and break the tip off and beg Fat Albert to put another tip on it 5" shorter than it came. $14.95 at Walmart. The reel that I would buy would be an Abu Garcia Cardinal 102 which has a wide spool. $33.95 at Walmart. Do not buy a ul reel that has a narrow spool. You are asking for grief if you do. Now that is just what I prefer. emoBigsmile emoGeezer

I agree with DK about the wind, in fact I sent a PM to foodsaver a few minutes ago, before I saw DK's response, to tell him about the wind and the short rod. I do have a short rod that I use when it's howling out there but most of the time I don't need the shorter rod. I can shoot much, much further with the longer rod and I think that it's well worth the down side. Here's a link to the rod that I have two of: http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/s...1_74068_100002002_100000000_100002000_100-2-2


The one that I like the best is the one that is 7th from the bottom, is 6 feet 6 inches and is Ultralight. I know that some people would say that it sounds too wimpy but it really isn't. I think that these rods feel more like "light" rods in their action compared to other rod makers. The reel that I use is a Quantum Catalyst PTI-40 or 30. Here's a link to one: http://cgi.ebay.com/Quantum-Catalys...ryZ36147QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

I usually buy them on Ebay and get them for 1/2 to 1/3 of the retail price. The used ones are just as good as the new ones in my experience and so they are a great reel for the price. They have a wide spool and I use 6lb test with 12lb test backing. I use just enough of the 6lb test to bury the connection between the 12 and 6lb test. If the knot is on the surface it will always catch the line as it shoots off the reel. With the reel almost full with 12lb test I can also use it for bass fishing or catfishing whenever I want. I just pull the 6lb test off and use the 12lb at that point. You can purchase thousands of yards of the high vis BPS line for next to nothing so throwing away 50-60 yards is no big deal. It also makes me change out the line from time to time whereas I normally would fish with it until the line rots off or just keeps breaking off on fish and at that point I'm mad at myself for not re-spooling. The little ultralite reels are made so small that when I crank the handle the bail is constantly hitting my knuckles on my rod hand and it's hard to move the bait slowly and smoothly through the water with that going on all the time. You can go with cheaper stuff but this system is what works best for me.

 

[SpurHunter]

Thanks for that info Mark. I never would have even looked at a rod for $29.00 after some of the crap I have seen...well and yes bought for that kind of money. Might change my mind now.

 

[polo-dog]

I have bought lots of BPS rods and I don't think that I have every broken one. They have been good to me. Every once in a while I bend a guide or I lose the ceramic ring out of a guide but Nickie at Hamilton's replaces them for me while I wait and it only takes a few minutes. She's great with all of that. I haven't ever bought a rod on Ebay because there can be a little nick in the rod and it will fail on a big fish or a good hook set. There are also so many rods out there that unless I have had a certain model and know that I like it I usually won't buy it unless I have held it in my hand. I saw and played around with the first 6 foot 6 inch microlite UL rod that I bought down there at the Unclaimed Baggage Center in Scottsboro and bought it there. If I hadn't seen one there I probably would never have gotten one. I was really looking for a rod to catch the new world record flathead catfish on 2lb test that I have yet to catch but have hooked a couple of times( I think). The rod is really forgiving when I have a big fish on the line but really great for shootin' docks too. I hope to get a day to try for the big cat one of these days soon, wish me luck.