Rod sesitivity

[Troutbeck]

For picking up light hits, which rod is more sensitive in your opinions: light or medium action? (or other) I used to think it was light action but started to question that when I got a couple of stiffer rods.

Is it the same idea with line? More stretch, less feel?

Thanks for all the advice.

[ebijack]

it all comes down to personal preference. it's like asking which boat is best.anyways
i find that i have the very "best" feel when i have a rod that works best with a given lure and application. lots of things play into that senario. lure weight/size/wind,current,depth etc. (confidence is a big part of it also). the more i fish using more and different equipment, the more i see why some folks have/use so many rods.
like alot of jobs, you become alot better at what you do if you "have the right tools for the job at hand".

[Walleye Express]

Trout.
Put me down for any rod made from good graphite that has a fast taper. Often medium/heavy with a sensitive tip about 3 eyes down works great, I have quit a few of these. My favorite rod is my 6 1/2' IM-6 G-Loomis, that was custom built for me almost 15 years ago now. I'd put it in the medium/light category.

You want a rod that signals you with any and all of the slightest pick up's or hits. The kind that you can even tell what kind of bottom it is, just by the feel transfered down the line through the rod to your hands. Sound to good to be true? it isn't.

When you find the next rod you think you like and want to buy. Have your buddy or spouse put the tip on his/her throat. Then simple have them say something. The vibrations from their voice should be transferred down the rod and you should be able to feel it in your hands. That's the feel you want. Now it just a matter of the right length and the right size reel for the job.

You want the reel to closely balance the whole rig, so fatigue from 1/4 casting or vertical jigging all day doesn't become an issue. Hold your pointer finger just in front of the front reel seat on the rod after you've mounted the reel you like on it. Now let the rod/reel combo pendilum and find its own balance. They should almost stay in equal balance. What you really don't want is having it tip-heavy. Butt-heavy will always be better, if you insist on buying that particular reel.

As far as length. It's my opinion that shorter is better, especially for 1/4 casting and vertical jigging lead head jigs. No longer than 7 feet, with 6 and 6 1/2 footers being my prefered lengths.

[oneforseed]

capt' dan,i don't agree with the rod to the throat suggestion..try using a broom handle and doing the same thing...
i was told that this was an old carney trick,by an old rod builder..
i'm not trying to start trouble with you just passing on what i was told...try it to see.
i agree with you on the med/light!!up till last year my faborite was a diawa m/l innercast with fireline....due to my ignorance it is now in the landfill..by the way do any of you know where i can find another one?

"one for seed"
jim/co

[Walleye Express]

Seed.
I plead ignorant on the old carny trick. But am not angered by thoughtful or experienced criticsism to anything I say, write or suggest. Nobody knows it all.

I will indeed try the broomstick theory when the wife gets home and see if the feel is indeed as good as my IM-6. I will be surprised if it is, but will reserve any further comment on the throat trick until I confirm or deny this to be fact.

[Chuckles]

IMHO the heavier the action is the more sensitive and the greater ones ability to feel what is going on at the end of the line (alright - within a certain amount of reason - no musky rods for bluegills). The softer actions to my hands really absorb more of the tap without passing it to my awaiting finger tips. The poster above was right about balancing the reel, and that is why I build my rods with tennessee handles - then you can move almost any reel up or down the handle to strike the right balance. It moves that rod up a notch in sensitivity to have it perfectly balanced. That is one of the problems with a screwdown reel seet. The other is additional weight... a reel seat adds mass to the rod as does a heavy reel - there is no substitute for a lightweight reel - given the same features between two of them. This is side of the 'which rod' question which is not addressed often enough. Try it out - get a medium action rod made with tennessee grips - which is rated for the size jigs or lures you'll be pitching and then find a light weight reel to put on it - you will be pleased IMHO! Chuckles

[oneforseed]

cap'n dan,i do agree and really don't think it will be as good as any rod!!!just was trying to say that i don't think it is a good method of testing a rod for sensitivity....i'm almost sorry for saying anything...i'm kinda stuck on the medium light and ultra light side of the spectrum and i just test the rods for action and FEEL as my guiding light.

"one for seed"
jim/co

[fatboy]

fella's great comment's on this post.If I may add something it would be to take the balance one step more. Here around the det. river we use fairly heavy jigs due to the current 1/2 oz - 1oz jigs.I have been doing alot of talking to rod builders lately getting advice on starting to build my own rods. a comment that I have heard is that to balance the final rod reel set-up with the heavy jig on the line. They tell me that alot of folks balance the rods to perfection and then tie on a 1oz. jig and make the thing tip heavy. this is what i have been told by some long time rod builders.

[Walleye Express]

Good stuff fatboy.
And indeed if I was going to build a rod for a certain size/type/weight/ jig and technique, I would indeed take that into consideration when balancing the outfit. Man, especially if I was going to be jigging 1 ounce or more all day long in heavy current. A man could get tennis elbow in a hurry under those conditions.

And seed. Never apologize to anybody for sharing something that may dispell a rumor or false accusations. I'd be sure I had the right answer. But often times things people take for gospel are old Carny Tricks. If this is the case, I'd owe you a thank you, not a criticism.

[Den]

Capt. Dan, the throat vibration is a old thing used by the earlier rod makers trying to show how the fiberglass rods were more sensitive than the metal ones were. i was told this by a custom rod maker many years ago. i can tell you a way to tell how sensitive a rod is. simply get a business card with ink printing, and a card with raised lettering on it. most will pick up the raised lettering, but only a few will pick up the ink printing on a card. You simply hold the rod the way you would be fishing with it, and have a second person rest(dont press down) the card on the rod tip, and drag it across the guide. again, a lot depends on how much feeling the individual has in their hands. another way is to take some 20 lb. line and tie it on the rod tip and have somebody tap the line while it is hanging free. just some good tips i learned over the many years of trying to get a rod with the feel that i want myself. good luck and good fishin.
Den
c'mon spring.

[Mattman]

Sensitivity has nothing to do with rod action. Action refers to the rods ability to bend and where it bends. Sensitivity is a relation of the blanks weight to the modulus of grahpite used. Sure, theoretically a totally stiff rod should be more sensitive than one that bends. But the one that bends has a thinner wall and lighter weight, which gives back all the sensitivity it looses in the stiffness department. Generally speaking, the more sensitive the rod, the higher the modulus rating and the higher up the manufacturers product line it is.

A word on balancing rods. I am not a big believer in it. Yes, I want the rod to feel good in the hand and not be TOO tip heavy. But I have a real problem taking an ounce and a half of lead and shoving it into the butt of a Loomis IMX that only weighs 1.3 ounces. Then what weight of lure are you going to fish with? Are you vertically jigging? With what weight? Are you dragging a jig? A rig? With what weight? Every single time you fish? Are you throwing a crank? Trolling? While you are fishing your rod is NEVER balanced. Quite honestly I don't think that fatigue in casting is an issue for any freshwater rod either. Heavy Muskie rods, probably. Although, even there, proper set up can make a huge difference for the angler.


Better to have and not need than to need and not have!

Matt Davis