drop shot/grubbin' smallie rod??

chromeseeker · 04-20-2009, 12:37 PM

Any recs out there for a good DS/grubbin' smallie spinning rod in the $60-$100 range? Just getting started in the pursuit of the potato bass and I don't want to break the bank but I also want a rod that's quality so that when I finally figure out what I'm doing, I can appreciate it! Hopefully a model that Sportsmans and Fisherman's carry.

Thanks.

CS

Hunt'nFish · 04-20-2009, 01:03 PM

Geeze...."potato bass"?
What's that supposed to mean?

A statement like that says one of two things to me....
1. I don't respect smallies......or
2. I plan to harvest all I can catch.

Neither is going to get you much love here.
But to answer your question FM sells some REALLY nice G Loomis & Lami rods. But I think you need to spend more than that.
Hunt'nFish

chromeseeker · 04-20-2009, 01:37 PM

Thanks HNF.

No disrespect at all intended towards the smallie, quite to the contrary. As a died-in-the-wool steelie fly fisherman, I have noted two things about the smallie: they pull harder than most hatchery steelhead and they are quite often more challenging to catch (at least for me!). But I hope to get better at catching them this season. And I plan to harvest exactly ZERO smallies. My reference to them as potato bass is strictly based on their coloration---I refer to largemouth as avocado bass. I'm in the medical field, and everything we describe uses food as a reference point (just how big is that kidney cyst? About as big as a golf ball. What does the stuff inside the cyst look like that you just pulled out of my neck? ricotta cheese, etc., etc.)

I'm still learning the ways of both smallies and LMB's and it seems the learning curve for these critters is definitely steeper than my steelie learning curve was! I'm hoping a decent DS/grubbin' spinning rod will be but one tool to help me in my quest for these challenging game fish.

cheers,
CS

MXRacer105 · 04-20-2009, 02:11 PM

For a drop shot rod I use a Lamiglas XPS702X.... its a 7', 1/16-1/2oz, 6-10, fast tip, 2 power. It is their heavier drop shot special rod.

I have used the lighter drop shot rod, but found this one to be more to my liking for river smallies.

A drop shot rod is kind of a "one trick pony", as it is typically too light to do much else with. Or you can get one that is a bit "heavier" but then you will be missing some of the positives of a true drop shot rod.

Either way, the rod above may be a bit more than you were looking to spend, but hopefully the specs will point you in the right direction.

Raining_Kings · 04-20-2009, 03:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by chromeseeker

...What does the stuff inside the cyst look like that you just pulled out of my neck? ricotta cheese

yuck. Made me "corn chowder" in my mouth a little bit when I read that one.

I recently picked up a Loomis Dropshot DSR820C rod that looks like it would fit that bill nicely. Or if you want heavier a SDR822C. Haven't taken it out yet though (Springer season man!), but will soon.

FallRiverGuy · 04-20-2009, 04:03 PM

For Kokanee jigging I bought a Berkley Tactix dropshot/finesse rod (TXS661MLF). This is a nice light weight very sensitive rod. My success jigging for kokanee has improved greatly with this rod. And it is in your price range.

Tar Heel · 04-20-2009, 04:28 PM

I have a GL Drop Shot rod from Sportsman's and I love it. As stated, it doesn't have alot of backbone, but it's a kick to land a 4lb smallie on it. I alsoo use if as an ultralight spinning rod for the rare occasion that I go spin fishing for trout, and due to the rod tip sensitivity, seem to land more fish on it. I doubt you really need to get that specialized as buy a "drop shot rod," and we caught just as many fish on plain ol "fishin' riods" before they had special rods for every bait in you tackle box!
I used to do alot of steelhead fly fishing too, but prefering to actually catch fish--and avoid the crowds (for the most part)-- I have become "hooked" on the mighty might of bass. No offense to advocado bassin' guys, but the river-living smallie wins the tug of war contest every time!

Willie Ketchum · 04-20-2009, 04:59 PM

In the stated price range, I've been reasonably happy with a couple of 7' Fenwick HMX rods from FM.

tnj8222 · 04-20-2009, 05:15 PM

for just starting out a 7 foot medium cherry wood and a 40 dollar shimano reel would be fine. like above mentioned a lami or a gl would be better but your probably not gonna want to spend that kind of money, you just dont seem to have the "passion" for it from what i have seen. so this cheap combo would be fine.

Hunt'nFish · 04-20-2009, 05:45 PM

Chromeseeker, my apologies.
I took it as "this is just another salmon guy coming over here to Bass&Pan to learn how to bonk our smallie fishery into oblivion".
Good to see you understand the value in C&R. Especially during the spawning season.

I just puke when I see fish go into the ice chest this time of season.
Again my apologies.

My drop shot rod is actually a Berkley Cherrywood 7' spinning rod that I (um, I mean the dog) broke the tip off of. I relocated the tip to the break and now have a 6.5ft rod. IMO, both the regular 6.5' and 7' Cherrywoods are too light action for my tastes. Taking 6" off the tip seemed to stiffen up the 7ft'er and now I think it's perfect.
Hunt'nFish

Fish Mount · 04-20-2009, 08:21 PM

another vote for fenwick hmx 7'. Great rods

BassinJay · 04-20-2009, 08:42 PM

berkley makes a really nice drop shot rod, and they carry it at sportsmans, enough backbone for those "potatoe bass" youre talking about!! i almost picked on up recently as a back up rod, it looks like a pretty good rod for the price, i think it runs somewhere in the $60-70 range, as stated above that fenwick is a nice rod too, i have upgraded to a lami, and still like to fish that rod from time to time!

IslandBass · 04-21-2009, 12:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MXRacer105

For a drop shot rod I use a Lamiglas XPS702X.... its a 7', 1/16-1/2oz, 6-10, fast tip, 2 power. It is their heavier drop shot special rod.

I have used the lighter drop shot rod, but found this one to be more to my liking for river smallies.

A drop shot rod is kind of a "one trick pony", as it is typically too light to do much else with. Or you can get one that is a bit "heavier" but then you will be missing some of the positives of a true drop shot rod.

Either way, the rod above may be a bit more than you were looking to spend, but hopefully the specs will point you in the right direction.

Excellent recommendation I have the Drop Shot special #1 and I wouldn't mind having the DS 2.

If there is one other application I can think of for the DS special 1 or 2, it would be topwater baits with trebles.

Since both rods are out of your price range, Look at the compres at sportsmans. Rod length of your choice but 7' would be great with a medium light to medium power.

Dan360 · 04-21-2009, 01:47 AM

I have talked endlessly about these rods, but I really am impressed with the Shimano Compre. The rod I use for finesse grubbing/tubing or drop shotting is a 7ft light-medium spinning rod. This is a 2-piece rods with a fairly stiff butt and a fast tip. The fore-grip of the rod has a groove cut into the cork so you can keep your booger finger on the rod blank to feel bites. The rod runs between $65 and $99 depending on where you find it.

I've also used this rod for light jigging for bigger trout. Very sensitive.

I have a Shimano Symetre 1500 with 6lb mono for open water and a spool of 10lb for areas where my line might get nicked up a bit.

chromeseeker · 04-21-2009, 07:17 AM

Thanks for all the great advice. When I finally start figuring out how to catch these buggers, I'm sure I'll appreciate any of the rods recommended here.

And I have to say, bass anglers, from the few I've met, seem to be a lot friendlier and much more practical group of anglers than their anandromous-seeking counterparts, especially when it comes to helping out a newbie with gear selection and pretty much any other type of advice. Hope everyone has a great season.

Cheers,
CS

Dan360 · 04-21-2009, 07:28 AM

If you're anywhere between Tacoma, WA and Salem, OR, shoot me a PM if you want to try and catch a few fish. I fish from a pontoon, so if you have something similar, it would work out pretty good.

Doc_Rhen · 04-23-2009, 11:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by chromeseeker

My reference to them as potato bass is strictly based on their coloration---I refer to largemouth as avocado bass. I'm in the medical field, and everything we describe uses food as a reference point (just how big is that kidney cyst? About as big as a golf ball. What does the stuff inside the cyst look like that you just pulled out of my neck? ricotta cheese, etc., etc.)

CS

That's pretty funny, but I have a rather warped sense of humor. The first thing I was told when I entered medicine was that we should not use food or objects as reference points when describing medical lesions

, centimeter measurements and universal Latin terminology should be used to avoid any confusion between colleges. It is still much more fun to look in somebody's lunchbox and then draw a comparison to something nasty seen in a patient recently

. As for the question at hand I currently use a Triumph 6'6" medium light, fast action spinning rod for most of my fishing. That rod has a Pfleuger Trion and 10# braid or 8# fluorocarbon depending on what I am fishing for. That combination is sensitive enough to feel most things and the fast action seems to give me plenty of power for a good hookset. I fish more for trout and kokanee than bass, but it has caught...probably a hundred or so bass for me and I have been really pleased so far.

Best of luck and tight lines

Doc Rhen