Finesse Fishing - Best Rod

[Joe Cool]

I was cruising over at the Bill Dance Outdoors fishing forums when I ran across this post by our own Bob La Londe.

http://billdanceoutdoors.com/simplemach ... ic=14953.0

Finesse fishing means different things to different people. For me I group about three things in the same category. Small 4" & 3" senkos weightless. Worming either split shot or texas rigged worms on light line with light weights, and drop shotting. I like a medium/light extra fast rod for this. Personally I would prefer a longer rod, but a 6'9" LTBC69MLXF Ledend Tournament rod is the best I have found. I know its an expensive rod, and no, I am not sponsored by St Croix, but it is the best most sensitive rod I have found for this type of fishing. Its extra fast action gives it some hook setting power, and the medium light power tip makes it extra sensitive. I have literally caught thousands of fish on this spinning rod.

I was actually looking for this exact power and speed rod when I ran across it. I'm sure that there are plenty of folks who will be glad to point you at a Lamiglass or G-Loomis rod with similar claims, but do not believe it. (I have both Lamiglas and G-Loomis rods on the rack that I bought to try, and now sit on my rod rack.) I'm not saying those rods won't catch fish or even that the anglers reccomending them aren't better anglers than I am. Just that the Lamiglas and G-Loomis rods are not accurately labeled in this class. Their fast and extra fast rods in the medium light class are really medium to medium fast. It makes a big difference to me.

Even with this rod helping give me a little edge I still go for a long powerful sweep on the hook set instead of the shorter extremely powerful snap that I use when flipping. Of course there is always price. I've got a couple of cheaper rods that are not as fast I can use in a pinch or to loan a guest in my boat when finesse fishing is the bite. They require a little more tension on the line continuously to feel those extra light bites, and I always reccomend an extra long sweep set starting at the water and ending with the rod pointed back behind me.

The only other thing I can add is that in most ciircumstances I prefer flourocarbon line. Its a little lower stretch than mono for a little better sensitivity. Its also a little more abrasion resistant which is very important in the lighter lines I like for finesse fishing.

[Bob La Londe]

I just posted that this morning. You missed my add on to the post.

ADDED:
I would also like to mention that on days when the bite is to cast a light crankbait, tiny spinner, or jerkbait directly into the wind with a low trajectory snap cast this is an excellent rod choice.

[canoeman]

Hey Bob,
I set my rods up with fluro for the last Pro/Am we had, and the stuff I was using was not pliable enough. It was like a spring just waiting to backlash whenever I tried to cast a lighter rig. I'm looking for an extra pliable fluro and was wondering if you'd ever given Yo Zuri hybrid line a try.

[RocketShip]

What pound test flouro were you using?

[Bob La Londe]

Well, there are different lines for different applications. If you were using a small diameter spinning reel you can't use much above 8 or 10 lb. I tend to use a larger diameter spinning reel than most folks because it casts better and handles larger line.

Line quality makes a difference too. I like Seaguar Carbon Pro for flourocarbon, but its still stiffer than mono. Also, spinning tackle can be touchy about how full you fill the spool. Too full and it blows off. Not full enough and its harder to cast. The guideline is 1/8 inch below the edge of the lip.

Some folks finnesse fish with mono. A good quality mono is more limber than flourocarbon and a little easier to work with, but some of the more abrasion resistant like Trilene XT start to get a little stiff too. Our water is stained enough that there are only a couple places where flourcarbon makes a difference for visibility. I use it for the lower stretch and higher sensitivity for some baits. (I never use it for topwater)

And make sure you put the line on the reel in the right direction.

If you are talking about baitcasters then I can't help. Backlash is backlash. You need to have a reel that can handle the light baits that you finnese fish with. Not many baitcasters can, and its going to take some practice.

[canoeman]

I was using 20 pound Seaguar on a casting reel. Its the wide spooled Pflueger President reel, and I've never had problems with it before. I just made a junior mistake in trying something that I wasn't used to for the tournament. Previously, I kept it spooled up with 14 pound Trilene Smoth Casting line. It's way easier to work with. Anyway, I think I'll go back to what works for me, and if I need a higher pound test I'll probably go with braided line. I'm still interested to hear if anyone has tried the Yo Zuri Hybrid line. It's advertised to be really flexible for a fluro line.

[Bob La Londe]

I have not used the 20, but in general I like 12-17 pound diameter on my baitcasters.

[RocketShip]

I thought you were talking about finesse fishing. If that is the case you shouldn't be using anything higher than 10 lb test at a max. There are a lot of variables to iron out before you can say which flouro is right for, if you determine you need to be using it all.

[canoeman]

You're right. 20 lb fluro isn't finesse fishing at all. I kind of changed the subject there when I heard that Bob liked to use fluro line. I have gone as high as 12 pound fluro though and would still call it finesse fishing. I wouldn't go above 10 lb mono though. Maybe I should start a separate strand to ask about Yo Zuri hybrid line.