Excellent stuff here. Thanks for the discussion, Tom!
I remember glass rods, though I wasn't a dedicated fisherman then.
Sensitivity for me was the bobber going under water in those days!
FF to today and I've spent a lot of my $$ on fishin' sticks! I've said
it in other threads, and agree completely, that sensitivity is in the
hands of the holder. Like @Catt says, it's between the hands and
brain.
Experience is the great teacher. Just last week I fished a Mann's Jelly
Worm (8") TX style, and caught a 2 pound bass in a grassy flat about
40 yards away from my kayak. Was using my Chronarch 50e and a MH
Carbonlite, 6'6". I set the hook on instinct almost immediately when
I felt something different as I was slow dragging it through the grass. It
wasn't like someone rang the doorbell, or pounded on the door saying
"FISH IS ON, DUDE!" like a bobber would indicate or your rod being
ripped out of your hands.
It was different, subtle, but there. I'm convinced it was experience and
ability (based on learning from experiences) that taught me to look/feel
for a difference between grass and a strike.
I don't give all the credit to my $100 Carbonlite, though it did play a role.
I'm pretty sure I would have felt that subtle strike on my $50 rod as well
simply because I've had similar experiences on it.
All this said, I have a long way to go to get to where many of you guys are
in terms of knowledge and experience. This is where I'm at today. I fully
expect to be in a different place a year from now thanks to more experiences
piling up.
I fully expect my understanding of sensitivity to continue to evolve.
