T_Nix35

Alright, I will give it my best shot. The predominant things you will be looking for in a rod when selecting them are Power, Action, and Length. Power Power is the strength of the rod and it is going to determine your main uses of a rod. So say you have a Medium Powered rod versus a Heavy Powered rod. The Medium rod will be used more for presentations where you don't need the extra strength to fight the fish or get him out of cover. It will also be used for smaller hooks and lighter line presentations because you do not have to punch a big hook into the fishes mouth. I would use a Medium powered rod for jerk baits, shallow cranks, shaky heads, and top waters for the most part. Now, the Heavy Powered rod has a lot more back bone in it and doesn't bend as easy as the Medium Powered rod, so it's uses are for situations where you are throwing a bait into cover or you have a bigger hook on the end of your line that requires a lot more power to put through his jaw. I would use a Heavy rod for jigs, texas-rigs, carolina rigs, frogs, and basically any presentation where I will be using a single hook. Action Action refers to the tip of the rod. When looking at a rod that has a Fast action compared to a Mod-Fast action your Fast action will bend primarily at the tip whereas a Mod-Fast action will bend closer down to the handle of your rod. The action just refers to the speed at which your rod is trying to get back to its original shape, so a Fast action comes back faster to its original shape compared to a Mod-Fast action which is more flimsy. This is important when picking rods for specific presentations such as Crank Baits. I like a Medium/Heavy Mod-Fast Action rod for cranks because it gives me a decently powerful rod that is forgiving so I can make sure the fish completely gets the bait. It also helps me when a fish is barely hooked and it doesn't pull on him as much so I have a better chance of not losing a fish. Length The only thing you really need to know about length is comfort and distance. The longer the rod the farther you will be able to cast your bait, but if you aren't comfortable with an extremely long rod for a certain situation then don't purchase it. As you get into this sport and buying rods you will find that every rod is typically specific to a particular technique. Although most can be used for multiple techniques, your serious guys will most of the time have a specific rod for each technique they fish. My best suggestion for length is to select the rod that is as long you will be comfortable with. This will allow you to have the most distance available to your comfort level without being uncomfortable fishing. Also take into consideration how and where you will be casting. Don't go out and purchase a 8' broomstick for your pitching rod if you are only 5'4" because you will not be able to do such a thing haha! Hope this helps and if you have any questions just shoot me a PM. TLMF, Trevor Nix

Yeah I am covered on the first four rods for those I am going with the 702SF (already have), 702C, 734C, and the 735C. As for the two crank bait rods you chose I would really like to have that 766Flip in there for pitching into cover, unless you think the 735 or 734 would do just fine for pitching into cover. I believe I am going to go with the 765CB Glass and then get the 766FLIP. I will just use my 702 for square bills and shallower divers. I use my Medium rod right now for Square bills and shallow divers and it works perfectly. Thank you for all of the help though, I really appreciate it! @Skippy- Haha I know what you mean man, but that is just how the Dobyns rods are identified. The first two numbers are the length, and the last number is the power of the rod, so a 702 would be a 7 foot rod that is medium powered.

What tournament are you fishing and what lake?

Haha Needham I just noticed you were from Marion. So I would imagine you know about the lakes I am talking about. If I am missing anything you think is important on these lakes feel free to add it in, I would appreciate it.

I am extremely torn by this whole decision process haha! Here is what I believe I have now since I have listened to y'all. 702SF 703C 734C 735C 766FLIP 765CB I really think I should have 702C in there for shaky head fishing and rip baits. I like throwing both of these baits on a medium powered rod and the 702SF just has too soft of a tip on it. I am thinking I can throw shaky heads on the 703C but I am also a little worried about it being a little bit too heavy of a rod. I am sure I can throw my rip baits on the 765CB, but I am not sure about that. I like throwing light shaky heads, 1/8 to 3/16, so do y'all think I should have the 702C in there? I also prefer graphite over glass rods but I may give the 765CB GLASS a shot. As far as what I fish, here in Arkansas the lakes are extremely diverse. We have both clear lakes and dirty lakes. We don't have a bunch of tall grass to fish on the banks like florida, but we do have a lot of wood and trees to pitch into on the banks. fishing deep water humps, saddles, and ledges is a big deal here. On our FLW circuit this year we are fishing Lake Ouachita (fairly clear with good deep and bank fishing depending on the time of year, I love throwing deep divers on this lake because it has a lot of pressure from non-anglers due to it being the most well known lake in Arkansas), Lake Dardanelle (it is literally a part of the Arkansas river so it is dirty rocky and frog fishing heaven), And Greers Fairy (it is the clearest lake we fish with a lot of smallmouth fishing and finesse presentations). So you can see why I would want a very diverse selection of rods. What makes it hard is being a co-angler, I want to only have 6 Rods so I don't tick my boater off rolling up in the morning. I guess if I had 7 it wouldn't be that big of a deal and I could leave the rods I know I won't need at the house. My favorite ways to fish are crank baits, drop shot, shaky head, wacky rig, pitching into cover, swim baits. With that being said I am trying not to have a set way to catch fish all the time. I want to be the most diverse fisherman on the circuit, I feel like that gives me the best chance to win at every lake. What I believe is very important is to have at least one of each power rod (medium light, medium, medium heavy, etc..). I figure they will all be fast action rods except for my crank bait rod which I would like for it to be a Medium heavy moderate action. I appreciate the info so far! I am still not set so keep it coming! TCN

I have never owned a Glass rod so the 765CB Glass makes me nervous. Is it a wimpy stick? I don't want to be able to touch the tip of my rod with the butt of itself.

Alright so rather then get a 704/705, I should get a 735 for all of my bottom presentations as well as froggin? Also I should get a 766 for my pitchin'/flippin rod? As far as jerk baits go I plan on using my 702C for Jerkbaits. And the only reason I put Squarbills on my 805CB is because it is heavy enough to use when throwing SB in cover. I could use it on my 703C, I will just have to see which one works better. I don't mean a med-deep crank bait, I mean medium divers to deep divers haha. Thats my mistake.

Would the 736 work since I only have 6 spots? Or will the 766 work just as well as the 736 for all of the presentations I could use it for while also being a good punching stick? Also why would you pick the 705 over the 704? Can it be used for all the presentations used by the 704, just with a little more backbone?

Hey fellas, I am trying to get my rod selection down for next season so I can be prepared going into the FLW (BFL, Co-Angler) season next year. I recently fished my first tournament as a Co-angler and placed 28th out of 106 co-anglers. I feel like that is pretty good and know that I have the ability to fish with a lot of these guys competitively. With all of that being said this is what I have so far: Dobyns Champion 702SF-Drop-shot, Wacky Rigs Dobyns Champion 702C-Shaky-Heads, Small Top-waters Dobyns Champion 703C-Heavy/Thick Cover Shaky Heads, Small Jigs, Large Top-Water, Light Texas Rigs, Light C-Rigs, Spinner Baits Dobyns Champion 704C- Frogs, Jigs, Carolina Rigs, Swimbaits, Pitchin', Texas Rigs Dobyns Champion 736C F/H- Heavy Cover: Pitchin', Frogs, Carolina Rigs, Punchin Dobyns Champion 805CB-Crank Baits, Mid-Deep Divers, Squarbills I want a versatile six rod setup and I feel like this covers it all. If y'all could give me some opinions on what I have chosen and whether or not these six rods will do everything I could possibly need them to do. I would appreciate some insight! Thanks, TCN

So when I purchase my first boat here in Arkansas I don't get a title for the boat, just for the trailer?

That is what I found on the Arkansas DMV website for registering a boat. I don't actually own a boat, but when I noticed this question I was interested and researched into it. I don't think it is that much, it just seems like it is because I went into detail on the bill of sale. In all actuality it is just like registering a car. It does take time, but that is usually because Arkansas DMV offices can be ridiculous. I have sat for two and a half hours in my hometown DMV office just to get a new drivers license. Talk about having to have patience.

I actually fished with an *** the other day, the tip was broken off of it because of a mishap my buddy had. The sensitivity was pretty excellent granted it was a Medium Light spinning rod and I was using a drop shot rig so I don't really have any experience with the bait casting rods. If you are going to go with a Duckett I would go with the Micro Magics, they are pretty excellent rods and the sensitivity is great. I just got my new Finesse setup last week, a Dobyns Champion 702sf, and have to say that for the people out there that say expensive rods aren't worth the money or they can get the same feel with a rod that costs half the price haven't ever fished with one. Also after using the Dobyns rod I may be trying to switch all my setups over! The biggest thing for me with anything I buy is that you are going to get what you pay for, so I will spend the extra cash to have nicer stuff.

My first rod was a BPS extreme 6'6" MH fast action rod and it was the perfect all around rod for learning multiple setups. Plus I think I got it on sale but I can't remember the exact price I paid for it. Its still sitting with my other rods, just doesn't have a reel on it right now.

Here in Arkansas in order to register a boat you need: -A bill of sale or the past years registration -Proof of liability insurance (if the motor is over 50HP you must have a minimum coverage plan of $50,000 dollars) -Your boat must be assessed at the assessors office for personal property tax -And Finally you have to have proof that you have paid your personal property taxes (either with a county tax collector receipt or you can show your assessment papers where they stamp on the document whether you have paid or not when you get it assessed) It may be different in your state but I believe the only differences would be in the percent of tax you have to pay on your property according to your states regulations, and the amount of insurance coverage you would be required to have. Referring to your title dilemma, typically on the back of any title is a bill of sale which just has places for the past owner to sign over how much they sold you the vehicle for and their signature that you have actually paid them and it has not been stolen. So you may run into some difficulties when trying to register your boat, but my dad and I have literally written out bills of sales on notebook paper and we also wrote one on a receipt before haha! A bill of sale usually goes along the lines of: I (current owner prints their name) hereby grant ownership to this (year, brand, model, and VIN number of the vehicle) to (buyer of the vehicle) for the price of ($$$). (current owners signature) (buyers signature) I have taken these into the DMV many of times and they accept them, but that could just be my state. I think the best thing you can do is either to go online to your states DMV (Department of Motor Vehicles) webpage and look at the requirements that they have. Or you could call them and see if it is needed to register your boat. One last thing, in Arkansas if the boat does not run via motor or sail it does not have to be registered. This does not include trolling motors, so you could use a trolling motor and pond hop and have a good time without all of that hard work and time spent at the DMV. But I don't know what kind of boat it is that you are talking about.

Yeah Mike from DVT recommended Perfect Solution to me, but I want to get this done. I have been waiting for about 2 weeks now on some stuff to actually get to it, so now I don't want to wait longer to order some Perfect Solution. I asked him if Purple Power would work and he said yes it just may have to soak longer. I just went out and bought some so I am sitting down and getting to it right now.

What do you guys like to use to degrease your bearings when breaking your reels completely down for a good cleaning?

Hey Mike, what do you use to degrease your bearings? I saw a video where a guy used "Pedros Oranj Peelz Citrus Degreaser" it is a bike bearing degreaser and he seemed to like it a lot.

I personally set my reels where I can make any cast possible with the bait I am using at that time. I have 2 centrifuge breaks on and 2 off at all times, then I will just crank my mag brakes down to zero and tighten my tension knob up and loosen as needed for the bait to fall at the pace I'm comfortable with. once I have that set I will typically set my mag breaks about halfway, It all depends on how much wind there is. One thing that I think is important to remember is that your centrifuge breaks are for the front end of your cast, while your magnetic breaks are for the back end of your cast. so the Initial release of your bait from the tip of your rod will engage your centrifugal more than your magnetics. While once the bait is in the air your magnetic breaks are engaged more to even the spool speed out.

Personally I change my fluorocarbon/monofilament every 3-4 months, and if I was going to fish a tournament and had the $ to do it I would put fresh line on the day before the tournament. I can't stand the memory of old line that has been sitting on my reel for a long period of time. Its a pain in my butt and I don't like dealing with it. Another reason I like to re-spool my reels fairly often, is because fresh line gives me a little bit more confidence (hence why I would do it before tournaments). As far as how long you can leave it on there, I am assuming you can leave it on as long as you want. The line will deteriorate or crack over extensive amounts of time, but its all up to you. I would hate to get out on the water and break off because I didn't change my line.

Im glad I ran across this post, My GF's dad was using one of my nicer poles about a month ago and set the hook and didn't realize how stiff the rod was and it slipped out of his hand and fell in the water. He grabbed it out quickly and picked it up again and started using it. Im just glad it didn't sink to the bottom haha! It was in the water for maybe 3 -5 seconds. I still haven't cleaned it but I know I need to. Im going to take it apart today and give it a look. Do y'all think this could effect my reel? Its a Lews Tournament Speed Spool. I have noticed that it is a little bit grittier on my retrieve but nothing too serious I don't think. I think a little Ardent butter and oil will smoothen it back up. I just hope nothing has rusted!

I haven't actually gotten the bag yet or I would post a picture of it man. My GF is getting it for me for my birthday so I still have a few weeks before I actually get it, but when I do I will give you my complete opinion about it. From what I have heard, I think it will be fine with most anglers especially if you get on their good side the evening before and early in the morning. I will bring my other bag with me just in case he really doesn't want it in his boat. I think that is the best way to do things personally. Other than that, I'm glad this post helped you out! TLMF, TCN

Thanks for the input! I actually went ahead and got the Super Magnum, but I have a smaller tackle bag already so I will look into doing that. Thanks again, TCN

Yeah one thing I have noticed though is that I am not able to feel the wobble in my baits very well with the M compared to a MH. I have mono on it right now could that be affecting the feel?

Thanks fellas. I was a little concerned about choosing a M power rod for smaller cranks cause my buddy told me he though I would lose fish because of it. I actually lost a decent fish the other day fishing a SB on that rod, but it could have been the color or size of bait I chose to use. Do y'all think that M rod will cause me to lose fish on those smaller treble hook baits?

These are the rods I would choose for each of these rigs or baits, they are all Duckett Micro Magic's. What do you guys think? Anything y'all would do different? Baitcaster: 7' Power:Medium Action:Fast-Topwater, Smaller S-B, Jerkbaits (all even deep), Prop Baits, and Smaller Traps. 7' Power:Medium-Heavy Action:Fast-Larger S-B to medium divers, T-Rigs, Mojo-Rigs, Rage Rigs, Spinner Baits, Larger Traps, Drop Shots (Pitching them into cover), Small Swimbaits, Light Jigs, Buzzbaits. 7' Power:Heavy Action:Fast-Jigs (Pitching), Medium Swimbaits, Punching, Frogs. 7'6" Power:X-Heavy Action:Fast-Flipping, A-Rigs, Large Swimbaits. 7'6" Cranking Power:Medium-Heavy Action:Moderate-Semi-Deep to Deep Diving Crankbaits. Spinning: 7' Power:Medium Action:Fast-Finnesse-Shaky Head, Drop shot, Senko, Wacky Rigs.