Hook2Jaw

Those are good looking sticks. I'll keep them in mind. I'm currently trying to figure out how to match up all the components that goes into building a rod off a blank. Sadly, I can't find any kits for Rainshadow blanks which would make it incredibly easy for me to ask for that as a Christmas gift.

I did a swimbait fish bank busting. The one I lost on the S-Waver 168 a few weeks ago still haunts my dreams. She would have been the best fish of the year. I didn't weigh her, but she smoked that Huddleston 68. Did just like the boys from Tactical taught me, set the hook and grinded her right in. Any guesses on the poundage of my first Huddleston girl?

Welcome to BR and welcome to bass fishing! There is some awesome advice listed above. Stick worms of all sizes catch bass exceptionally well, and wacky rigging is an awesome way to learn them. When I learned to catch bass as a kid, it was via Texas rigged, weighted rubber worms and spinnerbaits. When I took up bass fishing heavily a few years ago, I started by Texas rigging weightless rubber worms -- I started with Yamamoto Senkos, but I went through so many I opted for cheaper options and YUM Dingers are an excellent bait. I have so much faith in a Texas rigged Dinger that I'm going to have to suggest that in addition to the wacky rig suggested above. It's a similar presentation that has less action, but it has enough of that, and is far more weedless. I personally used 2/0-4/0 light wire and heavy wire worm hooks to fine tune the fall rate, but as a baseline I would grab some 3/0 light wire EWGs for this presentation. So, wacky and Texas rigged sticks are two techniques. Since you've expressed interest in paddletails, my favorites are YUM Pulse and Big Bite Baits Cane Thumpers. Rig either on a 1/8oz to 1/4oz weighted swimbait hook. Good luck, @Bluegillslayer!

How sensitive are these sticks? I believe you've told me before, but would they make decent bottom contact rods with straight fluoro or are the guides large enough for easy braid to leader? I caught by PB on that combo. If he's throwing moving baits, a Daiwa Aird-X makes a good stick for that purpose. If he has the patience and feel for jigging and worming, I would grab him a MHF in the 6'6"-7' range and I would choose a Tatula Bass, Dobyn's Fury, St. Croix Mojo Bass, or 13 Omen Black 2. BPS also has a sale on their Pro Qualifier 2s on Black Friday for 69.99 and I really miss mine. It was stolen off my carport.

Maybe the guy who started the short rod kayak revolution was a sissy baby. ?

Rooting for you. I have a wedding to save for this year, I had hoped to make the KBF SE Opens this year, but it was the first thing I budgeted out.

I've never heard of such an issue. Normally impacts slow your kayak enough so they don't bend too terribly, if at all. If they were to bend that much, the slot is very spacious, and the fins aren't that long. You could angle it out without issue. If not, roll the boat on its side and bend them back straight enough to remove the drive.

Oh. I don't have kick up fins but I've bent the stainless fin masts back straight with vices, and in a pinch, stuck them in my hitch reciever and done it by hand. Hobie is pretty genius with their design, the masts that add support to the fins are designed to bend rather than break and to do so before they thread into the mast recievers. As far as the propeller drive pedal kayaks, like the Native Watercraft offerings, they have a shear pin installed to break and allow the drive to kick up upon impact. Those shear pins cost about a dollar.

This is comforting to hear. I plan to use the 6 dollar alignment tool from Mudhole as well as my eyes, and plan to dedicate this Christmas to building a 6'3" MXF for jerkbaiting from my kayak the rest of this winter.

That bad boy is beautiful. Update this post when you smack a fattie with it!

We flutter fin or stow the drive altogether and bust out the paddle. Then we go way skinnier than a boat could ever dream of. ?

Basically, bass are us staring down the last serving of grandma's food at Thanksgiving.

Kayak angler here of about 5 years experience off the little plastic boats. I started in a 250 dollar sit inside from Wallie, then moved into a 2010 Hobie Outback. I now fish from a Hobie Pro Angler 14. Huge difference in these boats. The only craft I needed to handicap my rod length in was the sit inside special. Do not let your craft handicap your rod selection. The only technique I have found that requires a shorter rod from a kayak is jerkbaiting, because, in my opinion, a jerkbait needs a downward twitch or rip to get the proper diving, side to side motion. For everything else, including frogs, I use what a boater uses. I opt for longer rods for covering water and shorter rods for precision. As a kayak angler, the first bit of advice I give anyone fishing from a yak is to not handicap your rod length due to your craft. I can't emphasize this enough. I have no idea who came up with the idea that you have to use shorter sticks from a kayak, but they are wrong. Do short rods work fine from the quality craft we have available to us as paddle or pedal anglers? Yes. Long rods work just fine too. As far as rods and reels go, I would opt for reels from Daiwa or Shimano's lines. Personally, I would buy three Dobyn's Fury, Shimano SLX, or 13 Omen Black 2s. I would stick Daiwa Tatula 100s or Shimano SLX on those three sticks.

Bass, to me, seem to be very competitive and absolutely hate other predators -- even their own species. They're also definitely cannibalistic and the only double I've ever caught was on a stick worm of all things. The bigger bass hit the smaller bass so hard it knocked my hook through the side of little dudes mouth, just threading the line through him. Then she got foul hooked in the struggle. That was a confusing hookup. Tick - hookset - WHAM - dead weight. Drug in two bass with one hook. More on topic, those are decent looking cranks. I may have to check them out, I like that they come with VMCs stock and that they have a decent amount of weight to them despite being silent.

Awesome! I don't have any old spinning reels I can chop up, but I found an alignment tool on MHX. Thank you. 10-4, thanks. I think I've about got it figured out now. None of the videos I watched showed alignment tools. The amount of tools they have to build rods can be a tad overwhelming for an aspiring builder.

I'm trying to figure out how it's become an alignment tool. Are you placing the rod through the guides before they're epoxied on to get that perfect alignment?

As an aspiring rod builder, it's nice to know perfect alignment of the guides isn't absolutely necessary. Thanks, fellas.

Leave my 13 rods, Berkley Vanish, Kastking Superpower, and YUM Dingers alone, too. I be catching fish on them things. I am a connoisseur of fine, cheap goods.

Yep, I have looked at those with interest. That's probably my move. Thanks again, @spoonplugger1

After watching her do that, I feel like a reasonably fit adult male can get a PA12 or 14 up top.

hey guys I think something is wrong with your water But seriously, sorry you're all kicked off the lake because of the cold. I'm currently staring out the window because I wanted to crawl a swimbait today but it is 100% chance of rain, all day long.

You posted two pool cues, one rated to 2 ounces and another to 1 1/4oz. No, that does not meet the requirement. I'm looking for a rod designated for jerkbaits with a fast to extra fast tip for working 3/8-3/4oz baits. I'm looking for a rod that loads into the blank on the back cast to accomplish distance as well as be soft enough to keep a bass pinned on small treble hooks. No, that did not prove there are more options outside the box I am "stuck in". Those blanks you mentioned aren't going to perform very well for the lures I intend to use them with. As far as the idea that I did not click the link, you'd be incorrect. I clicked the link to examine what else UC had to offer besides the two rods you suggested, because, as explained above, you made bad suggestions. I'll enjoy my echo chamber before I reply to you again, but thanks for the useless recommendations. ETA Added more insult since you want to insinuate that I desire spoon feeding.

I didn't know I could extend blanks, that's pretty neat. I'll look into it as soon as I'm done replying. @spoonplugger1, do you have experience with these shooter blanks? I'm wondering what would make them a good rod for the application I have in mind.

@spoonplugger1, my kayak deck is a tad elevated off the water, and I think a 6'3" will work well for me at 6'. I really wish I could get my hands on a 6' and 6'3" stick, but I will keep those shooter blanks in mind. They have some really unique weight ratings, but I think they're a touch lighter than what I'm looking for. Yes, the poster above definitely tried to recommend me a 6' rod with a flipping stick weight rating. I suppose if I need to skip a 1oz jig under a dock I know where to look in the future, so that's a plus!

I'm seriously entertaining the idea of building my own rod for throwing 1/2 ounce, 3-6' diving jerkbaits. I am throwing H2O Xpress Ultimate Jerkshads, and will eventually be filling my jerkbait boxes with Berkley Cutters and Skinny Cutters. I have been doing so on a 6'7" Medium Fast 13 F.a.t.e C.h.r.o.m.e, and greatly enjoy the rod due to it's casting capabilities, balance, and the slight amount of parbolism the budget blank offers. It has served me well working jerkbaits from the bank and spooks from the kayak. Sadly, it seems rod manufacturers base their jerkbait offerings on the boater. They are long, much too long for the downward twitch to be performed comfortably from the standing position on my Hobie PA14. I have no problems jerkbaiting bass from elevated banks, but my catch rates seem to suffer once I am forced to incorporate sideways jerks to impart action. I feel I am not presenting the lure correctly with sideways jerks. So, BR rodsmiths, that's my dilemma. My jerkbait rod is too long to work well from my kayak, so I -think- I want a rod in the 6'3" range to allow me to impart action. I've been looking at the rods offered by Mudhole customs, since I'm already more than likely to purchase my rod building equipment from them already. The blanks I'm thinking will suit my needs and wallet best are the MB782 and MB783 because I'm used to fast action sticks. Alternatively, I think my best option might be an extra fast, but I worry there won't be enough bend down the blank to keep small trebles set. From what I understand, the Mag Taper offerings from Mudhole have good action in the tip with almost a second stage of action down the blank, which is the softness I desire after the cast and hookup. So, the MB782XF and MB783XF are also in the running. I realize I'm all over the place. Proofreading and phrasing aren't exactly my strong suite. Here's a TLDR version of my post. ? - I want to build a 6'3" Jerkbait Rod to throw shallow jerkbaits weighing 1/2oz. If a blank exists that will also throw heavier, deeper jerkbaits on the same stick, that's a huge plus. - I only have experience with fast tips. Will an extra fast tip require less movement to impart the proper action? Space is at a premium when I'm close to the water. - How do these Mag Taper blanks I'm looking at perform? There are no videos and very little information. My understanding is they have tip followed by parabolism when loaded with a fish. - Which blank, of those four, would you suggest? Should I buy a different blank altogether?