Pond fishing rod?

[Chrismissbass]

Hey, I just recently bought a St.Croix Premier 6 Foot rod. I was just wondering if a 6 foot rod was a good height. 

 

Thanks

[Raul]

Yup, it's a good length.

[Chrismissbass]

Thanks

[Paul Roberts]

Short rods can be an advantage when fishing from the shoreline, when you may be tucked/under overhanging trees.

[Fun4Me]

6' will "git er done". 

[Sam]

Chris, a six-foot rod is fine but there are other items you need to consider.

Here is a partial list. I am sure the guys and gals will add to your thread.

1.  Rod length is dependent on two things a) your height and b( the casting distance you need.

2.  Add to the length requirements the need to flip and pitch so you will have good lure control and precise casting/flipping/pitching.

3.  I have had more fun with a spinning rod setup fishing rods than baitcaster rods. But you need both to fish ponds.

4.  Balance. You need to have a reel that will fit the rod and not make it heavy.

5.  Line test and bait weight also play a roll. Usually pond fishing can be successfully accomplished with 6 to 8 pound test on a spinning rig and 10 to 17 pound test on a baitcaster.

6.  The rod's power rating is important. I use a medium heavy - fast action tip.

7.  Your pond. Lots of overhanging trees or bushes? Open spaces? Structure on the bottom? Grass and weeds? You have to take your pond's physical character into consideration, too.

Now, armed with all of the above and what the other guys and gal pen you should have fun selecting a rod.

Just don't go nuts and get a G. Loomis. A BPS or Cabela's rod is fine for pond fishing.

One last suggestion: take your reel with you when selecting your future rods and put them on each rod you are considering. Get a feel of their weight and balance.

Have fun and post some of those hogs you are going to catch.

[RoLo]

Rod length is a relative value.

When I fished bluewater off the Jersey coast, 6-feet was a long rod (5 to 6-ft was standard).

Never forget, the greatest power comes from the closest thing to "handlining", NOT from a fly-rod.

In a pond, a 6-ft rod offers decent casting distance and more than ample power to handle the pond matriarch.

 

Roger

[HeavyDluxe]

Longer rods give you two benefits:  More casting distance and more leverage on a fish/bait.  However, the more you maximize these two things, the more you sacrifice accuracy in casting (placement) and subtlety and the ability to hide the rod when you're trying to sneak out of the house to fish-under-the-guise-of-running errands.

 

Think of it in a context outside bass fishing.  Surf fisherman use really long rods because they need to sling baits a loooong way and want to be able to quickly tighten a long length of line with a whip of the rod tip in order to set the hook.  But, they have a pain in the butt hauling them around - or sacrifice a bit of sensitivity to use multi-part sticks. 

 

The same fish could be caught from a boat positioned more closely with a much shorter rod of the same power.

 

I started with 6' rods, went to 6'6, and then to 7'/7'6.  For most of my kayak fishing, I wish I had kept the 6'6s just because they were the best balance (to me) of casting accuracy and portability.  I thought bigger was better, but it wasn't true for my tastes.

[Chrismissbass]

Thank you everone

For anyone wondering what kind of reel i am using on it, i have the Mitchell Mag Pro R With 10lb braid. I have used this reel and it is great. 

 

Now, I should have mentioned this before, but I do have a 6'6 rod but the purpose of this topic was just if a smaller rod was better for ponds. But with all the amazing feedback from you guys, I dont need to ask anymore questions. 

 

(havent gotten to use my new 6'0 cause of the darn freezing weather)

 

Thanks

[Bluebasser86]

I mostly prefer longer rods, even for shoreline fishing ponds, but a 6' rod will work just fine for a lot of techniques. 

[Chowderhead]

15 hours ago, HeavyDluxe said:

subtlety and the ability to hide the rod when you're trying to sneak out of the house to fish-under-the-guise-of-running errands.

 

 

Classic!

[RoLo]

22 hours ago, HeavyDluxe said:

Longer rods give you two benefits:  More casting distance and more leverage on a fish/bait. 

 

Well actually, the longer the rod the more leverage you give to the 'fish', and take from the fisherman.

Would you rather battle a 500-lb tuna with a 5-ft rod or 10-ft rod?

 

The 'length' of a lever is only half the equation, the other half of leverage is the location of the 'fulcrum'.

When we want to pry a heavy boulder from the ground, we find a long lever then place a rock fulcrum

close to the boulder. When it comes to fishing-rods though, the fulcrum is on the angler's end of the lever,

where increasing the length of the rod gives the fish more leverage and power.

 

The only reason a short rod may SEEM less powerful than a long rod is because short rods

are generally offered with a thinner blank and softer spine. So in order to get a true picture of 'length'

as it applies to 'power', we need to compare different blank lengths of similar diameter & backbone. 

 

Roger

 

 

[new2BC4bass]

I have to agree with RoLo.  My first dedicated crankbait rod was a 7'7" cheaper model (casting) so a bit heavy.  Lots of weight out front putting a strain on the wrist.  Not a rod I would like to fish with for several hours at a time.  Add a nice size bass to the equation and he would have me crying "Uncle" in a short period of time.    The only rod of mine that I still use from over 30 years ago is a 6' Lightning spinning rod.  A fun rod to use and has landed the occasional nice fish with no stress on my wrist.

[nameiztaken]

Depends on the pond, if there are trees/shrubs around you, then yes, 6 is great. However, I choose to go with a 7 MH for ponds. (I can flip a jig probably 25-35 feet with it) 

 

Sidenote, flipping is a great way to get a bait into trees that hang into the pond, we have TONS of trees in the water here.

[BrianSnat]

6 ft is on the short side.  If you have to deal with a lot of overhanging branches, then it can be a wise choice. But a 6' 6 or 7 ft rod would be a far better choice if shoreline branches are not an issue.  When fishing from shore, distance can be an asset and you will get a good deal more distance with a longer rod.

[HeavyDluxe]

6 hours ago, RoLo said:

 

Well actually, the longer the rod the more leverage you give to the 'fish', and take from the fisherman.

Would you rather battle a 500-lb tuna with a 5-ft rod or 10-ft rod?

 

You're right, physically... It takes more effort to horse a fish on the end of a longer rod.

 

What I was after was this:  Let's say I'm twitching my hands to try to bounce a jig.  With a 6' rod, the motion of my hands is going to impart a certain distance of motion to the rod tip and thus to the bait.  If I extend the rod to a 7'6 rod, the SAME motion in my hands is going to move the rod tip MORE - because of the longer rod - and the bait will move more as a result.

 

Same thing on hooksets... If I swing on a fish with a 6' rod, I'm pulling a certain distance of line tight.  With a longer rod, the take-up of line is greater.

 

So, I'm no engineer so I chose to call that 'leverage' instead of knowing what the technical term really was... Mea culpa. I repent in sackcloth and ashes.

[DINK WHISPERER]

I use a 7' mh/f and a 6' m/f for all my pond duties. 

[RoLo]

40 minutes ago, HeavyDluxe said:

 

You're right, physically... It takes more effort to horse a fish on the end of a longer rod.

 

What I was after was this:  Let's say I'm twitching my hands to try to bounce a jig.  With a 6' rod, the motion of my hands is going to impart a certain distance of motion to the rod tip and thus to the bait.  If I extend the rod to a 7'6 rod, the SAME motion in my hands is going to move the rod tip MORE - because of the longer rod - and the bait will move more as a result.

 

Same thing on hooksets... If I swing on a fish with a 6' rod, I'm pulling a certain distance of line tight.  With a longer rod, the take-up of line is greater.

 

So, I'm no engineer so I chose to call that 'leverage' instead of knowing what the technical term really was... Mea culpa. I repent in sackcloth and ashes.

 

 

Your point is well made, and I agree.

As a side note, there are in fact truckloads of anglers who do truly believe that a longer rod

provides greater power than a shorter rod. But in this case the word "leverage" is simply semantics.

 

Just as you indicated, the same hand motion is going to move the lure 'farther' and 'faster'

with a longer rod. For this same reason, I prefer a shorter rod with jerkbaits in cold water,

because a slack-line twitch will impart a rapid darting action without any help from the rod.

On the other hand, a large league of anglers prefer a longer rod for hook setting,

because they put more emphasis on speed than power (Homer Circle was an advocate of speed).

 

Roger