Disappointed, but.

[Hewhospeaksmuchbull]

I bought my first "sissy" setup.

 

A Diawa Legalis LT 2500,

paired with a  Quantum qx36s661ml,

6ft 6in Medium Light-Fast 4-8lb 1/16-3/8oz,

Trilene XL #6.

 

 

The reel is butter smooth and just what I was hoping for, the rod not so much I think. My problem is casting distance, I was really hoping for a wow when casting 1/5th ned rigged baits(Z Man Finesse T.R.D). I'm getting maybe 50' when my targets are about 60', is this a unreasonable expectation? It just feels off considering that I can get this distance with my baitcasting setup when using 1/4 ned heads(med/fast 7" tat 100).

 

The good, I can now cast under low bridges much easier and a lot more accurately and the rig skips great. But I bought this to get my light baits across a canal to the other bank allowing me to fish 100% of the water in front of me.

 

What can I do to get the distance I need? Longer rod? Would light braid be better than the mono I'm currently using, I'm thinking yes but am unsure as I have little experience with spinning gear?

[Tywithay]

Longer rod and smaller diameter line will add distance. 6lb trilene is close to 10lb line in reality. With 4lb, or maybe 10-15lb braid, it'd probably go quite a bit further, without buying a longer rod.

[Hewhospeaksmuchbull]

Braid it is, #4 mono is gonna be tough in the cover that is around.

 

Fished the rod again today and I have to say for 35 bucks it fishes great other than distance that is. I don't remember where I read that spinning gear and skipping don't mix, but that is just flat out not the case. I was floating wacky rigged worms under bridges since skipping with my longer casting rods was only getting me half way to where I wanted to be, this little thing skips them the 30' to 35' easily.

[MN Fisher]

Sounds like you got a good, value rig.

 

3 minutes ago, Hewhospeaksmuchbull said:

I don't remember where I read that spinning gear and skipping don't mix, but that is just flat out not the case.

I dunno where people think that. I skip all the time with my spinners - still trying to learn how to skip with my BCs.

[Fishes in trees]

Great - spinning gear an another fascinating gear addiction when it comes to bass fishing.  You've taken your first step.

Next, you'll get a little better rod, or maybe just another one so that you can throw different baits without taking the time to retie.  Then the addiction hits and if you ain't careful There will be Diawa Tatulas & Black Golds, Shimano Stradics, maybe even a Stella or 2 in your future.  

1/5 ounce ain't nothing, you can get spinning gear that will throw 1/16 or smaller the distances you're talking about.

Throwing light stuff can get addicting and is really fun.

[Hewhospeaksmuchbull]

4 minutes ago, Fishes in trees said:

Great - spinning gear an another fascinating gear addiction when it comes to bass fishing.  You've taken your first step.

Next, you'll get a little better rod, or maybe just another one so that you can throw different baits without taking the time to retie.  Then the addiction hits and if you ain't careful There will be Diawa Tatulas &lack Golds, Shimano Stradics, maybe even a Stella or 2 in your future.  

1/5 ounce ain't nothing, you can get spinning gear that will throw 1/16 or smaller the distances you're talking about.

Throwing light stuff can get addicting and is really fun.

Please stop lol, I'm already considering getting a longer rod and another of the same reel. Truth be told IMO, this rig fishes way above the 90.00 I spent on it.

[JustJames]

9 hours ago, Hewhospeaksmuchbull said:

I bought my first "sissy" setup.

 

A Diawa Legalis LT 2500,

paired with a  Quantum qx36s661ml,

6ft 6in Medium Light-Fast 4-8lb 1/16-3/8oz,

Trilene XL #6.

 

 

The reel is butter smooth and just what I was hoping for, the rod not so much I think. My problem is casting distance, I was really hoping for a wow when casting 1/5th ned rigged baits(Z Man Finesse T.R.D). I'm getting maybe 50' when my targets are about 60', is this a unreasonable expectation?

So you try to cast 1/5oz jig head with TRD? 
If yes the total weight must be close to 3/8oz. The ML rod with 1/16oz tip gonna have hard time casting such weight. You might have to adjust casting to smooth lob cast.

I considered myself newbie for spinning and still learning to improve my casting and accuracy. Today I went out to test brand spanking new Curado 6’10M/XF 3/16-5/8oz. I can cast 1/20oz Ned about 25-30yds easily (I use 10lb braid). Might be a good time for you to drop the weight to 1/16oz, you don’t want to fish Ned Rig with too heavy jig head anyway.

[Finessegenics]

When I switched to braid it drastically increased my casting distance. It flies off the reel so smoothly because of the small diameter of the line . Also what @Bass_Fishing_Socal said about the weight of the bait is true. The jighead and plastic are probably not exactly 3/8 oz but even if your ML rod is rated up to 3/8 oz I’ve always found that to be way too heavy for all the ML rigs I've ever owned. I don’t throw anything over 1/4 oz on my ML rods unless I’m vertical fishing. Even my mojo bass which is ML and rated 1/8-1/2oz struggles with anything over 5/16 oz. 

 

 The first thing I’d do if I were you is switch to braid. It’s much more manageable on spinning gear than mono or fluoro anyways . And since you’re already interested in another rod, instead of buying a longer ML, maybe you should go with a 7 M/F and you’d be able to throw those heavier jig heads easier. So now you’ll have two different setups and can be more technique specific. Especially if the price point is 90$, sounds like you got a good deal. 
 

 

[TBAG]

That's a lot of weight for a cheap ML rod.

[Hewhospeaksmuchbull]

Jig head is 1/16 sorry for confusion, So total bait weight is just under 1/4. I don't see very well, had to break out a magnifying glass to see weight print on package.

 

 

[JustJames]

10 hours ago, Hewhospeaksmuchbull said:

Jig head is 1/16 sorry for confusion, So total bait weight is just under 1/4. I don't see very well, had to break out a magnifying glass to see weight print on package.

 

 

You should be able to cast that weight further even with 6lb trilene. I think you could change to 10-15lb braid and see if make any difference. As far as longer rod, yes it would help but 7’ rod probably got longer handle (2-3”) than your 6’6, you might only got 3-4” of advantages.

[Hewhospeaksmuchbull]

Happy to report that 10lb powerpro has made a difference. Even with a pretty good wind I am getting much better distance. New problem line is so fine I cant see it, lol. Gonna have to get some Hi-vis.

 

I think the mono I was using was a little to old, stuff had the exact characteristics of a slinky.

[Ogandrews]

Switch to 8-10lbs braid to a 6-10lbs mono leader and it will be a night and day difference. Will have way better casting distance and he way more sensitive. I know a lot of guys have different opinions on what to use line wise for casting rods but it’s undeniable that braid to a leader is the way to go with a spinning rod. I really like suffix 832 for light line, very supple and not expensive.

[Hulkster]

Quote

I think the mono I was using was a little to old, stuff had the exact characteristics of a slinky.

I would agree. I have used 6 pound trilene XL in the past and it casts amazing. but if it was old and coily it wont for sure

[Gazz]

On 5/4/2020 at 10:05 PM, Fishes in trees said:

Great - spinning gear an another fascinating gear addiction when it comes to bass fishing.  You've taken your first step.

Next, you'll get a little better rod, or maybe just another one so that you can throw different baits without taking the time to retie.  Then the addiction hits and if you ain't careful There will be Diawa Tatulas & Black Golds, Shimano Stradics, maybe even a Stella or 2 in your future.  

1/5 ounce ain't nothing, you can get spinning gear that will throw 1/16 or smaller the distances you're talking about.

Throwing light stuff can get addicting and is really fun.

You've just awoken my unbearable urge to upgrade to a stradic ci4+ that I finally put to rest for the season. Luckily I can't make up my mind as to what rod I would want for it so I'm using that to keeps the wolves at bay. 

[jbrew73]

Welcome to the world of highly overrated “sissy rigs”.  Nearly a 1/4oz head and 1/2 a Senko can be launched from any decent bait casting combo.