Jerkbait Rod for Short Angler

[wanderful]

I'm looking for my first jerkbait rod but am having trouble finding something appropriate for my height. I'm 5'7" and mostly fish from a standing kayak or bank, neither of which give me significant clearance over the water. In my searching, it seems the vast majority of jerkbait-specific rods are 6'8" or longer, but I feel like I should be targeting something 6'3" or shorter.

 

Can any bank-fishing short fellas weigh in here? Have you comfortably gotten away with a longer rod?

[Dwight Hottle]

I'm 5'-8" and all my jerkbait rods are 7' or longer. The rod tip doesn't have to be slapping the water to make a jerk bait effective. Just use a downward stroke or side stroke. 

[MiceNReets]

Megabass P5 Destroyer “One Ten Stick”.   It’s 6’5”

[casts_by_fly]

5'9" here and also standing in a kayak.  I'm throwing them on a 6'8" or a 6'10" with no problems.  Like dwight said, the rod doesn't have to be vertical, just close to the water.  Same for walking baits.  

[thunderblack]

I actually prefer a side stroke and fish rods in the 6'-10 - 7'-1" length. Cast further and easier to work those baits all day in my opinion. I prefer spinning gear. 

[steves191145]

St croix makes some 6ft8 med xfast rods throughout their lines. 

[Hook2Jaw]

Daiwa makes the Tatula in a 6'3" MF that might be good for jerkbaiting.  I was interested in that rod for the longest time, but never picked one up.  I'm 6'1" and jerkbait from a kayak standing with a 6'7" 13 Omen Black 3 MF as well as a 6'7" 13 Fate V3 MF.

 

The Omen Black 3 is a phenomenal jerkbait stick, best suited for straight fluorocarbon.  The Fate V3 pulls double duty -- it's much softer so it's typically rocking straight braid for topwaters.  I have leadered it with fluoro to have two jerkbaits available when necessary.

[WRB]

5’7” is close to being average height for men so jerk bait casting rods 6’8” is standard offering. Their are 6’6” MF  jerk bait rods from several mfrs. Cashson has their icon series on discount on TW with a 6’”6 MF casting rod.

Tom

[Bankc]

Yeah, I've noticed that you can't work a jerkbait from a kayak like you can from a big bass boat.  Kind of the same with pitching.  On the deck of a bass boat, you're about two foot above the water.  In a kayak, you're maybe two inches.  And in most kayaks, you have to keep your weight centered, which means you can't stand with both feet along the side, facing the water, like you can in a bass boat.  To fish a jerkbait exactly like how you'd fish one from the deck of a bass boat, you'd need something like at 3' rod, which would be ridiculous.  

 

So really, you just need to figure out a different angle or motion to do the same thing in a kayak.  Like for jerkbaits, I snap my rod more to the side than down (but there's still a little downward direction).  And I have to hold the rod slightly different to do that comfortably (usually up higher and twist the rod over a bit).  Just experiment around and you'll figure something out that works for you.  You don't really need a shorter rod once you figure it out.  I use a 7' rod in my kayak for jerkbaits without issue.

 

Also, you don't need a jerbait specific rod to fish a jerkbait well.  Technique specific rods are a gimmick.  Different anglers will like different properties in a rod for a specific technique anyway.  Especially with stuff like jerbaits.  Some people want an extra fast rod for snappier action on the twitch.  Some people want a moderate speed rod for keeping the treble hooks pinned after the bite.  It's hard to find two people who prefer the same rod for jerkbaits.  You need to figure out on your own what properties you expect from a rod for each technique and buy the rod that works best for you.  

[GetFishorDieTryin]

I'm an inch shorter and I use rods up to 7'1 with no issues.  Most of the water I fish is shallow and if I really fish a JB tio down, often it's going to deep.  If I didn't have to worry about that and I was after a dedicated JB/top water, I would get a 6'7 or 6'8.  If you want to save some money,13s 6'7 M F blanks are outstanding JB blanks.  TW might have some Muse blacks left for 130, not going to get anything close for that price.

[Bigassbass]

I am 5' 3" tall and I've never thought I needed a short rod for anything; 6"8, 6"10, or 7' works well for me and I can throw jerk baits on all of them.  Actually I think a longer rod works better for jerk bait action, but you did say you're fishing from a kayak so  buy yourself a nice Fenwick, they have every length anyone would need. 

[wanderful]

5 hours ago, Bankc said:

Yeah, I've noticed that you can't work a jerkbait from a kayak like you can from a big bass boat.  Kind of the same with pitching.  On the deck of a bass boat, you're about two foot above the water.  In a kayak, you're maybe two inches.  And in most kayaks, you have to keep your weight centered, which means you can't stand with both feet along the side, facing the water, like you can in a bass boat.  To fish a jerkbait exactly like how you'd fish one from the deck of a bass boat, you'd need something like at 3' rod, which would be ridiculous.  

 

So really, you just need to figure out a different angle or motion to do the same thing in a kayak.  Like for jerkbaits, I snap my rod more to the side than down (but there's still a little downward direction).  And I have to hold the rod slightly different to do that comfortably (usually up higher and twist the rod over a bit).  Just experiment around and you'll figure something out that works for you.  You don't really need a shorter rod once you figure it out.  I use a 7' rod in my kayak for jerkbaits without issue.

 

Also, you don't need a jerbait specific rod to fish a jerkbait well.  Technique specific rods are a gimmick.  Different anglers will like different properties in a rod for a specific technique anyway.  Especially with stuff like jerbaits.  Some people want an extra fast rod for snappier action on the twitch.  Some people want a moderate speed rod for keeping the treble hooks pinned after the bite.  It's hard to find two people who prefer the same rod for jerkbaits.  You need to figure out on your own what properties you expect from a rod for each technique and buy the rod that works best for you.  

Great insight, thank you!

[Delaware Valley Tackle]

On 2/22/2024 at 11:10 AM, Dwight Hottle said:

I'm 5'-8" and all my jerkbait rods are 7' or longer. The rod tip doesn't have to be slapping the water to make a jerk bait effective. Just use a downward stroke or side stroke. 

Exactly. I’ll use a downward, side or 3/4 sweep depending on how much room I have.