Crankbait rod?

[eyedabassman]

I want to fish more crankbaits this year. I fish way too many plastics, so I can use some help on a crank rod. I was looking at the Fenwick Eagle GT and 6'6" MH with a fast tip. I would like a 7 ft. but 6'6" would be ok. I don't want to speed alot because I feel I don't need a top dollar rod for cranks. Any other help would be great. :-/

[Alpster]

I am working harder this year on cranks also. I am building myself a 7' Lamiglas all fiberglass rod for cranking. I am learning that you may want 7' rod with a moderate action for crankbaits. I hope this helps.

Ronnie

[ww2farmer]

I had the 7' MH Fenwick Eagle GT, it ,IMHO was way to fast for crankbaits. It was a great rod for the $$ but it fell out of favor with me for these reasons:

#1- too stiff, I like a fast action rod for jigs/worms, but I also like a tip that has a little "give", I know some guys like extra fast tips, but I do not.

#2 Power Raiting, even though it was sopposed to be medium heavy it felt more like extra heavy to me, I couldn't load that thing up with less than a full oz of weight. Another reason I like a softer tip, let the tip load up and can cast quite small baits with aith it.

This rod is all wrong  for crank baits, and I do not think fenwick offers a crankbait rod in the Eagle GT line. If you want a truly exceptional, yet inexpensive crankbait rod, look at Bass Pro Shops Cranking sticks, I have two and wouldn't part with them for any thing. And they are not wallet killers either $50........

[The_Natural]

I think the Loomis CBR's are the benchmark, and are available from Fat Fish Farmer for $150.  If I could only own one, it would be the 845- this rod is capable of throwing 1/4oz cranks all the way up to DD22's, although it isn't ideal for the large deep divers.

[burleytog]

Fenwick casting rods (in my experience) are a whole lot stiffer than their rating indicates. I have a Venture 7' MH that is much much closer to a H or XH. I use it for 3 oz. Castaic swimbaits and they barely load the tip.

Rod is a bit out of balance as well. Hard to cast for a long time.  Been thinking about adding just a bit of weight to the butt in an attempt to balance it.

[cabela10]

Look at Falcon Rods, they have descriptions of what each rod is good for.

[Fishing Doug]

I think the Loomis CBR's are the benchmark, and are available from Fat Fish Farmer for $150. If I could only own one, it would be the 845- this rod is capable of throwing 1/4oz cranks all the way up to DD22's, although it isn't ideal for the large deep divers.

I agree with Natural on this one. I picked up the 843 and I seemed to get a much better hook up ratio...however....a little on the soft side if you go with 1/2 oz size cranks or bigger.

[Munkin]

Take a look at the St. Croix premier crankbait rods   I have 2 of them and they work well. These rods are only like $80 each and can be found on sale usually for like $60.

Allen

[Sam]

Some input to consider:

1.  Don't get sucked into purchasing a rod designed especially for one type of technique.  In other words, just because a rod says "Crankbaits or Spinnerbaits or Worms and Jigs" is not the primary reason to purchase the rod.

2.  One outfit may be OK for one techinque, it is more important to match the rod, reel and line for a better lure presentation.

Regarding crankbaits, you may want two or three baitcaster rods rigged with the same size and color crankbaits but with different line sizes to get the depth changes without changing lures all the time.

3.  Long rods are good for Carolina rigs, pitching and flipping.  Medium lenght rods are for spinnerbaits, crankbaits or topwaters.  Short rods are great for boat docks, wood and when you need a lot of precesion casts.

4.  As you know, when making long casts use a longer rod. And you need a longer rod to get a good hookset if you are using mono.

So the rod length is up to you and what you feel comfortable with and have confidence in.

I use a 7 foot G. Loomis medium action fast tip rod for crankbaits with a Shimano Curado reel.  This gives me the casting distance and strength to set the hook and I can cover a lot of water, fast.

Around boat docks and timber I really need to use a 6 foot rod but I am afraid I will break it. So I use a 6 and a half foot, medium heavy fast action tip rod for these types of cover to help me cast better.

When throwing crankbaits I am more concerned with how long the lure will remain in the strike zone so line weight is very important.  Maybe as important as your rod's length.

I suggest you get the short video, "Catching with Crankbaits" from Bomber :Lures (34 minutes) where Tim Horton, Zell Rowland, Alton Jones and Mark Menendez show you how to fish crankbaits.  You can get it at BPS, if in stock, or from Bomber:

Bomber Lure Company

3601 Jenny Lind Road

Fort Smith, Arkansas 72901

Or go to www.bomberlures.com and try to find it.

Good luck and I hope some of the guys give you more insight into a simple question with a very difficult answer.

[5bass]

Fiberglass-medium-at least 6' for small cranks,up to 6'6" for crankin' to 10' and 7' or longer for the big boys.

[eyedabassman]

Thanks for everyone's input,it did help. I can't wait to get to BPS to start to find the right rod. In the past I was not much of a crank basser. I have a ton of cranks in my box but never use them.Well this year I want to change that.I would like to find a rod that I can get away with useing shallow cranks and some deep ones? :-? :-/ :-/ :-/

[cabela10]

Take a look at the St. Croix premier crankbait rods I have 2 of them and they work well. These rods are only like $80 each and can be found on sale usually for like $60.

Allen

Clue me in on where you get them for $80 and on sale for $60.  If I recall, St. Croix Premier baistcasting rods run just over $110.

[cart7t]

If you want to test the waters in a crankbait rod to get an idea of what you might want without dropping a load upfront, try out one of BPS crankin Sticks in a 6 1/2 foot, med action. I've got a pair of these along with a 6 footer in medium and all I can say is, I've become hooked on the action.  You can probably pick up a premium rod that will weigh less but I doubt the feel and action will be any better than these rods and at $40 internet price or $50 in the store, they're a bargain.  

[The_Natural]

1.  Don't get sucked into purchasing a rod designed especially for one type of technique.  In other words, just because a rod says "Crankbaits or Spinnerbaits or Worms and Jigs" is not the primary reason to purchase the rod.

:-?  I would agree with you concerning other techniques, but when you get serious about your crankbait fishing, you need a rod designed for it; i.e. a moderate-fast action rod.  

[heathen]

Clue me in on where you get them for $80 and on sale for $60.  If I recall, St. Croix Premier baistcasting rods run just over $110.

Reeds Sporting Goods has the St Croix Premier Glass Crankbait Rod PGC66MM onsale for 67.50 each, 2 for 108 or 3 for 135. These are 2005 years rods. But still great rods for cranks.

I got no clue where to find them at for 80 all the time though. Everything I have seen they were 95-110.

[stewart1218]

if you wanna go cheap for a crankbait rod (i'll get killed for saying this) but the good ol' uglystick works well for me. 6'6" MH is still limber enough to load up well. You might get away with a slightly more limber rod but I don't know where for cheaper than 30 bucks at wal-mart! It's not known for sensitivity, but when crankbait fishing that's not a real issue. It can still tell the difference between a rock, stump, mud or largemouth though. I dig it.

[Munkin]

Take a look at the St. Croix premier crankbait rods I have 2 of them and they work well. These rods are only like $80 each and can be found on sale usually for like $60.

Allen

Clue me in on where you get them for $80 and on sale for $60. If I recall, St. Croix Premier baistcasting rods run just over $110.

Dick's sporting goods has had several sales on these and I have seen them as low as $40. There were also some on ebay that were buy it now in that price range as well. The 2 I have I got at BPS for $85 each plus they had a %20 discount going that day so I made out.

Allen