Best rod for walking the dog.

[8assh0le]

Im having problems walking the dog. I can't seem to get that constant zig zag effect, seems to just come straight sometimes. I'm using a 7' kistler mag with curado 200e5 ( might be to long)throwing Sammies.  Is this a good combo? What line? What gear ratio? What rod? I'd appreciate any opinions. 

[florida strain]

I'm sure it will vary for different people. Its just what works best for you, just like for other baits.

I use 6.6 med. 6.3.1. 12lb. mono for walking,But thats just what i like to use.

[Bassin for Walleye]

well, you will want braid or mono and definitely NOT fluorocarbon.Fluorocarbon sinks and will affect the motion. Second of all a stiff rod usually works best for most people. I don't think length really matters but the longer lengths may give better action. Maybe get some friends out on the water and play with their setups and see what works

[Under the Radar]

Are you Bank fishing or from a boat?

How tall are you?

I'd go with a 6'6" MH rod. a 6:X reel and 12lb mono.

I personally use a 7'3" MH XF curado 101D 12# mono.

A Sammy 200 will just about spool the reel on a good day. BUT, fished the river today with 15 mph winds and you worked up current or down current happened to be with the wind. Crosswind & current there was too much bow in the line to get a porpoer walkin' action goin. And 7'3" is my max, I'm 5'9" tall and fish from a boat about half the time.

Hope this helps,

Tight Lines

Nick

[David P]

Longer rod certainly helps for me. I use a 7'3 - 8ft rod, braid, and a 7.1:1 high speed reel. Extremely easy to walk anything be it Spooks, Punkers, Frogs, even baits that aren't meant to walk.

[Beastie Bass]

I used a 6'6" MHF for years until I accidentely tied a Sammy on my 7'0" MHF Avid one night. Never looked back, the difference for me was incredible. I still use a 6'6" when fishing close quarters like brushy farm ponds from shore.

[BassThumb]

I like a longer, 7'+ rod and a tip-up retrieve for walking.  Otherwise, I use shorter rods and tip-down retrieves for other topwater plugs like chuggers and poppers.  It's not nearly as easy to walk with the shorter rods.

[smallwatermayhem]

A short rod is, IMO, easier to Walk-the-dog with. A 6'2 MH Carrot Stix on a Shimano Curado 200E7 would be d**n near perfect. You need a higher ratio reel to pick up slack-line when a fish smashes your Spook or Sammy.

[Fishes in trees]

I'm in agreement with Smallwatermayhem on this one.  I'm 5'7 and when I use a 6 1/2 foot rod to work walking baits, I smack the side of my boat more often than I would like.  I haven't broken any rods doing this -  yet - but it contributes to the reasons why I don't use walking type top waters very much.  For those few times of the year when I'm convinced that a walking type bait is the way to go I've got a 6' trigger stick that gets thrown in the boat.

[cart7t]

Rod length has nothing to do with your ability to walk the dog. Some of my best walking was done with a 5 1/2 foot rod.

The technique has everything to do with the rod tip snap, the amount of slack in the line at the time of the snap and the timing and amount of retrieve as you perform it. Sort of like walking and chewing gum at the same time though this retrieve is a little harder than that.

It sounds like you have insufficient slack in the line as you snap the rod tip. Here's a few tips:

How good you can walk the dog is really based on your mechanics and your ability to perform them. While a MHVY/fast rod may work well for some, a medium/fast or Med ex-fast may work better for you. Even a Med/light, ex-fast is doable.

Forget rod length as the only answer, it's in your mechanics. Try different rods in your arsenal and see which one works best for you. There is no cut and dry answer for the best rod length or action.

Try other reels with different retrieve speeds as well.

Don't use braid.

Practice, practice, practice.

Good luck.

[8assh0le]

Thanks for the info. I guess I'll just keep practicing and trying different combos.

[Redlinerobert]

Flexlite 7'2" paired with a Zillion 6.1 is my dedicated walk the dog combo.  Spooled with 55 lb braid and you are good to go.

[lightsout]

Dont get hung up on walkin the dog perfectly. The main thing is keep it moving, poppin that rod on slack line like you normally do to walk a spook. I've spent 100's of hours throwing them over the last 5 years and can say the fish dont care if it walks perfectly or not. What model sammy are you throwing? There are diffrences in the action of the diffrent models.

  I usually dont want it to walk, but instead to erratically "flit" on the surface like shad often do, even going under water at times on the retrieve. (it often gets bit under water).

  Many people dont give them a fair chance because they dont fish like they expect them to. Thats fine by me  8-)

For tackle, I like a 66MH fenwick HMX, with a E7 spooled with #12 hybrid. I like to work them kind of fast, and feel that E5 might  work you to death to fish it properly.

[Lucky Craft Man]

Rod length has nothing to do with your ability to walk the dog. Some of my best walking was done with a 5 1/2 foot rod.

The technique has everything to do with the rod tip snap, the amount of slack in the line at the time of the snap and the timing and amount of retrieve as you perform it. Sort of like walking and chewing gum at the same time though this retrieve is a little harder than that.

It sounds like you have insufficient slack in the line as you snap the rod tip. Here's a few tips:

How good you can walk the dog is really based on your mechanics and your ability to perform them. While a MHVY/fast rod may work well for some, a medium/fast or Med ex-fast may work better for you. Even a Med/light, ex-fast is doable.

Forget rod length as the only answer, it's in your mechanics. Try different rods in your arsenal and see which one works best for you. There is no cut and dry answer for the best rod length or action.

Try other reels with different retrieve speeds as well.

Don't use braid.

Practice, practice, practice.

Good luck.

This is the key right here and from the sound of it, your reel is not fast enough to reel in the slack between snaps. I tried the walking the dog technique with a 3.8:1 and it was almost impossible. I use a 28 IPT Reel (6.4:1 ratio for this reel) and a 6'9" rod. As others have said, I don't think the length of the rod is as critical as the speed of the reel. I would try another (faster) reel and then see how you do.

[steezy]

Flexlite 7'2" paired with a Zillion 6.1 is my dedicated walk the dog combo. Spooled with 55 lb braid and you are good to go.

The 7'2" MH FleXlite, Really?

I use the 7' M FleXlite with a 7.1 reel but never considered trying the 7'2" MH.

[Redlinerobert]

Flexlite 7'2" paired with a Zillion 6.1 is my dedicated walk the dog combo. Spooled with 55 lb braid and you are good to go.

The 7'2" MH FleXlite, Really?

I use the 7' M FleXlite with a 7.1 reel but never considered trying the 7'2" MH.

For me that combo works best.  I primarily use it with a 1 oz Jackall Bowstick 130.