Custom rods

What is a good custom rods to be looking at? What do you guys use? Mostly panfish for me. I use a 27″ Tickle stick now paired with a president and love it, but I want to try a custom rod. Any suggestions?

Just tried out the 28″ Shiver Stick from JT Outdoors, it was a great lighter walleye/perch rod.

Next rod will be the 30″ JT panhandler, have a few friends that have them and they love them.

Depends what jigs u are going to use I got a bullwhip this year and absolutely love it for tungsten and even small spoons..never used a tickle stick but it would be the same concept I believe…it’s a sight rod not a feel type rod

For panfish, I love my TUCR BULLWHIP. It is perfect for tungsten jigs. I upgraded from a Cabela’s Quick Tip to the BULLWHIP and the difference is staggering.

Jt 30” Panhandler If you can get one. Sold out all the time.

I have some DH Customs and TUCR as well. I like them all & they all have their purpose. My two favorites are the DH El Dente – 30″ w/ ABS handle & TUCR Precision Noodle – 28″ w/split grip (wish it was 32″). I really like the ABS handle option on the DHs. In my opinion the ABS provides more sensitivity than my other rods with cork or EVA/cork, giving me the benefit of noodle sight rod and a feel rod.

Are you looking for a custom rod or an off the shelf high quality rod made by a custom rod maker? I ask this because there was a post about a guy who wanted to try a new custom rod and didn’t seem to care about the action (most rod builders will help pick out a blank that will have the right action for you). He was looking for a rod with a tiger wrapped and other fancy thread wrappings. If you don’t care about: thread color, handle material, handle length, rod length, guide type…. Just go to a store and play with the different rods they have until you find the action and length you want. If all the above matters and you want a true custom rod, find a rod builder.

DH Al Dente, I have two and they’re the best rods I’ve ever owned. Another amazing rod is a Thorne Bros Perch Sweetheart, but it’s on the heavy end of panfish rods.

I have seen nothing but good things with a TUCR Bullwhip and would like to get my hands on one eventually, but my needs are met with what I currently have.

I often rely on a noodle, but when the bite permits, I get a lot of enjoyment snagging fish using Thorne Quiversticks. Those are a blast targeting active fish.

If you do call a rod builder to get a rod made to your specifications, make sure to ask about the lead time. Some are so backed up you might not get your new rod until the ice is gone. If you want something now, I would go to Thorne Brothers or DH. They should still have a great selection of rods on the shelf that you can be fishing with tonight.

Bryan, the word custom with rods is tossed around like the word Fake with news.

There are a lot of very good quality rod builders out there. But if you’re truly looking for a custom rod, vs a high quality rod I would give a call to TUCR and discuss what you want. Obviously you want something different than you have, or you wouldn’t be asking. Make a list of the differences of what you have now and what would be the “perfect” rod for your applications. 50 people can all jump up on the soap box and beat their chest on having the greatest rod ever – but if it doesn’t do what YOU want, its just another piece of junk. I know, I have 10-20 ice rods around here that I scrapped out because I didn’t like them. I also have a dozen that are in my opinion the greatest rods on earth to me.

So maybe the ultimate rod you want is already being built by one of the above listed builders – or you desire something completely different and need to explore that.

Randy Wieland wrote:

Bryan, the word custom with rods is tossed around like the word Fake with news.

There are a lot of very good quality rod builders out there. But if you’re truly looking for a custom rod, vs a high quality rod I would give a call to TUCR and discuss what you want. Obviously you want something different than you have, or you wouldn’t be asking. Make a list of the differences of what you have now and what would be the “perfect” rod for your applications. 50 people can all jump up on the soap box and beat their chest on having the greatest rod ever – but if it doesn’t do what YOU want, its just another piece of junk. I know, I have 10-20 ice rods around here that I scrapped out because I didn’t like them. I also have a dozen that are in my opinion the greatest rods on earth to me.

So maybe the ultimate rod you want is already being built by one of the above listed builders – or you desire something completely different and need to explore that.

This is very sound advice! If you know what you want, talk to the builders you are interested in working with. Ask them what they can do and see if it matches your needs. If not, move on to the next. Good luck and let us know what choice you make.
Dan

Hands down Chris Stanton. His rods are unbelievable and fairly priced. He’s using DH blanks but I’m not exactly sure what other components he’s using. I’ve never seen anything before like what he’s doing. Chris will be getting my money from here on out! This is the rod I bought from him a few weeks ago.

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Love my DH Custom Aldente’s not a big fan of their perch ponder though. I also have a JT custom pan handler and enjoy it as a deadstick. There is a guy in Anoka who will help you build a rod to your specs in his basement. I can’t remember his name though. I built a heavy action lake trout and northern rod on a saltwater fiberglass blank and it was awesome to build it myself under his guidance.

I picked up a TUCR Precision Noodle and Bullwhip this season. They’re both excellent rods but I enjoy using the Precision Noodle a little more. I mostly target shallow bluegills with lighter tungsten (1/32-1/64) jigs with plastics. I’ve been using the Bullwhip for deeper water, heavier jigs, and small spoons.

Definitely get a split grip if you hold your rods pencil-grip style.