Snare Rod

I have been reading about what people call “snare rods” that are for dead sticking- they are long and soft to allow the fish to bite without resistance. Does anyone have a make or model they would recommend?

The only one I know of in existence is the JT outdoors snare rod.

Bass Khang makes deadsticks similar to the JT Snares. He has both walleye and panfish snares/deadsticks.

There’s a bunch of them out there.

I have a Jason Mitchell Dead Meat and a Beaver Dam noodle rod. Both perform the same.

I actually prefer the cheaper Beaver Dam rod, and it’s less than 1/2 the price ($15). The Jason Mitchell has cheap/corny guides on it, and retails for $40

You can spend $100+ more if you’d like, but for a noodle rod in a rod holder you really don’t need to.

I run a 36 inch Thorne dead stick. Very soft till the third eyelet. Have had fish on for a while before they new what was about to hit them

I have the JT Panfish Snare, works gear for crappies!

Curious why you would go this route instead of a bobber. What is the major advantage.

John Rasmussen wrote:

Curious why you would go this route instead of a bobber. What is the major advantage.

If you are moving around and trying different depths, its easier than adjusting a slip bobber

Duplicate

John Rasmussen wrote:

Curious why you would go this route instead of a bobber. What is the major advantage.

Also much easier to see across a wheelhouse. In a wheelhouse you have to be almost over the top of the hole to see if a bobber goes down.

I have one setup with a baitfeeder on a JM dead meat rod and love it, but want to add another snare/baitfeeder setup this winter and will probably try the Beaver Dam rod for comparison. Catching fish off those setups is one of my favorites!

Bought the JT Walleye snare for last season and paired with a baitfeeder reel. Have many years on an older 28″ JM Meatstick. Can’t speak to the new longer Dead meat.

Can’t say the JT is worth the dollars compared to a bobber. That said, I’m a really big fan. Every year I give myself one Christmas present so I can spend the money guilt free. No regrets at all.

https://www.vlinecustomrods.com/product-page/36-high-class-hooker-walleye
https://www.vlinecustomrods.com/product-page/high-class-hooker

Build your own or have one made with those blanks

B-man wrote:

There’s a bunch of them out there.

I have a Jason Mitchell Dead Meat and a Beaver Dam noodle rod. Both perform the same.

I actually prefer the cheaper Beaver Dam rod, and it’s less than 1/2 the price ($15). The Jason Mitchell has cheap/corny guides on it, and retails for $40

Just to clarify, are you using the beaver damn noodle as a panfish deadstick or for walleye? Being a Ultra light I would have guessed it was way to light for walleye. Thanks.

John Rasmussen wrote:

Curious why you would go this route instead of a bobber. What is the major advantage.

This is for perch fishing in 20-40 FOW. It is more efficient to reel up a fish with no bobber in the way, and you can change depth quickly if they appear on the flasher.

TheCrappieFisherman wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>B-man wrote:</div>
There’s a bunch of them out there.

I have a Jason Mitchell Dead Meat and a Beaver Dam noodle rod. Both perform the same.

I actually prefer the cheaper Beaver Dam rod, and it’s less than 1/2 the price ($15). The Jason Mitchell has cheap/corny guides on it, and retails for $40

Just to clarify, are you using the beaver damn noodle as a <em class=”ido-tag-em”>panfish deadstick or for walleye? Being a Ultra light I would have guessed it was way to light for walleye. Thanks.

I’m out of town for the week, but I’ll check the model when I get home.

TheCrappieFisherman wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>B-man wrote:</div>
There’s a bunch of them out there.

I have a Jason Mitchell Dead Meat and a Beaver Dam noodle rod. Both perform the same.

I actually prefer the cheaper Beaver Dam rod, and it’s less than 1/2 the price ($15). The Jason Mitchell has cheap/corny guides on it, and retails for $40

Just to clarify, are you using the beaver damn noodle as a <em class=”ido-tag-em”>panfish deadstick or for walleye? Being a Ultra light I would have guessed it was way to light for walleye. Thanks.

I was wondering the same thing. I have 4 of the beaver dam glass noodle rods and they are very light. Maybe they are a different model

I build the walleye snare the BK blank. If your looking they run $90

November 15, 2020 at 6:40 pm
#1988168

Bass Khang makes deadsticks similar to the JT Snares. He has both walleye and panfish snares/deadsticks.

Which BassKhang rod is like the Jt snare? The Power Noodle Custom Ice Rod? I’m not seeing a dedicated deadstick on the site.

DT wrote:

Which BassKhang rod is like the Jt snare? The Power Noodle Custom Ice Rod? I’m not seeing a dedicated deadstick on the site.

The Bass Khang blank that is the closest to the JT walleye snare is BK panfish dead stick. There are some major differences with the two blanks designs. I have repaired/build/fished with both and can tell you that I like the JT design better. JT has a softer tip and progressed into a heaver backbone a little sooner.

I haven’t handled a snare type rod.

What are the differences between a deadstick and snare, and why would an angler pick one over the other?

Tucker

curleytail wrote:

I haven’t handled a snare type rod.

What are the differences between a deadstick and snare, and why would an angler pick one over the other?

Tucker

I think the big difference between a snare rod and a deadstick rod, is the snare rod is more passive and the deadstick is more active. Meaning, with a snare rod, you let the fish bite and essentially hook itself. You then real in. With a deadstick rod, you see the action of the fish bite on the rod tip, much like you would with a bobber. Then you pick up the rod and set the hook before reel the fish in.
Dan

On the Basskahng blank section of his site there is a deadstick blank. If you click on that and scroll down a little you will see the panfish deadstick and walleye deadstick. They have been redesigned this season with a lighter tip. if you click on the down arrow by the size the panfish and walleye deadsticks will come up as an option.

I see that in his prebuilt rod section there is no deadstick option. You can contact him directly and he will set you up with one. Or you can have one of the builders on this site build you one. Myself included.

Why not get a HT blue ice rod, that work for me as a snare rod

Dan Baker wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>curleytail wrote:</div>
I haven’t handled a snare type rod.

What are the differences between a deadstick and snare, and why would an angler pick one over the other?

Tucker

I think the big difference between a snare rod and a deadstick rod, is the snare rod is more passive and the deadstick is more active. Meaning, with a snare rod, you let the fish bite and essentially hook itself. You then real in. With a deadstick rod, you see the action of the fish bite on the rod tip, much like you would with a bobber. Then you pick up the rod and set the hook before reel the fish in.
Dan

If I’m understanding this correctly then, a snare blank probably has a longer, slower, lighter tip section that allows the fish to move a bit without feeling much resistance?

Or is it mainly a difference in technique and the new snare rods are basically just dead stick rods with spring bobbers attached and given a new name?

I’m surprised they work well actually. I often have to give my walleyes a couple or more feet to move with my deadstick and bait feeder before setting the hook. I’d have thought they would run out of room, drop the bait, and be gone well before hooking themselves on a snare.

So I take it people are not using bait feeders on a snare, and using a rod holder that will hold their rod pretty securely to keep a hooked fish from pulling everything into the hole.

Mostly asking because I have my eyes on some Vline blanks to build on this year and see they have a blank they are calling a snare type blank. Was hoping it would still have good standard deadstick characteristics.

Tucker

TheCrappieFisherman wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>B-man wrote:</div>
There’s a bunch of them out there.

I have a Jason Mitchell Dead Meat and a Beaver Dam noodle rod. Both perform the same.

I actually prefer the cheaper Beaver Dam rod, and it’s less than 1/2 the price ($15). The Jason Mitchell has cheap/corny guides on it, and retails for $40

Just to clarify, are you using the beaver damn noodle as a <em class=”ido-tag-em”>panfish deadstick or for walleye? Being a Ultra light I would have guessed it was way to light for walleye. Thanks.

The Beaver Dam custom noodle is ultra light and will feel flimsy while pulling up fish. 9″ crappies feels like 12″ crappies. It works very well as a deadstick rod. I prefer the St Croix Premiere/Mojo Ice rod in the 36″ L power for this set up actually. Still light enough of a tip and still have the good balance feel for loading on fish even though it’s a solid carbon blank.

curleytail wrote:

I haven’t handled a snare type rod.

What are the differences between a deadstick and snare, and why would an angler pick one over the other?

Tucker

Probably no different. From the description of what I’ve read on the JT Snare. It functions just as a dead stick designed rod in scenario. However the scenario they wrote is where the fish would pick up bait and turn to swim away and self hook.

curleytail wrote:

I haven’t handled a snare type rod.

What are the differences between a deadstick and snare, and why would an angler pick one over the other?

Tucker

I purchased the JT Panfish Snare just after last year ice season. I have dead meat and the BDam Glass Noodle Rods as well. The major difference is the action on the snare vs a noodle rod. The action on the snare is much slower allowing for more bend in the rod before a fish would feel anything. There is still good back bone on the snare it just takes longer for the rod to get to that point so you have more time to act as the rod loads up with a fish on it versus a traditional noodle rod. With that being said there are other options:

Just buying a okuma baitfeeder type of reel will turn any rod into a dead stick and the the reel does “click” as line goes out when you have the reel disengaged to act as a free spool type of thing.

Another option may be “The Dangler” system which turns any rod and reel into a deadstick. It works good in a shack and does not require a bobber.

The JT snare has it’s purpose and is specifically designed for being a dead stick so there definitely is a difference with it and it works great but… just like anything else in ice fishing you get what you pay for and it is a luxury item of sorts because it really only has one purpose but I too treat myself with a new toy each season and this was my last treat. I look forward to using it this season as I think it will be a fun addition to the arsenal.

The JT snare is not perfect but a really fun bite. Fish still feel the resistance and drop the bait before you can get to it. I use it for when I am hole hoping. I can see the rod start to load up, run over and grab the fish. Hard to leave a bobber pole unattended.

curleytail wrote:

If I’m understanding this correctly then, a snare blank probably has a longer, slower, lighter tip section that allows the fish to move a bit without feeling much resistance?

Or is it mainly a difference in technique and the new snare rods are basically just dead stick rods with spring bobbers attached and given a new name?

I’m surprised they work well actually. I often have to give my walleyes a couple or more feet to move with my deadstick and bait feeder before setting the hook. I’d have thought they would run out of room, drop the bait, and be gone well before hooking themselves on a snare.

So I take it people are not using bait feeders on a snare, and using a rod holder that will hold their rod pretty securely to keep a hooked fish from pulling everything into the hole.

Mostly asking because I have my eyes on some Vline blanks to build on this year and see they have a blank they are calling a snare type blank. Was hoping it would still have good standard deadstick characteristics.

Tucker

I have a pair of the vline blanks sitting here on my desk – they would make an excellent deadstick rod as is – add a spring bobber and you have a snare rod. it is that simple. The spring bobber just gives you a bit more rod length of little resistance for the fish to take that bait and not drop it. They have a very slow/moderate action with a good bit of power to them in the meat of the blank. They’re perfectly straight blanks with excellent finish – best on the market in my opinion.