Rod sensitivity

Given the same model does the length of the rod make a difference in sensitivity? I can get the avid series for $60
and I have a preference for the shorter version (6’3″). I am going to pro-form a couple of rods and I would like to be able to put them in my rod lockers so they need to be less than 7′ long. I think the 6’8″ model would just fit.
One more question…
How do can a person test the sensitivity of rods while in the store? I have been told that if you put the tip of the rod on the carpet and lightly drag it you can test it that way. I have a hard time seeing any difference between the Guide series pro select (gander mountain) in the same model as the avid other than weight. I must be doing something wrong.

There are two good methods.

1)
Place the rod tip against your buddy’s throat and have him speak. The vibration in his voice will run through the rod and you will pick it up in the handle.

OR

2)

Tie on a 4′ piece of 2lb mono on the tip, give it a very slight load, and gently “pluck” the mono like a guitar sting. You will pick up the vibration through the rod to the handle.

Both work well.

There’s so much more to a “good” rod than just it’s ability to transmit vibrations.

Everything in rod design is a compromise. Want the most sensitive rod possible? Make it out of 100% the highest modulus graphite available. You’ll end up with a rod that can transfer vibrations like no other but would disintegrate after the first hookset. Want a rod a rod that could be used to beat dust from throw rugs? Go low mudulus graphite or a blend of composites / fiberglass & fillers (you basically get yourself an ugly stick… lol) and you won’t be able to feel much of anything but it will last forever.

Balance is often overlooked during the process of choosing a rod and it is one of the most critical. Most people test rods without reels on them and this is a bad practice as rod manufacturers design rods to counter balance the weight of the reel to achieve a neutral pivot point in the hand of the angler. (Actually, I prefer my rod to maintain a tiny tip-heavy bias) Without a reel attached a rod is horrible tip heavy and this will force anyone testing a rod to fight the tip. The rod will feel heavy and akward in your hand as the tip dives for the floor and you use your hand and wrist muscles to keep the rod in a position parallel to the floor. If you’re fighting to keep the rod under control how well can you put to use the design and materials built into the rod?

The best way I know to test a rod is to bring your favorite reel, loaded with line, to the shop. Put it in the seat on the rod you’re looking at and string the line through the guides. Next, take a split shot and crimp it to the line. Make a little pitch cast down the isle and feel how the rod balances in your hand when you slowly drag the shot back to you. (If the floor is carpeted, so much the better as you’ll feel every last change in texture with a good rod.) Can you feel the shot as it drags across the floor? Does the rod feel heavy and clumsy or light and responsive? If the rod transmits vibrations well but a little tip heavy, the rod may call for a larger reel to balance the combo or maybe some quarters will need to be taped to the end of the rod handle to achieve a neutral pivot in the hand.

IF you really want to compare rods, try this. You’ll be able to tell a a good rod from a GREAT rod and leave the store knowing that you’ve matched your reels to your rod and achieved the best rod and reel combo matched to the way you fish.

The reason fast action “stiff” rods perform poorly in trolling applications is easy to explain, really. Walleyes feed by inhaling prey items since they don’t have hands to “push” the food into their mouths. They clamp their gill covers closed and create a negative pressure by quickly opening their mouth. A minnow swimming slowly past the face of a walleye is literally “sucked” into the walleye’s mouth in the blink of an eye. This negative pressure / inhale is strong enough to pull most any prey item into the mouth of a hungry walleye, unless the bait is being pulled AWAY by the line of a trolling angler. In this case the walleye inhales but the bait does not get completely engulfed as the stiff rod tip continues to move the bait forward. What you get are lightly hooked fish that often pull free. Long and limber trolling rods allow the crank to be sucked backwards into the mouth before the backbone of the rod comes into play which results in securely hooked fish.

This scenario is even more pronounced when no stretch braids are used.

Make sense?

James,
Excellent post. You summed up questions I had about rods. Thanks for the tips and keep them coming. Thanks again, Jeweler

Nice tip James on balance problems, taping quarters on the butt.

James/all,
many thanks for your input. I am lucky that i work part time at a place where I can go out in the parking lot and test all this stuff out. I feel even luckier to have found this forum loaded with people that really know what they are talking about and will to share their hard earned knowledge with those of us that might not get to spend the same amount of time out on the water but have the same love for the sport.

thanks again,

Matt

For a more permanent solution try one of the very inexpensive rod balancing systems out on the market. They consist of a butt cap and some weights.

Bass Pro – Rod Balancers

So, where do you work Matt?

The other option is to buy a rod with, or have a rod built with, a tennessee handle so you can adjust the reel up or down to adjust the balance. Not to mention they are lighter in weight. Lighter components and a lighter reel will reduce the mass a fish has to move to feel a strike – increasing sensitivity. I see St. Croix has started offering a few models in the SC2 or 3 line (premier or avid) that have the tenn. handles again. I build lots of verticle jigging rods with these handles and everyone is amazed at the sensitivity they have. I’m just shocked that more of the high end factory rods aren’t offered with them. Many of the factory handles with reel seats are quite heavy by comparison. Of course sensitivity always begins with a good quality blank – and I think most people today prefer a high modulus graphite construction. Chuckles