I haven’t used the C-rig for panfish , but I do fish the drop shot a good bit .
I prefer a short fast action rod , 5-5’6” .
I’ve tried longer rods but the shorter rods seem more sensitive to me .
I use 3-4# line with a 1/16th oz jig with the hook cut off for my drop shot weight . Thinking of giving braid a try with a mono or flouroclear leader.
I tie a 1/80 jig about 18” above my weight to fish plastics , or a 1/80 hand tied jig , usually in a woolybooger pattern .