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Thread: bobber rod options

  1. #1
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    Default bobber rod options


    Just curious as to what everyone is useing for bobber rods around docks,
    I just can't seem to find anything that is short and still mean enough to get a good hook set. I tend to use Gamakatsu hooks on #6 cajun line or #8 Mr.Crappie camo line. Please help!
    PROUD BUCKEYE CARP ANGLER

  2. #2
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    It really all depends if you will be using the Bilbob darting bobber or the conventional bobbers!!!???
    He among you who is without sin...cast the first stone.

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    i like the eight foot rods to use with bobbers, i have a BnM i like because you can really set the hook and it won't rip the hook out of the fishes mouth, phlueger make an excellent eight foot rod as well.

  4. #4
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    Default Gamakatsu hooks

    Gamakatsu hooks are the sharpest hooks I have ever used. My kids have caught crappie useing these hooks without ever setting the hook.
    I'm sick of following my dreams. I'm just going to ask them where they're goin' and hook up with them later.

  5. #5
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    I use the Wally Marshall "Mighty Lite" crappie rods in 8ft length for my bobber fishing. Matched them with Abu-Garcia 275U reels. I've got 4 of these.

  6. #6
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    Default 8 and 12

    I use 8 and 12 ft b n m rods, sometimes helps to have the extra length when you have to "place" the bobber in a tight spot...
    fillet em n fry em
    john

  7. #7
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    CrappiePappy is online now Super Moderator - 2013 Man Of The Year * Crappie.com Supporter
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    Lightbulb Gary ...

    Quote Originally Posted by Garyoutlaw
    Just curious as to what everyone is useing for bobber rods around docks,
    I just can't seem to find anything that is short and still mean enough to get a good hook set. I tend to use Gamakatsu hooks on #6 cajun line or #8 Mr.Crappie camo line. Please help!
    If I'm fishing around stationary docks (on poles), I'm not using a bobber ... I'm "shooting" the dock with a jig - 5ft Quantum UL (model 653N) - Shakespeare Alpha XT 1000 spinning reel - Trilene Premium Photochromic 4lb mono. I also use my 7ft Sam Heaton/Mitchell Spidercast/6lb Trilene Iron Silk ... 6ft Browning/Shimano Spirex 2000/PowerPro 10/2 yellow braid ... and even my 8ft Duckworth FnF rod/Mitchell 308X/6lb Iron Silk -- all depending on how open or confined the shooting lanes are :D
    My fishing partner uses a 5.5ft Berkley Cherrywood rod in light action, and a UL spinning reel. We both use weedless jigheads, and have no trouble getting a good hookset ... even when using the light stuff.

    Floating docks provide a slightly different problem, since you can't actually shoot "under" the main decking ... but, you can cast to the outer edges, and cast or shoot into the boat slip sections.

    Most any decent 6ft rod would suffice for a bobber rod (IMHO) ... just be sure and use a slip bobber - and don't allow much slack line to accumulate between the rod tip & bobber - when bobber starts diving, reel up slack first .. set hook when rod tip starts to bend .. continue reeling until fish boated/netted.
    What size hook are you using ? A #1 or #2 Aberdeen style hook should be big enough .... my jigs usually have #4 or #6 hooks, but for minnow/bobber rigs, I like a #1 Aberdeen.
    Your "lack of good hookset" problem, may not be due to your rod ... or any of your equipment - it may be due to the fact that a fish can grab your minnow without causing the bobber to move (since you usually have around 6" of line between hook & sinker). This gives the fish a chance to grab the minnow in its lips, and the bobber doesn't move until the fish turns/dives. When you set the hook (with hook/sinker/bobber), you are doing so when the fish is moving away ... and you might not be getting good hook penetration, or the hook may be catching the fish in the lip membrane. They do tend to be able to shake loose easier, when hooked there. When using a jig ... you see the strike the instance it happens (line moves when fish sucks jig in), and set the hook .. usually before the fish can turn. Most of the time, a jig is stuck in the roof of the fish's mouth ... and extremely difficult for the fish to shake loose. Jig hooks are always pointed up (towards the roof of the fish's mouth) ... while a plain hook can be pointed in any number of directions, when you see the hit, and it may or may not penetrate a solid portion of the fish's mouth.
    Your problem may not lie in equipment failure, or operator error ... it may just be the dynamics of a plain open hook at play here. Most of the time, a Crappie will come up under your bait ... grab it ... and turn and head back to where it was. The hook can be positioned in many ways, in the fish's mouth ... and when they turn and head back to where they were, your hook may not be in a position to stick into the inside of the fish's mouth. That's when you lip hook them, hook them in the bottom of the mouth, hook them in the tongue, or fail to hook them at all. You may consider trying Tru-turn hooks ... or even bending your Gammy's a little off center. It may help. ..... luck2ya .... cp

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    Check out Loomis' SJR rods. The SJR 6400 is 5'4". It has excellent backbone and a soft tip for casting light jigs. The SJR 700 is similar but it's 5'10".

    Neither rod is cheap. The GL2 versions go for about $120 while the GL3 and higher models are in the $180-$200 range.

  9. #9
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    BnM makes some good crappie rods that will let you set the hook. Heck if your hooks are sharp you can set the hook on a crappie with a fly rod. And you know how whippy a fly rod is. One of the biggest crappie that I have ever caught on PATOKA lake was caught on a 9 ft long fly rod used with an ultra light spinning reel and 6lb test Trilene line and a small jig under a slip bobber.

    If you have a hard time setting the hook in a crappie's mouth then I would recommend that you sharpen the hooks. Factory hooks are not that sharp when they are sold. Now some maybe sharper than others but they all should be sharpened with a good hook sharpener. I have a diamond bladed hook sharping device. You stick the hook point in this hole and the sharpener turns on and sharpens the hook point to a fine edge. It got a rotating device that circles around the hook point and sharpens the point from 360 deg several times. I can drag the hook across the top of my fingernails and scratch the surface easily after they are sharpened good.
    If you have access to a microscope you can look at the hook point under low power and see the difference after the hooks are sharpened.

    You will get better hookups if you take the time to sharpen all your hooks. When you get a new bait take it out of the box and sharpen the hooks before putting it into your tackle box. Sound preparation pays big dividends when out on the water.

    It's just like putting new line on your reels every years. Old line can break and you could loose a big fish. Why take that chance. We pay a tremendous amount of money to fish during vacations and who wants to ruin a vacation by loosing a large fish at the boat simple because old line broke and the fish got away.

    Quote Originally Posted by Garyoutlaw
    Just curious as to what everyone is using for bobber rods around docks,
    I just can't seem to find anything that is short and still mean enough to get a good hook set. I tend to use Gamakatsu hooks on #6 cajun line or #8 Mr.Crappie camo line. Please help!
    Last edited by Moose1am; 04-21-2006 at 10:41 AM.
    Regards,

    Moose1am

  10. #10
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    I use a St. Croix Avid AS59MXF with Pfleuger president 6725 loaded with #4 smoke fire line for my jig rod and think it is the best fit for dock work
    For a bobber rod I have been useing a Falcon Original 6' and it seems that the soft tip and slow blank is a struggle to keep fish from throwing the sharp gammy hooks when I try to hoist them over horizontal structure unless I hustle & "sling shot" them up & in the boat
    I have also been off setting the hooks and have seen an improvement
    Thanks for all the opinions listed guys
    PROUD BUCKEYE CARP ANGLER

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