Thread: Catfish rod?

Thanks everyone finding a rod right now is about like trying to find tackle sold out

Originally Posted by no luck

Thanks everyone finding a rod right now is about like trying to find tackle sold out

Time to build your own.

Originally Posted by funbun

Time to build your own.

I have no ideal how to build one

Originally Posted by no luck

I have no ideal how to build one

https://www.youtube.com/results?sear...g+rod+building

I like the Catfish Ugly Stiks 2pc 8ft med.hvy, they're great for catfish 2#-70# as well as well as stripers, then there is the Kast King Brutus MH 8' 2pc fast tip and a little more sensitive than the ugly stik. Most of the stores within a 60 mile radius of me are sold out. I'm sure something will be available on Amazon just have to wait a bit. We never know what size were going to catch around here.

BP Graphite or Berkley Lightning Rod -- $35:

Access Denied

This is an old thread, but hopefully it will help someone else down the road

I fished for catfish growing up. I fished farm ponds, where a 5 pounder was a monster. For those, whatever cheap rod I could find worked.

If you are looking for big cats >10pounds, get a fiberglass rod. Anything MH or a strong medium will work. Academy had such rods for $8 or so 15 years ago. They were nothing exciting, but were cheap and strong. You can spend over $150 on a catfish rod if you so desire, but there are a lot of great options from $60-90. You don't NEED those rods, but they are built for 25+ pounders and should be able to bring in a world record size if needed.

For a little less money, the Ugly Stick gx2 seems like a super solid rod. I don't know how heavy the power is, but Luke from Catfish and Carp on youtube did a couple of videos trying to break one. The videos were interesting. He broke a penn battle 2 (I think) reel trying to break the rod.

On the low end, the h2o express from academy for $15 is a place to start. It won't be light nor terribly sensitive, but it will do the job. You can go up in price from there.

The "trophy cat" youtube peeps talk about needing an aluminum reel seat (yeah, because the blank plus a plastic reel seat is going to be where the rod breaks. Lol. Oh, and thick, stainless guides because "there are no inserts to break" -- again, clearly a huge issue. Lol. They also talk about 80 pound leaders and 60 pound main lines. It's like chasing bluegill with a medium rod and 15# mono... It will get the job done, but it's overkill.

One thing that's good is a baitclicker because you aren't doing "cast and retrieve", but rather "cast and rightline and wait".

What makes a "catfish" better? Traditional fiberglass is heavy and not terribly sensitive. S-glass is lighter and almost as strong, and offers more sensitivity. S-glass/graphite composite makes it even lighter and more sensitive. Nicer handles cost more, aluminum reel seats cost more, double locking rings on the reel seat, heavy duty guides, glow-in-the-dark rod tips, etc... They all cost more.

The original b 'n m Silver Cat is supposed to be a good priced entry into "catfish specific" rods. They have the silver car elite and silver cat magnum which will cost more. When you get up into the $60+ range, you have a lot of options -- most of which you can't find in your favorite retailer. These include brands like Rippin Lips, Whisker Seeker, Tangling with cats, muddy river catfishing, and a few others that are slipping my mind.

I hope this helps someone.

I've got several casting rods for cats. We get channel's here up to about 6# and I like my Round reels and 6'6" rods. One of my favorites surprised me. Got it off Amazon for under $20. Berkley Cherrywood Med action. Most other's ate about 6'^" also and either med Lt or med One med heavy and it works fine. Using up the last of my 14# line and going to stick to 10# and might have a little 12# to use up still.