I use these mr crappie solo reels. I've got them on my 8 spider rig rods and 4 rods I use jigging
I am looking to replace my spinning reels on my 14 ft crappie poles and thinking about the possibilities of using a physically smaller reel. My thoughts are I could almost be using a bamboo pole if it was'nt for having to adjust depths occasionally, fish are swung onto the deck more than reeled in if you get the picture. Anyway I know very little about Ice gear and wanted to see if what Ice guys would think? I am thinking a smaller reel with a decent drag would would fit the bill, I had even thought about trying one of my fly pole reels, but that would be a pricey option, fyi we usually run 4-6# mono with up to 1oz of weight.
After poking around the internet I found 2 affordable type of reels that are smaller and possibly more durable rolling around on the deck of my Tracker and just wanted to see if anyone uses them and opinions?
I use these mr crappie solo reels. I've got them on my 8 spider rig rods and 4 rods I use jigging
2014 Stinger 195
Drift master rod holderstrypman1 LIKED above post
Southern Crappie Rods has one of the best reels you will find for this type of fishing! I own 10 of them and they are changeable to right or left hand retrieve, and won't break the bank!
Give Ed Duke a call he is the owner of southern crappie rods.
704-791-0108 Daytime
704-784-1723 Nighttime
Hello : For Crappies I think they would work but where I fish I've caught catfish over 10 lbs. ,Walleyes up to 8 lbs. and last year I caught a buffalo that was over 20 lbs. and lots of snags . I don't think those little reels would hold up for me . I use full size used high quality bass reels that I buy on ebay for under 20.00 . I buy ones that have a thumb bar and a flipping switch so if I have to reel one in I can get it back in the water with 1 hand. Good Luck this season. O - R
Caught a 15 pound drum last week on a 14 foot rod using a solo reel and 8 pound line. There pretty tough
2014 Stinger 195
Drift master rod holders
Low profile bait casters with a thumb bar
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G891A using Tapatalk
I have spent most my life fishing........the rest I wasted.
PROUD MEMBER OF TEAM GEEZER
PICO Lures Field Rep
Tom 513 thanked you for this post
Thanks for the replies fellas, I remember seeing Ed Duke of Southern crappie poles in a video using reels similar to that Mr. Crappie reel and I've been using his 14ft poles for 3 years and love them. So I called Ed this morning to ask what kind he was using, he said that he uses that reel on all of his poles, so I ended up ordering 4 of them at $12 a pop, should be here mid week, and I will string them with 6# Hi Vis Vicious line and go get my limit next weekend........right? if all goes well Im going to order another 4 poles and reels and set up a second T bar on my Tracker, I will report back on how they work. Oh yeah we catch 7-8# Channel cats all the time pushing minnows, and bend them 14 ft southern crappie poles about in half with no issues.
G, low profile bait casters were my first choice but I've got spinning rods
For rods 12' & longer ... baitcast reels work just fine, for me. My 10' & shorter rods will have a spinning reel on them.
Spinning rods traditionally have larger guides, especially the first one (gathering guide) ... because spinning reels allow line to come off the reel spool in coils, and the guides need to straighten out & narrow down those coils before they get to the tip. Baitcast reels let line come off the spool in a straight line, over top of the spool.
Spinning rods are also built, in regards to where the guides are placed on the blank, so that the rod bend is strongest in that bend direction. Nonetheless, people use baitcast reels on spinning rods quite often when Crappie fishing, because the force against the normal alignment of the rod blank's spine is not usually strong enough to damage the rod. (just my opinion)
I purchased some cheap Chinese Mini Bait Reels from ebay, Yes, I was worried about the quality, however I compared the reels to other reels you can purchase at any of the Big Box Sporting Goods Stores, and did not see any difference in quality or performance. They have worked perfectly fine for me, and if something happens to one of them, in the trash it goes and I got 4 or 5 dollars worth of use out of it. Downside, It is a slooooooooooooow deliver from China, I guess it really does come on a slow boat from China. Anyhow, they have caught many Crappie this year and the reels do what I expect them to do.
fish getter LIKED above post
You can use any kind of reel you want on long crappie poles.....its not like you are going to be casting. The reason lots of folks like the baitcasters with thumb bars is for,.......like when you have 8 ft. Of line out on a 14 ft. Pole spider rigging you can let line out and get the pole straight up with one hand to swing the fish into the boat without having to. Use a long handled net.