Let's say you're going to build a trolling rod that's dedicated to trolling Mann Stretch lures (these things can be murder on striped bass in the Northeast in the fall). You might occasionally use the rod to drag something else, like an umbrella rig, but in terms of performance, you want to optimize it for pulling Mann's Stretch lures, and if it suffers on the rare occasions that you'll use it for something else, so be it.

The main feature of Mann Stretch lures is the wiggle: the things come with a pretty long lip that makes them move in the water, and this movement very effectively mimics the movement of baitfish. This is why they catch so well in the fall, when there are lots of small baitfish like peanut bunker around.

To get the lure to work, you have to use a blank with some give to it - they won't work if you tie them to a broomstick. This is what leads to my question.

I've heard two fields of thought on a blank for this purpose: one is that you pick a soft blank with with medium or even slow action, basically the same kind of rod that you'd use to troll bunker spoons. Another line of thinking is that you use an extra-fast blank like the Seekers CLB or the Batson RCLB, that the very soft tip of these live bait rods is all you need to get that Stretch lure dancing.

What do you think? What do the boat rod sharpies here believe? And why?

I have used live bait blanks for them and they have worked fine. I also have built a couple on Calstar Grafighters they work nice too and have lots of power in the butt too.

My choice would also be a true live bait blank. CLB 702 being a favorite.

..............

CalStar (660's or 270's) for those "so be it" occasions - not the Grafiter blanks but E-glass. 660-s Plenty of action from the tip but also lots of power for dragging umbrellas in the spring. 270's lighter, more responsive to the lure wiggle.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/17/2010 05:56PM by Ken Preston.

I fish Stretches on the Jersey shore for stripers every spring and fall. I use my bunker spoon rods, but I have converted from wire to braid for trolling. My rods are built on Lami BT1083M blanks. Man, do they wiggle! But I agree with the above, that live bait blanks should work fine also. You got it right that you don't want to use a broom stick, but beyond that you don't NEED as much flop as you do with bunker spooons, but it doesn't hurt either, so if you want a rod that will do double duty and work with spoons then go with a bunker spoon rod.

Thanks for the input, guys. My thinking was that a live bait blank would be perfect for them - the blank doesn't need to flex as much as a bunker spoon blank does. Thanks for sharing the information - I appreciate it.

Chris....I troll a lot of wire around the Rockaway Jetty, pulling shad umbrellas and jerking parachutes mostly. The Mann's Stretch is very interesting.....do you mind if I ask what kind of line or trolling setup you are using?

Joe, I'm probably the worst guy in the world to ask - I'm a surf guy who builds boat rods for fun (my brother has a boat), and because I like trying new stuff.

I'm using a Penn 225LD that I bought used (I don't know why they don't make these anymore; it's a beautiful reel). It will be spooled with braid - I'm gonna ask my tackle guy what test he recommends (probably 50 lb). This outfit might be a bit overkill - lots of guys use smaller reels for Stretch trolling - but I always (to a fault) try to prepare, gear-wise, for trophy fish.

I do know that these things are murder on fish in the fall - my brother caught three flounder (yes, summer flounder) on one Stretch in a 30-minute period last December.

Chris....thanks for the info. I ask because I am having great success with the umbrella (double and triple header stripers) but it is not a heckuva lot of fun to do by yourself., and my 50 year old shoulder doesn't like jerking a parachute as much as it used to. I am looking for an alternative. I may give the Stretch a try.

Thanks,
Joe

This is just personal preference, Joe, but I hate umbrella rigs as much as I hate the New York Yankees. I know they work, but dragging all that junk through the water seems kinda unsportsmanlike to me.

You should give Stretches a shot. They're not that expensive (around $11 a pop for the Stretch 25), they're easy to use (ready to be rigged right out of the box), and, when the conditions are right, they'll really slay fish. I much prefer jigging metal for stripers - you get to actively fish that way - but when you can't find concentrated fish, trolling these things can help you catch when other methods won't.

The number behind the lure, by the way (like Stretch 25 or Stretch 30+) is the depth at which the lure is supposed to swim. It's not always 100% exact, but it does help if you know the depth of the areas that you plan to fish. One method that I just read about, but kinda want to try, is to troll Stretch 25s in depths 30 feet or less, and then go to bunker spoons at depths greater than 30 feet. This kind of madcap experimentation is fun, and tweaking your gear to get best results is a big part of the fun, for me anyway.