I'm going to make an observation and will enjoy reading the valued opinions of other rod builders. Yesterday I was in a sporting goods store and had a chance to handle some of the micro rods from Duckett, Skeet Reese, Carrot Stick, etc. I think Garcia has a brand called Veritas or something. Anyway, none of these rods are light. None are especially well made. I know the owner of the store and I know what he pays for them. Most sell to the dealer for under $50 and some for only half of that.

So here is my observation, if sensitivity is so important to the tournament bass fisherman, how can they or why would they fish with rods like these when they are arguable not the most lightest or most sensitive rods available?

I'm not trying to knock these rods. I know they're functional and will land a fish. They're probably very durable. The price is right for most consumers. But given that we hear so much about how important sensitivity is for tournament bass fishing, why would any serious high level tournament bass fisherman choose one of these rods? Or could it be that they really fish with something else? Something's not right here.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/19/2011 10:02AM by Ken Finch.

Sponsorship. Most bass fisherman are not high level tournament fisherman. If they see Skeet Reese or Boyd Duckett fishing in tournaments with a rod they can afford, then they will buy it. Be willing to bet that those same anglers have different rods on their deck when the money is on the line.

Rick is right on. I know a hadfull of these guys and most do not fish the same rods they put their names on. They may look the same but their are custom built out of different components, some of which aren't available in the US.

Weight and Sensitivity are of utmost importance to these guys.

Tight Lines and Bull's-eyes,

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Like Rick said, I would like an opportunity to pay much more attention to what is UNDER the deck of the boat. I'm pretty confident that what you will find will be radically different than what is on top of the deck. For example, I think back to before I gave up on my BASS membership, Roland Martin (or one of the other TV guys) was featured in the 'A Day on the Lake with a Pro' column. One of the things surprised me was when the author spoke about him pulling out a bunch of rods in different configurations with a mixture of round and low profile reels, etc. Absolutely nothing like what you see on Saturday morning with him on the deck of the boat with an array of top of the line Shimano reels, and whatever brand of rod he happens to be hawking at the time. It was a real eye opener, and something that was echoed very strongly to me when Mark Crouse was kind enough to join us at the Ohio Rod Builders Gathering, and we discussed rods used by TV personalities and touring fishermen. The old cliche, "believe only half of what you see and none of what you hear", certainly applies to bass fishing.

If those guys had to live off of their tournament winnings alone, there are quite a few that would be missing a few meals, even at the elite level. Nothing about fishing at that level comes cheap. They need to have sponsorships to supplement their income and with that comes a responsibility to promote the sponsor's wares. As with many things, people in the market to buy something have a tendency to focus on the WHAT (and brand recognition), as opposed to the why, where, and how they need to use their product. The logic is, after all, if I use the same rods, lures, boat, tow vehicle, etc., etc. as Skeet, Kevin, Boyd, and the gang, then I must be able to fish like them. The fact of the matter is that those guys are very good at understanding how to locate and catch active fish in average to above average sizes, and could likely fish circles around many with a pool cue and an ugly stick. As Bill Stevens and others put out there fairly regularly, what the elites need in a rod is not necessarily the same thing that a recreational or weekend warrior needs in a rod, in terms of action, power, sensitivity level, etc. Some of the blank choices that suit their needs will certainly surprise you.

With that said, for just about anybody aside from the true elites, the lightest most sensitive rod they can afford to use will go a long way toward building their confidence in what they do on the water. I know that after I started building rods for myself, that I had the confidence to know that if a fish is willing to bite that I'm going to stand the best chance I've got of knowing it's there. I no longer worry about whether or not I can feel something as I know the rod in my hand matches my needs. I likely wouldn't choose a chopped down flipping stick as some elites use for drop shotting, but instead reach for a very light sensitive rod, because I need help knowing the fish is there, not help making sure the fish doesn't come off and cost me a pay day. My needs are just different from theirs, as I still have a long way to go to even begin to touch some of the insight they've gained from fishing more in a few years than I may get to in a lifetime.

Joe

Ken,
There is another side to this coin as well.
For the folks who fish hundreds of an hour every year, the catching of the fish tends, more and more to be about the where, when and how - rather than with the what.

By saying this, I am agreeing with a couple of the posts above, which indicate that the difference for many folks is not necessarily so much about the rod that is being used to catch the fish, but rather the other elements of fishing.

The original post speaks about the lightest and most sensitive rod out there to catch all of the fish.

To put it simply, sometimes this is simply NOT the rod to use for the application. Certainly there are many times when the lightest and most sensitive rod is the one to use for the task. But in other cases, that is simply not the right rod to use for the case.

Fishing for these folks is essentially an occupation and fishing rods are tools of the trade. No question about it, the folks who fish for a living use the rod, that for them, catch the fish. But, just like a favorite hammer for a carpenter, a particular rod may not be the lightest or most sensitive - but for a given individual, a particular rod, while using a particular fishing technique may catch the most fish.

In other words, out of the thousands of blanks and built up rods on the market - there are many many factors that need to be considered when a person picks up a tool to do a task. Lightweight and sensitivity is one factor in selecting a tool.
But for certain types of fishing, those factors may not be the deciding factors when making the final selection for the given task.

Choose carefully, make the selection and catch the fish needed to pay the bills.

Be safe
Roger

I would bet many of them use custom rods! But they have to have their namesake rods on board for sales purposes.

I think the Skeet was using the stock yellow rods when I last saw him on TV. Those things were flexing way into the handle on every hookset and he couldn't hook anything. I saw him throw rods to the deck 3 or 4 times. ;) They were flopping around like wacky rigged senkos.

Ken - Good question. I am waiting for some of the guys in the know to see if they post here. I have heard many of them use customs.

_________________________________________
"Angling is extremely time consuming.
That's sort of the whole point." - Thomas McGuane

"They were flopping around like wacky rigged senkos"

LOL!!

DR

I have been fortunate enough to fish with some professional fisherman (Elite Series pros) that use different sticks in practice than in tournaments. I have seen them use other brands than who sponsors them and even custom rods. They all have their favorites I guess!

Years ago my old man had a regional outdoor tv show and he was sponsored by a rod company. He loved those rods. They went out of business and another rod company picked up the sponsorship. Anytime he wasn't filming, he fished the old set of rods....always.

I would think that most weekend warriors have not been fortunate enough to fish with a super sensitive, extremely light custom rod. So their only comparison for these new rods such as Duckett and Carrot Stix is based on the older previous production rods that were probably much heavier. So picking up these new rods that are coming out of production with microguide, etc...they probably feel feather weight to them. On the flip side, rod builders pick up the same rod and think it is a brick compared to their custom rod!

The only pro I know that fishes a custom rod is Guido Hibdon. He is known for his finesse fishing tactics...so maybe he realizes the importance of having the most sensitve rods.

I saw Gary Klein on UMF with 5 or 6 Seeker BS706-S glass customs on the deck. ;)

_________________________________________
"Angling is extremely time consuming.
That's sort of the whole point." - Thomas McGuane

Chuck Mills Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I saw Gary Klein on UMF with 5 or 6 Seeker BS706-S
> glass customs on the deck. ;)


Chuck, I wonder where did he get all those Seekers from ?

Lance

Sensitivity is only important sometimes, such as for slack-line techniques like worms or jigs to prevent gut-hooking fish, or for pure fun. In many areas a heavier rod with more damping can help keep a fish hooked up. Note the reference to the seeker glass rods above.

I believe there are Pros who use what the sponser sells. KVD and Rick Clunn are two. If they are not then someone sure buids a rod that looks like a BPS and Quantum! Also remember you do not really need the most sensitive rod for moving baits, topwaters and such. Now using a "prototype" is also common. I actually own an old Kline rod that Rich built for him to test on a Croix blank. He did not like it, I don't either. Out of the 20 or so different rods you need to fish tournaments how many need to be maximum all out customs? You would think all but there are as many reasons pros pick a rod as there are pros. Like most of us I am sure they all test different rods, probably a lot.

I was watching ESPN the other Saturday morning with my daughter (7 months old), and it was showing recaps from the first half of the B.A.S.S. season, and when they were showing Shaw Grigsby's win, they had a lot of film of him pitching, etc....It was an all black rod, had a custom shaped rear grip and had a large diameter butt. It was definately not a factory rod. I'm guessing the Seeker blank. Now that I'm into rod building, I'm always watching to see if I can notice anything. The rear grip on this thing was a dead giveaway, I had never seen any type of factory rod with it. It was almost an oval shaped rear grip.....Shaw won the tournament mostly pitching.

The Quantum Shaw Grigsby rods were black until this year I believe, now they are blue. Rear gip is about like you discribed.