Choosing a spinning rod

Long, short, fast, slow, "jiggy", "twisty"... These and similar words come out of the mouth of the tackle shop assistant, and you shake your head and say, "Give me a multi-purpose one, because you have no idea what to say. This is a fairly standard situation when a novice angler is choosing a rod. And choosing the right rod is not an easy task for an experienced angler. So in this article I will try to discuss the essential nuances of choosing a spinning rod according to the specific types of angling. There is no single truth here, because this is not an exact science and there are plenty of opinions, and fashion trends are not the least of it. To develop the topic, I will try to address a very common question asked by anglers, why one carbon fibre rod costs 50 Euros and another one of the same fibre and length costs 5 times more. Do we pay only for the name, or is it still worth it to choose a more expensive tool.

Classification

I will start by discussing what spinning rods are and how they are classified. The main criteria for choosing a spinning rod are its length, the minimum and maximum weight of the bait to be thrown, the action of the blank and the type of spinning rod tip. So, a brief description of each.

Length

The choice of the length of a spinning rod is influenced by a number of aspects, ranging from the nature of the angling activity to its suitability for your favourite lures. The longest spinning rods, 3 metres, and rarely longer, are chosen by anglers who like to fish in large rivers from the shore. The shortest, sometimes even twice as short, are mostly used by trout fishermen who do a lot of walking along the banks of a small stream in the woods. I will talk more about the choice of the length of a spinning rod in more detail in the context of the analysis of the specific fishing methods.

Bait weight limits

Spinning test - this is usually referred to as the minimum and maximum weights of the lure as indicated on the spinning blank. Spinning rods are further divided into classes according to the range of these weights. The lightest class is the Extra Ultra Light, which is a spinning rod designed for fishing with weights up to 0.1-2g., followed by Ultra Light (1-6g.) , Light (up to 11g.), Medium Light (up to 18g.), Medium (up to 21g.), Medium Heavy (up to 28g.), Heavy (up to 60g.), Extra Heavy (up to 150g.). At this point everything is clear enough, with a few exceptions (which we will talk about later on).

Spinning line action

There is some confusion about the action of the spinning line, which has been introduced by the spinning rod manufacturers themselves, who label their rods differently. So let's try to untangle it. Some manufacturers refer to the action of the spinning line as the location of the spinning line, some refer to the speed of recovery of the blank (responsiveness). Although these two parameters are correlated, they are not always. I will start with the first one, which is used much more often.

Some rods, when controlling the bait or pulling the catch, start to bow at the back, others in the middle, others close to the handle. We use the term spinning action to describe these differences. More specifically, the action of the spinning line describes the initial point of the line on the spinning blank. Why primary? Because when any blank is loaded to its maximum, increasing the load will sooner or later bend the whole blank, not just the tip. Often, anglers pick up a slim ul-class spinning rod, shake it vigorously, and wonder why it is described as having a fast action (it should only have a tip), but it bends away from the handle when shaken. This is because such a rod is designed for catching smaller fish with small baits, and at low loads, however, only the tip will bend, and it is only when you load harder or pull in a bigger catch that the whole blank works.

It is generally accepted to classify the spinning rods into Extra Fast - they start to bend in the range up to 1/4 of the length of the blank from the top, and usually such a rod is very fast, i.e. it returnsto the original position very quickly when casting the bait. Fast spinning rods start to tilt about 1/3 of the length of the blank from the top. Medium Fast (also sometimes called Moderate Fast) rods tend to go a little below thefirst third. Medium (Moderate) tends slightly above the middle of the blank, Slow - starts to tilt below themiddle, closer to the handle.

The second parameter, sometimes referred to as the spinning action, is the speed at which the spinning blank recovers, i.e. how quickly it returns to its original position when bent. While the first parameter depends a lot on the thickness and taper of the blank, this parameter is determined by the characteristics of the carbon fibre itself and the weight of the rings. As I mentioned, the Extra Fast (limb first) blanks are usually the fastest, but sometimes a spinning rod is labelled Extra Fast and the original position of the blanks is in the middle. This is because it is made of a very high modulus carbon and is very stiff and quick to recover, but the taper of the blank is not abruptly thinning towards the end and it bends somewhere in the middle. This characteristic of the spinning rod is very important when casting a lure, because the faster the spinning rod bends backwards, the further and more accurate it casts the lure.

As I mentioned, the speed of the spinning back depends not only on the characteristics of the blank itself. It is certainly also largely dependent on the weight of the rings. The lighter the whole blank, including the rings, the faster the speed. So, when a shop assistant tells you that this rod is 30 grams lighter than that one, and you tell him that a 30 grams heavier rod will not tire your arm and you choose a heavier but cheaper gear, you are right. Your arm will not tire much more, but in many cases you will lose the follow-through and the accuracy and sensitivity of the tool.

However, it should be mentioned that not all catching techniques require high spinning speed. For example, when fishing with crank-type wobblers or luring large predators with heavy gates, slower and higher drag rods with less stiffness are more appreciated. Slower rods are better at "holding" a hooked fish than a very stiff rod and often save or forgive the angler's mistake. This is especially true when dealing with large catches.

Limb type

Modern spinning rods come in two types: a solid blank, also called tubular, and an inserted full-faced limb, called solid. The solid tip is designed to increase the visual sensitivity of the tool when spinning soft baits. The tip itself is usually made of a softer fibreglass and gives a better visual indication of a bite or contact with the bait. However, the downside of this type of spinning gear is that it is less able to transmit oscillations to the hand and the softness of the tip makes it harder to control the bait. Spinning gear with a Tubular tip transmits oscillations to the hand better and is easier to control the bait, but the tip is less visually responsive. Recently, carbon fibre rather than fibreglass has become popular, hard but very thin solid type limbs, which are slightly softer than the rest of the blank due to their thinness and give a better visual indication of the bite, but unlike fibreglass, are also very sensitive to oscillations. On the face of it, this is ideal, but the downside of this type of tip is that it is fragile. They are much more fragile than tubular or fibreglass solid tips because they are hard and very thin.

With these 4 criteria in mind, you can already look for the right spinning rod for your particular style of fishing, but if you want a quality and the most suitable spinning rod for your favourite style of fishing, let's try to dig a little deeper and "disassemble" it.

Each spinning rod has the following components: the rod blank, the rings, the handle and the reel holder. So let's talk about each of them separately.

The spinning blank

The vast majority of spinning rod blanks these days are made from carbon fibre, and the final product depends on a huge number of factors such as the structure and processing of the carbon fibre itself, the auxiliary materials, the weaving technology, etc. The carbon fibre itself (the material from which the blanks are then woven) is produced by a small number of companies, the best known being Toray and Mitshubishi. The carbon fibre itself is processed in different ways and has different properties and varies widely in quality. The same Toray company offers both a cheap economical version and a very expensive carbon fibre. So just because a rod manufacturer is proud that their rod blank is made with Toray carbon does not mean that it is the highest quality product. For marketing purposes, manufacturers often speculate heavily on the origin of the carbon fibre manufacturer itself. They call blanks made in China or South Korea Japanese, even though only the carbon fibre itself is made in Japan. A large part of the final product is determined by the technological decisions made in the production of the blank itself. The carbon fibre is woven using a variety of techniques, pressing with tens of tonnes of force, adding auxiliary materials and resins. The result is a finished blank whose main quality criteria are stiffness and tensile strength. Stiffness is the main characteristic of a blank that is mentioned when describing or advertising a fishing rod. We often see on rods IM7, IM9, High Modulus, 30T , 40T etc. The higher the stiffness, the stronger the blank itself is, and it can be made thinner and lighter. Also, the lower the weight of the blank and the stiffer the material itself, the more sensitive the rod is and the more fun it is to fish with. However, another characteristic of carbon fibre blanks, the tensile strength, is equally important. If the blank has a very high modulus, it will be really sensitive and light, but if the tensile strength is low, the rod will be brittle and weak. There are a lot of such rods in our shops and they are quite popular because of their low price and the really good feeling when you pick them up. It is light, fast, sensitive and inexpensive, and if it comes complete with good enough fittings, buyers wonder why one rod costs EUR 50 and the other looks the same at EUR 200. One of the more important factors in that difference is the tensile strength of the blank. Low tensile strength blanks even break differently, the blank just breaks apart along a few centimetres. And with quality spinning rods, if you manage to break them, the fracture is often transverse, like a knife cut.

Rings

One of the more important components of a spinning rod is the rings. Even a very good spinning rod with poor and poorly arranged rings will be much worse. There are not many manufacturers of high-end rings, perhaps because competing with the long-standing world market leader, the Japanese Fuji company, is really hard. Slightly cheaper, but with a high level of technology, are Kigan, ALPS and Pacific Bay. Of course, you cannot judge the quality of a ring by its manufacturer alone. First of all, you have to look at the material used for the inside of the ring. For many years, the best material was Silicone Carbide (SIC), which is used by all manufacturers in their high-end rings, but a few years ago, FUJI introduced a new material called TORZITE. These days it is the most expensive and probably the highest quality material for the inside of a ring. Zirconium, widely used by ALPS and Kigan, is also a good choice, but it is still a slightly less highly regarded material than SIC. Fuji's Alconite is one step below, and in the economy class, Alumina is still the most popular and cheapest of the ceramics used.

Another equally important part of the ring is the bezel. The best frame material currently used is titanium. Not only is it lighter and stronger than stainless steel (which is the most common material used in high quality rings), but it is also very difficult to bend and bounce back when bent, which prevents the rings from distorting over time.

Another problem faced by anglers is when angling in crosswinds. The free running line then makes a loop andsnagsone ofthe rings. A special ring shape has been developed for this purpose, and the ring itself has been angled to automatically slip the loop without breaking the line. Fuji labels this type of ring as Tangle Free, or K-Series. Kigan labels this design as the 3D Zero Tangle or Zero Tangle.

Equally important for a good spinning rod is the correct choice of ring sizes, leg lengths and placement. The big ring manufacturers usually design the ring layout themselves. Small rings have become very popular recently and this is not just a fashion statement. Here again the Fuji company is at work. After detailed research, it has come up with the New Guid Concept and later the KR - Concept ring layout concepts. The basis of these ring systems is to make the ring as small as possible, while at the same time making it lighter, for the longest cast and the best shaft performance. Spinning rod manufacturers proudly display labels informing the potential buyer that such systems are suitable for their rods. So, if your rod is marked with one of these systems, and it is not designed for vertical angling (in which case the ring selection is not designed for long casts), you can be confident about the casting distance - the ring size has been selected by the leading professionals in the field.

As spinning reels are available in different sizes, leg lengths and angles, it is a good idea to test the reel's drum axle and rings when selecting a spinning reel or matching a reel to it. The reel drum axis and the first three rings of the spinning reel should form as straight a line as possible. The first figure shows the ideal combination and the second shows the best combination of spinning reel and reel to avoid.

Handle and reel holder

The handle of a spinning reel is usually made of cork bark, known as cork for short, or EVA foam. There is no single answer as to which is better. A high quality cork handle is more sensitive, i.e. it transmits vibrations better, and is less freezing to the hands at low temperatures. However, good cork is expensive and especially manufacturers of cheaper spinning rods use the cheapest raw material or stick only a very thin layer of cork on the handle. This is the worst option as it can start to peel over time. Lower quality cork will age, crack and wear out very quickly. Even a good cork handle is much harder to clean and maintain. It is much more susceptible to scratches and other damages.

An EVA handle is more durable, easier to clean and cheaper. However, it is less pleasant in colder weather and is heavier than a cork.

So when choosing an economy grade rod, look for an EVA handle, while a high-end rod with a quality cork handle will not disappoint.

The reel holder is probably the least talked about part of a spinning rod, but there is a big difference between a quality and a poor quality holder. Low-quality, cheap reel holders are designed only to hold the reel to the shaft. High-quality holders are designed to minimise vibrations in the blank and make the holder lighter and more ergonomic. Virtually all manufacturers of high-end spinning rods, without exception, use Fuji mounts.

More than a decade ago, anglers in Lithuania used to choose their rods solely on the basis of length and casting test. Sometimes they added an elbow to the handle or looked for a mystical balance, which never was and never can be the case with long rods. It's different now. In the meantime, many different types of spinning have become popular and more or less adapted to them. You could write a whole article looking for a universal spinning rod, but that would be more difficult, so I will take the easy way out and discuss which rod is more suitable for a particular method of fishing.

Fishing with soft baits

In Lithuania, fishing with soft baits is commonly referred to as jigging. It is a method of angling that uses a head-hook or a loose lead and a hook (cheburashka) on which a soft silicone bait is placed and struck to the bottom as it is being fed. In my opinion, the correct choice of spinning rod is extremely important when fishing in this way, and this is the place where the least amount of money should be saved on the spinning rod. This is because when jigging it is particularly important to feel the contact of the fish with the bait and to be able to strike it properly. So the wrong spinning rod will have a real negative impact on the results. If the rod is insensitive and you don't feel the moment when a cautious fish has taken your bait, the situation can be threefold: worst case scenario, you won't even be able to feel your bait being tasted and spat out; second, you'll feel the bite too late, or you'll confuse it with the contact on the bottom and won't be able to give the predator a proper nudge; and third, the fish will hang itself. I think you will agree that it is more pleasant to be in control of the situation than to wait for success. The fish itself is rarely caught when jigging, as jigging is usually done with a single-point hook. Another important nuance is the stiffness of the spinning rod. The softer and slower the spinning rod, the harder it will be to strike the fish hard and fast, so even if you feel a bite, you may not be able to sink the hook deeper and the fish will easily get loose. In this context, Extra Fast action rods with a preferably lighter limb are more suitable for fishing with soft baits. For the economical option, look for a stiff and hard blank with a solid fibreglass tip glued in to indicate a bite, at least visually. For the more expensive spinning rod, there are more options. For heavier jigging, you can look for a tubular tip with an Extra Fast action, as these are the most sensitive and the best at picking up fish. But for light or micro jigging, I would recommend a high modulus carbon, Extra Fast or even a Fast action rod with a solid carbon tip. Extra Fast rods will undercut the fish better, but the Fast grade will continue to cast extremely light baits and keep the catch on the hook better.

When choosing a jigging rod, you should take a closer look at the minimum and maximum bait weights indicated on the rod. At this point, do not rely blindly on the casting test indicated. The most popular American rods are more powerful than European rods of the same claimed power. If you buy an American rod between 7 and 21g, it will be more suitable for fishing with 30g lures, whereas with a 10g lure you will simply not feel the lure hitting the bottom, you will not be able to "feel" the structure of the bottom properly, and you will find the fish's strikes harder to detect. The trend is that when choosing a lure from American companies such as St. Croix, Gloomis, Airrus, Lamiglas rods for jigging, it is worth multiplying the declared casting weight by 2, i.e. if the rod is 7-21g, it is ideal for jigging with 14-40g lures. Don't forget the weight of the lure itself. Because a 10cm silicone lure without a head hook weighs 13g. When choosing an economy class rod made by a European manufacturer in Asia , the declared weights are more realistic, but slowly the trends are changing and the more expensive rods are also following the American practice. Nowadays, the very popular rods made by Japanese companies (whether they are made in Japan or in China) are labelled with quite realistic dimensions. Some manufacturers' rods can be overloaded, some are better, but if a rod declares that it can be fished with a 3g lure, then you are already comfortable with that weight. And the upper limit is twice as high for most anglers, because the quality of the blanks of such rods and the resistance to breakage are very high. However, the risk of breakage during casting remains and care must be taken.

The length of the spinning rod when jigging varies widely. There are no hard and fast rules. When fishing from a boat, spinning rods of 2-2.4 metres are the most common, while when fishing from the shore, the prevailing length is between 2.3 and 2.7 metres. It should be noted that shorter rods are more sensitive, while longer rods allow for more varied swinging of the bait or avoiding grasses when retrieving the bait.

Wobbler fishing by twitching.

This is currently the second most popular method of angling after jigging.

There are much clearer norms and limits when choosing a spinning rod. As the wobbler is animated by the movement of the spinning rod, which is easier to do with a short spinning rod, it is advisable to choose a spinning rod between 1.8 and 2.1 metres in length. The casting test of the spinning rod is optimal with American manufacturers, unlike the jigging test. When choosing a European spinning rod, one should consult the dealer, as some manufacturers have already followed the American example, others have not, and a rod up to 21g may be suitable for fishing with wobblers up to 10g.

The spinning action is recommended Fast or Medium Fast. If you are only going to fish with a braided shark, it is better to go for the softer Medium Fast grade, if you are going for a Fluorocarbon shark, go for the Fast action. Unlike a jigging rod, a trolling tool does not have to be particularly sensitive, as you can't feel the bottom with wobblers and knocking fish over with treble hooks is usually automatic. More important than sensitivity is choosing the right power for the size of the wobbler. I would also recommend choosing a rod with a thicker (and therefore heavier) tip, as it is easier to move the wobbler with such a rod, and it will certainly be less tiring on the hand than with a feather-light rod. Specifically, the body, handle and reel of the spinning rod can be light, but the upper part of the spinning rod should preferably be more massive than a jigging rod.

Fishing in rivers

In this section I think it is most appropriate to discuss two theories on the choice of spinning rod. One theory can be called "sticks to the hand" and the other "holds the fish". The first theory emphasises that the spinning rod should be a pleasure to fish with. It is not too long and light, preferably with a faster action and a more sensitive, shorter handle. The second theory advocates rods that are easier to handle, that hold the hooked fish best and that are easier to not only catch the fish, but also to get the fish to the foot or to the boat. These tend to be longer, slower action and by no means too weak. These two theories apply to both anglers fishing for bream and anglers fishing for roach or bream. The exception may be with the sworn salmon fishermen who, when choosing a rod, think first of the fighting fish to be attracted, and then only of the enjoyable angling.

One of the most common fish caught in rivers with spinning rods is the chub. When hunting for barbel, it makes sense to have a tool with which you can cast as far as possible, as small as possible a wobbler or spinner. For small baits, long rods are not necessary, and a 2.4m-2.6m long rod is sufficient. If you are choosing an economy class rod, a medium action is preferable, as an inexpensive and hard rod is likely to be heavy and will not hold the bait well. The more expensive high modulus and good elasticity carbon fibre rods can also be fast action, as their blanks are slender from tip to tip and they can even when fast action they can still squeeze out a light lure very well and with good accuracy.

Another river predator, much loved by anglers because of its combativeness and size, is the salmon, which is a two-pronged fish. Some anglers catch it with exceptionally heavy shiners, while others prefer lighter wobblers. If the target is wobblers, we choose a rod similar to a shad rod, but a little longer and more powerful. Typical salad wobblers weigh between 5 and 15 grams, but in this type of fishing it is also necessary to think about holding the fish. A three-kilogram salmon is a very powerful opponent in the current, and when fished with too weak a spinning rod, it may simply stop absorbing the fish's strikes and bend to the hilt, leaving only the strength of the line and the reel's brakes to rely on. It is also difficult to bring a big fish up to you with a too weak spinning rod. For example, if you are fishing far from the shore and a powerful opponent is hooked, you will not be able to bring the fish to your feet with a weak rod in a strong current, even if it does not put up any resistance. In that case, you will have to wade ashore while holding the fish, which is not the safest or pleasant thing to do. So I would recommend a 2.5-2.8m, 5-25g spinning rod, and the action of the rod is up to you. The Fast action rod is the most fun to fish with, the Slow action rod will hold the fish best.

When fishing for salmon with shiners, you should choose a 2.7-3.0m rod with a 10-30g casting test. The same or even more powerful rod should also be used for salmon, but the action should be even slower.

Trout in streams

Trout fishing has several subtleties. Firstly, there is a lot of walking in wooded areas, and secondly, there is the need to cast the lure as accurately as possible and to remain unnoticed. Of course, it is much more comfortable to wade through bushes and trees with a shorter rod, and it is easier to cast the lure accurately with a shorter tool. However, a longer rod helps to remain unnoticed and to cast the lure correctly. So some trout anglers prefer short rods of 1.6-1.8m, while others prefer longer rods, up to 2.4m, with which they are able to present the bait in really difficult places without spooking the fish.

I would recommend choosing a faster spinning action, as this rod can be used to cast more accurately and, if necessary, to cast a minnow-type wobbler, which trout like very much when the water warms up.

It is also worth paying attention to the size of the rings. Since many trout anglers start catching trout in January or February at sub-zero temperatures, very small rings freeze faster. So if you are going to fish for trout in the winter, it is a good idea to choose rods with slightly larger rings.

In my opinion, the most versatile trout rod is about 2 metres long, with a Fast or Medium Fast action and a 2-8g casting test.