Fishing Question

Gotta agree with most the posts above.

I happen to make rods so know a little bit about them & can tell you the rod is not designed to lift fish out of the water it's designed to present bait & fight fish.

The rod has two main characteristics you need to look at "Action" and "Power"

Action is how the rod bends. Fast action bends only in the top 1/3 or so of the rod where as Slow action distributes the bend through the entire rod. (rods go from extra fast to slow).
The faster the action usually the further it will cast (the load on the rod throws the bait not the strength you cast with, think of a catapult or a bow), also faster action IMO is more sensitive.

Power is how much "backbone" the rod has or how much power it takes to flex it. This ranges from ultra light (very whippy) to extra heavy (good luck)
Higher power aids in fighting big fish or getting fish out of the weeds. The drawback is more powerful rods are less responsive.

I'd suggest a Medium or Medium Heavy rod with a mod fast or fast tip for pike. This will allow a nice cross between presentation finesse and the ass to get the fish in. Also be sure it can throw 3/4 - 2oz and is rated for 10# or 12# test. Check the rod blank right above the reel seat for all this info.

Ugly Sticks are nice rods, I love mine & have used them to pull blues out of the surf throwing 1oz Kastmasters. You may want to look at the Tiger or Rhino varient of the Ugly Stick for a little more ooomph. Also St. Croix makes nice rods that won't break the bank.

For getting the fish out of the water look into a net or "grabber" to get him or you can hold him in the gill plate just becareful not to damage the gills incase you need to release him.
Remember to give him some time before setting the hook pike like to run a bit before they really take the bait.

Good luck, tight lines, & welcome to my addiction ;)

-EG
 
Please, let this thread die!!!

I have just over three weeks until I get to fish upstate NY/1,000 Islands/St Lawrence.

The wait is killing me :p :D .
 
Thanks for the help guys, I'll check my rod for the info again, and maybe this time I'll find it. I "borrowed" a net from work(the limnology equipment hasnt been touched all summer, nobody's going to miss it), I'll be out this weekend for bass, I'll take pictures if I can.
 
I checked my rod, and it's a SPL 1102 6'0'', medium action and it says to use 6-15 lb line. Is that sufficient for pike and bass? I picked up some wire leaders, I dont have many lures and cant afford to lose too many, so hopefully they'll help. I think I'll trim the line back a bit in case the last pike damaged it at all, he scraped some paint off of one of my spinners so it's possible he damaged the line.

I dont eat much fish so I mostly catch and release, I've read that de-barbing your hooks is better for the fish and are easier to remove. I've removed the barbs on a few of mine to see how it worked, but I figured I ask you guys to make sure there isnt a problem with unbarbed hooks that I didnt know about. The last pike I caught was with one of the de-barbed hooks, and it definitely was easier to get him unhooked, it slid right out. I know you need the barb for live bait, but I'm only using lures for now, and I dont mind losing a few more fish if it'll up the survival rates and make unhooking the pike a bit easier(it's no fun trying to get them out of those toothy critters). Any opinions on barbless hooks or things I should be aware of? Thanks guys.
 
That will work, however you will not have quite the backbone that I like in a rod. I had the rod you have only in 7' length. You will have to make him fight the rod more, hold it up and make him bend it and tire him out before bringing him in. If you use barb less hooks you can not allow him an inch of slack(you will need to keep the line tight) or you will lose him. Barb less hooks are usually for the more experienced fisherman.
 
Sounds like you are off to a great start :thumbup:
Yes, pinching down the barbs will help you learn how to play the fish
and use your drag. I don't eat a lot of fish either , and if I loose a few
by pinching down the barbs with pliers to help get them back in the water
sooner , it's worth it to me.
Like everything , the more you do it , the more you learn.

Phil
 
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