Blackfishing Rods

[Gerry Zagorski]

I know everyone has their own preferences as far as rods are concerned. I'm not the sharpest knife in the drawer by any means and compared other toggers I suck. I have however noticed that while fishing inshore a lighter rod (lighter in weight) makes a big difference for me in detecting bites, especially the more subtle ones.

I think a big part of that when coupled with a lighter reel is the fact that it requires a lot less effort and a less firm grip to steady a lighter set up. This is especially true when you are at the rail, dipping and raising your pole tip to meet the up and down movement of the boat and seas. Since the set up is lighter and you are not griping it as tightly you get more sensativty.

That being said I've seen some guys with much heavier rods and reels that fish mono put on a clinic when everyone else is struggling. I happen to think some of that is they are not feeling all the bites. Instead, they are only feeling the right bites and therefor are not tempted to swing at the wrong ones.

Anyone have any opinions on this???

It guess it all depends on your style of fishing but for me, the lighter the rod and reel the better.