jerkbaits

[Turbodog]

What lb. test do you guys use for jerkbaits and rod med-medhevy?

I was watching tv the other day and a guy was using braid i would think with no stretch it would take away from the action? I was thinking fluoro or mono probably 10 lb. momo Any help on jerk's would be nice...

[Cecil]

I use a 12# flourocarbon. As far as Medium vs Medium heavy it depends on the rod maker. Croix might be a medium and loomis a medium heavy.

Braid will actually give you better action, especially on the end of long casts.

[Deitz Dittrich]

10lb mono for me usually, though will use 12 floro at times as well.. med action rod.

[Superduty]

I like 10-15lb braid. Will go with a flouro leader at times. No stretch is exactly why I use braid. It gives it the most erratic action and allows for longer casts than flouro on a spinning reel. On a baitcaster, you can probably throw flouro as far as braid or mono for that matter.

[goblueM]

i'm a fan of braid with a mono leader. i feel like the sensitivity of braid lets me detect strikes and gives me better control, and that outweighs any negatives of zero stretch

[Turbodog]

Thanks for the replies! I just get scared to lose a 10$ bait or more from pike/muskie no guts no glory ! Thought jerkbait that goes deeper would be a solid bait for pepin this time of the year that why im asking thanks!

[TonkaBass]

First off there are two styles of jerkbaits I use. One is a rogue style and the other is a pointer type. Rogues give a totally different action than the slash baits and excel when the fish don't want something spazy. Pointer style baits are better when an erratic retrieve gets the bites. I like 10 flouro for most situations. It gets deeper than mono and imparts good action. I use 12 when the fish are biting it good and test doesn't seem to matter. Braid imparts by far the most action to the bait if its a slash type bait. Mono is perfect in the really cold water. It gives the bait the perfect swimming action esspecially on rogues. Rods are totally up for debate, and I dont think it really matters as long as the guy using it can fish the bait right and cast it far enough. Obviously you're not gonna use a flipping stick, but anthing between 6'6" and 7' M or MH seems to work. I will say that when you really need to rip them hard, the palomar knot seems to fail the most on flouro. I use a uni knot on jerkbaits because of this.

[Cecil]

You will get more depth out of flouro too. At times that can make all the difference in the world.

I was the same way with being scared to use that expensive of a bait. But now I have about 30 of them, so its not a big deal anymore.

[bemidjibasser]

I use 8 or 10 pound copolymer on spinning gear. Rod is anywhere from 7' mmf to 7'6" mf depending on the size of the bait and depth I am after. I have thrown a few on casting gear, but prefer spinning gear to get more distance on the cast even though the line can twist at times.

[Presco]

Tonka and others, you talk about a rogue style vs a pointer style. I figure the pointer is more the stick bait (Luckycraft, X-raps, etc), but curious what brand of baits would be considered rogue style? Is either preferred for spring/early season vs the other?

[Cecil]

Rogues and Husky Jerks do not have as aggressive of an action as the LC's or the XRaps. They stay more on plane then the "slash" baits do, but still go side to side.

[Juan Grande]

I think they're talking Smithwick Rogues. Those don't cost $8-10 do they? I know Xraps are getting up there in price.

[TonkaBass]

Yeah, the smithwicks. I agree with cecil and like the husky jerks too. They shine when the water temps are in the upper 40s and lower to mid 50s. I really start throwing the pointer style baits more when the fish move to the beds.

[RK]

Hiya -

I use spinning gear (a 7' ML X-fast) with 10# braid and a fluoro leader for smaller baits like Pointer 78s, smaller X-raps and Wild Shiners. For bigger baits I use a casting rod and 12# FC.

I like braid on smaller baits because you can completely control how much the bait moves. With no stretch, if you move your rod tip 6", the bait moves 6" too. Casting distance is also better, and you can feel the bait no matter how long your cast is. I use the heaver baits on a 7' medium power fast action casting rod, although I have a fairly high front deck so a shorter rod might work better if I fished out of a bass boat.

Cheers,

Rob Kimm