Jason Mitchell too heavy?

[TMF89]

Hey guys, I checked out the panfish and perch rods yesterday, and both are medium-lights. When I tested them, those both seemed pretty heavy, especially since I love the fight of the fish, and nobody catches slabs all the time anyway. I'd probably use them more for walleye then anything else. Can anyone reccomend a good rod (outside of Thorne Bros), that comes in a light (I don't want a noodle) to me?

[slipperybob]

I do think the Jason Mitchell rods are a tad heavy in comparison to like St. Croix's or Genz Stix. I thought the Frabill one was very light.

The HT noodle rod a love/hate rod. Buddy likes it for it's springy bobber effect. I hate it cuz it has no backbone for anything.

[Bothun]

The Frabill Panfish Popper. I'm pretty sure thats what its called. I fish with one and love it. Its a light rod that gives plenty of fight. Also have hooked a 20" plus eyes with it and have had no problem icing them.

It was cheap too, I think something like 20 bucks.

[Deitz Dittrich]

T- I held a Jason Mitchel Rod at Cabelas yesterday.. WIsh I could remember what it was.. I think it was called a power stick?... Hope someone can help me..

Anyway.. this rod had a tip so light you could have called it a spring bobber. It did have quite a bit of backbone near the handle, but the first 6" of the rod might have been the most UL rod I have ever held.

The reason his rods are stiffer.. he is using a higher mod graphite.. hence stiffer, and more sensitive.

[CSP88]

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T- I held a Jason Mitchel Rod at Cabelas yesterday.. WIsh I could remember what it was.. I think it was called a power stick?... Hope someone can help me..

Anyway.. this rod had a tip so light you could have called it a spring bobber. It did have quite a bit of backbone near the handle, but the first 6" of the rod might have been the most UL rod I have ever held.

The reason his rods are stiffer.. he is using a higher mod graphite.. hence stiffer, and more sensitive.

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Deitz, it's called the "Meat Stick". I can't wait to get this rod out on the ice.

Chad

[slipperybob]

I foung the Meatstick to be very impressive...noodle effect at the tip but it has back bone to it it. In terms of rod action they are impressive, but to me it's the weight of the rod.

[Nellie30]

I beleive the Jason Mitchell rods that most of the stores are stocking are the standard rods with the larger sized guides for fishing outside. You can buy the "trap series" from his HSOforum that is supposed to have smaller guides & should be lighter... I hope anyway because I have the Perch & Walleye "trap series" on order.

[Flaco651]

I checked out the Jason Mitchell rods yesterday at Moore's Bait and liked them. Seemed nice and sensitive. I will be adding the meat stick and one of the perch rods to my collection soon.

[calli4120]

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I foung the Meatstick to be very impressive...

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Do you think that the Meatstick would be a good all purpose rod?

[Deitz Dittrich]

Not in my opinion as it would maybe be tough to fish some of the heavier panfish lures that I like to fish.. That said, I will probably get one for those times when I am finess fishing.

[slipperybob]

I don't own one...I'm still hesitant about the line guides and overall rod weight. Maybe it's all for nothing, but I've got my noodle rod already. That shakespeare cajun ice rod does just about that for me.

I think the meatstick would be great for live bait jigging anything 1/8 oz and lighter...in the exact instance where a big URL crappie comes along,...backbone. Noodle rods just don't have that. The meatstick does have the action that combines that of tip suppleness and body backbone. I would not use this rod for buckshot rattles however my experiences with rattle lures are very limited to beginner. I'm planning on using Lindy Flyer rattle spoons as well as Lindy rattle Techniglo jig heads this year and see what my luck will be.

[calli4120]

Thanks for the replys.

I've got a few inexpensive rods that I used last year and they work fine but I want to get a something a little nicer. I booked a trip to devils lake in late February with my buddies and I wanted to have something that will perform well for perch but can also handle something larger that may decide to bite.

Any suggestions for this situation when a guy has a budget?

[Eric Wettschreck]

28" jason Mitchell walleye rod.

I love the feel of these rods. Don't let the price tag, by comparison to other rods fool you, they are top notch.

[CSP88]

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I booked a trip to devils lake in late February with my buddies and I wanted to have something that will perform well for perch but can also handle something larger that may decide to bite.

Any suggestions for this situation when a guy has a budget?

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The Jason Mitchell "Perch" model will more than fit the bill. It has plenty of finesse for Perch but yet enough backbone for larger Walleyes. I used this rod on Waubay last year and it worked great as a multi-species rod.

Chad

[TMF89]

If I were to go with three rods this year, what would you guys reccomend? I'm looking for three rods to cover the most amount of situations possible.

[CSP88]

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If I were to go with three rods this year, what would you guys reccomend? I'm looking for three rods to cover the most amount of situations possible.

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If I was only going to have 3 rods it would be:

1. 24" Panfish rod (for Gills and Crappies)

2. 26" Perch rod (for Perch and Walleyes)

3. "Meat Stick" (multi-species when set up as deadstick)

Chad

[irishjigs]

I love the Perch rod. I have the 26" version. I like the backbone on it, but it loads really easily at the tip. Great overall rod.

[Powerstroke]

CSP hit it on the head. The "meat stick" is meant for a dead stick. Long rod with a ultra sensitive tip for watching bait movement and not using a bobber. Then the rod has backbone for whatever does take that drowning minnow.

I just got mine and I can't wait.

The panfish poppers come in 4 weights including a deadstick. I have 3 of them and like the weights alot. The microlight 20" rod really makes those small gills look like monsters. I like the feel when fishy ultralight jigs like 1/100 jigs.

[hanson]

There seams to be a little confusion in this thread about rods and their particular uses in general.

When we ice fish, we typically fish 1 of 2 ways with our rods, and that is jigging or bobber fishing. If you fish with a bobber, it is practical to say that any old rod will work. Now as an ice fishing fanatic, I know that statement isn't exactly true but I want to touch more on jigging rods and their applications.

With jigging rods, having a balanced combo (rod, reel, line, and jig) is of the utmost importance. You have to match your combo to the lure you plan to fish, not the combo to the fish you intend to catch. Most "good" rods will have all the backbone in the world to fight the fish that swim, and are typically caught through the ice, in Minnesota's waters.

In the Thorne Bros. line of rods, I feel that the Perch Sweetheart is at its best fishing a 1/8oz jigging spoon on 4lb mono. I use this rod almost exclusively for my crappie, perch, and walleye fishing w/ jigging spoons.

The Thorne Walleye sweetheart (M & MH) is a much stiffer rod. I lose the feel of an 1/8oz spoon with these rods but they work much better with a 1/4oz spoon, Jigging Raps, Chubby Darters, larger Swedish Pimples, etc. I may still spool 4lb mono, or maybe move up to 6lb mono with this combo.

Conversely, these larger heavier spoons load my Perch Sweetheart too much and I can't get the right jigging action with that rod. If you go and snap jig, and there is a significant delay/load of the rod, the rod is too light to fish that lure effectively.

I don't think the original poster was indicating that the rod was too heavy in regards to weight, but too heavy in regards to action. You have to remember that stiffness = sensitivity, but you have to match that stiffness to the lure you intend to fish. Alot of the times, that also corresponds to the fish which is the intended target as well.

I sure wish my Mitchell rods would have arrived by now, then I could make a few better comparisons with his line. I do know the Thorne Perch Sweetheart is very comparable in action to the Mitchell Walleye. The Thorne Panfish Sweetheart will be more comparable to the Mitchell Perch.

And when folks are talking about the Mitchell "Meat Stick" and Thorne "Deadstick" & "Noodle" rods, we are really talking about a highly specialized type of lure presentation- deadsticking, where you are relying on the rod tip to be a bite indicator. I would never, ever use a Thorne Deadstick as a jigging rod, or a bobber rod for that matter, it is going to be exclusively used to deadstick a lure.

I sure hope that information is digestable. I almost exclusively fish Thorne rods now so that is my basis for comparison and the bad thing is nothing compares. However, I realize not everyone can fish the best of the best which is why I'm intrigued with finding a great bang for the buck rod which is why I'm interested in these rods.

[cRaPpiEMaN8265]

thanks for clearing that up hanson i was a bit confused myself. How do you know what type of sweetheart you bought. I just got one at the show but it doesnt say what kind it is...ie. perch,walleye,panfish... Im sure i got a good one because Corey was the one who told me to get it i was just curious. i dont think it says anywhere on the rod and on the reciept it just says "32" Sweetheart"? thanks

Ryan

[Jim Hudson]

Hanson explained everything great on the "heavy" deal. It's true the Elite series rods, panfish series, do not have that noodle effect. But the rods are extremely sensitive, more so in the trap series. I fished this rod with 2lb Micro Ice and was easily able to pound and feel size 12 jigs for 'gills.

[hanson]

Shoot... Do you have the barcode that was wrapped around the cork handle still?? In fine print, it should say on that label whether it was a Perch, Panfish, or Walleye.

Knowing what Corey likes to fish, I would venture a guess that it was a Panfish Sweetheart although I will not say that with certainty.

Did I meet you at the show at all? I was working in Thorne's booth the full day Saturday and Sunday, along with half of Friday. Just curious.

[Bobb-o]

take a look at the rapala ice rods, got a great tip fo sensing strikes, but have a quick action and backbone like a lot of open water rods.

[blueroof]

Bobb-o, I agree. The rapala medium ice rod has faster action than either the Mitchell walleye or perch. IMO, the Mitchell panfish has the best action of the three, most comparable to the T.B. Sweetheart.

Are the inside and outside Jason Mitchell's on different blanks, or is the difference only in the guide size?

LB

[Borch]

Knowing Corey I'd say with 90% certainty that it's be the 32" panfish sweetheart. You're gonna love it.