Is the THUMP in the rod?

This evening I fished for the first time with the most expensive crappie rod I’ve ever owned: A $160 7-foot G-Rod. I’d avoided it prior to now over price. Plus, I love my $50 Pro Angler 6.5 rods. And I still do.

But friends, if you’re like me and have never fished with a premium rod like this, all I can say – as a normal dude who pays full price unless it’s on sale - is HOLY S%#T!

I’ve been shooting docks and working brush piles here at my (new to me) Cedar Creek home almost every evening for the past nine months, and for the past couple of months I’ve missed a whole lot of crappie because I detected the bite too late. Since the spawn, the THUMP has been a rarity; they’ve just been lightly tapping or inhaling my jigs, and too often spitting them out before I feel them.

But this evening, I felt EVERY hit, and every one was a real THUMP. I only missed two, threw back quite a few, and boated 15 keepers.

People say it’s not the bat, it’s the batter, and I agree. But pro ball players use premium wood bats for a reason: They perform better.

So does this rod.

Now I just have to avoid breaking the darned thing.

160 i'll pass

^ cool response

Totally agree jp, it's the batter not the bat, but give a capable batter premium equipment and waaaatch out! Glad you like them

Now might I suggest to you to give an ACC Crappie STIX a try and I think you will notice very similar results.

I own 2 G-Rods myself.

ACC is what I fish with 99% of the time.

wasn't no 160 bucks tho for 1

even if I was a pro that rod better fix breakfast wake me up with a kiss and so on.

I agree! The rod helps feel bites a lot better but sometimes the fish just hit harder and are easier to feel. I have always thought that as much as I fish, I want to have the best quality equipment that I possibly can. Those G-Rods are definitely some high quality rods.

I believe its in the rod and line

I have all three and fish at least three times a week depending on winds. ACC $55, Bonehead $99, and G-Rod $160. There is no comparison. I have tested by using all three several times on the same pile same day and G-Rod just simply "out catches". G-Rod is very noticeably lighter, thinner, and more comfortable to hold.

I like it so much I am going to get, at any price, the new premium series just unvailed at Icast.

I am a believer that the rod makes a difference also. I was using a shakespheare microlite, many people had said it was a good rod for the money, and my biggest complaint with it was the lack of feeling or sensitivity. I bought a fenwick and immediately felt the difference and the catch rate went up. I now own two fenwicks and rarely use the microlite anymore. Each to his own, but it makes a difference to me, and I like a good, sensitive rod, no matter what the price. Everyone is going to spend his money on something; me, it is fishing.

later...etex

You will also pass on a lot of fish ..... I know there are times you can use a cane pole with trot line string and catch crappie, but other times it takes finesse and feel to boat a fish.

I have a Daiwa Tatula for my crappie jig rod and a G Loomis for my bass worm rod .... I was bass fishing late one evening standing by my buddy and I thought I got a hit, turned and looked and a gnat was recovering from running into my line.

IF YOU DON'T FEEL THEM, YOU DON'T CATCH THEM ..... if they jerk the rod out of your hand before you feel them something is wrong.

Earnest let me use one of his custom dock rods one time and I have to agree they are worth every penny. I am willing to skimp on beer but never on a rod.

Finaddict,

I appreciate your opinion on your post above.

I own G-Rods, I own Pro Anglers, I own TICA, I own BnM Sam Heaton Super Sensitive, I own Southern Crappie Rods, and I own ACC Crappie Stix.

Without a doubt a good rod can definitely make a difference.

I can say that it is of my opinion that I can catch Crappie with "ANY" of the rods that I own and mentioned above.

Every single one of them will catch Crappie.

G-Rod, Pro Angler, TICA, BnM SAM Heaton, Southern Crappie Rods, and ACC Crappie Stix...fish with any of them and you will catch Crappie without a doubt.

I like a rod with good backbone.
I like a rod that can sling a Crappie over the boat should I know I have them hooked good enough not to lose them.
I like a rod that will feel the light bite.

Any of the rods I mentioned above will fill those three requirements for me.

If someone wants to spend big $$$ on a rod and in their opinion it's the cats meow then I say more power to them. I say fish with whatever rod or rod maker makes you the happiest.

For the money and value for me and my Dad ACC Crappie Stix is our #1 choice. That is just our opinion.

In our experience no one rod has out caught the other.
We have caught fish with all of them.
We can feel the light bite with all of them.

That is simply our experience.

The bottom line is there are several excellent Crappie rod makers on the market.
Rods, lures, line preference, etc all really boil down to an Anglers personal preferences.
Whatever makes you the best Angler and the happiest then I say go for it.

My Dad and I have talked about this topic and for us we would rather buy 3 ACC Crappie Stix for the same price of 1 G-Rod. Because in our experience we can catch a Crappie using either or.

I have nothing negative to say about any of the rods above.

They are all great Rods.

Tight Lines no matter what you personally decide to use.

Two Man Limit with Two ACC Crappie Stix.

HOGON,

You are 100% correct. Long ago manufacturers figured out that they needed to make products to hook fishermen not fish. Why else thousands of baits and we all have a couple of favorites that in truth would work for anyone under the same conditions.

That said there are differences in offerings and it is confidence and cost that are the top decision makers. The Lord has been good to me that I am fortunate enoigh to be able to purchase my choice of equipment and tend to like higher priced rods as well as reels. Shimano Stradic my preferred ree as example.

Bottom line is we all simply need to enjoy what we chose and we will all have a fish story to share around the next campfire.

Luck to all.

I'm a bit less aware of it now, but I will never forget the first time I spooled braid on my spinning reel. I could "feel" the bottom for the first time in terms of what it was I was pulling over. Gravel felt totally different than a soft bottom, for example. Until then, I thought it was just "talk." The spongy feeling was gone.

So, a crappie or any fish plucks a line, it travels like a wave up the line back toward the rod. This would be the same for any rod with the same line. And, a slack line doesn't transmit this "wave" as well as a taut line. Once it gets to the rod, it'll depend on several factors:

One is you will feel more on a lighter rod. If you held a vaulting pole out at arms' length with an attached line, you might not discern a tiny bluegill nibble. The weight of the "rod" would overshadow it. A relatively heavy rod will mask these light touches by fish. Dense material and light weight, together, would be the best. Graphene is very dense at one carbon atom in width. The material is being considered for use in vests for police officers.

A second would be the rod material's vibration characteristics. Consider a string on a guitar. Two different strings transmit "waves" differently for different sounds (wave lengths). Likely, we just feel the transmission of certain vibrations through certain materials differently . . . or one better than another.

A third is you will feel the bite better on a fast tip than a slow tip because it loads up farther out on the rod so a tiny bite has more leverage in the transmission of feel than one that loads up lower . . . and slower.

I think an important fourth factor is the rod and reel "balance." Most of the time, this is considered just a factor related to comfort for all day fishing; but, a perfectly balanced rod and reel will likely give a quicker feedback to an angler because we feel things going from "balanced" to "out of balance" very quickly. A fish barely touches our bait, the pressure pulls the tip down ever so slightly. We are wired to feel balance by nature.

I generally agree with Hogon and others that you can get to a rod performance that is really great with a variety of rods. I also think technology is pulling ahead pretty sharply. Strength/weight ratios have improved tremendously over the last many years. We can absorb more . . . our fingers are "wired" so finely for "touch" as a sensation that we can literally feel the difference between two pieces of typing paper and a single sheet if we accidentally grab two instead of one. Rod technology is taking us closer and closer to our limits here.

Brad

Oh! I forgot to mention that I "traded" rods with a friend recently. I now own a G-Rod 6'6" Trout model and I can't wait to give it a go. I'll report back on the "feel" of it with a personal observation. It is very thin, very light, beautiful workmanship for sure. He told me he has caught some pretty large fish with it. I'm looking forward to finding out!

Brad

Are the ACC Crappie Stix the ones that do a quantity discount? (Order 5-6 rods...)

I need to get some higher quality rods over my BnM's

If you spend $150 with ACC you get Free Shipping.

Basically 3 Rods will get you Free Shipping.

You can order an 8 Footer, a 10 Footer, and a Dock shooter for example and have enough in the order to qualify for Free Shipping.

Or 3 of the 8 Footers.

Or 3 of the 10 Footers and so on.

I do not know of any quantity discounts with Andy but you can always shoot him an email and ask him.

www.acccrappiestix.com

Andy the owner of ACC was a Full Time Crappie Guide in Illinois. He left guiding and went into the Rod Business because he was sick and tired of the whimpy Rods that were available on the market for Crappie Fisherman.

He actually owns some Pro Anglers and he likes them.
He said the Big Rods for Crappie in Illinois are Ozark Rods and BnM.
I don't know much about Ozark Rods.
He said BnM Rods were like fishing with a rubber band.
My BnM SAM Heaton Super Sensitive isn't like that, but a regular BnM I don't know because I've never used one.

He told me that is why he left guiding and set out to make the best Crappie Rod for the price on the market and hence ACC Crappie Stix was born.

He would fit in great here in Texas with the Crappie folks.
He loves Crappie Fishing.
He is all about taking kids Crappie Fishing. He loves kids.
He is a very genuine down to earth fellow angler that wants to contribute to the crappie fishing community.

He has had some growing pains with the business and was actually sold out of all Rods and rod lengths from the end of April until July 3rd. He just got 2600 Rods in and will be placing an order for another 3000 in the near future. Currently, he has all lengths in stock.

When I spoke to him and we were talking Rods I told him that G-Rods and Pro Anglers were the big Rods in Texas. He said I have some Pro Anglers and I like those rods. I told him the G-Rods were $160 and his jaw hit the floor...I heard it.

Anyway, you certainly can order one rod or two and if I remember Shipping was a flat rate $8.00.

He is simply a regular guy just trying to make a positive impact on the Crappie Community.

I'm simply a fan and a customer.

Good Luck and Tight Lines.

Oh and I fish with 20 pound Power Pro Super Slick Braid in Aqua Green with an 8 pound Berkeley Vanish Clear/Gold Flourocarbon leader.

G-Rod and ACC stick are in two different worlds to me. I'll pay the extra for a G-rod. I only own the 9' G-Rod but it's a great addition to my collection. And I own over 50 Crappie rods..

I don't even spend that on a Bass rod!

So my question is this......I am one of those guys that usually has the line touching my index finger when vertical jigging. Is a $160 rod really going to help me feel anymore bites??? I can tell you I have a couple of very cheap ultra light rods ($11 each) and a few mid level ultra lights ($50-$60 each). Using them all in the same day the mid level rods didn't put anymore fish in the boat than the ultra cheap ones. So in my opinion holding your line kind of defeats the need for a super high end rod. After all the bite is going to have to travel up the line anyway no matter how much your rod costs.

JCB, a good observation.

My only thought is the index finger would sense a very light bite as a pull increasing pressure on it; in contrast, it comes down the rod as more of a vibration.

I rarely vertically jig, but I suspect that in most cases the quality of the sensation is higher coming down the rod than holding the line with a finger, that the rod sensation has more "information" in it.

One example and you may not agree, I could be wrong, but if your vertical bait sort of floated into some submerged vegetation, you'd get a signal up your line into your finger. I just don't know if it'd signal a difference between that kind of pressure and a bite. With a high-end rod, I think most of us can differentiate, very clearly, a snag in vegetation from a fish bite. They usually feel completely different.

Brad

... Braid is like a super chip for average rods....greatly increases performance.

Skimp on BEER?
BLASPHEMY!!

Thump is in the line for me. You wanna feel the fish fart on your jig, throw some braid or flouro on. When it comes to the rod, I'm looking for what feels good in my hand, and something that I can hold for a good while and not get fatigued. For more me it's the Pro Angler all day long.

I've fished with quite a few rods since I started crappie fishing. I started with Pro Anglers and then the St Croix craze hit. I swapped over to St Croix Premiers and noticed a difference. I also went from straight mono to braid with a fluoro leader at the same time. Then came a pair of St Croix walleye rods...better yet. Next came Dobyns both Champions and Champion Extremes, I caught alot of fish on a Champion 702SF. Again, all these from the initial swap to St Croix were using braid/fluoro. I'm back to fishing St Croix again mainly because they have a reasonable selection of 7'6" rods in all price ranges. I also fish Pro Angler from time to time. They all catch fish but I can tell you the single biggest game changer for me has been the braid/fluoro line combo. Even the Pro Anglers benefit from this change. FWIW, I've never been a big fan of B&M as it seems their rods are on the wimpy side and everyone I know that's fished them has had issues ranging from guides to breakage.

Yep..line makes a big difference. I have a couple of short Ugly stick rods I use in tight situations, like under low bridges...with mono, you really have to watch the line...you might not even feel a soft bite, just see it. With braid, its a solid thump.
I have a couple of rods that are just blanks, reel seat and guides..no foam or cork. With braid, you can feel them breathe on a jig. They are No.8 Tackle blackout 7' ML spinning rods. I got them from Tackle Warehouse. Amazing crappie rod... a little heavier than a G-Rod, but every bit as sensitive...for less than $60.00. Sadly, they are sold out of the 7' ML, but if you see them elsewhere, they are a lot of rod for the money.

$160 a mite pricey. If you fish tourneys maybe but I catch enough crappie to feed me and all my friends as it is. Besides, the Pro Angler rod is super tough. I step on them, catch big LM Bass, cats and stripers and they dont end up as tomato stakes like those Wally marshal rods.

For those of you that think $160 is too much to spend on the MAIN tool that puts fish in your freezer ..... I found a pic of your crappie boat on google!

OK Class what have we learned?# Don`t tell another man your rod is better than his just because you payed more $$ for it, #2 Don`t be envious of the man that can purchase the high $$ rod. Not all bank accounts are created equal,& #3 Buy what you can afford.You will be much happier when you do catch. The Thump is in the Fish! The jig,line & ROD just gives him away Now can we move on?PLZZZZ?

Is that the boat owner in the window cleaning his catch?

ACAMS I thought I asked you before to keep my garage private, no posting on the internet. Oh well cat's out of the bag now.

I have one addiction..... crappie fishing. So I agree the rod does make a big difference. I only use a NRX drop shot G-Loomis rod. The thump feels like a small expoloson in your hand. My two cents...buy the best rod you can afford. You will be able to tell the difference.

I've been using St. Croix and Falcon rods for a while now, partially because the thump is amplified over my ugly stick but mainly for the balance and lighter weight.Kinda like shooting a firearm, best to have one that fits.

I'm knocking you as you are "flipper or caster" but I am a "B&M" guy forever! Nice day yanking those lips.....

B&M SHSS are what I use. They've got amazing backbone.