Bass fishing gear

[Bofire]

 :)Hey guys I am curious.
I have been looking at and reading about bass fishing and the gear. I went to some stores today and looked at some of the rods that were listed. They are STIFF!!!! The reels dont hold much line and are small, they use heavy line. Braided line!! I am sure many of us could use reels that hold less line, most casts are not that far, Except for some things OK, I know., but my ambassador 5000 holds a ton of line. For big river and big water sometimes a lot of line is needed, but for lots of stuff 50 foot casts are all you need.

I know bass guys fish weeds and stuff. Can some one please give me a brief run down on the gear and the Why?
thanks
Carl

[Fishpimp]

 i personally fish really light gear . mostly 6lb test and drop shots for smallies and some largies.  the reason for the heavy gear is so you can cast into whatever cover you want and winch them back out. i seldom fish the really thick stuff. my bass partner will use some heavy stuff up to about 20lb test for flippin' but that is only in the thick stuff.

[BC CHASER]

You will have better success with finesse baits (small baits) than bubba baits in Washington.  I also stay away from spinnerbaits, although I know they work I catch more fish on stick baits and cranks than spinners.  6-8 lb. test and light gear.  I also fish with mostly 7'-7.5' rods.

[backyard bucks]

honestly before we can really help you and break down what gear would be best suited for you, you need to tell us what and where you plan to fish.
the choices and options are endless in the world of bass fishing and vary greatly depending on lakes, and which type of fishing you do, (smallmouth, largemouth)
give us a bit more to work with and i'm sure you'll find that everyone has good options and opinions on what to use depending on our own experience and our own confidence in certain ways of catching fish with the always changing conditions.

[Bofire]

I am just interested in why they use such heavy gear. The rods are like pool cues, little level winds and 10-20 lb test line geeeeeez! for a maybe 10 lb. fish??
Heck I use 6lb and 8 for Salmon and Steelies in rivers, some way bigger than bass, so whats the deal with the gear?/ those rods are really stiff!!
Carl

[10Key]

The use of heavy gear in bass fishing is directly correlated to the type of areas that hold fish. Bass tend to relate to cover, sometimes very heavy cover. In order to get fish out of sunken tree tops, bridge pilings, heavy, matted grass, one needs to use heavy line, rod and reel.

[tlbradford]

Hook set is a big reason for heavy rods and braided line.  Largemouth bass have big mouths.  They feed by inhaling their food, not biting and attacking it like a fish with teeth.  A stiff rod with a sensitive tip and a line that doesn't stretch will help sense the light bite, and then give you the fastest time between feeling the bite and setting the hook, before the bass spits it back out.  With the soft plastic baits and weedless baits, you are also trying to force that hook point through the plastic it is embedded in and through the mouth of the fish.  Then as stated earlier you are horsing them out of cover and into the boat.  It is a specific tool for a specific setting. 

[BLKBEARKLR]

Guess you wont understand it until you've tried it.

[Bofire]

That makes sense Mr. Bradford. I am pretty interested think I gotta try it out this summer.
One good thing is the rods and reels are not to pricy.
Carl

[BLKBEARKLR]

Bofire,

I see that you want to try some bass fishing, I live in Roy, later this spring if you are interested in getting out let me know, you can split the gas and I can show you a couple of tricks. And one thing is I use all G.Loomis rods and they are quite expensive so when you are spending money on a rod and you are saying that they are not that expensive there might be a reason why.

joe

[rasbo]

I used to live on the delta in calif,back then we would flip before most heard of it,used a heavey rod 20lb test and drag them through the branches,what a blast.around here I use a 1500c ambassador and a med to heavy casting rod.dont mess with them much after catching a steelhead,switched over love the metalheads

[Curly]

Not all bass fishing rods are heavy and stiff.  Just like in golf, not all your clubs are the same.  Different rods for different situations and different presentations.  The stiffer rods are generally for flipping and using real heavy line when fishing around brush or dock pilings.

[mossback91]

Wow I guess I just dont pay attention to my setups, but I have caught some nice bass off a 6 ft ugly stick and 6lb line with some plastic bait in some nasty places......guess the biggest was about 6 pounds but many in the 4-5 lb range.........I guess the fact that I dnt have tons of money to throw around on fishing gear explains that though 

[backyard bucks]

there are so many different kind of techniques and ways to fish for bass that a person can have as many as 10 to 20 rods in their boat at one time depending on if the lake has smallies and largies in it.
not saying that you need that many rods but as curly posted it's like golf clubs.
you could get away with a 3 clubs but having all the options makes it easier and more productive too.
and you don't need the 300 dollar rods to catch bass but honestly the more sensitive your equipment is the more light strikes or pick ups you'll feel and that equals more bass in the boat. 

[Bofire]

Thanks Blkbearklr, I might just do that. I have seen now that a guy can spend a ton of money on the gear. I just went to Cabelas and wondered thru the set-ups/combos they sell. I read this article about it and the guy talked about Med, Med Light, Med heavy and heavy rods, I tried some of them that were labled like that and they were STIFF compared to my steelhead gear/trout gear etc.
I doubt I need to buy new gear to try it out  :chuckle:BUT my kids are out of the house, I make good money, actually get to keep some now,  :)and I like having good quality gear.
Most of my steelhead/trout rods are customs done by George in Olympia, I like Ambasadors, Shimanos for reels.
thanks for all your help folks!!
Carl