Understanding rod styles.

I have been getting many great questions about all the different rod styles ACC has to offer and which ones are right for the customer.  So I decided to write an informative  Blog on the topic.

We can start with the difference between the GS series and the HDRS series. Both of these rods have substantial back bone and enough lifting power for any Crappie that swims. However, as I was getting feedback from customers and working from personal experience I decided the great world of Crappie fishing needed a Crappie rod that stood out and wasn’t readily available. So,the HDRS series was born. Heavy Duty Red Series is exactly what it sounds like. A rod with more backbone and the ability to pull 2 and 3lb Crappie out of tight, nasty cover.

The HDRS series comes in 3 lengths, let’s start with the 7’ split grip model. This isn’t really a heavy duty jigging rod but more of a beast of a dock shooter and casting, corking, drag a 2.5lber out from under a 30’ long dock rod. Most dock shooters on the market are pretty wimpy and of course ACC Crappie Stix doesn’t really do wimpy rods. You will be able to cast  1/32 ounce jig head and still have lots of hook setting power when the you feel the slightest bite. It a pure joy to fire a jig all the way under a massive dock on Lake of the Ozarks knowing that most  fisherman haven’t been able to get that far back with the other dock shooters out there. It’s kind of like comparing a BBQ gun to a .22 rifle. Try it out you’ll see.

Moving on the the 10’ jigging rod. This rod comes in 2 handle styles,  mid seat and rear seat. The mid seat is by far the most popular because it’s been around forever. I prefer the rear seat where I fish. The rear seat is a better choice for strictly vertical jig fisherman  (or minnows in the bushes) that tend to fish in less than 12’ of water. When paired with a 4-6 ounce spinning reel that acts as a counter balance and you have a combo that is very light, controllable, and extremely sensitive. When you fish less than 12’ you really don’t have to do much reeling so it doesn’t matter that the reel is set back further. Just let out 10 or 12 feet of line and drop it on your brush pile and when you get bit pick it straight up and in the boat. Once you feel the difference from a mid seat you will be sold.

Next is the 10’ mid seat. We’ll keep this short because most people know about these handles. The advantage of having the reel, closer to your hand is for fishing deeper water or flipping a cork and minnow (or jig) and reeling it back. Basically it comes in handy when you actually need to use the reel more often.

Moving on the 11’. Not much else to say here but we will cover a little bit on why I tend to use an 11’ rod 90% of the time. First off it puts you further from your target which is always a good thing especially when dealing with spooky (clear water) Crappie. Next it allows more distance to be covered when  setting the hook. Thus, less need for the mid reel seat. Plus the 11’ rods are built with more stout butt sections and just have more backbone. The 11’ comes in both middle and rear seat handles and we have already covered all we need to on that topic.

I was going to cover all the rods tonight but I will just leave it with the HDRS tonight. The reason I started this company was due to the fact that it was difficult  to find good quality Crappie rods. We’ve been sold wimpy, flimsy rods for so long I think people started to believe  that’s all you were supposed to use. Simply not  true! We are finding that a great, affordable,  lightweight rod can be built and not feel like a wet noodle. When paired with 20# hi vis braid a bite feels like you stuck your finger in a light socket. It’s amazing the difference in the way a bite feels from a stout rod.

Once again, thanks to everyone who enjoys reading my blog. I try to come up with interesting material from time to time. I would love to hear some feedback and even some ideas for future articles. Does anyone one else out there in fishing land have a blog they would like to share with everyone through my Website? Would anyone like to be a guest and write about something they feel they have some insight about?

Have fun  out there and remember to take  kid fishing! Andy.