Spinning rod for jig top 15 spinning rods for jig

Today I would like to touch upon such a relevant and very important topic for every spinning fishing fan, such as choosing the optimal spinning rod for different fishing conditions. It is already an axiom that it is impossible to fish everywhere and with everything with the same spinning rod. No, of course, you can try it, but if you want, you can eat the borscht with a fork. Therefore, for comfortable, convenient and effective fishing in different bodies of water and with different baits, you need to have specialized sets of gear. But we will try to figure out how many of these sets there should be and what criteria should be used when choosing.

There are many diverse fishing conditions in our country; we fish on large reservoirs, on rivers of different sizes, and on ponds near our dachas. If you go into detail into all the nuances and subtleties that certain conditions dictate to us, and scrupulously choose your own specialized gear for each, you might probably go crazy, or at best, just get confused.

Even one type of reservoir can require a wide variety of fishing and, accordingly, different gear. Let's say, on a reservoir we can fish with a heavy jig along the channel edges and at the same time with wobblers along the bays and coastal strip of this reservoir, or with a microjig and a diverting leash on minor changes in the relief. That is why I decided to differentiate the choice of gear according to several parameters, namely the characteristics of the reservoir, the baits used, the main fishing objects and some other factors.

To make the presented material more visual and understandable, we will start from certain schemes that are typical for various fishing conditions. I’ll say right away that the presented diagrams are of a general average nature, and much of them is relative. But it is also impossible to take everything into account. Since I am not strong in the technical component, that is, the production technology of the materials used, I will evaluate the optimal tackle solely from a practical point of view and according to the generally understood characteristics of length, test and action. Although the system is also a delicate thing, and the same notorious fast can be very different. Therefore, after each diagram we will try to give a detailed description of all the details and give some specific models of fishing rods that meet the stated requirements.

In order not to confuse you right away, let's begin to understand in detail each scheme and features of choosing fishing rods for specific conditions. I hope everything will fall into place along the way.

What is twitching

Twitching is fishing with a spinning rod using wobblers with special jerks, the purpose of which is to make the plastic imitation of live bait indistinguishable from a real fish in order to mislead and catch pike, perch and other predators.
Standard postings of this type: moving the wobbler up and down or from side to side with jerks of the rod that are inconsistent in amplitude, frequency, and strength. As a result, the predator should get the impression that the bait has the main difference between living creatures and inanimate objects: the unpredictability of the direction and speed of movement. The main tasks of an angler when twitching are to understand for himself what and why is required of him to achieve success, choose the right gear for this and correctly apply it when fishing. When choosing a spinning rod and its equipment, he must take into account the following factors:

The tackle should provide maximum aggressiveness and the possibility of quick variations of wiring;
Ensure that the wobbler is immersed to the greatest possible depth;
Be adapted to the nature and weight of the bait;
The current speed in a particular body of water must be taken into account.

Difficult choice of spinning rod based on bait test

Now we come to the most important point; the choice of spinning rod for catching pike with wobblers should be done according to the test. At the same time, if this is your first spinning rod, then it is good if all the weights of your working wobblers fit within the test boundaries.

For example, you fish with wobblers that weigh from 10 to 25 grams - a sort of average set of wobblers for a beginner pike fisherman. This means you should take a closer look at rods with 10-30, 7-35 and 10-45 test. Of course, the last test will be slightly excessive at the first stage, but appetite, as they say, comes with eating. There will come a time when the upper limit of the test seems too low for you - when you catch really fat pike.

After building, the blank test will be the next important factor influencing the choice of spinning rod.

The average working weight of your lures should be approximately in the middle of the test range of the spinning rod and slightly closer to its lower limit. This will allow you to safely load the spinning rod blank when casting, without fear that it will break.

To learn about which spinning rod to choose for catching pike with spoons, read other articles on our website.

Fishing technique

For the twitching technique, you can use basically any type of bait.
But classic twitching is fishing with minnow wobblers. Wobblers with different bends will be effective for the types of play that correspond to them. For example, an elongated wobbler allows you to make jumps to the side better expressed. By changing the shapes and colors of baits in the place chosen for fishing, you can determine what is best for catching fish right here and now.

Classic twitching wiring: we animate the wobbler only with brush movements. We use the reel only to reel out slack line between pulls. With sharp jerks we immediately give the wobbler the required speed. After the jerk, we loosen the line slightly so that the wobbler makes the maneuver. We make a pause, in which the bait hangs for a while, like an ordinary fish. The amplitude of jerks and the duration of pauses are determined experimentally.

The main thing in this fishing technique is to never get hung up on one thing, on the once successful solutions found. Twitching fishing involves constant creativity and search. Observe the behavior of the fish and try to get used to its image “according to Stanislavsky’s system.” Then the predator will believe you.

How to choose a spinning rod for twitching

Practice shows: in most cases, the optimal tackle for this fishing technique is a spinning rod with the following parameters:

light rod with medium-fast action, 210-240 cm long;
lightweight spinning reel size 1000-1500, in extreme cases 2000;

We pay special attention to the maximum lightness of the rod and its balance with the reel - otherwise the hand will quickly get tired from irregular sudden movements. braided fishing line can withstand sharp jerks of a wobbler . If we go pike fishing, we also need to have a leash.

The first thing you need to do when choosing a spinning rod is to carefully examine whether there are any splits or cracks on the rings. Most rings are made from ceramic. But there are designs in which it is absent altogether. It is also possible that the ceramics flew off during transportation. If you have the slightest doubt, you should refuse the purchase.

Next, you need to carefully examine the rod blank from the handle to the tip. A dent or deep scratch on it will cause the rod to break under heavy load in this place.

The spool holder clamping nut should tighten easily and quickly without loosening on the thread. Otherwise, it will scroll when tightened.

Quality of pass rings

The service life of the fishing line depends on the quality of the spinning rings. Accordingly, from this point of view, they should be as resistant to damage as possible, smooth, light and hard.

The number, location, and diameter of the rings greatly influence the possible casting distance. This is especially true when working with light baits on telescopic rods, because rings are placed on them where the design allows, and not in accordance with calculations. It happens that when fishing, the leash gets pushed into the upper passage ring. If this is not noticed in time, it may crack.

In composite two- and three-legged fishing rods from popular brands, the distance between the rings is calculated using computer diagnostics of the influence of loads of different intensity on the behavior of the blank during jerking. There is no reason not to trust these calculations. When fishing with branded spinning rods, you will get real pleasure. On the other hand, telescopic fishing rods are cheaper and more mobile. You have to choose your priorities yourself.

Test of twitching spinning rods

Light wobblers should be thrown with light test rods (light or ultralight).
The spinning test shows in grams the upper and lower weight limits of the lures that you will use when fishing. These limits characterize the power of the spinning rod, which is divided into classes:

ultralight - test 0.5–7 g
Light (light) – 5-15 g;
Medium (average) – 10-30 g;
Heavy (heavy) – 20-50 g;
super heavy (jerk) - over 50 g of dough;

The power of the blank you require is determined by the expected weight of the bait and the type of fish you will catch with it. It is better that the weight of the wobbler is somewhere in the middle of the spinning test range. For example, a bait weighing 20 grams will be ideal for a 10-30 g blank.

For twitching, the standard spinning test is 5-30 g. When using ultra-light wobblers, you can also use ultralight spinning rods.

For example, the Favorite Varita 662 UL spinning rod will reveal to the amateur all the delights of ultra-light fishing, but is suitable only for this narrow purpose. Domestic fishermen most often choose medium-light fishing rods with a dough weight of 5 to 25 grams.

If you use baits with large blades, when choosing a fishing rod, you need to take into account not only the weight of the wobbler, but also its high resistance when retrieving. The optimal combination of wobbler and blank is achieved if, when twitching the bait, only the tip of the fishing rod is played.

Rod length

The length of the spinning rod is indicated in centimeters on the form. Its choice depends on the conditions, technique and fishing distance. For twitching, rods with a length of 210-240 cm are usually used.

It’s not easy to work with a large “stick”; your hand gets tired quickly. But if you have to fish from a bank densely overgrown with grass, or you have to cast a heavy wobbler long-distance, you may need a rod up to 3 meters long. However, this form is more suitable for the jig technique.

If you often have to cast between trees or from bushes , it is very inconvenient to do this with a long fishing rod. In such places, rods with a length of 180-210 cm are used.

The same length is ideal when fishing from a boat. Instead of long casting, you can simply swim to the fishing spot. In addition, using a long fishing rod while sitting is very inconvenient.

By fishing distance we mean the size of the reservoir. On a narrow river there is no point in a long spinning rod. And on the reservoir, a short fishing rod is only suitable for fishing from a boat.

On small reservoirs overgrown with shrubs and trees, it is not possible to use long rods

Rod build

Each technique, fishing conditions, and baits used have their own optimal spinning rod structure. It is determined by the nature of the bend of the fishing rod if some kind of weight is suspended from its tip.

The construction happens:

slow;
average;
fast;
transitional between the above;

People usually start learning to fish with a uniform retrieve. A medium rod action would be ideal for her.

For twitching fishing, a medium-fast action would be ideal. It makes it possible to alternate soft and fast twitches.

For twitching from the beach, medium and slow action fishing rods will be used. There is room to swing, the main thing is that your arms don’t get tired.

And on a forest river, where branches hang overhead, only a sharp cast with a brush is possible. In this case, a short, inflexible, fast-action rod would be ideal.

Ultralight blanks, for example, can have a parabola from butt to tulip. And for twitching with heavy wobblers, a fast-action spinning rod is best. With it you can not be afraid of strong winds, make long casts, and you get an excellent hook. This is especially true when fishing for pike perch or pike.

Blank and handle material

Lightness is important for twitching, so the only material option from which spinning rods in this segment are made is carbon.
where you will buy a spinning rod for twitching - ask for models specifically for this type of fishing. You will see that they are made of carbon fiber (carbon fiber). An angler with a spinning rod constantly comes into contact with the butt - the handle. It can be made of rubber, leather, cork, and be one-handed, one-and-a-half or two-handed.

We recommend cork handles for spinning rods. Your hands don’t freeze on them in cold weather and don’t slip. The criterion here is maximum ease and convenience. To reduce the weight and price of the butt, it is often covered with cork only at the point of contact with the hand.

The coil holder is located on the butt; it must securely fix it and be made of the appropriate material. The spinning reel holders are usually located at the bottom. For inertial ones, it is on top, and a trigger is added to the design - a special trigger that prevents the reel from spinning.

HEARTY RISE ZORRO-Z ZS-562LST

Rods of this series appeared in the Hearty Rise assortment relatively recently - at the end of 2009, and anglers could get acquainted with them at the spring exhibition “Hunting and Fishing in Rus'”, held at the All-Russian Exhibition Center. The series includes four rods of the light and ultra-light class, designed for catching small and medium-sized fish: perch, chub, trout, etc. Two rods in the series (marked LST) – with a glued monolithic graphite tip. Their main purpose is fishing with micro jigs, micro spinners and small wobblers. The other two models (marked ML) have a hollow tip. They are more suitable for larger baits. Model 562LST was chosen for testing - the shortest in the series, with a monolithic tip. The nominal length of the rod is 5 feet and 6 inches (on the Aquatoria website the length is indicated as 160 cm, although the calculator gives 168 cm). The actual length turned out to be slightly longer - 169 cm.

The actual weight of the rod is also slightly higher than stated - 90 g instead of 80. The length of the rod when disassembled is 88 cm, which will be an additional advantage during transportation - the spinning rod fits into almost any case or even a large bag. The material from which the rod is made is not specified, only information is given that it is high-modulus carbon fiber and that the blank is made using the unique V-net technology developed by Hearty Rise. Put-over knee connection. The nominal test of the rod is 1.5–5.0 grams, but it also casts lighter lures tolerably. The upper limit of the test is indicated quite accurately. In fact, it is 5–6 grams; with large weights the rod begins to “fail”. The line test is quite high for an ultralight spinning rod - 3-6 pounds. This suggests that a spinning rod is unlikely to be suitable for the most delicate fishing, but with fishing lines with a breaking load of 4–6 pounds it will work as it should. In any case, a rod with four-pound braid was tested, and no problems arose. The blank is quite powerful for a spinning rod of this test and this length. Its diameter at the handle is 8 mm, at the tulip 1.1 mm. This gives it additional rigidity and power.

The rod is equipped with 7 single-support Pacific Bay guides and a tulip from the same company.

The handle is spaced apart, combined, made of black synthetic material and cork rubber. I don’t know whether this handle arrangement has any advantages over purely synthetic or cork ones, but it looks very stylish and unusual. The length of the handle is 32 cm, its back part is quite long - 9 cm, it fits well in the hand. The diameter of the handle varies from 24 to 28.5 mm. The reel seat is screw-type with a nut that screws in from the bottom. The action of the rod is fast both dynamically and statically. At the same time, the spinning rod is well balanced: with the reel installed, the balance point is 3.5 cm in front of its foot. The distance from the reel foot to the butt is 22.5 cm. Since this rod was the shortest among those included in the review, it was easiest to perform various retrieving options with jerks of different strengths and in different planes. At the same time, I can’t say that the casting range suffered greatly, which is often not needed when fishing with ultralight, since the object of the hunt often stays in the coastal strip. And on small bodies of water with overgrown banks, the large length of the rod will be a hindrance both when moving and during fishing. The rigidity and power of the rod allow both delicate fishing with smooth jerks and high-speed active twitching, designed for active fish. The rod also works well with other ultralight lures - small cranks, micro-oscillators, spinners, etc. Overall, Hearty Rise turned out to be a very interesting rod with an unusual design, which I think will appeal to fans of ultra-light spinning rods.

Spinning reel for twitching

The reel is selected correctly.
There are two types of reels for spinning rods:

inertialess;
inertial multiplier;

Inertia-free ones are the easiest to use. With their help you can cast the lightest baits.

Inertia-free reels for twitching differ from inertial reels mainly in that the line flies off the spool under the weight of the wobbler being cast, and not from the rapidly spinning drum, which received an impulse only at the very beginning of casting.

At the same time, the spinning rod usually comes with one or two protective spools and a balsa wood insert. The main advantage is that when throwing them you do not need to slow down with your hand. When fishing with light baits, the spool must be filled almost to the very brim.

Of the inertial ones, it is advisable to use only baitcasting reels for twitching , starting from the middle class, since it is difficult to cast light wobblers with a fishing rod with such a reel normally. Their advantage is their long service life. But this advantage is negated by the unreasonably high price.

Okuma Helios Gold, weight 190 g

Most anglers choose a spinning reel , with which twitching becomes truly comfortable. Reels of this type from, Viva, Okuma, Tica are popularly recognized.

The size, as we have already said, should be small, and the weight should be comparable to the weight of the fishing rod (spool size 1000-1500). If you put a reel on a spinning rod and grab the handle near the reel, the spinning rod should not tip in any direction, but should balance and be practically balanced. This way you will relieve your hands from overexertion.

The best twitching spinning rods

The best twitching spinning rods cannot be considered to be any specific form or model range. The fact is that each angler prefers his own brands and parameters, depending on his experience and fishing technique (soft twitching, hard twitching, and so on).

Amateur fishermen are recommended to buy universal models, with a load test from ten to thirty grams. Specialists of a narrow profile (fishing for catfish, taimen) prefer hard forms with a weight test of fifty to one hundred grams.

fishing line

You can give a minnow wobbler good play with non-stretchable braided line.
With it you can perform both light fixed twitches and wide jerks. For this, multi-fiber braids are used. The requirements for their quality are determined by the peculiarities of the sagging of the scaffold after each jerk. From this point of view, Power Pro, Fireline or Power Pro Hi-Vis Yellow fishing lines are good. It is best to use brightly colored cords labeled Fluo. This will provide additional visual control over the wiring and bite.

But there are a number of cases when it makes sense to use monofilament for twitching. For example, when fishing for passive perch or pike. These predators see the braid very well and are afraid of it. For such twitching, fluorocarbon fishing lines are best suited, which are completely invisible in the water. In addition, they stretch much less than other fishing lines.

Rating of the best spinning rods for twitching

Black Hole Bassmania S-662M
If you rank popular spinning rods tested by experts in ascending order of price, you will get something like the following picture.

Favorite Absolute is an economical option.
GAD Gancho.
Black Hole Bassmania S-662M, Zemex Bass Addiction - almost identical, the best spinning rods for twitching today, worthy of their price and people who are truly passionate about this fishing technique.

The listed fishing rods can easily be considered the best in their price categories. Higher-priced spinning rods are for gourmets who have the means to fulfill their needs.

St.Croix Legend Elite LES70MF2 (top)

You can also list several brands that are well suited for catching selected species of fish with certain baits.

Norstream Kando KDS-662L - good for catching chub, ide, pike on small rivers.
St.Croix Legend Elite LES70MF2 with an ergonomic handle and fast action - designed for fishing with wobblers, spinners, spinners, and jig baits.
The Restaffine Monster Edition 83H is a universal rod, equally suitable for twitching and jigging.