23, 27, or 30" for an ultralight panfish rod? Looking to upgrade this season.
I don't have a flip over, so that tight space isn't a concern. I generally like shorter rods (sitting closer to the hole) but curious of any benefits of the longer rods.
If you want a project, 34" sportsman's direct extreme taper glass rod....hands down my favorite panfish rod....but you need to build them yourself. They're cheap, tho - $6 for the blank (which is a steal!). Can cut them down to any length, but I like them as is best. Simple cork handle, simple fly guides, glue on tip-top, epoxy 3x, and you're ready to fish. Nice thing about building an ice rod is that they're fairly simple to do & you can build exactly what you want.
Lots of benefits of a longer rod...esp. glass....can set the hook better (longer swing arc), keeps fish pinned better, fish have a harder time throwing hooks, protects light leader line better, etc, etc. Can shove the rod down the hole if fish take off running or drag freezes up. That longer rod allows better transition zones for rod taper....so very thin tip on the 34"....but still plenty of backbone. I think they're more comfortable fishing outside, too - but that's personal preference. I've also used that rod to catch 4+ lb LM, lakers, + 1 cusk, so it can handle bigger fish that you run into while panfishing.
2nd choice would be some kind of shorter noodle rod w/ 2 lb mono for finicky fish. I built my own for that, too - but noodle rods are a pain to build & I wouldn't recommend that. You can buy your own at DH Customs or other custom ice rod builders (not cheap! but if you go that route, get the REC Recoil guides for fishing outside). Honestly, for noodle rods, I don't think you need a custom rod...but you do need larger guides for fishing a noodle outside...the really bad ones have tiny guides which constantly ice up & will drive you nuts!
If you wanted a good super inexpensive production noodle rod, I've seen alot of fish caught on the old HT Blue "Super Flex" ice rods (which are really noodle rods)....remove the rings on the handle....tape a good UL reel on it, light line & you're good to go.
For bigger lures, I mostly find myself fishing St. Croix sticks (graphite, fast action) - that's mostly to work the lures properly, tho. Not b/c I think they fish better.
Good luck!
