Glass or Carbon

[TickleStick]

What do you prefer for panfish and why.

All my ice rods are Glass, so I'm really curious about graphite and feeling the fish bite...


What's the most sensitive UL graphite ice rod available?

[slipperybob]

Most of mine are graphite/carbon rods.

My preference is being able to set the hook and playing the fish efficiently.  I'm used to using graphite/carbon rods.  As for sensitivity, I'm used to seeing and feeling the rods I use.  For example, St. Croix UL Premiere/Mojo in a 24" vs 28" can be very different.  Just that 4" difference is a difference in term of feeling the lure jigging and the vibration.  This is where my preference is also in using a L powered over that of UL power.  I only reserve UL for light biting fish.  Being that way, I can then use a longer rod and obtain the sensitivity in feel and have the rod forgiveness to play fish with the length.  That's where the Thorne Bros Panfish Sweetheart in 32" has fulfilled what I need.

When I use an UL carbon rod St. Croix Premiere/Mojo, I cannot nearly tell the difference between 8-9" crappie vs 10" crappie, they feel the same.  Whereas on my Thorne Bros Panfish Sweetheart, I can most assuredly tell the difference.

I don't own a Thorne Bros Quiverstick, which should be the equivalent of an UL, so I cannot make that comparison. 

On the flip side in Glass type of rods.  I have a Shakespeare UL Cajun and L Fuel rods.  While the UL is visually more flexible, in terms of load on fish, they both feel very similar.  The UL is too supple for jigging.  The L powered can do it.  At current, mine are custom doctored with real seat handles and it gives it a edge to a backbone support over that of the retail shelf rod.  While I will say that owning a Beaver Dam Custom Glass Noodle rod does this function for me too.  It's still very hard for me to tell if I actually have a fish of decent size as they all feel like big fish to me on that rod.

Panfish for crappie vs bluegills are different.  Bluegills tend to be more shallow, I don't normally catch them beyond 25' depth.  So Glass type rods works well for them.  Crappies can be selective for deep water schools that are beyond the 30' depth.  I need to be able to transition quickly for mid-water column fish in the 15-20' zone and change up to the beyond 30' depth in most scenarios.  I rarely chase crappies in the weeds in depths between 5-10' deep, so my preference is Carbon type rods.

When I used to bait my jigs with live bait, Glass rod was more successful with hook ups.  Since I've transition to mostly plastics, Carbon type rods are more efficient for jigging motion.  Just the same as lifting a lure to trigger the bite, the same can be said for lowering the lure to trigger the bite.  Some fish bite with their nose up, others bite with their nose down.

[missoulafish]

You can feel everything bite with a good custom glass rod:)

[fishingeek]

Glass. More so for not feeling the bite but seeing the bite. Glass rod tips are very soft enough to see the bite without using a spring bobber. Perfect application for those light biting crappie.

[hnd]

carbon for feeling fish, glass for seeing. 

I prefer glass for all my panfishing but as it gets dark, the carbon comes out so i can feel it.   a good noodle rod will give you just enough backbone that you can tell what you are working with fish wise and sometimes even allow you to feel a bite but a good carbon blank is basically like a hook set buzzer going off when they inhale it. 

[TickleStick]

I don't own a Thorne Bros Quiverstick, which should be the equivalent of an UL, so I cannot make that comparison. 

/quote]

That's one of the rods I been looking at, that and the TUCR QT

[TickleStick]

Has anyone used any of the NFC ice fishing rod blanks?

[Tuma]

Has anyone used any of the NFC ice fishing rod blanks?

They look interesting.  But I have a hard time trusting hollow tube blanks for hard water rods.
https://northforkcomposites.com/product-category/delta/ice/

[Tuma]

Well now that I found this https://www.facebook.com/NorthForkComposites/videos/10155985812904568/
I want to get my hands on one.

[SLAYERFISH]

Graphite w/ braided line. Tough to feel that finicky perch bite AND still have time to set the hook at 40-60 feet.

[TickleStick]

Well now that I found this https://www.facebook.com/NorthForkComposites/videos/10155985812904568/
I want to get my hands on one.

Yup, that's what got me...

[TickleStick]

NFC ordered 

Gonna slap a Stradic FL 1000 on it....

[filetandrelease]

 I have some glass schooleys i built they’re , sensitive, and strong
author=missoulafish link=topic=376166.msg4061172#msg4061172 date=1580475174]
You can feel everything bite with a good custom glass rod:)
[/quote]
Yes sir , just had one built this year , life time warranty, it’s great
 I also have some carbon rods I use for perch and eyes that work just fine

[TickleStick]

I got 2 NFC rods made in UL, I would consider them more of a light then ultra light.

They are awesome rods, they will made a awesome smallmouth, walleye and trout rod.

Anyways I got two of them but only need one, if anyone is interested in one of them shoot me a PM.

[badger132]

As an engineer, the softer you are trying to make a rod, the more you want to use glass. You can make the same spring rate with graphite, but the rod would have to be thinner and therefore more fragile. A soft rod, like a "snare" rod, is better for seeing the bite, and some types of fishing, like JawJackers, dead sticks,  and tip downs.
If you want a stiff/light rod, mainly for transmitting the bite, feeling it in your fingers, graphite with it's higher modulus and lower weight has advantages.
Since we don't cast ice fishing, a lot of the advantages of graphite are lost.
We are lucky to have both options available for a reasonable cost. They are all better than the tip of a broken bamboo fly rod glued into a piece of broomstick, which is what I started with.