Jig Rod/Reel for Lakers

[jhawkes2]

Howdy....

I was wondering if you folks could give me some suggestions?  I'm trying to decide what I need for a jigging lake trout rod this winter.  I have been looking around on-line and at some local shops and it seems as though I'm going around in circles... I want to get a dependable rod and reel combo for fishing this year, but have had trouble deciding.   

I'll be targeting fish from 2 -15 (which aren't all that common mostly in the 5lb size class) in depths ranging from 20 - 80 + feet.. many of the jigs that I'll be using are from 3/8 to 3/4 oz...I was wondering:

What type of reel I should get?
 - Is baitcasting good, if so what kind?  Should I go with spin casting? Brand suggestions? Websites to visit?

What type of rod?  Medium action, medium/heavy or heavy?  I don't know if I should go with fiberglass or graphite?  Brand Suggestions? Websites to visit?

Any help would be appreciated...

Thanks.

Jim

[BottomDweller]

about the most readily available rod that i've found that fills the bill is a Genz Sticks black 34' med-heavy rod (model #GGZ----).  it has a trigger grip on the bottom to keep it tight and straight up and down in your hands for the big fish hits; while possessing enough backbone to haul in those 20 and 30+ lbers, it is sensitive enough to feel the slight bites and have fun on the small guys too.
      the best reel you can put on it to prepare for the laker-lunkers is definitely a baitcaster line-leveling reel made by shimano or okuma in size 20 (ask your dealer, he'll know how to order that size), and put 12-18 lb fluorocarbon line (my current favorite is P-Line) on it -- fluorocarbon has almost no stretch even at extremely deep levels of water to help with the all-important hookset.
    good luck

[jhawkes2]

Thanks, BD

[jhawkes2]

Still having a bit of trouble finding a good bait casting reel to put on a jig pole.... and Maine doesn't exactly have a plethora of sporting good shops... would any of you have a web site that you can point me to that might be of use in finding a reel?

Many thanks.

Jim

[BottomDweller]

http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/index/index-display.jsp?id=cat20331&navAction=jump&navCount=1&parentId=cat20166&parentType=category&cmCat=null

there are low-budget to high-buget, low-quality to high-quality reels here.  you should probably spend about $75 at the least --  remember the line-level, and the smaller "20" size: any bigger and you've got a trolling reel on a little 34" rod that messes up the balance.  and then think of how you are most comfortable casting and retrieving other baits, and fish also, and buy a reel with the crank on the corresponding side.  my first choice is always shimano, but to save money and still get a quality reel, go okuma.

[AirManCam]

I never understood while people fished with such heavy action rods. I use a 24" UL St. Croix, and I guarantee that rod will help make anyone a better fisherman.

[Jim111]

I use about a 24 inch jigging rod with spinning reel and no more than 6 pound mono for lakers and have no problems at all with fish up to about 12-15 pounds. You'll have a lot better "feel" for the jig, the lighter you go. I do use a 14-pound mono shock leader of about two feet in length however. Here's a photo from a year or two ago to illustrate.  -Jim

[Grizzly1]

Nice laker Jim! 

What action do you prefer for your laker rods?

[brown-time]

about the most readily available rod that i've found that fills the bill is a Genz Sticks black 34' med-heavy rod (model #GGZ----).  it has a trigger grip on the bottom to keep it tight and straight up and down in your hands for the big fish hits; while possessing enough backbone to haul in those 20 and 30+ lbers, it is sensitive enough to feel the slight bites and have fun on the small guys too.
      the best reel you can put on it to prepare for the laker-lunkers is definitely a baitcaster line-leveling reel made by shimano or okuma in size 20 (ask your dealer, he'll know how to order that size), and put 12-18 lb fluorocarbon line (my current favorite is P-Line) on it -- fluorocarbon has almost no stretch even at extremely deep levels of water to help with the all-important hookset.
    good luck

Couldn't have made a better choice, IMO.  Great Rod choice, I like the MH 32" Frabill Ultra with the Daiwa LCA17 Walleye reel, the line counter's nice when suspending baits and the Marcum is in the trout holes.  P-line's a great choice, I use it extensively now.  Sensitive for jigging but powerful for hooksetting.  My first trip on fast lake trout fishing (5 years ago) a few guys were getting constant bites but couldn't set the hooks with their UL panfish rods.  We caught em' to 20# one after the other with MH rods and Vanish Fluorocarbon, now P-lines' even better!