While fishing rods were once essential for catching food, today nets tend to be used instead, with fishing rods being used more often as a hobby or for sports fishing. Although the specifics are different depending on the kind of fish that is being fished for, the general idea is to put some kind of bait on the end of the line, throw it into the water, and then use a wheel to pull the line up again once a fish has been hooked. More sophisticated lines can float in the water for hours on end, waiting for a fish to come by, without having to be thrown down and pulled up again.
A fishing rod has more parts than you would expect, including the rod itself (the ‘stick’ part), a grip (where you hold it), a line, guides (to hold the line in position), a wheel (to pull the line back in), and finally a hook (to hook the fish). When you add the bait to this, you can either use live bait (for example, worms), or artificial bait, which is designed to resemble a small fish that the other fish will want to eat.
Having a good quality rod is important, as poor quality ones may snap (either on the rod or the line) if they are used to catch a large or particularly aggressive fish. The best modern rods have been tested over and over again to find the precise configuration that will best catch the fish – although skill still plays a part, it is not too difficult to master modern fishing. Eager to make the sport more challenging, many fishers have turned to fly fishing or ultra-thin rods to make competitions a little more difficult.
Modern fishing rods incorporate modern features that were not possible in the past. Unlike the primitive cane pole, fishing rods today are available in a wide variety of strengths and sizes. These modern poles allow the angler to select the proper pole for their type of fishing. Selection of the proper rod will enhance the angler's fishing enjoyment.
Like the classic cane pole, the modern fishing rod is thick at the handle (bottom) and is tapered and thinner at the tip. This very basic design allows handling stability and flexible movement of the entire length of the shaft.
Types of Fishing Rods
A typical fishing pole measures between 5 and 7 feet and vary in both strength and flexibility. The length has a lot to do with withstanding force exerted by the fish to the pole and determines for the most part the performance of the fishing rod. Fishing rods are typically either made from fiberglass or graphite. They generally either have cork or PVC handles. They range in price from under $20 to several hundred dollars.
Spinning Poles
Spinning rods are widely used in North America for fresh water game fish such as smallmouth bass, trout, northern pike, and walleye. They come in a variety of weights and range from 5 to 8 feet. Since spinning reels hang below the rod, the guides hang below the rod. Longer, stronger spinning rods often times have an elongated handle so that two hands can be used while casting. These heavy weight varieties have the strength to handle large fresh water game fish such as musky. They also have the strength to handle steelhead or salmon.
Spin Casting Rods
Spin casting rods are designed for spin casting reels, which are mounted above the handle. Spin casting rods have smaller guides than spinning rods based upon the way that line comes off the spin casting reel when casting. These rods typically have a forefinger trigger grip built into their handle. Spin casting rods can also be used with bait casting reels.
Ultra-light Poles
Ultra-light and Micro-light fishing rods are used for smaller fish species such as crappie, trout, bass, bluegill, and other panfish. Their ultra light weight increases the excitement and fun of catching panfish. These rods are typically shorter than normal weight rods, with 4 to 5.5 feet common. Spinning and spin casting style rods are both available in ultra-light weights. In addition, fly rods in #0 - #3 weights are considered ultra light. These ultra light weight rods allow the angler to use lighter weight line and smaller lures.
Summary
Although this is a very brief overview of the various types of poles, I hope it was helpful to those just getting started in the sport. Ultimately the decision of the rod will be dependent upon the angler's preference in reels. I personally use spinning reels. It's hard to say why, but it probably boils down to the fishing that I did as a kid.
Both John Gibb & Joe Jester are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
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