# Optimal Rod Set Up for casting gotchas long distances from a pier



## NC12-MP3.5

In the market for a new rod. I'd like a medheavy to heavy action rod I can get some serious distance with casting gotchas from the pier. (for that school of bait just out of range) It'll be a spinning setup. Was curious as to the effect of guide placement and size as it relates to casting distance. I've been toying with the idea of building my own rod but wanted to seek out some opinions beforehand (for instance, in case there were any reasonably priced alternative retail rods available under $200 fit for my purposes.) I've been fishing the piers for spanish and blues since I was tall enough to climb up and reach over the railing, but have yet to acquire the secrets behind the optimal distance casting pier rod setup for jigging/"plugging".... Any and all suggestions are GREATLY appreciated as I've found myself coming across more tournament casting info on distance casting than applied fishing techniques. Thanks again 

Ike


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## plotalot

If you want serious fishing distance throwing Gotchas, you've got to drop the desire for a MH to H action rod. I like 7 foot light action graphite rod with a fast tip rated to throw up to 5/8 - 3/4 ounce, that overloads the rod according to the specs. Guide selection is everything,so the custom route can add significant distance if done right. I say done right, which means build a rod around a reel. Too many folk think a custom rod is one that they picked out the color scheme.


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## dudeondacouch

First off, what are you throwing with now? The last thing you want to hear is a recommendation for what you already have in your hands.


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## plotalot

dudeondacouch said:


> First off, what are you throwing with now? The last thing you want to hear is a recommendation for what you already have in your hands.


On the contrary, if he already has the reccomended gear, then he can isolate his lack of distance woes to his technique and not his gear.


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## dudeondacouch

Exactly. That's the last thing I'd want to hear. lol


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## NC12-MP3.5

That's what I figured.... I've watched some of the older hands get an additional 10 to 15 yds out further than me. Not so much concerned with my technique (though a very valuable point as I have seen considerable gains ever since I did some research a few years back) as I am typically the second/third furthest cast out of 20 guys on the end of a pier. The guys who usually get past me appear to have a 8"+ rod with MH action. The thing that concerns me about a lighter action rod is control of the fish. Especially when your trying to keep a 20"+ spanish/baby king from shooting the pier and wrapping around a piling. So, maybe I need a medium action blank with proper guides and placement. Any advice on this? As far as guide sizes and placement? Ive heard there are some great blanks out there that run half the price of some of the brand heavy ones that perform just as well if not better? Have any suggestions? I'll be using a okuma av 55a until I can invest more into a reel. Thanks for the help guys! Oh, and right now I use a couple different rods, 6-7' med action w/spinning reels.... (of course when the fish are there it really doesn't matter, but when somethings churning up bait in an isolated area and I fall just 10-15 yds short, this is where I need the distance)


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## plotalot

Dude there isn't a 25" Spaniard out there that will shoot a pier on me with 8# test line and a light action rod caught way too many of them and never had one come close to doing so. Kings are tougher to keep from under the pier, but anything under say a 15# king is in serious trouble if it gets on my line.


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## dudeondacouch

I'm not a planker, but for throwing metal/lures, I don't bother picking up anything besides a 1/2-3oz rated 8' rod. Longer than that and the law of diminishing returns kicks in. (for me at least.)


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## wdbrand

I hope you find the perfect rod for jerkin and hope you post back up when you do. I been huntin fer it for 30 years or so, from FL. to MD. and ain't found it. There always seems to be a fineline between distance and function. Whatcha gonna do when you get the span to the pier after the 100 yard cast? How you gonna get him up? Nobody is gonna want to drop a net in a good span run to haul up your 23"er, iffen you manage to keep him outta the wood. Whatever you settle on, jest cut the butt down to 6" so you can jig it without breaking your wrist or your jaw. Now this ain't countin the 2/4 lb. blues. I don't chunk fer them and when they show in force, I take a break since I never kept one anywho. Be listenin for your choice and results. There's always 3/4 folks that will smoke you on distance, but iffen the run is a goodin, you gynna get crossed by somebody that can't cast from ch!t anyway, so figger that into the mix.


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## wdbrand

dude, I hear you. But my go to rig is an old, old one. 6' Berk Lightning ML wid the 6" butt. Pinnacle DNF 40, 6/20 PP. I get outchunked all the time tho, due to the short length. But I can winchem up. I don't thunks most folks fish deep enough for them.


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## Cannonball

In all the hours I've spent catching Blue's on piers, the distance you can get from the pier never seemed to make any difference...if the Blue's were there. Normally I find that at least 70% of the Gotcha crew were tossing it out underhanded, and maybe getting 15yds out of the toss. 
The blue's would slam all jigs, near, far, and everything in between.

I can see getting more distance maybe to cover more water, but if the fish are there, I wouldn't think distance would be an issue at all.


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## wdbrand

Cannonball, you are correct. I've seen a few times that an extra 15/20 yards would have reached a school of spans, but not normally. As far as worrying about distance on blues , I don't care. Never cotched a blue offen a pier that was worth a 4 buck jerk jigger. And you are right, iffen the school comes thru, you'll catch them. Took a light action 8' pole out one morning with 2/10 PP spooled on to see if I could smoke the crowd. Jest happened the feeshes wanted to run under the pier that morning. A cane pole woulda cotchdem. I've seen far more fish caught 25 yards out than 50 yards out.


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## AtlantaKing

Back when I fished the FL panhandle piers, I used a med-light 8'6" rod built on a St. Croix steelhead blank, regular Fuji guides and a 2500-sized spinning reel with 8lb mono. I could throw a 5/8oz Got-Cha pretty darn far. But, yeah, like the other posters said, I don't think I've ever had a big spanish give me much trouble with the 8lb mono, and it was cheap and easy to use!


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## Carolina Rebel

I've tried a lot of rods for this application. I've found that by using a reel that looks goofy-small on your plugging rod, you can get a surprising distance gain. Setup I'm sticking with for now is a Daiwa Tournament Whisker SS 700 on a 7' MH Berkley Bionix rod. The MH is misleading, it's more M action with a moderate tip. Reel is loaded with 10lb braid and it will chunk a Got-Cha out of sight with a tailwind, leaving little enough line on the reel that I worry about what will happen if a big spanish or little king gets a hold of it. 
FWIW, I've probably gotten more distance out of longer rods, but I'm after a compromise in light weight and castability, this works out pretty well.


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## Hudak

That 7' Berkley Bionix used to be my absolute favorite plugging rod. A year or so ago, I found them on clearance for 15 bucks a pop, while they were still being sold for 65.00 a piece at another well known store.  

Be careful of what you ask for. Building a rod with distance strictly in mind will launch a plug a mile, but it may be a pain to use plugging all day. If you are just plugging here and there for bait while kingfishing, it wouldn't make much of a difference. If you are going to be leaning on the rail all day, working the plug fast for spanish, you may want to find a happy medium. Your wrist/arm will thank you.


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## mmanolis2001

AtlantaKing said:


> Back when I fished the FL panhandle piers, I used a med-light 8'6" rod built on a St. Croix steelhead blank, regular Fuji guides and a 2500-sized spinning reel with 8lb mono. I could throw a 5/8oz Got-Cha pretty darn far. But, yeah, like the other posters said, I don't think I've ever had a big spanish give me much trouble with the 8lb mono, and it was cheap and easy to use!


^

This is a good choice. I have a 8 1/2 ft rainshadow Hotshot salmon blank that is perfect for slinging gotchas and metals. Match it with a good small spinning reel and 15lb braid. Its a lite outfit and you can jerk gotchas all day.


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## Carolina Rebel

One thing I forgot to mention regarding the power of the rod, the longer the rod, the lower the actual power will be in spite of the rating. A 7' MH rod, for example, is about as powerful as a 6'M action rod. An 8.5' L rod would be along the lines of a 6'6" UL rod, and this might be a hassle to deal with even with little fish. If I was building a rod for this from the ground up, I'd probably go 7'6" to 8' M or MH.


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## Tacpayne

Carolina Rebel said:


> One thing I forgot to mention regarding the power of the rod, the longer the rod, the lower the actual power will be in spite of the rating. A 7' MH rod, for example, is about as powerful as a 6'M action rod. An 8.5' L rod would be along the lines of a 6'6" UL rod, and this might be a hassle to deal with even with little fish. If I was building a rod for this from the ground up, I'd probably go 7'6" to 8' M or MH.


I dont agree with this at all. The problem with the way rods are rated is they are subjective to the company making them. When buying blanks you should look at the power rating as in 2,3,4,5 etc...If you stick within one manufactorer the ratings will be faily consistant across the board. Now also factor in the action of the blank and although they are rated the same power they will feel completely different. IF you take a slow action 2 power and compare it to a 2 power fast action it is worlds apart in the way they feel. Honestly down in teh southern part of NC 2 power 6'-6'6" rods are what most people prefer for plugging. You can optomize the casting performance and feel of the blank with guide layouts, and that is what you are wanting to accomplish by custom building a rod


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## Carolina Rebel

I respectfully disagree with you, based on my experiences. A 7' medium power fast action rod won't fish/feel the same as a 6' or even a 6'6" medium power fast action rod, even if they're all of the same make/model. I will say I got in a hurry and laid out my percieved theory backwards--what I meant to say was, a 6' light power fast action rod, for example, will have less backbone than a 7' light power fast action rod. You'd have to step down to a 7' UL model to get that same flimsiness. Given this, an 8' L action rod would be an interesting proposition for the pier if you felt you needed just a little more distance.


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## Tacpayne

Carolina Rebel said:


> I respectfully disagree with you, based on my experiences. A 7' medium power fast action rod won't fish/feel the same as a 6' or even a 6'6" medium power fast action rod, even if they're all of the same make/model. I will say I got in a hurry and laid out my percieved theory backwards--what I meant to say was, a 6' light power fast action rod, for example, will have less backbone than a 7' light power fast action rod. You'd have to step down to a 7' UL model to get that same flimsiness. Given this, an 8' L action rod would be an interesting proposition for the pier if you felt you needed just a little more distance.


I understand what you are saying, but what is a Medium power rod? is it a 2,3,4,5 power? This is really what I meant from my first post. Judging a rods power by the word medium or lite is a diservice to the comsumer IMHO. for example I use XST802.75 blank for shakey head fishing but I use a 822.5 for drop shotting in bass fishing. the first 2 numbers are the length of the blank in inches and teh last numbers are the power rating one being a2.75 the other a 2.5 and I can feel the power difference in teh 2 off of just a .25 difference in the ratings.Now if the manu used terms like medium or medium lite or lite, where would a .25 difference rate in there? Do you see what I am saying? This part is speculation but I think it hold some credit. IF you take a 6' 2 power rod and compare it to a 7' 2 power rod it should feel completely different based on where the fulcrum of your "lever" of a fishing rod is in relation to the total length, hope that comes accross right


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## NC12-MP3.5

Thanks for all the input guys. Looks like ill be taking my own fishing preferences on blank length/action/power into consideration when picking a blank, you all gave me some great ideas. The only question I have now is what someone mentioned earlier about guide placement. What setup promotes distance? I'm having a rod built for me but I am ordering the materials. Any recommendations on guide type, size, and spacing?


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## ReelKingin

My I ask what reel you use & line> As in company & LB test....Casting a plug, has many different avenues...You get on a pier thats known for pluggers IE: Johhny Mercers, and you have your nice custom built rod, & then little billy from don the street that throws every day and can make a gotcha dance the lumbada...And he is using a 20$ walmart out the door special..Thern you gotta stop and ask yourself, WTF...Rod has alot to do with, for I have several...But in my eyes, aslong as you have a decent rod the reel & line is the key


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## AbuMike

How about an MB844 for Gotcha tossing?? I have one of these that I'm gonna try this season.


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## Captain Les

H and H Rods has a 7'6" HX4 Mag Medium. If you spool up w/ 10# braid it will launch a jigger a mile. They also have a limited lifetime warranty


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## wdbrand

Reelkingin, an ugly stick in ML/M, 6' tO 6-1/2' is fine. A decent reel with a good drag so you can crank it down and get them in is necessary. Nothin worse than a guy who likes to play a fish and lets them run all over hell. 75 yards of PP 6/20 is all the capacity reel you need


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## Newsjeff

I like a 7' x-fast action rod that's rated up to 1oz-1.5oz for Got-chas off the planks.

The problem going with a light-tackle rod is the pin riggers. When you don't pull that blue in quickly enough ... or hook something with some arse ... they tend to get all bent out of shape.

The guys that I see getting the best distance with a Got-cha are the ones throwing conventional reels. Usually a smaller Abu like a 5500. The problem is learning how to jerk jig with a conventional. If you can learn to do this, especially in the dark before the sun comes up, yer good. Lots of guys keep the spool tension locked down so they don't blow up when the plug hits the water. But too much tension on your knob and you'll lose yer advantage. (Wait a minute, I think a girl from Wanchese told me that once.)

Anyway, this year I moved up from a rod that topped out at 1oz. I'm going to try out this Shimano TMSX70MH and see how it goes. I decided to move up to a slightly heavier rod to see if I can piss off fewer pin riggers. 

Then again, I'm throwing a Stradic with 10lb braid.


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## VBpierkingmac

biggest thing ive seen to help my distance throwin a plug is line. I used to use like 10 -12 # mono then it was 30# braid and now im using like 14# braid and the thinner diameter line has helped a lot and keep your spool full of line.


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## HStew

*optimal rod set up for casting gotchas long distance*

although blues and smacks can and will hit any time of day, morning and evening seem to be the most productive. If I feel like going all day I use a Daiwa model sfc602mfs,6',lure 1/8-3/4,line6-14:reel-Shakespeare (light black) 8lb/145. Back up - 2 shakespeare 7'M 6-12lb one with Shake Agility 8/145 yd. the other with abu cardinal 104 10lb/210yd. These 3 are inexpensive cast well,are smooth, fight well and land fish!!!


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## kingman23

I just bought one of thse wright and mcgill blair wiggens rods for plugging and I LOVE IT! Its 7'9" which might be a little long for some people and the back grip is a little long but i havent had any issues with it. They are relatively cheap ($99) and they arent too stiff either. They make a 7 footer as well but i cant say how that rod is.


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## chris storrs

8' tica...1/2-2 ounce

never seen a gotcha go past mine, and the rod was probably 60$....turn around and bottom fish with it..2 ounce metal off the beach...flounder..anything...its a gotcha plug, aint gotta overthink it

not a rod youll jig with all day tho, but i get my bait and relax when my buckets full


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