Ice Fish Ohio Forum
Ice Fishing => General Discussion => Topic started by: slabslayer on October 14, 2015, 05:55:35 AM
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Was reading about these in the ice guide last night. Of course I had to order some. Not just 1 like a normal person, but 4 with every interchangeable tip they make as well. I'm as bad as quackpot! ;D I've never used one these short balance rods before, but am anxious to give them a try. I've used short Jason Mitchell sight fishing rods, but these are different. Anyone ever use one of these?
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I've never used them but I bet quack pot has about 39 of them. He'll tell us if they are good. And who wouldn't order 4? 1 just doesn't make any sense
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I prefer to use palm rods over regular rods in most situations. I have a wealth of information about the American market and what is available both here and overseas. The best palm rods look nothing like ours. picture below shows an orange akara (sold by Russians in USA) and a Russian Master Rod. (not available in the USA.
Since these rods were built for downsizing I don't recommend any line over 2lb test. If you have problems finding 1lb test, I recommend Vicious ICE line or a brand overseas used for fly fishing called Stroft (a little harder to purchase..found mine on a German website and paid EUROS for it)
Indicators are weak in America compared to what they fish with overseas. If you have purchased American indicator use some sand paper to shave them down to the disered flexibility. Hoooking a jig into the hole at the end of the indicator will show you if you pairs the two up correctly (should see a 45 degree angle)
Also..don't put that sand paper away...sand out the inner reel area smoothing out rough surfaces from the molds used to make it. Also sand the tip of the rod to a point to allow easier indicator placement.
And finally store the indication upside down...literally take it off, flip it around and put it back on the rod with the end facing the reel. Most guys wrap a thin layer of electric tape around the rod about mid way down to hook their look jig into when in this position for storage...picture below.
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Ha ha funny guys, I only have one right now and I bought it from Mark's. It has a base that it says to remove but I left it on. I just liked the extra support and it doesn't interfere with the operation of the reel. I get done with snowmobiles I will have to get a couple more. I usually buy 2 or 3 rods every year. I haul junk for mad money to spend on this stuff.
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Thanks Banker, I figured since you know the international scene, you'd have some good input on these. I know they're big in the ice fishing world championships, just not caught on in America on a large scale yet. I have a short Jason Mitchell sight fishing ice rod that's one of my favorites with a fly style reel and 1 pound test. I like the short rods and light lines so I thought I'd try the palm rods this winter.
I know quackpot will be adding more! Can't wait to see his collection. An icer with as much or more gear than me. I love it!!
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So what is the advantage to these shorter rods and palm rods? I'm assuming it is more sensitive maybe?
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It's all about control. The longer the rod to more variables inbetween you and the presentation. Here is the new palm rod I was talking about...just released ironically
http://sportsmensdirect.com/shop/palm-reel-sport/ (http://sportsmensdirect.com/shop/palm-reel-sport/)
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The control I am mentioning is highlighted in the below video the palms used by my roommate at US trials are from a company called Akara..they have new palms coming out this year that address a lot of my concerns with last years models https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=-EwfBb1VMFM&feature=youtu.be
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Yeah that is pretty neat. Not sure I'll really like them but think I'm gonna get one and give it a try. Really like that strike indicator
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Mine came today. Going to take some getting used to but I'm thinking I'll really like them for bluegill and possibly crappie. It will take some experimentation to get the hang of the strike indicators. I'll post some pics soon of the rods.
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I'm shopping now for some, what kind did you get? I'm looking at some different brands.
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Lol.what a surprise :o. Quackpot is gonna buy some more ice gear
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I buy more stuff every year. I'm hauling a load of junk Saturday so it's time to spend money. Worst thing is prices are down so I don't get as much to spend.
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The palm rod from Frabill last year does not count as a palm rod in my humblest of opinions
So here is the list of available in America palms I use
Jontu rod from Finland sold on yourbobbersdown.com
Akara now has the juntu rod as well but your bobbers had em first
My Akara rods are all SK models with the stopper
Sportsmensdirect direct has a new model listed for sale that I am stoked about because honestly the US market for palms is small and we have yet to see the quality I have seen from overseas but this palm is darn close
http://sportsmensdirect.com/shop/palm-reels-rods/palm-reel-sport/ (http://sportsmensdirect.com/shop/palm-reels-rods/palm-reel-sport/)
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Yea the one that I bought is worthless. I'm really disappointed, the reel part acts loose. There is a little lever on it that holds the spool on that is easily moved. I did put a small bend on mine so it's tighter. With the spool having the wobble to it the line can get behind it. I'm still trying to make adjustments to it. Anyone that wants to see what I'm talking about I will be at most of the dock tournaments and wanting to hit the northeast tournaments again this year.
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I got 4 Jonntu rigs with 2 of each strike indicator for each rod. I'm also planning on getting a couple of the ones from sportsman's direct.
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I'm leaning towards the Ankara rods. I'm thinking different colors for different line sizes. Banker have you ever used clear sewing thread for ice line? If I remember right it ends up being 1/2 pound test. I used it many years ago then I got away from it for a while and remembered while reading this. Probably the heaviest line I will use is two pound.
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No but it sounds like fun!
I clearly use vicious 1lb for some but have to experiment with lines line Stroft and Sunlines Japanese brands not available in the US to get the half pound test on either side of 1lb
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Hey quakpot, why don't you bring some of the Columbus boys up for the tourneys?? There a great time with good panfish lakes.
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I need to learn those lakes I'm having a rough time up there. When I come up it's more of a sudden decision. Who knows what this year will have in store for me.
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I travel up that way a good bit and frequent Marks Bait and Tackle when in town may be looking to do s seminar next week Tues or Wed
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Well I just ordered four Akara SK palm rods with spring bobbers. Ordered two different colors so I can keep line sizes separate. I also ordered some artificial spikes and wax worms.
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Sweet! Let us know what you think, I might order a couple of you like them.
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I ordered a spool of 1 lb. to put on two of them. Not sure what I'm going to put on the other two. Got two different spring bobbers, that will help make the decision. Ordered $50 worth of plastics from a different company.
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I'm gonna order a palm rod or two myself. Was also looking at some shorter ice rods. All the rods I have now are like 27 or 28. The only 17 in rod I saw that I liked was the st croix legend. Anyone have any other suggestions?
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I have a short 17" Jason Mitchell sight fishing rod that I love. Very sensitive and good feel and action.
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I have some older ones that are really short that were great in small areas. Not sure how short they are, they didn't have much action unless you used spring bobbers.
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Yeah I think I may go with the st croix. I really don't like rods without reel seats. Don't know why it just bugs me. And the other st croixs I have are super sensitive. And it has a spring bobber that comes on it.
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Go with the gold st croix if you can both are fragile (Italian) but gold is more durable broke 10 rods last year ;) 3 were st croix 2 silver one gold but the gold was totally my bad
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Some good palm footage in this recap video from last year
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=3yTng0B28F0
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Are you breaking them on fish banker?
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I wish... I just travel a lot and haven't perfected my system as it's always changing ;) That and I'm tuff(spelling?) on my equipment
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Lol.ok.I wasn't about to drop 60 -90 bucks on an ice rod if you were breaking em on panfish. Do you know does st. Croix warranty their ice rods?
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I've never broken an ice rod on a fish. I've got big bass and catfish on light bluegill rods and 1 pound line no problem. I've broken many rods though, thru stupidity mostly. Closing tips in the shanty as I fold it up, having the tips sticking up in a bucket, etc. I got sick of it and bought one of the Clam double sided rod lockers last year and haven't broken a rod since. They're $100, but much cheaper in the long run than breaking 5 rods a year! Last year was the first year I didn't break one.
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Yeah i may have to get one if I'm gonna start buying pricier rods. Hey banker if they make a 17 in legend gold rod I can't find it.
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I prefer to use palm rods over regular rods in most situations. I have a wealth of information about the American market and what is available both here and overseas. The best palm rods look nothing like ours. picture below shows an orange akara (sold by Russians in USA) and a Russian Master Rod. (not available in the USA.
Since these rods were built for downsizing I don't recommend any line over 2lb test. If you have problems finding 1lb test, I recommend Vicious ICE line or a brand overseas used for fly fishing called Stroft (a little harder to purchase..found mine on a German website and paid EUROS for it)
Indicators are weak in America compared to what they fish with overseas. If you have purchased American indicator use some sand paper to shave them down to the disered flexibility. Hoooking a jig into the hole at the end of the indicator will show you if you pairs the two up correctly (should see a 45 degree angle)
Also..don't put that sand paper away...sand out the inner reel area smoothing out rough surfaces from the molds used to make it. Also sand the tip of the rod to a point to allow easier indicator placement.
And finally store the indication upside down...literally take it off, flip it around and put it back on the rod with the end facing the reel. Most guys wrap a thin layer of electric tape around the rod about mid way down to hook their look jig into when in this position for storage...picture below.
Banker
Can you please explain something to me? I just received my palm rod with indicator last Thursday and assembled it.
Does the line just come out of the top of reel, then run the line directly through the eye in indicator? I thought maybe the rod part would have an eye on it as well.
Maybe this was a kind of naïve question but until I catch some panfish on it, will it make more sense to me.
If I get a chance this week, I will go out back to my dock and catch some gills and work out the confusion.
Thanks,
IceHole
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Not a bad question. Line Goes straight from the reel to the hole in the bottom of the indicator next to the hole you put on the rod and out through the other hole at the end of the indicator I have some pictures on iceprofromohio.com to help ... Only rods made in Russia called master rods utilize the blank as a line guide and those are SUPER cool I'll bring some to the 2nd dock tourney this year...unfortunately not sold in US and I only have personal use rods
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Also couple of pointers use electrical tape wrapped around the blank as a jig holder and flip the indicator upside down when storing these bad boys
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Now that makes sense to me. Should have put on my cheater glasses to begin messing with the small details of this rod.
Thanks for the help.
IceHole
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It's important to note that some indicators come with a 3rd hole to pass line through in the middle of the indicator it can be a true hole punched out or also a tiny bead to pass line through..some of the US A guys prefer not to use this 3rd hole but I find it helpful in detecting the lightest of bites to have the line Plummed up with the indicator using that middle hole
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I'll be at Marks Bait and Tackle TONIGHT will palms in hand and will even rig some 530-7pm
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Scott, I can't make mark's tonight. Any chance of a YouTube video of rigging the palm rods? I'd love to see how you do it!
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I got comformation that mine are on way. Are you going to be showing how anywhere else? I should have them by the weekend.
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Cabelas West Chester November 14
St Paul Show Eskimo booth December 4th
St Paul Show Striker booth December 5th
Cabelas Columbus December 12
Frank's Great Outdoors Linwood, MI Dec 13
Field and Stream Easton Columbus December 19
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Crap! >:( I missed the close one. Maybe Columbus on the 12th.
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Back by popular demand I will be doing a seminar at Marks Bait And Tackle November 10 from 7 to 8 PM put it on your calendars
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Sweet! Will you be doing the palm rod rigging again?
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Sure
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Awesome! Thanks!
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Got a question. I found a tiny little 16 inch rod from gander mt. It came today but looking at it I'm not sure if a spinning reel will be the way to go with it. There are only 3 eyes on it and even the one closest to the bottom is really small. Thinking maybe a trigger spin? Or I've seen some other types of ice reels but never tried any. Any ideas?
By the way I really like the rod. It's gonna be a blast to panfish with. So little.lol
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I love tiny rods and the only rid that small I was successful in pairing with a spinning combo was with a very small spinning reel. I reccomend the tight line extreme reel on this or an old schooley reel ...sportsmensdirect just released a new and improved side winder type reel that works extremely well with this style of rod ....actually I've seen that combo more times than not on the NAIFC trail contenders favorite list https://sportsmensdirect.com/shop/search/search_key:Side%20Winder%20Reel
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I give a surprise favorite inline reel of mine as option 3 then let others chime in http://sportsmensdirect.com/shop/icefishingreels/no-8-tackle-code-blue-inline-ice-reel/ (http://sportsmensdirect.com/shop/icefishingreels/no-8-tackle-code-blue-inline-ice-reel/)
For some reason this reel ended up being my favorite of this style and would be alright for a 16 but not as optimal as options 1 and 2 below
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This video is a result of this forum thread and more particularly the comment asking for a video showing how to rig a palm rod. Sure there are others online to source done by close friends of mine...but theirs didn't come with the Banker twist...techno! :)
https://youtu.be/XhIpbhiKsts (https://youtu.be/XhIpbhiKsts)
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I use inline reels on my panfish rods. I have some that are close to the rod and some with the longer bases. I don't seem to get a lot of line twist with them.
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In line reels are all I use now on my pan fish rods. Got hooked the end of the winter of 2013-2014. I love them! No more spinning jigs because of line twist. They are also more comfortable to fish with for me. I like the longer base because I can palm the spool then and have better lure control.
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as sensitive as these are, I assume they work best for in shanty use since outside with our 40 mph winds ( the norm here in the Midwest) would be hard to detect a strike. also if your sitting right on top of the hole do you have any probs seeing your graph or do you just have to tilt the screen a lot so you can see it at the same angle through your rod like we do with a normal rod, does that make sense? also I can see this affecting my back for long periods of time scrunched right over the hole, just a thought, Ive never tried one but might get one as a novelty to playwith.
Thanks, see you guys tomorrow at the docks..
Salmonid
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Banker knows more than me, but until I actually get outside with them it's hard to say. But after putting line on them and seeing how they are set up, I'd think in shanty use unless it's calm. As for the hole situation, I was just going to slide my shanty forward so I can sit on my padded seat and not kneel or squat or hunch over. My Vex FLX-28 has a 6' cord so I can move the unit back from the hole if I'm right on top of it using my Palm rod. That's just how it is going in my mind at this point, having never used one before. But I've used the short Jason Mitchell sight fishing rods, which are similar length to a palm rod and that's what I did with them and had very good results.
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I received mine in the mail today. I can't wait to give them a try. The back already hurts so what the heck. Maybe I'll just take another pill and not know it.
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Banker is the frabill black ops palm rod any good? Just curious
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i ordered one it came broken, I ordered a second and it broke within 2 days. Then I contacted them directly and reported the issue. Needless to say I modified my second broken one to fish it just to see if it was close to the palm rod experience and it is just to bulky and clunky for my liking which is why I don't classify these as true palm rods as they don't easily fit into your palm :) Sportsmen's direct came out with a similar hybrid palm with the traditional palm reel but with a working rod w/ blanks option (custom build add on with a 4 stage epoxy) that i feel will better serve the tweener market that Frabill was trying to tap into without getting too far away from the original intent of a palm rod which is a small and controlled presentation for the lightest bite on the toughest day in North America...or every day overseas :) http://sportsmensdirect.com/shop/palm-reels-rods/palm-reel-sport/ (http://sportsmensdirect.com/shop/palm-reels-rods/palm-reel-sport/)
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Thanks for the video baker. Somehow I missed that post. Easier to know what's going on when I can see it. Planning on seeing you the 10th at marks.
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30 save your money I've permanently retired mine. With out a doubt it's the worst investment I've made for a while.
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Lol.if you're not buying 5 more they must be junk!!! No I wasn't necessarily gonna buy one. I just saw them the other day online and was curious. Thanks for the input guys
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Quack, you use them on the ice last year, or just at the docks this year? I'm curious for the input as I haven't used mine yet. What don't you like about them? I know they won't work for walleye, but thought for bluegill and crappie they might be a good option in certain situations.
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I've been trying to use them on the docks. I would probably be ok with some work. There is a nut on the reel center pin that I tightened after using it at Indian on the ice last year and have tightened it twice this year. It makes the reel seem loose a the line gets behind it. There is a locking arm that holds the spool that is so loose if you bump it wrong the spool will fall off. I put a slight bend in mine so that is fixed. I'm going to put lock tite on the nut. I haven't given up hope but a person shouldn't have to rework new items. I love everything else I have of their products.
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That would be aggravating. What about using a nut with Teflon insert? I haven't got use mine yet. Hoping to in the next week or 2 from my little Jon boat after crappie. My dad got one almost 17" yesterday while I was stuck working. Can't wait for a crappie trip, just hope I don't have to wait till thanksgiving weekend when I'm off for 4 days! ;D :o
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Not really room for a nylock, I think lock tite will work. After talking with Banker today I just got done rigging my palm rods. The wife couldn't believe that I was cutting them down even shorter. I can't wait to try them on Indian, I believe they will be perfect for that lake.
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I want to hit that lake this year. There are some massive bluegill down there. I agree that it will be a perfect lake for Palm rods. I think Nimisila will be good up this way, as will Mogadore.
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Just like last year I plan on being up for the panfish series. If either of you guys get down for a dock tournament I will be glad to show you want I'm talking about.
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Don't forget to stop by Marks Bait and Tackle tonight at 7pm
Bring one bring all to Marks Bait and Tackle 7pm -8pm
Topics discussed
How low can you go... A discussion on palm rods
Light em up...A killer technique for late crappie
Need mo structure...how to help fish come to you
I'm gassed...what electric augers bring to the table
And more...
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Planning on attending if my concrete sets up fast enough! ;D
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These rods will take some getting used to! Was playing around in the laundry sink after I finally rigged them up this afternoon, and there's going to be a little learning curve in real life. They can do some really cool things with small jigs and micro plastics, but that's all stuff I can see and make them do in the sink. It'll take a tad bit of practice thru an ice hole when you can't see your lure. I don't think I'll use them every trip, but can definitely see where they have their place on the ice.
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Coming to dick tourneys tomorrow?
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Wish I could. Explained more in the pm.
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Ok another question. Picked up a couple inline reels. Cabelas had em on clearance so figured I'd try em out. How much line do you need to put on them? I'll only be using them in shallow water . I didn't know if you need backing line like a reg fly reel or just throw some line on it and go?
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I didn't use backing. I put about 25-50 yards and that's it. I do new line each year, so more than that is a waste for me, and besides you'll never go thru more than that on the ice. I might use a little more if it's going to be used for pike or walleye, but you'd be fine for panfish with that.
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30 that is exactly the style of reels I use. One is a cabelas model I don't use backing either. They are ok for deep water also, I use mine at alum. If you get up to the docks I will be glad to show you my selection. I have the other one I was having trouble with fixed hopefully and will be giving it a try today.
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Thanks guys. Quack I appreciate it. Def planning on hitting alum tourneys soon. Gun season ends tomorrow and I'll prob take a break from hunting so hopefully in the next couple weeks I'll make it up there. Looking forward to meeting you guys in person
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Tried my black ops rod today and the thing worked great. All I've done so far is put lock tite on the nut for the main shaft.
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Cool. Glad to hear it. Still waiting to try mine out. Have indicators and jigs matched up and line on. Now just waiting for either ice, or a day off to hit the docks. This warm weather I'm still working like crazy and need Sunday to get stuff done. :-\
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Cool. Glad to hear it. Still waiting to try mine out. Have indicators and jigs matched up and line on. Now just waiting for either ice, or a day off to hit the docks. This warm weather I'm still working like crazy and need Sunday to get stuff done. :-\
I tried mine out at the dock tourney too. First time playing with anything that resembles a palm rod and I have to say I was quite impressed with it. The rod is pretty sensitive (can feel every bite) and easy to handle. I would say that my success rate with the rod was higher than ice rods in holders (have to lift out of holder to strike). Only caught gills with it, but that's another story. Overall I like the black ops rod. I'm thinking about getting another one soon however wth the 2 rod limit in Ohio I don't see a collection of Palm rods on the horizon.
Andy
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I ordered a couple black ops yesterday. Had to do something to ease the football pain, and to keep up with quackpot! ;D
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The black ops came today! They look pretty nice. Hoping to line them this weekend and get them ready for first ice. I'm looking forward to trying the palm rods. I think they'll be a great first ice bluegill tool! Come on ice!