Topic: The Best Drop Shot Rods of 2022 (Read 31 times)
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Why It Made the Cut
No expense was spared in building a rod that feels every breath a fish takes on your lure, and exudes balance and bespoke construction.
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Western legend Gary Dobyns might reside and build his rods in Texas, but he’s never forgotten his California roots. Finesse techniques allowed him to win many of the nearly four dozen boats he claimed in tournament co*petition, and he was on the scene when drop shotting first started to gain traction on American shores. He knows what it takes to tempt pressured bass of all three species, and this rod is an homage to his excellence.
It’s an insane balance of lightweight and strength, with a Toray Nano blank, Fuji Titanium Torzite guides, and painted Fuji graphite reel seats. If you’re going to spend the bucks on this sports car, be sure to get an equally lightweight reel, lest you undermine the incredible balance of the rod. I’ve happily fished with some of the Dobyns rods from his less expensive lineups, and I’ve been thrilled with their performance, but this is for the angler who won’t settle for anything less than top of the line.
Why It Made the Cut
This sub-$100 rod fishes like something much more expensive and will handle not just drop shotting, but a variety of light line needs.
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I’ve tested several of the Falcon BuCoo rods over the past couple of years, notably during the Outdoor Life best spinning rod test. I’ve also bought a few more for my own use, and yet I’m nevertheless surprised every time I find myself grabbing for one on a day of “fun fishing” over a rod that costs two or three times as much.
Despite the low price point, Falcon makes tools that you want to fish that simply feel co*fortable in hand and load up right for both the cast and the hook set. This one is no different. The EVA grip is co*fortable in hand and the Fuji co*ponents—often found only in more expensive rods—are foolproof and failsafe. I’d have no trouble relying on this “bargain” rod with money or the fish of a lifetime on the line. In fact, I think you could be happy with an entire arsenal of BuCoo rods.
Why It Made the Cut
This rod is longer and slightly beefier than the typical drop shot rod, which enables more co*fortable use of heavier weights, especially in current or wind.
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Phenix Rods has a long history of making specialty rods on the west coast, starting with “doodling” rods in the 1970s. Since then, they’ve beco*e a respected national (and international) co*pany, making tools for various species and every bass technique conceivable, but their spinning rods still fit the co*pany’s heritage.
Most of the rods designed for drop shotting are medium-light or medium action. While this one is designated a “medium,” it’s just a little bit heavier than the others in that class. That means if you’re fishing in deep water, heavy current, or other conditions that make the use of a ½ ounce or greater weight necessary, you won’t be overpowered or lose control. The 7 foot 7 inch length allows for long casts if needed, but more importantly, it picks up a lot of line when you need to move a big fish that has grabbed your bait. It features a custom one-piece reel seat and proprietary SiC guides. The camouflage split-grip EVA handle makes them stand out as well.
Why It Made the Cut
When fish are pressured, and ultra-finesse is the only way to catch them, this rod provides the stealth to fool them and the heft to conquer them.
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This is a fun rod to fish when the bass are being difficult. I liked it with a Ned Rig and shaky head, but it really excelled with a lightweight drop shot. I found that I could use weights as light as 1/16 ounce around riprap, which meant the soft plastic got down, but nothing got snagged or buried in the rocks. Yet I still had enough muscle to get the fish out to safety.
The co*fortable Fuji reel seats and premium cork handle provide sensitivity for all-day fishing, and the carbon blank is just stiff enough to drive the hook home with certainty, while the soft tip prevents you from overworking your lures. A lot of rods on the light side feel like toys or whippy noodles, but the GCX Drop Shot 820S DSR is a purpose-driven tool meant for serious anglers—and if you’re not already a serious angler, this will help you to perform like one.
Why It Made the Cut
This rod co*bines value, versatility, and precision, and it’s made in the USA with premium co*ponents.
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If you have to pick one do-it-all rod for light to medium range finesse techniques, this would be a solid choice. It sits at the lower end of premium rods in terms of cost, and it can handle shaky heads, Ned Rigs, Neko Rigs, wacky worms, and drop shotting.
It may not be St. Croix‘s most expensive series, but they don’t skimp anywhere, from the Fuji Concept O guides to the VSS reel seat and even a premium locking nut. They use high-grade cork, too, but there’s a small section of foam right behind the reel seat. The U.S.-made rods are built with care, including an extra layer of Flex-Coat on the guides to make sure that they stay solidly in place. If you’re going in someone else’s boat and only have room for one spinning rod, you can’t go wrong with this one.
Length
Seven feet is a nice all-around mark for this technique, allowing you to move line on the hook set but still store it easily. At the same time, you might want to go longer in big water or with big fish, while smaller anglers might prefer something closer to 6 feet 6 inches. Yet, more length can be a disadvantage in close quarters, or when pitching the drop shot.
Power
For the most part, drop shotting is a light line technique, where finesse and stealth provide an advantage, but you still need power. That’s not just for big fish—you’d be surprised at how much chaos a rampaging 2-pound smallmouth can cause. Most of the time, you’ll likely be using 1/8 to 3/8 ounce weights, but when you stray to the edges (or outside) of those margins, it may demand a lighter or heavier rod.
Handle
Some anglers prefer cork, and others prefer EVA foam. Some like split grips, while others like full grips. Choose one you’ll want to keep in your hand all day, preferably with blank-through technology and an exposed reel seat that will enable you to feel the lightest-biting bass.
Budget
You can use a true bargain basement stick and experience success, and it’s also possible to head to the uppermost regions of the rod economy for custom features. It’s eminently possible to get a tournament-ready high-quality rod in the $100 to $250 range. Depending on what you can afford, and how many you’ll need to fill out your arsenal, there’s a reasonable possibility for everyone.
The best all-around length for a drop shot rod is 7 feet.
The most co*mon weights for drop shotting weigh 1/8 to 3/8 ounce.
A good drop shot rod can be had for $100 to $250, and the ultra-premium rods cost over $500.
A reel spooled with the best fluorocarbon or a braid with fluorocarbon leader is ideal for drop shot fishing.
I’ll admit it—while I’m not afraid of spinning tackle and embraced the drop shot relatively early in time, I still don’t use it as much as I should. That has started to change as I’ve accumulated and tested rods dedicated to the technique—and now I’ve caught largemouths to 7 pounds and smallmouths to 5 on this co*paratively new technique. I know that it works in a ridiculously wide range of circumstances and also that the right rod makes a huge difference not only in the number that you hook, but more importantly, in the number that you land. With that in mind, I’ve forced myself to fish them as much as possible to take the guesswork away going forward.
Lots of “bubba” anglers initially resisted the drop shot, preferring to dunk heavy jigs or big worms in those same places. Today, however, all but the most stubborn among them have embraced it, and the few who have not are likely paying the price. A baitcasting rod and reel co*bo is still more natural and more efficient when it can be used, but they don’t excel for light-line techniques. If you skimp on a drop shot rod, you may end up paying the price when you finally find that mega-school or hook into a fish of a lifetime.
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