Non-Fly Bait casting setup for smallmouth on Snake?

Dogsnfish · Feb 8, 2024

I have started fishing a lot on the reservoirs behind the four Snake River dams when I cannot make it to my favorite trout or steelhead waters. I have a boat and bring along both fly and spinning gear, but want to get a bait casting setup. Looking for some advice on recommended baitcasting rods and reels. Retirement is in sight, so willing to spend some funds on something that will last as my money won't once I do retire! Mainly fishing with crankbaits and spinnerbaits right now, but learning new things all of the time. Already have several spinning rods for lighter stuff.

Little Fork · Feb 8, 2024

Dogsnfish said:
I have started fishing a lot on the reservoirs behind the four Snake River dams when I cannot make it to my favorite trout or steelhead waters. I have a boat and bring along both fly and spinning gear, but want to get a bait casting setup. Looking for some advice on recommended baitcasting rods and reels. Retirement is in sight, so willing to spend some funds on something that will last as my money won't once I do retire! Mainly fishing with crankbaits and spinnerbaits right now, but learning new things all of the time. Already have several spinning rods for lighter stuff.

I have a Lamiglas SI 723 C paired with a Shimano Curado 150 that I adore. It’s expensive but an absolute joy to cast and fish with anything from unweighted plastics to heavier top water lures.

Josh · Feb 8, 2024

I'm a huge fan of Ned Rigs for smallies. That said, I don't know much about fishing for them in rivers. And they do require a spinning rod.

As far as good value but high quality casting gear for bass, a Shimano SLX rod/reel combo is hard to beat for the money.

CaddisSunset · Feb 10, 2024

I’ll second the Ned rigs in th snake, can’t keep the smallies off of those! I’ve had good luck fishing a chatter bait like a Ned rig for larger fish out there too… both are easier to fish with spinning gear for me.

Westcoast · Feb 10, 2024

If you’re looking for a casting set up for throwing a variety of baits, I would go for one of the MB rods from loomis. The 843MB is a fantastic rod that can do a lot of things and do them well. Pair that up with a Shimano bantam or metanium and you will have a set up that you’ll never need to upgrade.

mcswny · Feb 10, 2024

@Tom Butler don’t you and your son fish for smallies in the Snake?

Rob Allen · Feb 10, 2024

Josh said:
I'm a huge fan of Ned Rigs for smallies. That said, I don't know much about fishing for them in rivers. And they do require a spinning rod.

As far as good value but high quality casting gear for bass, a Shimano SLX rod/reel combo is hard to beat for the money.

I agree the SLX is a good value. Enough quality and variety and price is reasonable.

Just my opinion but stick with Shimano or diawa.

Tom Butler · Feb 10, 2024

mcswny said:
@Tom Butler don’t you and your son fish for smallies in the Snake?

We do. I fish a Pfluger President spin outfit, so I've been following along. My son fishes bait casters, I think his current is a Shimano something. He says, "Dad, spend the money and get the fancy brake and all the bells and whistles".

Dogsnfish · Feb 12, 2024

CaddisSunset said:
I’ll second the Ned rigs in th snake, can’t keep the smallies off of those! I’ve had good luck fishing a chatter bait like a Ned rig for larger fish out there too… both are easier to fish with spinning gear for me.

Thanks! I have a few older spinning setups from Bass Pro from when I spent time in NW Arkansas back in the 90's. One of those (I hope) will work for Ned rigs. I have been mixing my gear and fly stuff above and below Lower Granite on the Snake since I bought a boat a couple of years ago, but going to focus more on just figuring the fish out, so going to hit the spinning and casting gear more this year.

Dogsnfish · Feb 20, 2024

Westcoast said:
If you’re looking for a casting set up for throwing a variety of baits, I would go for one of the MB rods from loomis. The 843MB is a fantastic rod that can do a lot of things and do them well. Pair that up with a Shimano bantam or metanium and you will have a set up that you’ll never need to upgrade.

I really like my Loomis fly rods. Will look into these, just because they are also local.

rattlesnake · Feb 22, 2024

I’m a big fan of st croix… their current legend tournament series is really great. A legend elite is really nice too but not sure the price jump is worth it, and the next lower series, avid, are also really nice. So between those 3 I’d highly recommend them - both in spinning and casting rods (depends on what you’re fishing with them, I’d recommend different sizes for a few techniques). I mostly smallmouth river fish and usually take fly, casting and spinning on the boat depending on the time of year.

As for good casting reels, shimano curado dc is nice. And generally recommend mid to higher end shimano for the quality anyway.

Coach Potter · Mar 8, 2024

This was my world for a long time...I still have 20 baitcasting rods and reels. IMO the type of rod and reel is WAY more important than the brand. A top-notch rod/reel used for the wrong application is the same as having crappy gear.

A crankbait rod isn't going to handle spinnerbaits very well. Also, the ideal reel for crank bait fishing will have a different gear ratio than the ideal gear ratio you would want for spinner baits.

A good crankbait rod should be a slower action rod with a bigger parabolic bend or curve. Crankbaits put a lot of bend in a rod and the way fish eat a crankbait makes it necessary for the rod to be forgiving on the strike, so you don't rip those trebles through the fish's mouth. Lots of guys prefer glass over graphite for that reason.

When it comes to a reel, I always liked a 5.3:1 gear ratio for cranking. Crank baits need to be retrieved a little slower than a spinner bait and a slower geared reel allows you to turn the crank at the same speed as you would a 6.4:1 or 7.3:1 reel while getting the desired retrieval speed. The right crank bait rod could serve as a rattle trap rod as well a swim jig rod.

A spinner bait rod should be a heavier rod and faster action. The ideal reel will be a 6.4:1 or 7.3:1 reel. Spinner baits will be fished more around heavy cover and their giant hook doesn't pull out like a smaller treble will. A spinner bait is also going to be heavier than a crank bait, most of the time, so a heavier rod with a faster action is better for casting.

When you get a spinner bait bite, often times you need to move that fish away from cover fast which will require a powerful rod and a reel that can pick up line fast. In addition, most of the time you are retrieving a spinner bait at a faster pace than a crank bait, so a faster reel is better.

A good spinner bait set up can double as a jig rod, texas rig pitching rod and in some cases a decent buzz bait, spook, or other top water bait rod.

Be careful...its' pretty easy to end up with 40 rods/reels and find yourself in a tournament circuit one day.... it's a slippery slope and hard to recover from

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John Svahn · Apr 9, 2024

Hi, this thread got me thinking as I would like to not have a zillion rods but would like to re-add a baitcaster to my quiver. For mostly smallies with occasional largemouth and maybe a schoolie striper, should I get a rod that throws 1/4-3/4 oz or bump up to a rod that throws up to an ounce?

O' Clarkii Stomias · Apr 10, 2024

John Svahn said:
Hi, this thread got me thinking as I would like to not have a zillion rods but would like to re-add a baitcaster to my quiver. For mostly smallies with occasional largemouth and maybe a schoolie striper, should I get a rod that throws 1/4-3/4 oz or bump up to a rod that throws up to an ounce?

My go to rod for all the above is a Loomis GL2 6'-6" for 1/4-3/4 oz. My preferred method fo fishing smallies is finessing jig heads, and the lighter rating is helpful for that. It also has enough backbone to throw decent size top water and crank baits too.