Does anyone own the TW chatterbait rod? Curious as to your thoughts on it. Is it stupid/cumbersome heavy in weight?
I'm actually looking at it for Ploppers. Currently I'm using an old, wore out 7'2" MH Seeker S-Glass along with braid, but unfortunately the finish has come off a 1/3 of the rod and I wish it had just a touch more backbone at times.
The Daiwa/TW rod looks nice with the full handle and it should be the perfect length for what I want, but afraid it might be a chore to fish with if it's too heavy.
TW/Daiwa chatterbait rod
- KlingerNOK
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Re: TW/Daiwa chatterbait rod
If it's anything like the Tatula 721MHRB it's a killer chatterbait, swimbait, squarebill/mid crank, and yes, topwater rod. I love it for any topwater that you don't have to walk, like ploppers, pompadours, the megabass i-loud, the jackall Mikey, etc. It's okay for spooks and what-not, too, but I prefer a stiffer carbon rod for that. You can even use it for deep cranking baits like the duo g87, though something with a longer handle is better. I always use braid with it. Stretchy lines like fluorocarbon will result in missed fish on single hook baits in my experience. It's just not compatible with the sweeping hookset I use for such baits, but with braid I hardly ever miss anything with that rod, regardless of bait.
It is pretty tip heavy, which is partly why I don't like using it to work walkers, but it's light overall for a glass rod, so I have no problem using it for hours on end. And because the glass loads so easily it launches baits with minimal effort. It's also surprisingly sensitive, which really helps with knowing if whether your spinners are spinning and whether your crank bait is fouled. You can also easily tell the difference between a bite and contact with weeds or structure when fishing swim jigs. Lastly, as far as sensitivity goes, when fishing at night you won't miss many blowups because even if you can't see your bait, you'll feel the strike. Then, because of the buttery soft action, the fish will take the bait deeper without feeling much resistance before the big time backbone drives the hook(s) home. It has plenty of power for pulling fish out of vegetation, too.
Cal did a pretty good review of it, and I'm sure the DX rod will share many of the same attributes, so that may be worth a read.
It is pretty tip heavy, which is partly why I don't like using it to work walkers, but it's light overall for a glass rod, so I have no problem using it for hours on end. And because the glass loads so easily it launches baits with minimal effort. It's also surprisingly sensitive, which really helps with knowing if whether your spinners are spinning and whether your crank bait is fouled. You can also easily tell the difference between a bite and contact with weeds or structure when fishing swim jigs. Lastly, as far as sensitivity goes, when fishing at night you won't miss many blowups because even if you can't see your bait, you'll feel the strike. Then, because of the buttery soft action, the fish will take the bait deeper without feeling much resistance before the big time backbone drives the hook(s) home. It has plenty of power for pulling fish out of vegetation, too.
Cal did a pretty good review of it, and I'm sure the DX rod will share many of the same attributes, so that may be worth a read.
This is the way.
- KlingerNOK
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Re: TW/Daiwa chatterbait rod
Yea, I have the 7'2"MH glass Tat also, along with the 7'7"M-G. They are noticeably heavier than my Seeker & Lamiglas glass rods, but I do like their actions. I'm thinking the full grip would balance the TW rod better, but I'd hate to buy one and find out out it weighs 6.5- 7oz.
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Re: TW/Daiwa chatterbait rod
My 721 weighs 5.3 and the 771 weighs 5.8. I don't think you could expect much lighter than that. The 8' Zillion is 8 ounces even, but it's a total beast and has glass the full length of the rod. They're all tip heavy, but not terribly so. Like I said, they don't bother me in the least, especially considering their advantages. As for the grip, cork weighs nothing, so I don't think that will make much difference. Even the difference between a 6 oz and 10 oz reel is marginal on most rods in my experience.
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